In a dramatic move that may strike more fear into the heart of Hollywood than any President Trump executive order, Nikki Finke is back in business.
Sources exclusively tell Page Six that the Finke was about to start as a columnist with Mediaite, but her former boss Jay Penske — who was suing her over her new role — “swooped in and made her a massive offer,” a source told Page Six.
Finke changed her Twitter bio Wednesday night to include “Penske Business Media: Sr. Editorial Contributor, Entertainment/Media” and well as, “Deadline.com Founder/Editor Emeritus.” But Finke — who equally terrorized and tickled the entertainment world with her breaking news blog nikkifinke.com — would not comment Wednesday night.
Media mogul Penske had threatened to sue Finke and Mediaite based on the fact that her non-compete said she could not write about the “entertainment industry,” which Penske said even included Trump.
Now it looks like Finke, who also owns fiction site Hollywood Dementia, is ready to start dishing again.
Reps for Penske Media didn’t get back to us.
Mediaite founder Dan Abrams told us, “Nikki is a great addition to any site and while I’m sorry to lose her, I salute Jay Penske for paying what must be big bucks to steal her away before she even started.”
Finke’s new role is designed to see her breaking Hollywood news once again back at the site she founded, Deadline Hollywood, where her relentless reporting earned her a reputation as the most feared reporter in town.
She sold Deadline.com to Penske in 2009 for a reported six-figure sum, then in 2013 she parted ways completely with the site after a spat with Penske, then launched her rival, NikkiFinke.com.
Now a source close to the new Finke/Penske deal says, “It is hoped that Nikki will be writing and breaking Hollywood news for Deadline again.”