Hollywood mogul Will Packer slams 'MAGA' FAMU president candidate; BOG vice chair claps back

One of Florida A&M University 's most illustrious alumni is trudging into the presidential search drama and making it clear he believes historically Black colleges and universities are "under attack" by activist Republicans.

His opinion carries additional weight from trustees of FAMU. His name is on one of their buildings.

Celebrated Hollywood producer and FAMU grad Will Packer was one of several people who spoke up during a contentious town hall on May 7 about the four finalists in the search for a new university president. One of the finalists, Marva Johnson, an ally of Gov. Ron DeSantis, has stirred up opposition in the FAMU community.

"FAMU DESERVES BETTER!" Packer posted in a comment to the town hall livestream.

Afterward, Packer posted a video to Instagram spelling out his concerns, using screenshots of Tallahassee Democrat headlines.

"Right this very minute, a group of activist Republicans are trying to put in the highest position of power someone who is solidly and objectively unqualified for it," he said. "( Marva Johnson ) is a career lobbyist with no experience in higher education administration, literally the same amount of higher education admin experience as you or I. Zero, none."

Packer stressed that everyone had a right to their political affiliations.

"But what we cannot allow is a hostile takeover by someone who is aligned with a party that has loudly and proudly espoused ideologies that attack diversity and diverse institutions, attacked equitable economics and attacked inclusive principles, the exact pillars that institutions like FAMU were built upon."

He also alluded to student campus protests coming on Wednesday, the day Marva Johnson is set to be interviewed by the board of trustees.

"There is no place for that hateful and divisive rhetoric, not at the College of Love and Charity."

The Board of Governor's Vice Chair Alan Levine told the Democrat in a text that criticism of Johnson is not fair, noting that the search committee vetted and put forth four "highly qualified candidates."

"It's odd to me that an organized effort is underway to target a candidate before she has been given an opportunity to be interviewed by the Board of Trustees in an open forum," he wrote of the interview coming up next week.

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Several other speakers also spoke out against Johnson at the town hall and some critics online have referred to her as "MAGA Marva." A Change.org petition against her, pointing out her "lack of higher education administration experience" and "extensive affiliations with Republican/MAGA political figures," currently has more than 5,000 signatures.

Who is Marva Johnson?

Johnson is the group vice president of state government affairs for  Charter Communications . She was appointed to the Florida State Board of Education and was elected chair in 2015, where she served for four years. She has served on multiple boards under appointment by both former Gov. Rick Scott and current Gov. Ron DeSantis, including the Florida Constitution Revision Commission.

There has been wide speculation that FAMU board Vice Chair Deveron Gibbons insisted on adding Johnson to what was initially a list of three final candidates committee members interviewed and voted on during closed sessions. Gibbons has denied this.

Several DeSantis allies have found homes in higher education as the governor guides a conservative makeover of schools in Florida.

In 2023, a DeSantis-appointed board fired New College of Florida President Patricia Okker and replaced her with former House Speaker, former education commissioner, and DeSantis ally Richard Corcoran to revamp the liberal arts college. DeSantis also approached former state representative and Republican firebrand Randy Fine, now a U.S. congressman, about becoming president of Florida Atlantic University , although he was not ultimately chosen as one of the finalists.

In February, DeSantis appointed his own lieutenant governor, Jeanette Nuñez, to be the interim president for Florida International University , and she is now the sole finalist for the job.

He also named former House Speaker Paul Renner to the Board of Governors and Education Commissioner Manny Diaz Jr. was also a former state lawmaker.

Board of Governors chair fires back at community criticism of presidential search

The Board of Governor's Levine noted there were "similar organized efforts" to thwart the Board of Trustees when they fired President Elmira Mangum in 2016.

"The then-president was terminated by the Board of Trustees when she and others tried to defend abysmal 39% six year graduation rates, the highest student debt in our system, and many students graduating who were incapable of passing their professional boards," he wrote, adding that FAMU is now in the top 100 public universities and the No. 1 public HBCU in the nation.

He said as they close in on hiring the school's 13th president, "the Board of Trustees should focus on the qualities of their candidates, and decide which candidate they believe they, as a board, will be able to partner with to deliver the results the BOG, legislature, governor, and most importantly, students expect."

"We are focused on results, notwithstanding commentary from some who have drawn unfair conclusions without even giving the candidates their interviews," he wrote. "I don't pay any attention to that. It's unfair, uninformed and not helpful to the process."

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What is Will Packer's connection to FAMU?

Packer, 51, graduated magna cum laude from FAMU with a Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering in 1996. He was inducted into the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity through FAMU's Beta Nu chapter.

While at FAMU, he also met his future business partner, Rob Hardy. Their first movie, " Chocolate City ," was shot at FAMU and in parts of Tallahassee.

Packer has long been a vocal and financial supporter of the school. He has been featured as a commencement speaker and was given FAMU's highest honor, the Meritorious Achievement Award.

In 2021, FAMU honored Packer by putting his name on the university's new $2-million Performing Arts Amphitheater.

"As an active and proud alumni who has given money, who has given time and who has given untold effort to the place that helped shape me, I refuse to sit idly by and watch others attempt to destroy the legacy that so many who came before us have built," Packer said.

Who is Will Packer?

Packer is a St. Petersburg native who discovered an affinity for filmmaking while at FAMU and went on to become a powerful force in Hollywood.

He and Hardy co-founded Rainforest Films to make films that appeal to Black audiences, and their movie "Trois" became the fastest million-dollar-grossing film independently distributed by African Americans. Rainforest also released other hit movies such as "This Christmas," "Stomp the Yard," "Think Like a Man," and "Ride Along."

Packer's own company, Will Packer Productions, released sequels to some of the Rainforest movies as well as "The Wedding Ringer" and "Girls Trip," which was the highest-grossing live-action comedy of 2017. Packer executive-produced the NWZ biopic "Straight Outta Compton" and the 2016 remake of "Roots" (for which he got an Emmy nomination) and produced movies such as "Night School," starring Kevin Hart and Tiffany Haddish, and "Beast," starring Idris Elba, among others.

Packer's films have made over $1 billion and nine of them have opened at No. 1.

Packer also produced the 2022 Academy Awards, which became infamous after Will Smith walked on stage and slapped host Chris Rock after Rock made jokes about Smith's wife Jada Pinkett Smith's hair loss from alopecia. Variety reported that Packer kept Smith in his seat afterward and he received some backlash after tweeting "Welp... I said it wouldn't be boring," which he later deleted.

(This story was updated to add new information.)

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: FAMU alum Will Packer warns of 'Republican activists' in president search