Former “SportsCenter” host Michael Smith has agreed to a buyout with ESPN on his four-year, $10 million contract, which has allowed him to take a job as the executive vice president and chief content officer for a Hollywood-based startup called (Co)laboratory, The Post has learned.
When reached for comment, Smith said the settlement was “fair,” but would not go into detail. His contract was not scheduled to expire until February 2021.
Smith, 40, has been in a gold-plated purgatory since his much-hyped 6 p.m. “SportsCenter” with Jemele Hill was put on ice. The show began in February 2017, but didn’t last a year.
Thirteen months ago, Hill agreed to her own buyout on a $10 million contract. She is involved in a bunch of projects, most notably as a writer for The Atlantic.
At ESPN, Smith had barely been utilized for the last 18 months since the 6 p.m. gig ended.
While Smith was silent on the exact settlement that ended his ESPN career, he sounded very excited about the growth potential of his new role with (Co)laboratory, which will work with athletes, teams and leagues.
“It is really a unique startup,” Smith said. “It is a studio and startup incubator that is going to bring together the best of Hollywood and the sports world.”
Smith will still be on-air with his own projects, but he will be instrumental in partnering with others to develop a variety of content that can be sold on various platforms, such as digital, audio, over-the-top video, film and TV.
(Co)laboratory already has 21 projects in the works, Smith said. It is run by some heavy hitters, including Players Tribune co-founder Jaymee Messler, Thunder Roads Films founder Basil Iwanyk and brand strategist Greg Economou.
When asked about how his relationship with ESPN ended, Smith didn’t have anything bad to say.
“I was ready for a new chapter,” Smith said. “I was ready for a new challenge. I’ve been at ESPN for 15 years. I’ve worn pretty much every hat imaginable. Realistically, the opportunities that were available to me at this point, I don’t know how much growth they truly represented, especially compared to this opportunity.
“I think what we are going to do for athletes and content creators throughout the industry when it comes to storytelling and when it comes to content development and distribution, it is going to be significant, impactful and disruptive. For me, personally, this has really been the career growth opportunity that I have been waiting for to really jump back in the game.
“I’m not done being on-air talent. I’ll be the voice and the face of several projects for (Co)Laboratory. If the right opportunity presents itself, I’ll also do some on-air work outside of (Co)Laboratory.”