MUMBAI: Disney eastern division sales vice president Frank Patterson has exited the studio after 17 years, online news publication Deadline reported.

Patterson is a second-generation theatrical distribution veteran; his father Frank Patterson Sr was the longtime EVP and head film buyer at Loews Theaters. He is highly respected in the theatrical business.

Patterson’s departure comes at a time when Disney’s theatrical business is weathering the adverse impact of the Covid2019 pandemic. Almost a year after the outbreak of the deadly virus, most cinemas remain shut or have reported desultory footfalls, prompting the studio to increasingly divert its focus towards Disney+. While Disney CEO Bob Chapek intends to release Marvel’s Black Widow in theatres, it won’t be a shocker if that movie’s current release date of 7 May is further postponed.

During Patterson’s 17 year long stint at Disney, he was part of the team that executed the studio’s distribution strategy for all major titles including Marvel, Lucasfilm, Pixar, etc. It was his overall strategy that led Disney to an industry domestic record of $3.7 billion in 2019, propelled by Avengers: Endgame ($858.3 million), The Lion King ($543.6 million), Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker ($515.2 million) among many other franchise titles, as well as setting previous $3 billion annual domestic box office records two previous times including 2018.

Patterson’s theatrical distribution career at Disney also includes six years at Miramax, where he was involved in booking such Oscar-winning movies as Chicago, No Country For Old Men, The Queen, as well as Sin City and Kill Bill 2. Patterson was also with Artisan, where he worked on the $140.5 million-domestic grossing hit The Blair Witch Project, as well as Savoy Pictures and Paramount Pictures.