THR reports that the primary contributing factor to Robinov being shown the door will end up being a fraught relationship with Legendary boss Thomas Tull. The power struggle with now-President (and former WB home video head) Kevin Tsujihara is quite secondary:
Given his track record, Robinov can make a strong argument for himself. After a rough start to the year, The Great Gatsby has crossed $200 million and Hangover III, though disappointing with a $63 million domestic opening, is not a disaster. More importantly, buzz is loud on the Christopher Nolan-produced Superman reboot Man of Steel that could launch a mighty Warners franchise and perhaps even a Marvel-style universe of films from its DC Comics division.
Robinov also has strong relationships with such talent as Nolan and Ben Affleck. And while not universally loved, Robinov's performance on the job leads one leading film agent to predict that he will remain at the studio. “The main thing you want is stability,” says the agent. “You’ve already got television in transition. Even with Jeff’s odd personality and quirks, I’d re-up him.” But this observer acknowledges that he is one of a minority wagering that Robinov will remain.
On the other side of the scale is the tension between Robinov and Legendary Entertainment, Warners’ partner on films including the Batman and Hangover trilogies. Sources say Legendary and Warners shared the decision to put Hangover III against Fast & Furious, but Legendary’s Thomas Tull has made it known that he feels disrespected and may move (mostly likely to Universal) when the company’s deal expires at the end of the year. (Some of his chagrin may have originated when Warners declined to sweeten Legendary’s deal on the third Batman, though such a decision would have been made above Robinov's level. While it was a 50-50 partner on the first two films, Legendary got only 25 percent on the third. Meanwhile, Warners has 25 percent of the risky Legendary project Pacific Rim, set for release July 12.)
WB needs Legendary. Without Legendary, WB's theatrical slate is anemic at best. From the outside, WB theatrical is embodied in the lackluster money-losers they've pushed into production and taking years to get anyone slapped onto things like the Man from U.N.C.L.E. movie. Look what happened when they did Green Lantern without Legendary.
If I were a betting man, Robinov even possibly being on the way out is a strong indicator that Tsujihara is doubling down on Legendary. Despite their own share of bombs, Legendary actually have a strong success ratio both critically and financially. Especially when comic book-scale action movies (The Avengers, Fast & Furious 6) are the big winners, you want someone who can do that sort of thing and do it well, especially if you want to make a Justice League movie.