Hollywood publicists breathed a short sigh of relief as word spread that feared showbiz blogger Nikki Finke had been sidelined — at least temporarily.
Finke — the reclusive media maven known for her snarky posts and sharp claws — announced late Tuesday that she was splitting with Jay Penske, who bought her Deadline Hollywood blog in 2009.
“At this moment, Nikki’s lost her fangs,” said one publicist. “Nobody’s afraid anymore, everyone’s chuckling.”
But Finke vowed to be back soon with a new site and a renewed thirst for blood. She had cut back on the amount of copy she filed amid her year-long feud with Penske.
Visitors to her bare-bone’s site on Wednesday were greeted with a dripping blood logo and this message: “NikkiFinke.com is coming to Hollywood: Come for the cynicism. Stay for the subversion. Don’t steal Nikki’s scoops.”
Few know what Finke has in store for the new site or whether Penske will hold her to a rumored non-compete clause, which she denies exists.
“She’s too good at what she does to leave the arena, but some people think she’s had her fill and are others are just waiting for the shoe to drop,” said one publicist.
Another Hollywood exec turned to a movie analogy: “Anyone who thinks they can put a nail in her coffin is wrong because monsters come back to life, and they’re stronger and more powerful.”
A spokeswoman for Penske Media refused to elaborate on the arrangement that allowed Finke to leave and start a site that would appear to compete with Deadline.
“I have no intention of hurting Deadline or competing with them,” Finke told The Post. “I never wanted to be a 24/7 news feed, and that is what they have become.”
Finke said she’s currently fielding offers about partnering with another media company to host the site.
“I am definitely going to have complete editorial and design control,” she said.