Golden Globes Foundation removes CEO Gregory Goeckner in board-led takeover

The Golden Globes Foundation’s board carried out a near-unanimous vote on Aug. 6 to terminate Gregory Goeckner as its chief executive, an action insiders label a board-driven coup. The decision came just over a week after a group of ex-HFPA members sued PMC and its CEO Jay Penske for $150 million, naming Goeckner as a defendant. Board members Silvia Bizio and Raffi Boghossian are reported to have orchestrated the removal without Penske’s involvement, dismissing the foundation’s law firm, auditor and publicist and installing loyalists.

Goeckner, who previously served as HFPA general counsel, allegedly balked at moving the foundation’s $55 million in assets back to HFPA-linked interests, citing legal advice that such a transfer would breach nonprofit regulations. Following his firing, his profile was removed from the foundation’s website and he declined comment while searching for new counsel. The internal shake-up occurs amid ongoing litigation that seeks to unravel the 2023 sale of the Golden Globes to Penske and Eldridge Industries partner Todd Boehly.