Searchlight Marketing Chief Hooper Leaves

Michelle Hooper is exiting her post as executive vice president of marketing at Searchlight Pictures.

Hooper spent 20 years with the studio, a period that produced nearly 200 Oscar nominations and more than 130 Golden Globe nominations. Searchlight converted 49 of those Academy nominations into wins, including best picture awards for “Nomadland,” “The Shape of Water,” “Birdman,” “12 Years a Slave” and “Slumdog Millionaire.” The studio also earned best picture nods at the Golden Globes for those five titles plus 15 others.

Her most recent work centered on the current awards season, where she directed campaigns for “Wild Horse Nine” and “Behemonth!” alongside other releases. A longtime colleague described Hooper as a stellar leader who could read a film’s place in the zeitgeist to set her team up for success. That colleague also noted Hooper’s ability to close campaigns by listening to real-time feedback, calling her departure a loss for the studio and a gain for another.

Before joining Searchlight in 2006, Hooper built her career in television publicity. She served as director of entertainment communications at CBS Entertainment, where she helped shape the publicity strategy for “Survivor.” She also spent four years as VP of entertainment publicity at Fox Broadcast, working on campaigns for “The Simpsons,” “Arrested Development” and “American Idol.”

Variety included Hooper in its 2025 Women’s Impact Report alongside Searchlight executives Rebecca Kearey, DanTram Nguyen and Katie Goodson. The publication credited the team’s marketing efforts with driving 10 Academy Award nominations for “A Complete Unknown” and “A Real Pain.” That slate included a best supporting actor win for Kieran Culkin in the Jesse Eisenberg film.

In a joint statement, the marketing team explained that Searchlight’s adventurous choices and deep filmmaker relationships allow the company to weather industry challenges. They stated that the studio trusts audiences still want films that entertain, challenge and provoke.