Amy Pascal May Lose Her Job Over the Sony Email Leaks, But Does She Deserve That?
Amy Pascal was relatively unknown until a few weeks ago. Pascal is certainly powerful. At 56-years-old, Pascal is the Chairman of Sony Pictures Entertainment. According to Deadline Hollywood, Pascal has built her reputation on good taste and strong relationships with the talent she works with. That all ended on November 24, 2014, when hackers broke into the Sony Pictures Entertainment system. Exactly who hacked the Sony Pictures Entertainment system is a mystery, as is why they did it.
The scope of the data stolen is still unknown. What is known is that the data ranged from financial information of employees to emails between Pascal and other Sony Pictures Entertainment executives and talent. Tech website CNET reports that the tidbits of information we have in the wake of the hacking scandal will be of varied interest to film fans. Some of the news will likely shock no one, and probably won’t have a larger effect on how Sony or Pascal do business. Nobody is going to notice that Spectre, the upcoming James Bond film, is $50 million over budget before production has even begun, at least not if the film is a success. Some of the news will baffle, but will ultimately be irrelevant. Nobody wants to see a blockbuster mash up of 22 Jump Street and Men in Black, although some of us may buy a ticket just to see how epic the train wreck is.
The emails between Pascal and other Sony executives and producers are a different case entirely. Through them, the side of Pascal she can’t afford for people in ultra image conscious Hollywood to know has been stripped bare for all to see. It’s this side that made snide comments about Angelina Jolie’s talent, about Kevin Hart’s system of charging for publicity, about the Smith family’s sometimes eccentric lifestyle and habits, about which particular black movie would be President Obama’s favorite.
Amy Pascal’s story should serve as an inspiration for any woman hoping to succeed behind the scenes in the entertainment business. According to Time Magazine, Pascal started her entertainment career as a secretary. She’s worked at 20th Century Fox, Turner Pictures, and Columbia Pictures. Under her leadership, the classic films When Harry Met Sally, Groundhog Day, and A League of Their Own were made. She’s the head of one of the most successful studios in entertainment in an industry still dominated by men. That should be an inspiration.
Instead, Pascal’s story will likely end in termination. Despite Pascal’s public apologies, sources who claim to have knowledge of the situation told the New York Daily News Sony has already decided to fire Pascal, though they didn’t say when the news will be released.
