Tom McCarthy Signs Overall Deal With Fox 21 Television Studios

By Joe Otterson

LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – Writer, director, and producer has signed a multi-year overall deal with Fox 21 Television Studios

Under the terms of the deal, McCarthy will develop, direct, and produce series for broadcast, cable, and streaming platforms. McCarthy most recently co-created the Golden Globe-nominated Showtime limited series “The Loudest Voice,” which detailed the rise of the late Fox News boss Roger Ailes. McCarthy also co-wrote and directed the Academy Award-winning film “Spotlight.”

“We have been huge fans of Tom’s work for years, from his brilliant ‘Spotlight’ to ‘Up’ to ’13 Reasons Why’ and most recently ‘The Loudest Voice,’” said Bert Salke, president of Fox 21. “As we look to be in business with creators at the absolute top of their games, of course his name came up again and again as someone everyone at Fox 21 was dying to work with. He’s a spectacularly talented filmmaker and writer and we can’t wait to get started.”

McCarthy will now bring his production company, Slow Pony, to Fox 21 TV along with his head of development and production, Melissa Wells. She has been with McCarthy since Slow Pony’s inception, two years ago. Prior to that she was on the scripted team at BBC America. She started her career working with writer/director Marc Lawrence.

“I’m truly excited to be setting up shop at Fox 21, and I’m especially thankful to Bert for bringing me into the fold,” McCarthy said. “Creatively, I think we are all looking for like-minded partners who are proven in their ability to execute at a high level, and I feel like that’s exactly what I’ve found with Bert and his talented team at Fox 21. I talked to Peter Rice about working together after making my first film, ‘The Station Agent,’ and I’m thrilled it’s finally happening. I’ve had a great experience making films with Disney, and it’s an exciting time to parlay that into TV with Dana, Craig and the extended Disney Television Studios family.“

McCarthy also directed multiple episodes of and executive produced the Netflix series “13 Reasons Why.” He recently wrapped production on the feature “Stillwater” starring Matt Damon and Abigail Breslin.

He is repped by Gersh and Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz.