New Miramax Chair Thomas Barrack on Nanula Fallout and New Directions (Q&A)

Thomas Barrack Jr. didn’t have a very restful July 4th weekend. The executive was traveling outside the U.S. while also dealing with the fallout from a sex scandal that led to the exit of Richard Nanula as chairman of Miramax, the film company in which Barrack and Colony are investors. Nanula also resigned as a partner in Colony Capital (part of Colony Financial Inc.), which Barrack founded and still runs as CEO.

On Monday, Barrack added duties as chairman of Miramax, whose primary asset is a library of about 700 movies and TV shows that was purchased from Disney in 2010 for $663 million in a negotiation led by Nanula, the former CFO of Disney. The largest investor is the Qatar Holdings.

STORY: Miramax Names Tom Barrack Chairman

In an exclusive Tuesday interview with The Hollywood Reporter, conducted via e-mail, Barrack revealed that he plans to take a hands-on role at Miramax, and that the company is actively looking to expand by acquiring more film and TV libraries. He said Miramax also is open to acquiring or merging with other independent movie companies.

The Hollywood Reporter: Now that you are chairman of Miramax, in addition to all your other duties at Colony Capital, do you plan to take an active role at the movie company? How long do you envision having this role?

Thomas Barrack Jr.: I will absolutely take a hands-on role at Miramax.

THR: What does that mean? Do you envision any changes at Miramax now that you are chairman?

Barrack: We will continue to execute on the business plan, which has not changed. The management has surgically executed the harvesting operation on 700+ Miramax films that were basically untouched when we acquired the company, and that has been the primary business plan: taking advantage of the available [titles for license]. Stage two is looking for other film libraries to acquire, starting independent television and film production in a judicious manner, and looking for M&A opportunities with other independent movie companies or other entities that fit with the Miramax model.

THR: Has the Miramax library now been sold worldwide or is there still a lot to be done?

Barrack: This is just the beginning. However, we have increased the sales of available [titles] exponentially since our acquisition in a variety of mediums.

PHOTOS: Leslie Moonves, David Zaslav, Robert Iger: 10 Highly-Paid Entertainment CEOs

THR: There is a perception, rightly or wrongly, that the Miramax acquisition has not worked out as hoped and has not produced as much revenue as expected. Can you comment on that speculation?

Barrack: Miramax was, is and continues to be a fantastic investment and exceeded our expectations. Miramax is one of the best returns on equity investments that Colony has made in the last decade.

THR: Can you provide any revenue, profit or cash flow numbers for Miramax to show how it is doing?

Barrack: Miramax is a private company, so we don’t provide such information other than that it is extremely profitable, well beyond our expectations.

THR: Is Nanula’s departure a setback for Miramax or Colony, and if so, in what ways? How would you rate Nanula’s performance during his time at Miramax and Colony?

Barrack: This is a personal matter for Richard and unrelated to Miramax. We have a policy on not commenting on past employees or executives. Richard did an excellent job at managing his business duties.

THR: Miramax has not had a CEO since Mike Lang left last March. Are you actively searching for a new CEO, or are you satisfied with the team that is currently in place?

Barrack: Miramax is being run by an independent team of professionals led by Steve Schoch, in whom we have the utmost confidence.

THR: Are you interested in acquiring any more film/TV libraries or making an acquisition of another company to combine with Miramax?

Barrack: Yes. Stage two of the Miramax business plan includes looking for other film libraries to acquire and looking for M&A opportunities with other independent movie companies or other entities that fit with the Miramax model. This is in addition to starting independent television and film production in a judicious manner.

Richard Nanula Officially Out at Colony, Miramax

Richard Nanula is no longer on personal leave from Colony Capital, Miramax and other related companies. He has now completely severed his ties with the international investment bank, where he was a partner, and the movie company, where he was chairman, a spokesperson for Colony Capital confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter on Sunday.

Nanula, who was once chief financial officer of the Walt Disney Co., has recently been linked to a growing sex scandal. It began when pictures were published about three weeks ago on the website The Dirty (and later elsewhere) of a man believed to be Nanula playing the male lead in a porn movie with adult-film actress Samantha Saint.

PHOTOS: Leslie Moonves, David Zaslav, Robert Iger: 10 Highly-Paid Entertainment CEOs

Nanula has not responded to THR's request for comment.

It appears Nanula’s expensive sex addiction has a long history. On Sunday, the New York Post reported that around 1999, when Nanula was working for Amgen, he attended a sex-addiction therapy program at the Hoffman Institute in San Rafael, Calif., according to a 2005 divorce filing.

This story of his sex addiction was told in the divorce case involving his then-wife, Tracey Nanula. She said she had forced her husband to enter sex therapy after she found he had spent as much as $10,000 on a prostitute. She says he first learned the truth in 2001 from credit card bills and checks paid to escorts. Tracey had met her husband when both worked at Disney.

This comes only a week after revelations that Nanula was sued in a sex harassment suit filed against him personally and against Colony Capital on Jan. 30.

The suit was filed in L.A. Superior Court by Stephanie Shaw, who says she started as a temp at Colony Capital in February 2011. She was made a permanent employee in June and then the following Jan. 30, she says she was groped and sexually harassed by a male employee.

Nanula was her supervisor, and she charges he did not help her and that after she went public with her complaint, Nanula created a hostile work environment and is to blame for what she calls her wrongful termination.

PHOTOS: Hollywood's Memorable Mea Culpas

On Sunday, the New York Post reported that Ronald Tutor, the CEO of Tutor Perini construction, which recently won the contract to build the first leg of California’s high-speed rail system, is still an owner of Miramax along with Colony, its principal Thomas Barrack, the Qatar Investment Authority and The Weinstein Co.

That is incorrect.

Tutor, who also is involved in several federal and state lawsuits and a bankruptcy in association with his former business partner David Bergstein, sold his interest in Miramax in January. Tutor apparently continues to try and reduce his movie business interests.

Miramax is left with no chairman with Nanula gone and no CEO (since Mike Lang left in March 2012), but it has hired a corps of veteran executives to run the divisions charged with continuing to monetize the Miramax film library. That asset was acquired in December 2010 from Disney.

The buyers at the time included Barrack, individually and on behalf of Colony Capital, along with Ronald Tutor and, putting up the largest amount in the high-leveraged deal, Qatar Investment Authority. The joint venture, then called Filmyard Holdings, paid Disney $663 million.