What does an “executive producer” do?

[Anonymous]

And how does an “executive producer” differ from a “producer”? I know that when a movie wins the Best Picture Oscar, the producers get to come up on stage and take the trophy and make a speech. As I understand it, they are writing the checks and paying for everything, right? But what about the executive producers? Do they have creative control? When the movie promo says “from executive producer Steven Spielberg” does that mean that he got some input creatively? I always assumed the director had complete creative control. Can anyone in the business sort this out for me?

[Anonymous]

No the director doesn't have compete creative control hahaha

EPs usually put in a lot of money in exchange for credit. Some of them do work too. Then they usually also get producer credit

[Anonymous]

They are also responsible for getting others to invest in a movie to fund it. The better A-lister in the movie, the easier it is to raise the money.

[Anonymous]

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No the director doesn't have compete creative control hahaha

EPs usually put in a lot of money in exchange for credit. Some of them do work too. Then they usually also get producer credit

So when the advertisement says that Steven Spielberg or George Lucas is the executive producer, should I get excited? Or is it kind of meaningless to me as the viewer?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No the director doesn't have compete creative control hahaha

EPs usually put in a lot of money in exchange for credit. Some of them do work too. Then they usually also get producer credit

So when the advertisement says that Steven Spielberg or George Lucas is the executive producer, should I get excited? Or is it kind of meaningless to me as the viewer?

TBH if they have no other role than EP, it's kind of a red flag

[Anonymous]

I thought Executive Producers were called Showrunners these days? That term makes me cringe for some reason, but nonetheless…

[Anonymous]

Seems like the big stars all get producer credits now and I have no idea what that means. They earn more money or they put money in or have more control?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Seems like the big stars all get producer credits now and I have no idea what that means. They earn more money or they put money in or have more control?

OP here. I get it if a star wants to put money into a movie for a share of the profits, or just because it sounds interesting to him/her and they want to see it get made. But should I as the viewer care when the movie promotes the fact that Tom Hanks was the executive producer? Because it seems like they do this a lot.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Seems like the big stars all get producer credits now and I have no idea what that means. They earn more money or they put money in or have more control?

OP here. I get it if a star wants to put money into a movie for a share of the profits, or just because it sounds interesting to him/her and they want to see it get made. But should I as the viewer care when the movie promotes the fact that Tom Hanks was the executive producer? Because it seems like they do this a lot.

Oh and one more thing. It seems like the stars are always executive producers, never producers, even though I’m sure someone like Tom Hanks could easily afford to finance a mid-budget movie by himself. Why not be the producer so that you get to be the one to collect the trophy if your movie wins an Oscar?

[Anonymous]

Executive producer is the producer, the CEO of the project. They are responsible for making the production happen -- organizing funding and budget, hiring, logistics. Everyone works for them. Every other "producer" is either a delegatee or assistant in that function, or just someone the production owes a favor to.

Most cast and crew credits are regulated by unions, but the executive producer can name anyone as a "producer".

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No the director doesn't have compete creative control hahaha

EPs usually put in a lot of money in exchange for credit. Some of them do work too. Then they usually also get producer credit

So when the advertisement says that Steven Spielberg or George Lucas is the executive producer, should I get excited? Or is it kind of meaningless to me as the viewer?

They are endorsing the project, staking some of their reputation on the outcome.

So Spielberg should excite you, but Lucas should make you scream and flee.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:And how does an “executive producer” differ from a “producer”? I know that when a movie wins the Best Picture Oscar, the producers get to come up on stage and take the trophy and make a speech. As I understand it, they are writing the checks and paying for everything, right? But what about the executive producers? Do they have creative control? When the movie promo says “from executive producer Steven Spielberg” does that mean that he got some input creatively? I always assumed the director had complete creative control. Can anyone in the business sort this out for me?

Who has creative control at the job?

If you are on a professional role of any kind, there is a lot of negotiation and power dynamics. The higher ups have official summary yes/no power, but lower downs determine all the details andncan threaten to quit or ignore or undermine the decisions.

[Anonymous]

From Masterclass:

"The executive producer may find a script or a book to option first and then hire the producer to execute the project.

A producer may already be working on a script with a writer and will reach out to an executive producer to finance the project.

The producer answers to the executive producer about the film’s budget.

The executive producer does not get involved with the day-to-day of a production like a producer does.

https://www.masterclass.com/articles/what-is-an-executive-producer-whats-the-difference-between-an-executive-producer-and-producer#2lzjMq6N8okkfwKGmSEyMj

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:And how does an “executive producer” differ from a “producer”? I know that when a movie wins the Best Picture Oscar, the producers get to come up on stage and take the trophy and make a speech. As I understand it, they are writing the checks and paying for everything, right? But what about the executive producers? Do they have creative control? When the movie promo says “from executive producer Steven Spielberg” does that mean that he got some input creatively? I always assumed the director had complete creative control. Can anyone in the business sort this out for me?

Thanks for asking this. I wondered about this, too.