Kevin Reilly (executive)
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Kevin Reilly (born 1962) is an American media executive who served as the Chief Content Officer of
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and the president of TNT, TBS, and
truTV TruTV (stylized as truTV) is an American basic cable Television channel, channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The channel primarily broadcasts reruns of Television comedy, comedy, Reality television, docusoaps and reality shows, with a rec ...
. In addition to his position at
WarnerMedia Warner Media, LLC (Trade name, doing business as WarnerMedia) was an American multinational corporation, multinational mass media and show business, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate owned by AT&T. It was headquartered at the 30 ...
, Reilly has also held executive positions at FX,
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...
, and Fox, and has championed successful programs such as ''
The Sopranos ''The Sopranos'' is an American Crime film#Crime drama, crime drama television series created by David Chase. The series follows Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini), a New Jersey American Mafia, Mafia boss who suffers from panic attacks. He reluct ...
'', ''
Empire An empire is a political unit made up of several territories, military outpost (military), outposts, and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a hegemony, dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the ...
,
The Office ''The Office'' is the title of several mockumentary sitcoms based on a British series originally created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant as '' The Office'' in 2001. The original series also starred Gervais as manager and primary charac ...
'', ''
30 Rock ''30 Rock'' is an American satire, satirical sitcom television series created by Tina Fey that originally aired on NBC from October 11, 2006, to January 31, 2013. The series, based on Fey's experiences as head writer for ''Saturday Night Live' ...
'', '' Friday Night Lights'', '' The Shield'', '' ER,
Law & Order ''Law & Order'' is an American police procedural and legal drama television series created by Dick Wolf and produced by Wolf Entertainment and Universal Television, launching the ''Law & Order'' franchise. ''Law & Order'' aired its entire ...
'' and ''
Glee Glee may refer to: * Glee (music), a type of English choral music * ''Glee'' (TV series), an American musical comedy-drama TV series, and related media created by Ryan Murphy * ''Glee'' (Bran Van 3000 album) * ''Glee'' (Logan Lynn album) * Gle ...
'', among others.


Early life and education

Reilly is a
Long Island Long Island is a densely populated continental island in southeastern New York (state), New York state, extending into the Atlantic Ocean. It constitutes a significant share of the New York metropolitan area in both population and land are ...
native who was born in
Manhasset Manhasset is an affluent hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in Nassau County, on the North Shore of Long Island, in New York, United States. It is considered the anchor community of the Greater Manhasset area. The population was 8,176 ...
, New York and grew up in Port Washington. He is also a graduate of Chaminade High School in Mineola. Reilly attended
Cornell University Cornell University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university based in Ithaca, New York, United States. The university was co-founded by American philanthropist Ezra Cornell and historian and educator Andrew Dickson W ...
, where he earned his undergraduate degree in communications arts in 1984. While at Cornell, Reilly was a member of the
Phi Delta Theta Phi Delta Theta (), commonly known as Phi Delt, is an international secret and social Fraternities and sororities in North America, fraternity founded in 1848, and currently headquartered, at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. Phi Delta Theta, alo ...
fraternity.


