EXCLUSIVE: Veteran talent agent Eddie Yablans leaves CAA to join Rick Yorn’s management company LBI Entertainment as a partner. Yablans, whose agent career spans 35 years at ICM and CAA, will begin his role on January 1 and will be based in Los Angeles and New York. Many of his existing clients are expected to stay with him in his role as manager.
At CAA, Yablans has represented artists such as Chris Rock, Ellen DeGeneres, Jeff Daniels, Gabriel Macht, Leslie Bibb, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Gretchen Mol, Janelle James, Jim Belushi, Jared Harris, Ian McShane, Patrick J Adams and James Austin Johnson. , of which he also represented the majority at ICM, as many of his clients have been with him for 25 to 30 years.
“I’m excited to join Rick and everyone at LBI,” said Yablans. “They are the best at what they do and I am very excited to continue representing my clients in a more intimate and personal way.”
Yablans began his career in ICM’s mailroom in 1988. He was a founding partner and board member of ICM Partners and joined CAA following the agency’s acquisition of ICM in 2022.
“I’ve known Eddy since I started in the business and he’s been a great friend all these years,” Yorn said. “He is truly one of the greats in the industry and I couldn’t be more excited to now work with him as part of the LBI team.”
Yablans’ career move has been in the works for some time. Its timing has likely been accelerated by recent events at CAA. Yablans’ name was among about 20 people rumored to be leaving the agency, which set up a series of layoffs last monthfollowed by a series of staff reductions, the latter largely affecting promising young agents.
A few other agents who recently left the CAA have also joined the management; Television agent Joel Begleiter joined TFC as a partner; Talent agent Josh Pearl went to Mosaic.