First Look president Maria Zuckerman exits after less than year in role

Maria Zuckerman

Maria Zuckerman is stepping down as president of First Look Media-owned US prodco Topic Studios after less than a year in the role.

Zuckerman was promoted to president in July 2021, after joining the producer as EVP and head of Topic Studios in 2019.

During her tenure, she oversaw overall strategy for the company, including development, production and financing across TV, films and podcasts. Under her leadership, the company launched series including 100 Foot Wave and Nuclear Family for HBO.

Prior to Topic, Zuckerman spent almost two decades at HBO, latterly as SVP of HBO Films, where she oversaw the development and production of original movies for the company.

She reported to Topic CEO Michael Bloom, who said that during her time as president, Zuckerman and the studio team had “accelerated Topic Studios’ growth into a world-class independent studio, attracting stellar talent, exciting voices and spearheading award-winning films, documentaries, series, and podcasts.”

The news was first reported by Deadline.