Robbins was born Brian Levine in Brooklyn, New York on November 22, 1963. When Robbins was 16, his family moved to Los Angeles. He graduated from Grant High School in 1982.

Robbins followed his dad Floyd Levine, a prolific character actor, into acting. Brian Robbins made his television acting debut on an episode of Trapper John, M.D. He guest starred on a number and television series and a recurring role on General Hospital. As an actor, he is perhaps best known from his role as Eric Mardian on the ABC sitcom Head of the Class. He also hosted the children’s version of the TV game show Pictionary in 1989.

Robbins is the founder of AwesomenessTV, a YouTube channel aimed at teenagers, which has spun off into a TV series, of which Robbins is the executive producer. DreamWorks Animation acquired the company in 2013. On February 22, 2017, following NBCUniversal/Comcast’s acquisition of DreamWorks Animation, Brian Robbins stepped down as AwesomenessTV’s CEO, thus ending his five-year run with the company.

Robbins is Jewish. He was married to publicist Laura Cathcart, with whom he has two sons, Miles and Justin. They divorced in 2013. Robbins went on to marry his ex-wife’s friend, Tracy James. They have a daughter together.

On June 7, 2017, Brian Robbins became the president of Paramount Players, a newly formed division of Paramount Pictures. Robbins will work with Viacom’s Nickelodeon, MTV, Comedy Central and BET brands to generate projects while also focusing on “contemporary properties.”

On October 1, 2018, Brian Robbins left his position as the president of Paramount Players after Viacom tapped him to be the president of Nickelodeon, ending his 16–month run at the studio. Despite leaving the studio, he remained involved with Paramount Players’ Nickelodeon films.