Unscripted

The Epic Battle for a Media Empire and the Redstone Family Legacy

By: James B. Stewart, Rachel Abrams

Narrated by: Robert Petkoff

Length: 12 hrs and 23 mins

Publisher's summary

The instant New York Times bestseller • A New York Times Notable Book • Named a Best Book of the Year by The Economist • Nominated for the Financial Times and Schroders Business Book of the Year Award

"Addicted to Succession? Well, here's the real thing."—The Hollywood Reporter

“Jaw-dropping . . . an epic tale of toxic wealth and greed populated by connivers and manipulators.”—The New York Times Book Review, Editors’ Choice

The shocking inside story of the struggle for power and control at Paramount Global, the multibillion-dollar entertainment empire controlled by the Redstone family, and the dysfunction, misconduct, and deceit that threatened the future of the company, from the Pulitzer Prize-winning journalists who first broke the news

In 2016, the fate of Paramount Global’s entertainment empire hung precariously in the balance. Its founder and head, ninety-three-year-old Sumner M. Redstone, was facing a very public lawsuit brought by a former romantic companion, Manuela Herzer, which placed Sumner’s deteriorating health and questionable judgment under a harsh light.

As an all-powerful media mogul, Sumner had been a demanding boss, and an even more demanding father. When his daughter, Shari, took control of the business, she faced the hostility of boards who for years had heard Sumner disparage her. Les Moonves, the CEO of CBS, schemed with his allies on the board to strip Shari of power. But while he publicly battled Shari, news began to leak of Moonves’s involvement in multiple instances of sexual misconduct, and he began working behind the scenes to try to make the stories disappear.

Unscripted is an explosive and unvarnished look at the usually secret inner workings of two public companies, their boards of directors, and a wealthy, dysfunctional family in the throes of seismic changes. From the Pulitzer Prize-winning journalists James B. Stewart and Rachel Abrams, Unscripted lays bare the battle for power at any price—and the carnage that ensued.

©2023 James B. Stewart, Rachel Abrams (P)2023 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"Redstone has found his Ishmael in James B. Stewart, who has ventured once more into the corporate depths and returned, he writes, with ‘an astonishing saga of sex, lies, and betrayal.’ His new book, Unscripted: The Epic Battle for a Media Empire and the Redstone Family Legacy, written with New York Times media reporter Rachel Abrams, joins his earlier probing work on the Walt Disney Co., insider trading, corporate lawyers and the posh netherworld of American business. Imagine a mash-up of King Lear and Weekend at Bernie’s, the 1989 movie comedy about two scamps who prop up a cadaver so they can enjoy a weekend at his beach house, with Redstone starring in both title roles.”—The Wall Street Journal

“In this riveting, Succesion-esque tale of the fight for control of Paramount Global, James B. Stewart and Rachel Abrams weave together a lawsuit, familial conflict, and the lurking Les Moonves.”—Vanity Fair

“Has a business book ever made you blush? . . . There’s the 90-something billionaire with still-active ‘sexual appetites’; the scheming mistresses; threesomes; parked-car encounters; a Sedona love nest; a chief executive who allegedly forced himself on multiple victims; a stolen laptop; shady private investigators; and a cast of characters straight off MTV or another Redstone cable channel. Mixing tight financial reporting with soap-operatic twists and turns, Unscripted makes the amped-up historical fiction of Babylon feel downright chaste by comparison . . . Media insiders and those who followed the Redstone saga will eat this reporting—and some of the other, more comical twists that populate the book—up . . . Unscripted delivers the good.”—The Washington Post

Mogul Madness

What is it about the entertainment industry that causes its executives to behave like lecherous satyrs? That’s the question lurking behind the true stories of Sumner Redstone and Les Moonves of Paramount and CBS.

“Unscripted” is a fascinating listen about power and corruption in Hollywood. I was spellbound by the story and the underlying narcissism of its characters—not just the moguls, but some of the women who shamelessly manipulated and abused them.

The Sumner Redstone saga, which takes up most of the book, was the best. I couldn’t wait to get back to the story every time I took a break. Despite Redstone’s personal awfulness, I often found myself pitying him as his faculties failed and his hangers-on fought for a piece of his estate. Two of the women who moved in with him came across as heartless leeches. Even knowing how it all would end, I found all of this spellbinding.

The Moonves saga, saved for the end of the book, was a letdown. Moonves was a wildly successful and wealthy CBS executive, as well as a serial abuser. But he lacked the grotesque excesses of someone like Redstone (or Harvey Weinstein). He wasn’t an entrepreneur, and he didn’t build his own company. He wasn’t a news icon, like Matt Lauer or Charlie Rose. Moonves came across as a popular leader who had a secret problem he couldn’t control. His downfall, while welcome, seemed a little anticlimactic.

The book also focuses on the pathetic passivity of the business people who were supposed to exercise oversight of Redstone's companies. The Boards of Directors of his companies failed to question Redstone or Moonves's actions, preferring to let them do as they liked so long as the money rolled in.

Overall, I loved this book and I highly recommend it. The narration was excellent.

Real life Succession!

Captivating and well reported story that sucks you in from the first minute. Couldn’t stop listening! The reporting and the writing is elegant without shying away from the often not so elegant anecdotes that, puzzled together, shine light on a weird and fascinating life of a man who built an empire yet was left vulnerable to elder abuse and manipulation by the people around him. It’s a must read!

Real life Succession

Definitely used some of these stories as inspiration for the show. It’s crazier bc it’s real life.

James Lewis is a master chronicler

But what a sorry mess we have. The rich and powerful seem unfailingly corrupt. And this it has always been.

Lights! Camera! Lawsuits!

Fast paced, plot twists and plenty of betrayals. The characters in this the saga of power, sex and greed are right out of central casting. Reads like fiction but is a compelling account of the dark side of Hollywood.

People I’d Rather Not Know

This was a waste of a credit. The book is as dry as a California desert. The people are insane and not worth knowing. The USA at its worst. A truly disgusting story.

Tremendous detail, but still good

The painstaking research and detail sometimes is too much for general interest. However, this maintains a good pace. Near the end of the book is a well done discussion of an executive’s decades of sexual-harassment.

Real life is stranger than fiction

Sort of a 'Succession' story, but about the real life excesses and insanity of a media mogul. There are some slow parts but taken as a whole, the story is just unbelievable though true. The parallel story of Sumner Redstone's long suffering daughter, who eventually succeeds her dad, is engrossing as well. She is as unbelievably patient and rock-ribbed as her dad is as devious and deceived. The narration is a little plodding, but the story is great.

Great story well done

Professional work, as it’s Murray parts, but the authors restrained themselves from sharing too many facts just a really well written recount of what happened

Better than I thought

I bought this in a whim with fairly low expectation. It was a great book and the narrator was awesome. Really kept my attention. The book has a lot of insider gossipy type stuff but also tells an amazing story of CBS/Viacom and the Redstone empire. Really interesting audiobook.