In 1992, Ariel Zev Emanuel, a young operative with the struggling InterTalent agency, had a problem with the rent on a $639-a-month walk-up in the city’s modest Fairfax district. The landlord took him to court seeking eviction, and won.

Today, Emanuel has a $10 million home in the Brentwood neighbourhood; a pipeline to the White House through his brother Rahm, its chief of staff; and a sprawling new talent agency of his own design, called William Morris Endeavor Entertainment.

As Hollywood stories go, that is a good start. But it needs a third act.

Emanuel, 48, has emerged in the last six weeks as the pre-eminent power player in a Hollywood that has often bemoaned the sunset of colourful moguls from an older generation, including Michael Ovitz and David Geffen.

As the co-chief executive and principal architect of William Morris Endeavor, formed in late April by the merger of Emanuel’s Endeavor with the venerable William Morris Agency, Emanuel has finally stepped into their shoes — assuming he can hold his venture together. He spent much of the last week in mixers meant to help hundreds of wary colleagues from the newly joined agencies get comfortable with one another. Hollywood, meanwhile, is still struggling to get comfortable with Emanuel and his aspirations — and to figure out exactly what makes him tick.

“It’s about respect,” offered J C Spink, a producer who, with his business partner, has been a protege of Emanuel’s. “With nine out of 10 people, if not more, they tend to be in this business for respect.”

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