Career


1984–2000: Early career, NBC and Brillstein-Grey

Reilly began his career as a freelance production assistant in
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
where he worked on over 150 commercials and music videos. To pursue a career in television, he took a road trip to
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, initially earning a position as a publicist with
Universal Pictures Universal City Studios LLC, doing business as Universal Pictures (also known as Universal Studios or simply Universal), is an American filmmaking, film production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered at the 10 Universal Ci ...
and later hired by
Brandon Tartikoff Brandon Tartikoff (January 13, 1949 – August 27, 1997) was an American television executive who was head of the entertainment division of NBC from 1981 to 1991. He was credited with turning around NBC's low prime time reputation with several ...
as a manager of creative affairs at
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...
in 1988. In his early years at NBC he developed ''
Saved by the Bell ''Saved by the Bell'' is an American television teen sitcom created by Sam Bobrick for NBC. The series premiered, in prime time, on August 20, 1989, a Sunday night. Targeted at kids and teens, ''Saved by the Bell'' was broadcast in the United ...
''. He later supervised ''
Law & Order ''Law & Order'' is an American police procedural and legal drama television series created by Dick Wolf and produced by Wolf Entertainment and Universal Television, launching the ''Law & Order'' franchise. ''Law & Order'' aired its entire ...
'' in its first season and developed the pilot episode for '' ER'' while serving as vice president of drama development from 1992 to 1994. In 1994, Reilly left his role at NBC to become president of television at
Brillstein-Grey Entertainment Brillstein Entertainment Partners (formerly known as Brillstein/Grey Entertainment and Brillstein/Grey Communications) is a talent management firm and television production company formed by the 1986 addition of Brad Grey to The Brillstein Compa ...
. While there, Reilly was responsible for shepherding some of television's top shows, such as
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...
's '' Just Shoot Me'' and ''
NewsRadio ''NewsRadio'' is an American television sitcom that aired on NBC from March 21, 1995, to May 4, 1999, focusing on the work lives of the staff of a New York City AM news radio station. It had an ensemble cast featuring Dave Foley, Stephen R ...
'', and
The WB The WB Television Network (shortened to The WB, stylized as "THE WB", and nicknamed the "Frog Network" and/or "The Frog" for its former mascot Michigan J. Frog) was an American television network that ran from 1995 to 2006. It launched on ter ...
's '' The Steve Harvey Show'', and the pilot for
HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American pay television service, which is the flagship property of namesake parent-subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is based a ...
's ''
The Sopranos ''The Sopranos'' is an American Crime film#Crime drama, crime drama television series created by David Chase. The series follows Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini), a New Jersey American Mafia, Mafia boss who suffers from panic attacks. He reluct ...
''. He resigned from the position in 2000.


2000–2003: Move to FX

In 2000, Reilly joined FX as president of entertainment. While at FX, he helped the new network become a profitable, creative business. While there he also transitioned the network's programming from syndicated reruns to original programming including '' The Shield'', '' Nip/Tuck'', and '' Rescue Me''. Within a year of his arrival, FX made cable history with its seminal series, ''The Shield'' broke cable ratings records when it premiered and received both a
Golden Globe Award The Golden Globe Awards are awards presented for excellence in both international film and television. It is an annual award ceremony held since 1944 to honor artists and professionals and their work. The ceremony is normally held every Janua ...
for Best Drama Series and an
Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...
for
lead actor A leading actor, leading actress, or leading man or lady or simply lead (), plays a main role in a film, television show or play. The word ''lead'' may also refer to the largest role in the piece, and ''leading actor'' may refer to a person w ...
Michael Chiklis in 2002. Reilly also championed '' Lucky'', the first television project from the Cullen brothers.


2003–2007: Second stint at NBC

In June 2003, Reilly was named the president of primetime development at NBC. In May 2004, he was promoted to president of the network's entire entertainment division, which included primetime, daytime, and late night programming. Reilly's second tenure at the network was marked by volatility largely due to the fact that major properties like ''
The West Wing ''The West Wing'' is an American political drama television series created by Aaron Sorkin that was originally broadcast on NBC from September 22, 1999, to May 14, 2006. The series is set primarily in the West Wing of the White House, where t ...
'', ''
Friends ''Friends'' is an American television sitcom created by David Crane (producer), David Crane and Marta Kauffman, which aired on NBC from September 22, 1994, to May 6, 2004, lasting List of Friends episodes, ten seasons. With an ensemble cast ...
'', ''
Frasier ''Frasier'' () is an American television sitcom that was broadcast on NBC for 11 seasons from September 16, 1993, to May 13, 2004. The program was created and produced by David Angell, Peter Casey (screenwriter), Peter Casey, and David Lee (scr ...
'', and ''
Will & Grace ''Will & Grace'' is an American television sitcom created by Max Mutchnick and David Kohan. Set in New York City, the show focuses on the friendship between best friends Will Truman (Eric McCormack), a Gay men, gay lawyer, and Grace Adler (Debra ...
'' came to a conclusion. Despite NBC's poor performance, Reilly oversaw the development of some of the network's more prominent shows that helped to define the network in that decade. His vocal support of ''The Office'' helped it survive its low-rated first season. He also helped get ''My Name Is Earl'' on the air despite objections from other NBC Universal executives. Reilly has been credited with developing other shows such as '' Heroes'', ''
30 Rock ''30 Rock'' is an American satire, satirical sitcom television series created by Tina Fey that originally aired on NBC from October 11, 2006, to January 31, 2013. The series, based on Fey's experiences as head writer for ''Saturday Night Live' ...
'', '' Friday Night Lights'', '' Deal or No Deal'', ''
America's Got Talent ''America's Got Talent'' (often abbreviated as ''AGT'') is an American talent show competition, and is part of the global ''Got Talent'' franchise created by Simon Cowell. The program is produced by Fremantle (as well as distributed by) and ...
'', and others. Despite having received a new three-year contract at NBC in March 2007, Reilly's employment with NBC Universal was terminated in late May 2007, and he departed soon after. Under his administration, NBC's programs received 69 Emmy nominations that year, and a total of 235 nominations and 50 wins.


