Mark Burnett, Chairman of MGM’s Worldwide Tv Group, is exiting after the corporate’s $8.5B acquisition by Amazon.
Burnett is leaving the corporate and can return to “independently creating and innovating” however will proceed to supervise his legacy sequence, which embrace Survivor, Shark Tank and The Voice.
Final week, Deadline revealed that the person behind The Apprentice, was weighing his choices because the fold-up between Amazon and MGM good points tempo.
Extra particulars concerning the general construction between Amazon and MGM are anticipated quickly with Prime Video and Studios boss Mike Hopkins saying employees might be “listening to extra shortly” concerning the re-organization.
It comes eight years after he began his relationship with the studio; MGM acquired a majority stake in his One Three Media and LightWorkers Media corporations in September 2014 earlier than totally buying the businesses the next yr.
He turned President of MGM Tv and Digital Group in December 2015 and re-upped his deal in 2018 and have become Chairman of the studio’s Worldwide Tv Group.
It’s understood that Burnett’s present contract was up on the finish of the yr and there’s been rumors that he’s began speaking to others about organising a brand new manufacturing firm.
Burnett has overseen each scripted and unscripted on the firm, which is behind sequence reminiscent of Hulu’s The Handmaid’s Story, FX’s Fargo, Netflix’s Addams Household sequence Wednesday and the Vikings franchise.
However Burnett, who’s an exec producer of NBC’s The Voice, ABC’s Shark Tank and CBS’ Survivor, is greatest identified for his work within the unscripted realm.
He hasn’t overseen a large number of new hits, relaunching his first ever present, Eco-Problem, as World’s Hardest Race: Eco-Problem Fiji, for Amazon in 2020 but it surely solely aired one season, in addition to boxing competitors sequence The Contender for Epix, and Steve Harvey’s Funderdome for ABC.
He’s at present exec producing Era Hole, alongside Jimmy Kimmel, for ABC and Fox’s Beat Shazam.
Mark Burnett’s Notice:
Pricey Colleagues,
We’ve labored collectively for a really very long time, in some instances for many years. We’ve innovated new reveals and maintained our legacy hits with one of many highest renewal charges in world tv. I get a number of reward for that. However everyone knows it’s not about me. It’s about all of you.
It takes nice groups of proficient individuals to supply greater than 3,200 whole hours of tv together with long-running hits like Survivor, The Voice and Shark Tank and progressive scripted sequence like The Bible, which collectively have garnered 143 EMMY nominations.
In 2014 I offered a majority of my corporations to MGM and got here to this storied, 100 year-old studio as President of Tv. Later I offered the remainder of my corporations for MGM inventory and have become Chairman of MGM International Tv as a result of I believed within the worth of MGM.
I had a transparent strategic imaginative and prescient to construct and develop MGM’s tv division with my dynamic crew, which included shopping for nice corporations like Evolution and Large Fish, including worldwide scripted and unscripted groups, and beginning a documentaries unit. We took calibrated dangers and employed nice individuals – and the enterprise grew.
That development was vital to MGM’s future, as a result of MGM wanted to maximise its worth with the intention to entice a worldwide streaming associate and be prepared for its subsequent 100 years. I’m proud to have been a part of the crew that achieved the historic sale to Amazon in 2022.
Now, after months of collaborative transition efforts, we’ve got thoughtfully re- organized our groups in order that all of them have the chance to prosper underneath the management of Mike Hopkins, Jennifer Salke and Christopher Brearton. In lately of media layoffs I’m proud to say that everybody within the TV division has been provided a approach to proceed to contribute. Nobody was left behind.
As I step away from each day administration and again into independently creating and innovating, I’ll proceed to supervise my legacy sequence and be accessible to all of you and to Amazon for steerage and help.
Thanks crew – I actually couldn’t have accomplished any of this with out every of you.
Mark Burnett.
Mike Hopkins’s Notice
Hello crew –
As you possible simply learn, Mark Burnett has determined to depart Amazon and MGM to resume his work as an unbiased creator and producer. I needed to comply with up by thanking him for his numerous contributions to our success and, on a private stage, for his partnership and counsel all through the mixing. I know you’ll all agree that he is among the most progressive, artistic, and prolific tv producers in our business, and we’ve got been terribly lucky to have him on our crew.
Mark’s stepping apart after all raises each alternatives and questions on how we’ll be organized shifting ahead. You’ll be listening to extra about this shortly.
I’m extremely pleased with the excellent tv and movie content material that we produce, and look ahead to 2023 and past, when as a totally built-in crew we proceed to construct on this legacy. Thanks for all of your dedication and dedication as we head into a dynamic and profitable future collectively.
Mike