Paramount president Jeff Shell negotiates exit after accusations of leaking secrets: report

Paramount Skydance President Jeff Shell is reportedly negotiating his exit after being accused in a bombshell lawsuit by a high-stakes gambler and self-described fixer of leaking confidential corporate information.Shell is in talks about his departure after less than a year on the job, which he landed following Paramount’s merger with Skydance, the Status newsletter reported.The potential exit would mark another blow for the former NBCUniversal boss, who was fired in 2023 after an internal investigation found he had an inappropriate relationship with a subordinate, then-CNBC anchor Hadley Gamble.Shell’s troubles with his current employer went into overdrive after RJ Cipriani, a Santa Monica, Calif.-based gambler, filed a lawsuit against him alleging that he leaked confidential, market-moving corporate information and reneged on a deal for months of unpaid crisis communications work.Shell has denied wrongdoing, and his legal team has blasted the claims as false and defamatory.The litigation is ongoing, and the allegations have not been proven in court.Paramount has launched an internal investigation into the claims, which is expected to wrap up in the coming weeks, according to reports.A source familiar with the situation said Paramount launched an external investigation after the Cipriani allegations surfaced — a process that Jeff Shell himself alerted the company to — and that no final decisions about his future will be made until the probe concludes.The source added that while there have been preliminary discussions about Shell’s role, describing his exit as a done deal would be premature, noting the situation remains fluid pending the findings.Cipriani’s lawyer, Steven Aaronoff, told The Post he does not expect Paramount to outright fire Shell, arguing the company instead may strip him of power.“I don’t think that they’re going to fire Jeff Shell … but I think they will defang him,” Aaronoff said.Aaronoff claimed that removing Shell entirely...