2007–2014: Return to Fox

Six weeks after leaving NBC, Reilly was hired as president of entertainment at Fox. The move reunited him with Peter Liguori whom he also worked with while at FX. Early in his tenure at Fox, Reilly developed and launched the J. J. Abrams thriller ''
Fringe Fringe may refer to: Arts and music * "The Fringe", or Edinburgh Festival Fringe, the world's largest arts festival * Adelaide Fringe, the world's second-largest annual arts festival * Fringe theatre, a name for alternative theatre * Purple fri ...
'', and
Seth MacFarlane Seth Woodbury MacFarlane (; born October 26, 1973) is an American actor, animator, writer, producer, director, comedian, and singer. He is best known as the creator and star of the television series ''Family Guy'' (since 1999) and ''The Orvill ...
's ''
Family Guy ''Family Guy'' is an American animated sitcom created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series premiered on January 31, 1999, following Super Bowl XXXIII, with the rest of the first season airing from April 11, 1999. Th ...
'' spinoff, '' The Cleveland Show''. He also was involved in the launch of Fox Inkubation, a joint venture with
20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc., formerly 20th Century Fox, is an American film studio, film production and Film distributor, distribution company owned by the Walt Disney Studios (division), Walt Disney Studios, the film studios division of the ...
that provided funding to animators to create two-minute shorts that could eventually be developed into television pilots. Through the program,
Justin Roiland Mark Justin Roiland (born February 21, 1980) is an American voice actor, animator, writer, and producer. He co-created the Adult Swim animated sitcom ''Rick and Morty'', for which he voiced the protagonists Rick Sanchez and Morty Smith from 2013 ...
first generated the concept for what would become the Adult Swim show ''
Rick and Morty ''Rick and Morty'' is an American Adult animation, adult animated science fiction Animated sitcom, sitcom created by Justin Roiland and Dan Harmon for Cartoon Network's nighttime programming block Adult Swim. The series follows the misadvent ...
.'' In 2009, he launched ''Glee'' which would go on to win the Golden Globe Award for Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy in 2010. Reilly is generally credited with creating Jane Lynch's character, Sue Sylvester, on the show. In 2011, Reilly also championed ''New Girl'', the network's highest-rated fall sitcom debut in 10 years, and the singing competition show, ''
The X Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for '' Pop Idol'' (2001–200 ...
''. Reilly was promoted to chairman of entertainment for Fox in August 2012. He later introduced the shows ''Brooklyn Nine-Nine'', ''
Bob's Burgers ''Bob's Burgers'' is an American animated sitcom created by Loren Bouchard for the Fox Broadcasting Company. It is centered on the Belcher family—parents Bob Belcher, Bob and Linda Belcher, Linda and their three children, Tina Belcher, Tina, G ...
'', and '' The Mindy Project''. At Fox, Reilly oversaw the network's leadership and investment in digital and social media. He is credited as "the architect" behind the Animation Domination High-Def, an independent digital animation subsidiary generating alternative animation for digital channels and a late-night block on Fox. Reilly also initiated a "no
pilot An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its Aircraft flight control system, directional flight controls. Some other aircrew, aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are al ...
season" strategy (designed to nurture fewer new Fox shows with more investment). Prior to his departure, he also greenlit shows, including ''Empire'', ''Gotham'', and '' The Last Man on Earth''. During his time at Fox from 2007 to 2014, the network had a seven-year run as television's top-rated network for adults aged 18 to 49. He left Fox in May 2014.


