She continues to be a significant STX shareholder.


Sophie Watts is stepping down as president at STX, it was announced Tuesday. She will continue to be a significant STX shareholder and will act as an advisor to the company.


Watts most recently oversaw STX's digital, VR and unscripted television studios. All divisions previously reporting to Watts will now report directly to CEO Robert Simonds or to COO Thomas B. McGrath.


Before joining STX, Watts worked in the music industry, with her first major foray into film being the 2011 documentary Bully, which she produced and financed.


"After more than six years working with Bob, I have decided to step away from my day-to-day role as President of the Company to explore new opportunities," Watts said in a statement, thanking Simonds and TPG's Bill McGlashan, with whom she helped found STX. "I truly believe that we — the entire STX team — have built a new global media company that is a custom-built home for stars and creators to tell their stories anywhere and through any format.”


Added Simonds: “Sophie is a force of nature. She is an incredibly talented, versatile executive who has been central to every aspect of growing the Company, both domestically and internationally, from inception to the multi-billion-dollar endeavor it is today."


STX has had an uneven track record at the box office, with flops like the Tom Hanks-fronted film The Circle, the YA adaptation The Space Between Us and Christian Bale's period drama The Free State of Jones. The studio has found commercial success with the Bad Moms movies — the 2016 original and last year's Bad Moms Christmas — which have pulled in over $300 million together worldwide.


STX most recently released Aaron Sorkin's directorial debut Molly's Game, andis in various states of production on a number of projects, including the Melissa McCarthy puppet dark comedy The Happytime Murders and the Amy Schumer movie I Feel Pretty.


In the fall, it was reported that STX was mulling an IPO on the Hong Kong stock exchange.