I. Marlene King Exits Warner Bros. TV for Overall Deal at 20th Century Fox
By Joe Otterson
LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – I. Marlene King has signed a new multi-year deal at 20th Century Fox Television, exiting her longtime studio home of Warner Bros. Television.
King will develop, write, produce, and direct new projects for network, cable, and streaming under the new deal via her Long Lake Media banner. Long Lake’s executive vice president of development Lauren Wagner will continue in that role with the company as part of the deal.
King recently launched the spinoff series “Pretty Little Liars: The Perfectionists” on Freeform, which she created and will continue to executive produce. King previously developed the series adaptation of “Pretty Little Liars,” which proved to be a major hit on Freeform and ran for seven seasons and nearly 200 episodes.
“Terence [Carter, EVP of Development, Comedy and Drama] and I were obsessed with bringing Marlene to 20th because she’s such a special talent– her voice is so specific and wildly entertaining and relevant,” said President of Creative Affairs Jonnie Davis. “‘Pretty Little Liars’ is a delicious, smart, juicy soap that spoke to women, teens and millennials in such a powerful way, and ‘Now and Then’ remains a favorite film of so many of us here. Marlene’s hire is part of our ongoing strategy of bringing the best creative talents to our studio and offering them the widest array of platforms for which to produce their biggest, boldest ideas. We’re thrilled she’s made 20th her exclusive home.”
King’s other credits include “Ravenswood,” “Famous in Love,” and “The Heiress.” She is repped by WME and Morris Yorn.
“I could not be more excited to join Jonnie, Terence and the 20th team,” said King. “They’ve embraced my voice with open arms and it’s a perfect time to create daring new shows for all platforms.”
King is one of the first content creators to sign with 20th TV since the studio became a part of the Disney empire. Just last week, “Daredevil” creator Drew Goddard became the first to announce a new deal with the studio under its new ownership.
