NBC exec quits over extort bid after tryst

NBCUniversal vice chairman Ron Meyer announced Tuesday that he’s stepping down “with a heavy heart” after a woman he had a consensual affair with allegedly tried to extort him.

CEO Jeff Shell called the news “unfortunate,” but said in a staff memo that Meyer “acted in a manner which we believe is not consistent with our company policies or values.”

The longtime executive said he recently told his family and his employers about the decades-old affair with the unidentified woman, who was not an employee. Meyer, 75, claimed the woman “made false accusations” against him and he made a financial settlement with her.

“I made this disclosure because other parties learned of the settlement and have continuously attempted to extort me into paying them money or else they intended to falsely implicate NBCUniversal, which had nothing to do with this matter, and to publish false allegations about me.”

Neither Meyer (photo) nor Shell went into detail about the accusations.

“I’ve spent 25 years helping to grow and support an incredible company in a job I love,” Meyer said. “It is the people at this company that I will miss the most. I regret what has happened and I am sorry for all the people in my life I may have let down, especially and most importantly, my family.”

A former talent agent and one of the founders of Creative Artists Agency, Meyer was promoted to vice chairman at NBCU in 2013. He also previously served as the president and COO of Universal Studios.

Meyer’s exit comes amid a flurry of upheaval at NBCUniversal, including the recent ousting of NBC Entertainment chairman Paul Telegdy amid “restructuring” that came shortly after accusations of a toxic workplace.