Mark Burnett Exits Amazon’s MGM, Returns To Producing Roots, Will Continue To Oversee “Legacy” Series

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 positive factors tempo.

Extra particulars in regards to the general construction between Amazon and MGM are anticipated quickly with Prime Video and Studios boss Mike Hopkins saying employees will probably be “listening to extra shortly” in regards to 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 12 months.

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 12 months 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 recognized 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 presently 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 circumstances 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 lots of reward for that.  However everyone knows it’s not about me. It’s about all of you. 

It takes nice groups of proficient folks to provide greater than 3,200 complete hours of tv together with long-running hits like Survivor, The Voice and Shark Tank and modern 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 staff, which included shopping for nice corporations like Evolution and Huge Fish, including worldwide scripted and unscripted groups, and beginning a documentaries unit.  We took calibrated dangers and employed nice folks – and the enterprise grew.

That development was crucial to MGM’s future, as a result of MGM wanted to maximise its worth so as to appeal to a world streaming associate and be prepared for its subsequent 100 years.  I’m proud to have been a part of the staff 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 beneath the management of Mike Hopkins, Jennifer Salke and Christopher Brearton. In as of late of media layoffs I’m proud to say that everybody within the TV division has been provided a strategy to proceed to contribute. Nobody was left behind.  

As I step away from daily administration and again into independently creating and innovating,  I’ll proceed to supervise my legacy sequence and be out there to all of you and to Amazon for steering and help. 

Thanks staff – I actually couldn’t have completed any of this with out every of you.
Mark Burnett. 

Mike Hopkins’s Notice 

Hello staff –

As you probably simply learn, Mark Burnett has determined to depart Amazon and MGM to resume his work as an impartial creator and producer. I wished to comply with up by thanking him for his numerous contributions to our success and, on a private degree, for his partnership and counsel all through the combination. I know you’ll all agree that he is without doubt one of the most modern, artistic, and prolific tv producers in our trade, and we’ve got been terribly lucky to have him on our staff.

Mark’s stepping apart in fact 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 happy with the excellent tv and movie content material that we produce, and look ahead to 2023 and past, when as a completely built-in staff 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