Casey Wasserman To Sell His Talent Agency Following Epstein Fallout

Casey Wasserman, nan embattled mogul who is nan look of nan Los Angeles 2028 Olympics, is preparing to waste his talent agency, a stunning autumn for a starring fig successful nan world of sports and music.

In a memo to his unit Friday, Wasserman acknowledged his quality successful a precocious released batch of documents related to nan precocious activity trafficker Jeffrey Epstein and his companion and accomplice, Ghislaine Maxwell, had “become a distraction.”

Wasserman wrote successful his memo he was “heartbroken that my little interaction pinch them 23 years agone has caused you, this company, and its clients truthful overmuch hardship complete nan past days and weeks.”

Representatives for Wasserman did not instantly return requests for comment.

“I’m profoundly sorry that my past individual mistakes person caused you truthful overmuch discomfort,” Wasserman wrote to his staff. “It’s not adjacent to you, and it’s not adjacent to nan clients and partners we correspond truthful vigorously and attraction truthful profoundly about.”

Wasserman’s determination to unload nan business he founded much than 2 decades agone represents a singular reversal for nan mogul, who built up 1 of nan astir successful sports and euphony agencies successful Hollywood.

He is 1 of nan first awesome figures successful entertainment to beryllium forced retired complete their Epstein associations aft nan merchandise of a monolithic trove of documents successful precocious January. U.S. Atty. Gen. Pam Bondi sparred pinch lawmakers earlier this week complete nan Justice Department’s handling of nan records, which has go a awesome governmental rumor for nan Trump administration. The ungraded has roiled Washington, pinch continuing demands that nan Justice Department merchandise each documents related to nan Epstein case.

Following successful nan footsteps of his grandfather, Lew Wasserman — a Hollywood titan who transformed nan workplace MCA into a powerhouse that acquired Universal Pictures — Casey launched his talent and trading agency successful 2002.

The timing was fortuitous: Sports media was soaring, and athletes progressively were celebrities.

Wasserman expanded his business done a bid of savvy acquisitions. He built nan company’s euphony section aft buying nan agency Paradigm successful 2021.

To thief finance his company’s accelerated growth, Wasserman brought successful backstage equity patient Providence Equity Partners, which took a liking successful his institution successful 2022.

A twelvemonth later, his agency absorbed nan boutique guidance patient Brillstein Entertainment, which has agelong represented Brad Pitt and Adam Sandler, on pinch its tv accumulation firm, which had accumulation credits connected specified shows arsenic “The Sopranos” and “Just Shoot Me!”

Today, nan Wasserman patient has astir 4,000 labor and a heavy roster of talent. It represents awesome philharmonic acts including Coldplay, Kendrick Lamar, Ed Sheeran and Tyler, nan Creator.

The agency’s sports section represents women’s shot prima Alex Morgan, WNBA players Paige Bueckers, Breanna Stewart and Brittney Griner, NBA subordinate Klay Thompson and swimmer Katie Ledecky.

But Wasserman faced mounting unit from wrong his institution to measurement down pursuing disclosure of nan sexually charged emails pinch Maxwell, who was convicted of activity trafficking successful 2021.

Over nan past 2 weeks, artists including Chappell Roan and athletes specified arsenic shot prima Abby Wambach announced they would leave Wasserman’s eponymous Los Angeles-based talent agency.

“I cognize what I know, and I americium pursuing my gut and my values,” Wambach wrote connected Instagram. “I will not participate successful immoderate business statement nether his leadership… He should leave, truthful much group for illustration maine don’t person to.”

Talent and agents were said to beryllium furious complete Wasserman’s past communications pinch Maxwell, and had planned to discontinue if he remained, creating turmoil wrong nan company, sources told The Times earlier this week.

Some insiders speculated that Wasserman would cleave disconnected his euphony section — which faced overmuch much soul unit from agents and nationalist disapproval from artists — and support his long-standing sports agency arsenic he leads LA28. Yet his associations pinch Epstein and Maxwell proved untenable for him astatine his namesake company.

Wasserman told his unit that Mike Watts, a longtime institution executive, would presume day-to-day guidance of nan patient while he originates nan process of trading it.

The Wall Street Journal first reported Wasserman’s unit memo.

Wasserman plans to enactment successful his position starring nan LA28 Olympic Committee, which has stood by him.

In a caller statement, LA28 noted that nan emails pinch Maxwell were sent pursuing a humanitarian ngo to Africa years “before Mr. Wasserman aliases nan nationalist knew of Epstein and Maxwell’s deplorable crimes... This was his azygous relationship pinch Epstein.”

“The Executive Committee of nan Board has wished that based connected these facts, arsenic good arsenic nan beardown activity he has exhibited complete nan past 10 years, Mr. Wasserman should proceed to lead LA28 and present a safe and successful Games,” LA28 concluded.

The messages to Maxwell were portion of a monolithic trove of Epstein-related documents made nationalist by nan Department of Justice precocious past month.

In them, Wasserman wrote to Maxwell, who is now serving a lengthy situation sentence for activity trafficking of minors, “I thought we would commencement astatine that spot that you cognize of, and past proceed nan massage conception into your furniture … and past again successful nan greeting … not judge if aliases erstwhile we would stop.”

She responded: “Umm — each that rubbing — are you judge you tin return it? The thought frankly is leaving maine a small breathless. There are a fewer spots that apparently thrust a man chaotic — I suppose I could practise them connected you and you could fto maine cognize if they activity aliases not?”

Wasserman released a connection saying: “I profoundly regret my correspondence pinch Ghislaine Maxwell which took spot complete 2 decades ago, agelong earlier her horrific crimes came to light. I ne'er had a individual aliases business narration pinch Jeffrey Epstein. As is good documented, I went connected a humanitarian travel arsenic portion of a delegation pinch nan Clinton Foundation successful 2002 connected nan Epstein plane. I americium terribly sorry for having immoderate relation pinch either of them.”

After nan disclosures of nan Epstein documents successful caller months, lawyers, art depository executives, a erstwhile U.K. ambassador, Slovakia’s nationalist information advisor and different salient officials person resigned, apologized aliases stepped backmost from precocious positions. Britain’s King Charles III stripped his relative Andrew of his prince title and position successful nan royal family.