Jeff Shell, TV Executive, to Take Over at Universal Studios

LOS ANGELES â€" Jeff Shell, an NBCUniversal television executive, will soon take over day-to-day operations at Universal Studios, according to three people briefed on the development. Ron Meyer, who has been the movie and theme park company’s president for 18 years, is expected to move up the ladder at NBCUniversal.

An announcement could come as soon as Monday, according to these people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because Universal was still completing the executive changes. A Universal Studios spokeswoman did not respond to a query.

Mr. Meyer, 69, the longest-serving chief of a major movie studio, is expected to become a vice chairman of NBCUniversal, which Comcast bought in 2011. In that role, these people said, Mr. Meyer would help Mr. Shell get up to speed on the movie business. Mr. Shell has most recently served as chairman of NBCUniversal International, where he helped manage overseas film marketing and distribution but has largely focused on television. He previously ran Comcast’s cable networks.

By choosing one of its own executives to succeed Mr. Meyer â€" rather than promote from within Universal â€" Comcast would be signaling that the studio is now firmly nested inside a corporate structure that cares as much about funneling content to cable and video-on-demand services as it does about theatrical hits. Comcast has made multiple changes on the television side of NBCUniversal, but has largely left alone the film and theme park unit, leading to speculation about its future.

It was unclear how Mr. Shell’s arrival would affect Adam Fogelson, chairman of Universal Pictures, if at all.

The change at Universal, which has been speculated about in Hollywood for months, comes as the studio is rebounding at the box office after a long fallow period. Recent hits have included “Fast & Furious 6” and “Despicable Me 2.” Mr. Meyer was in Toronto on Sunday to introduce “Rush,” a possible Oscar contender directed by Ron Howard.

With Mr. Meyer at the helm, Universal has been one of the movie industry’s most stable studios, at least from a management perspective. A consummate Hollywood player, Mr. Meyer is known for surviving a series of ownership changes at Universal; the studio has been bought and sold at least four times in recent decades.

Universal now joins 20th Century Fox, Walt Disney Studios and Warner Brothers as studios that have undergone executive shuffling in their highest ranks over the past year and a half.

Although Mr. Shell is not widely known in the film industry, he is well-liked and respected among television executives and small-screen creative powers. Before he ran Comcast’s networks, which include E! and Style, Mr. Shell was chief executive of TV Guide International. And before that he helped oversee Fox Sports, FX and the National Geographic Channel.