EXCLUSIVE: BBC Studios Productions, which is behind sequence akin to ABC’s Dancing With The Stars and CBS’ Ghosts, is bringing collectively its U.S. and UK manufacturing groups in a restructure that can see the departure of Valerie Bruce.
The corporate, which is the business manufacturing division of the British public broadcaster, is aligning its U.S. unscripted leisure and scripted groups, largely based mostly out of LA, with their UK counterparts.
As such, Bruce, who’s Common Supervisor of its LA Productions unit, is leaving after 13 years.
The transfer will see Ryan O’Dowd, EVP, Leisure & Music, reporting on to Matt Forde, BBC Studios Productions’ MD, World Leisure, who is predicated in London. O’Dowd, who is known to have renewed his take care of BBC Studios, will now work nearer with the corporate’s UK growth crew because it appears to be like to develop extra codecs that may journey into the U.S. following the success of The 1% Membership, which just lately launched on Amazon Prime Video and Fox.
On the scripted aspect, the LA Scripted Programming crew, which is run by Angie Stephenson and Rachel Bendavid, will report into LA-based Mark Linsey, who’s President, Scripted, BBC Studios. This crew will work carefully with its UK companions and the BBC Studios North American Content material Gross sales crew, led in LA by Lawrence Szabo, EVP of US Content material Gross sales.
Bruce joined the corporate in 2011 as SVP, Enterprise Affairs for BBC America, the place she labored on reveals akin to Orphan Black. In 2016, she joined the LA manufacturing crew as SVP, Industrial Director, later promoted to EVP, Industrial Director after which Common Supervisor, LA Productions.
She ran the crew that produced Dancing with the Stars, Nat Geo’s Emmy-winning Life Under Zero, ABC’s When Nature Calls with Helen Mirren, Netflix docuseries Wrestlers and Homicide Among the many Mormons and Andy Cohen’s Ex-Rated on Peacock on the unscripted aspect.
On the scripted aspect, she led the crew that produced CBS’ Ghosts, which goes into its fourth season, in addition to Name Me Kat, a remake of Miranda, and Welcome To Flatch, a remake of This Nation, for Fox.
She additionally led negotiations on BBC Studios’ first-look take care of Lionsgate in 2018, which Deadline revealed had ended earlier this yr. After that deal ended, Bendavid and Stephenson, moved over to BBC Studios as EVPs, Scripted Programming, reporting to Bruce.
O’Dowd, who beforehand labored for Ryan Seacrest, was promoted in 2021 to EVP, Leisure & Music and was behind the reboot of Weakest Hyperlink at NBC.
Matt Forde, MD, World Leisure, BBC Studios Productions, mentioned, “In a fast-paced and consistently altering enterprise in each the UK and U.S., it is smart to carry our Unscripted Leisure and Scripted groups in Los Angeles nearer to our UK groups to maximise the alternatives we’ve recognized between each markets. I’d additionally wish to pay tribute to Valerie who has pushed vital business progress throughout all of our manufacturing actions in LA, together with hit reveals akin to ABC/Disney’s Dancing with the Stars, Wrestlers for Netflix, the Life Under Zero franchise for Nat Geo, The Weakest Hyperlink on NBC, Ghosts on CBS and most just lately The 1% Membership on Amazon Prime/Fox. We want her all the perfect.”
Mark Linsey, President, Scripted, BBC Studios Productions added, “Asserting a scripted manufacturing base in LA that’s totally built-in with our manufacturing portfolio in London will massively profit our enterprise. In addition to creating their very own slate of concepts, Rachel and Angie will work carefully with our UK Producers and the content material gross sales crew to search out the absolute best route for his or her content material into LA and join them with the distinctive expertise throughout our drama and comedy models, labels and inventive companions.”
