Ex-NBCUniversal CEO In Talks to Join Redbird Capital Partners

Jeff Shell, the former NBCUniversal chief executive who recently left the media company after an investigation into misconduct, is in advanced talks to join private equity firm RedBird Capital Partners as head of its sports and entertainment investment business.

Shell's appointment is expected to be formally announced during the first quarter of next year, according to The Wall Street Journal. A representative for the firm did not immediately respond to The Messenger's request for comment.

In recent years, RedBird has expanded its presence in both the media and sports worlds. The New York-based private equity firm focuses on investments in high-growth companies and owns stakes in production companies Skydance Media and Artists Equity — the studio founded by Ben Affleck and Matt Damon — and at least one casting and audition firm. RedBird has also developed partnerships with several sports leagues — including the NFL — and helped bankroll the YES Network, which televises the New York Yankees.

NBCU parent company Comcast and Shell had jointly announced his departure in April after a complaint of "inappropriate conduct" led to an investigation into his behavior. In a statement at the time, Shell apologized for having an "inappropriate relationship" with a woman in the company.

The former CEO has had an over 20-year relationship with Gerry Cardinale, the former Goldman Sachs partner who founded RedBird Capital in 2014, according to a Journal report on Monday. Shell had been serving as an informal consultant to the firm before talks to take a permanent position began, people familiar with the situation told the outlet.

Disney CEO Bob Iger was in talks to take a similar post at RedBird before Disney's board wooed him back, according to Variety.

Jeff Zucker, who most recently led CNN and was once the chief executive of NBCU, has also taken a job at RedBird. He now heads RedBird IMI, a partnership between the firm and the Abu Dhabi-based media holding company International Media Investments.

The $1 billion joint venture focuses on media, entertainment and sports investment. RedBird IMI last month acquired a minority stake in Front Office Sports in a deal that valued the sports business news startup at $40 million, and has made a bid to buy the right-leaning British newspaper The Daily Telegraph.

Zucker, who resigned from CNN in 2020 after an affair with a colleague was revealed, has reportedly been interested in purchasing his former network.