Lee Daniels is sticking with 20th Television in a new multi-year first-look deal.
What’s Happening:
- Deadline exclusively reports that Lee Daniels has extended his first-look deal with 20th Television.
- Under the extended partnership, Daniels, under his Lee Daniels Entertainment company, will develop and executive produce comedy, drama, and limited series for both linear networks and streaming.
- Daniels relationship with 20th Television began in 2015, where he co-created and executive produced Fox’s Empire and Star, and served as executive producer on Fox’s Our Kind of People and ABC’s The Wonder Years.
- This multi-year deal is the third that Daniels has signed with the network, with previous contracts signed in 2015, 2018, and 2021.
- First-look deals are on the rise in Hollywood, with overall deals being fazed out for their pricier and more restrictive nature. First-look deals give a studio first access to projects before they can be shopped elsewhere with overall deals locking in exclusive rights for all projects during the contract period.
- Daniels earned two Oscar nominations for Precious, and most recently produced the Netflix film The Deliverance.
- He also executive produces BET+’s The Ms. Pat Show.
What They’re Saying:
- Lee Daniels: “I am so grateful to continue my partnership with 20th, Dana Walden, Karey Burke, and their incredible team. They have wholeheartedly supported my vision for the past ten years and I’m very proud of what we have accomplished together. I’m looking forward to our future and to continuing to create diverse and meaningful projects and bringing new perspectives to the screen.”
- Karey Burke, President of 20th Television: “Daniels’ storied history with our studio spans over a decade, where he created culture-defining series and characters that helped redefine an era of television. He’s an incredibly unique and talented visionary, and we are truly looking forward to our next chapter of collaboration with him.”
Read More 20th Television: