Sony Pictures Entertainment has appointed Tahra Grant as its Chief Communications Officer. She replaces Robert Lawson, who will relocate to the company’s headquarters in Tokyo, Japan, as SVP of Corporate Communications for the entire Sony Group.
Grant becomes the first Black woman to hold the title of Chief Communications Officer at a major Hollywood studio, according to Afrotech. Additionally, she is the only Black woman to hold the position at a major studio among the stars.
Grant will report to the CEO of Sony Pictures Entertainment Tony Vinciquerra after previously overseeing corporate communications for the studio’s Motion Picture Group, a position she has held for the last eight years.
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Grant joined the studio in 2016, and since then, she has “streamlined and sharpened corp comm ops, handling crisis and issues with def skills during Covid and the double strikes, before and after,” a release cited by Afrotech said.
“With her strong relationships and partnership with Tom Rothman [film chief] and our MPG leadership, Tahra has strengthened the narrative around the vitality, sustainability, and forward-looking strategies of our motion picture business while navigating some of the most complicated industry events of our time, including the COVID pandemic and the historic double strikes last year,” said Vinciquerra in an official letter to employees.
“Tahra and Bob will continue to work closely together in their new roles, creating more opportunities for Sony Group Corporation and Sony Pictures Entertainment to align and collaborate at a time when Sony’s entertainment companies are becoming an even greater part of SGC’s overall business,” continued the letter.
Grant advanced to the position of SVP of Media Relations in her first year at the studio, and her knowledge of the industry keeps growing. She has worked on several Sony film projects, including Little Women, Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse, The Woman King, and more, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
Prior to joining Sony, Grant worked at Rubenstein Communications, a New York-based PR firm. At Rubenstein, she represented such clients as Tribeca Film Festival, Tribeca Enterprises, the Metropolitan Opera, and the Hunger Games franchise, the Hollywood Reporter noted.
