Power of Law Honoree Craig Emanuel on Legal Legacy in Hollywood, Combatting Antisemitism and Goal to ‘Lead From Strength’

Malina Saval Associate Editor, Features Entertainment attorney Craig Emanuel, Variety’s 2023 Power of Law honoree, remembers the day he got a phone call asking if he would be interested in meeting with Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson.  “I knew that they were meeting with a lot of lawyers around town, and I really didn’t think we were going to get selected,” says Emanuel. “A lot of the other law firms were boutique entertainment firms that had huge client lists.” “Months went by, and I thought, you know, nothing’s happening,” Emanuel continues. “And then Richard Lovett, president of CAA, who reps Tom and Rita, called me one evening on the phone. I was at dinner with my partners, and Richard said, ‘I’ve got some good news, you have a new client.’”

 Now sitting in the brightly lit expanse of Paul Hastings’ soaring Century City offices, where Emanuel heads up the renowned global law firm’s entertainment and media division, it’s clear he’s being humble, underselling his reputation as top-tier Hollywood counsel. In addition to Hanks and his production shingle Playtone, Emanuel, who recently marked his fifth year as partner at Paul Hastings, boasts a heady clientele: super-showrunner Ryan Murphy, filmmaker Robert Rodriguez, MSG Entertainment, writer-producer Tony Gilroy, Mandalay Pictures, Cirque du Soleil and fellow Aussie Paul Hogan —  to name just a few.  “I think sometimes attorneys go in and pitch themselves — not about what they do, but what their competitors don’t do. I think that’s a mistake,” notes Emanuel. “I think you have to lead from strength as to who you are.”  An unassailable sense of self has long shaped Emanuel’s professional and personal sojourn, starting with his first day of school in America.  It was September