After more than four decades with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, Carol Lombardini is preparing to step down from her role as chief negotiator of labor contracts for Hollywood’s major studios and streamers.
Lombardini had long planned to retire in 2025, AMPTP confirmed. She will remain at the helm while the organization searches for her successor.
“We are incredibly grateful to Carol for her many years of leadership at the AMPTP and wish her all the best in her retirement,” the organization said in a statement. “She has been a consistent and valuable advocate at the bargaining table, strengthening relationships with our union partners every step of the way. We are pleased that Carol will not be going far, as she will continue to serve as president as we continue a full search for her successor, and will then transition to an advisory role as we continue our transition to the next generation of leaders. the AMPTP.”
Lombardini joined AMPTP around the time it was founded in 1982 as a powerful bargaining unit representing all of Hollywood’s major studios. She was promoted to president in 2009 after the death of her longtime leader, Nick Counter.
Lombardini has generally kept a low public profile for most of her career, but she has worked shoulder-to-shoulder with heads of studios, networks and now streamers over the past fifty years. She is respected at the top as a strategist and for her extensive knowledge of precedents and the history of employment contracts in Hollywood.
Last year, Lombardini became a highly visible target of the labor movement’s frustration during last year’s actors’ and writers’ strikes. She was mercilessly attacked and ridiculed on social media and on picket signs.
Lombardini and the AMPTP are poised to end 2024 better than 2023, which was rocked by twin strikes from the Writers Guild of America and SAG-AFTRA. This year, Lombardini has endured months of tough negotiations with IATSE without a work stoppage. She also reached a deal with the American Federation of Musicians in February that fell apart.
The Hollywood Reporter first reported news of Lombardini’s retirement.
There’s more to come