Ari Emanuel | |
|---|---|
_(2).jpg) Emanuel in 2016 | |
| Born | Ariel Zev Parmar Emanuel (1961-03-29)March 29, 1961 (age 64)[1] Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| Education | Macalester College (BA) |
| Occupation | Businessman |
| Years active | 2007–present |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | [1] |
| Children | 5 |
| Relatives | Rahm Emanuel (brother) Ezekiel Emanuel (brother) |
Ariel Zev Parmar Emanuel (born March 29, 1961) is an American businessman and the CEO ofEndeavor, an entertainment andmedia agency, as well as CEO andexecutive chairman ofTKO Group Holdings, which owns theUFC andWWE.[2] He was a founding partner of theEndeavor Talent Agency and was instrumental in shaping its June 2009 merger with theWilliam Morris Agency.[3]
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Born to aJewish family,[4] Emanuel was raised in suburbanWilmette, Illinois. Emanuel is the brother of formermayor of Chicago, Presidential Chief of Staff andU.S. Ambassador to JapanRahm Emanuel, American oncologist and bioethicistEzekiel Emanuel, and sister Shoshana Emanuel (who was adopted). His father,Jerusalem-born Benjamin M. Emanuel, was a pediatrician who was active in theIrgun inMandatory Palestine.[5][6] His mother, Marsha Emanuel (née Smulevitz), was acivil rights activist, and the one-time owner of a Chicago-arearock and roll club.[7] During his third grade at school, Ari was diagnosed withADHD anddyslexia.[8] To supplement instruction at school, his mother spent many hours helping him to learn to read. She hired tutors and private instructors to give him private reading lessons at home.[7][9] Emanuel attendedNew Trier High School and graduated fromMacalester College in 1983.[7][1]
In his early career, Emanuel worked as an assistant to New York talent agent Robert Lantz and then as a trainee atCreative Artists Agency in Hollywood.[10][1] Prior to founding Endeavor, Emanuel was a partner at InterTalent and senior agent atICM Partners (ICM). Emanuel has served as a member ofLive Nation Entertainment board of directors since September 2007.[11]
Emanuel has been described as a mogul and power player in Hollywood.[12][13] Emanuel andPatrick Whitesell, the co-CEO of WME, have both been named toFortune's Businessperson of the Year list.[14][15] In a May 2013 article on Emanuel,Fortune called him "one of the biggest guns in the consolidating entertainment business".[16]
Emanuel's relationships with his clients, coupled with his stature in the industry, has led to various homages and parodies over the years, includingBob Odenkirk's character Stevie Grant onThe Larry Sanders Show, andAri Gold, played byJeremy Piven on the HBO television showEntourage.[17][18]
In April 2002 agent Sandra Epstein and other Endeavor employees sued Ari Emanuel on allegations that a pornographic website was operated out of Endeavor's offices and that Emanuel made racist and anti-gay remarks.[19] Emanuel disputed these accusations at the time. Emanuel settled Epstein's claims for $2.25 million.[19]
In 2011, Emanuel co-founded TheAudience withSean Parker andOliver Luckett.[20]
Endeavor went public in 2021, the first Hollywood agency to do so,[18] with Emanuel owning a stake worth around $480 million according toBloomberg.[21] He and Patrick Whitesell are also co-CEO ofIMG, a global sports, events and talent management company headquartered in New York City.[22]
In 2023, Emanuel's total compensation from Endeavor was $83.9 million, up 340% from the previous year and representing a CEO-to-median workerpay ratio of 1,184-to-1 for the company, as well as making Emanuel the seventh highest paid CEO in the US that year.[23] He debuted on theBloomberg Billionaires Index in February 2025 with an estimated net worth of over $1 billion.[24]
In 2025, Emanuel is set to buyFrieze, a global art fair and publishing group, previously owned by Endeavor. The deal is valued at $200 million and is backed by a group of investors includingApollo Global Management andRedBird Capital Partners.[25]
Emanuel has hosted fundraisers for theDemocratic Party.[26] He donated $2,700 toHillary Clinton in the2016 United States presidential election. His long-standing relationship with his former clientDonald Trump is well documented.[27] During the2016 Republican Party presidential primaries, Emanuel offered to produce a movie for Trump which was considered for the2016 Republican National Convention but ultimately was not followed through on.[28]
After the disappearance ofWashington Post journalistJamal Khashoggi on October 2, 2018, and reports that theSaudi hit squad hadassassinated him inside their consulate in Turkey, Emanuel called White House senior adviser and Trump son-in-lawJared Kushner.[29] Emanuel tried to extricate Endeavor from a $400 million deal with the Saudi Arabian government.[30]
In October 2022, Emanuel urged several businesses to stop working with rapperKanye West over his antisemitic comments.[31][32]
Emanuel voiced critical opinions of Israeli prime ministerBenjamin Netanyahu when he was awarded the Humanitarian Prize atSimon Wiesenthal Center's National Tribute Gala. Emanuel called for Netanyahu to step down during his speech, which caused a negative reaction from the audience. He also criticized protesters using the slogan "from the river to the sea" which he claimed was a call forgenocide.[33][34][35]
Emanuel has in the past been active on the board of trustees of P.S. Arts, aLos Angeles, California-basednonprofit organization that works to bring art education programs toSouthern California schools. He has also helped theMuseum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, establish MOCAtv, a dedicatedYouTube art channel. In 2012, he joined the museum'sboard of trustees.[36]
In 1996, Emanuel married girlfriend Sarah Hardwick Addington; they have three sons.[7][37] The couple divorced in 2018.[1] In May 2022, he married fashion designerSarah Staudinger, founder of the Los Angeles label STAUD.[38] Emanuel adopted the daughter of Shoshana, his adopted sister.[39]
He follows a strict vegan diet.[40][41]
They were married in 1996, had three sons, and divorced in 2018... On March 29, 1995—Emanuel's thirty-fourth birthday... After graduating from Macalester College, in 1983, Emanuel...
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