Producer Lynette Howell Taylor has been elected president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the Academy announced on Thursday.
Howell Taylor was elected by the AMPAS Board of Governors to replace Janet Yang. Academy presidents are permitted to serve four consecutive one-year terms, but the president must be member of the board, and term limits restrict governors to two consecutive three-year terms. Yang has served three years as president but must leave the board this summer because of those term limits.
As incoming president, Howell Taylor will face the same term limits. She began her second consecutive term in 2023 and will have to leave the board next summer, after only one year as president. Of the last seven Academy presidents, only one was able to serve the full four terms.
Other officers elected by the board are Lesley Barber and Howard A. Rodman, who were re-elected to vice president positions, and Jennifer Fox, Simon Kilmurry and Lou Diamond Phillips, who became officers for the first time.
Howell Taylor became an Academy member in 2014 and has produced films that include “The Accountant,” “Captain Fantastic,” “Big Eyes,” “Blue Valentine” and Bradley Cooper’s “A Star Is Born,” for which she received her first Best Picture nomination. She served as chair of the Academy’s Awards Committee for three years and produced the 92nd Academy Awards with Stephanie Allain.
Howell Taylor is the 38th president of the Academy. She is the fifth woman to hold the position and the third to do so in the last 12 years, after Cheryl Boone Isaacs (2013-2017) and Yang (2022-2025). The only previous female presidents were Bette Davis, who resigned after two months in 1941, and Fay Kanin, who served from 1979 to 1983.
In a statement announcing the election, Academy CEO Bill Kramer said, “Lynette has been a vital part of the Academy Board of Governors for many years, most recently revitalizing our awards work as chair of the board’s Awards Committee. I so look forward to working with her as our new Academy President, as well as with these incredibly dedicated and strategic board officers. This is an exceptional group of Academy members who will advance the Academy’s mission, support our membership around the world, ensure our long-term financial stability, and celebrate the achievements of the global filmmaking community.”
The new officers:
- Lesley Barber (Music Branch), Vice President (chair, Membership Committee)
- Jennifer Fox (Producers Branch), Vice President (chair, Awards Committee)
- Simon Kilmurry (Documentary Branch), Vice President/Treasurer (chair, Finance Committee)
- Lou Diamond Phillips (Actors Branch), Vice President (chair, Equity and Inclusion Committee)
- Howard A. Rodman (Writers Branch), Vice President/Secretary (chair, Governance Committee)