2014–2020


TBS, TNT, and Turner Entertainment

In November 2014, Reilly was named the president of TNT and TBS and chief creative officer of Turner Entertainment. In the role, he oversaw the TBS and TNT networks and led growth opportunities across Turner's entertainment properties including TBS, TNT,
truTV TruTV (stylized as truTV) is an American basic cable Television channel, channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The channel primarily broadcasts reruns of Television comedy, comedy, Reality television, docusoaps and reality shows, with a rec ...
,
Adult Swim Adult Swim (stylized as dult swimand s is an American adult-oriented television programming block that airs on Cartoon Network which broadcasts during the evening, prime time, and Late-night television, late-night Dayparting, dayparts. T ...
, Super Deluxe and '' ELEAGUE''. In 2016, Reilly led TNT to cut 50% of the ad load of the network's new dramas, starting with '' Animal Kingdom''. Reilly has also gained notice for modernizing and reinventing the types of series seen on TNT and TBS, introducing dark original dramas at TNT, including ''
Claws A claw is a curved, pointed appendage found at the end of a toe or finger in most amniotes (mammals, reptiles, birds). Some invertebrates such as beetles and spiders have somewhat similar fine, hooked structures at the end of the leg or tars ...
'' and '' The Alienist'', and edgy comedies at TBS, including '' Full Frontal with Samantha Bee'', '' The Detour'', '' Wrecked'', ''
Angie Tribeca ''Angie Tribeca'' is an American television sitcom created by Steve and Nancy Carell, which aired on TBS. A parody of the police procedural genre, it stars Rashida Jones as the titular character, with Hayes MacArthur, Jere Burns, Deon Cole ...
'' and '' The Last O.G.''. He also led TBS to experiment with "binge-viewing" by airing all 10 episodes of ''
Angie Tribeca ''Angie Tribeca'' is an American television sitcom created by Steve and Nancy Carell, which aired on TBS. A parody of the police procedural genre, it stars Rashida Jones as the titular character, with Hayes MacArthur, Jere Burns, Deon Cole ...
''’s first season repeatedly over 25-hours without commercials in January 2016 and again in November 2016 with the network’s newest original series, '' Search Party'', which debuted all 10 episodes of first season during Thanksgiving weekend. Under Reilly's leadership, in 2017 TBS also introduced new unscripted shows including '' Snoop Dogg Presents the Joker's Wild'' and '' Drop the Mic''. At Turner, Reilly made investments in digital and social media content and pushed for multi-platform ratings measurement. In October 2015, Reilly oversaw the launch of Super Deluxe and pushed for investments in ELEAGUE, the first major foray into professional
eSports Esports (), short for electronic sports, is a form of competition using video games. Esports often takes the form of organized, multiplayer video game competitions, particularly between professional players, played individually or as teams. ...
video game competitions in prime-time TV by a traditional media company, and companies like
Refinery29 Refinery29 (R29) is an American multinational digital media and entertainment website focused on young women. It is owned by Sundial Media Group. History Justin Stefano, Philippe von Borries, Piera Gelardi, and Christene Barberich co-founded Ref ...
. In 2018, ''
Fast Company ''Fast Company'' is an American business magazine published monthly in print and online, focusing on technology, business, and design. It releases six print issues annually. History ''Fast Company'' was founded in November 1995 by Alan Webb ...
'' named Turner among "The World's Most Innovative Companies" in the video category citing Reilly's development of shows like ''Full Frontal with Samantha Bee'' and ''The Alienist'' with helping reinvent the company's TBS and TNT networks. In October 2019, Reilly worked with Tony Khan to bring AEW (All Elite Wrestling) to TNT in 2020. AEW signed a four-year contract extension in 2020 will begin airing a second weekly show on the network in 2021.


WarnerMedia

In December 2018, Reilly's role was expanded to include architecting the overall creative identity of WarnerMedia's direct-to-consumer streaming platform, being appointed president TBS and TNT and chief creative officer Turner and WarnerMedia Direct-to-Consumer. As CCO, Reilly oversaw licensing properties for the streaming service such as
Friends ''Friends'' is an American television sitcom created by David Crane (producer), David Crane and Marta Kauffman, which aired on NBC from September 22, 1994, to May 6, 2004, lasting List of Friends episodes, ten seasons. With an ensemble cast ...
,
Big Bang Theory The Big Bang is a physical theory that describes how the universe expanded from an initial state of high density and temperature. Various cosmological models based on the Big Bang concept explain a broad range of phenomena, including the ...
, DC theatrical films, and external properties including
Sesame Street ''Sesame Street'' is an American educational television, educational children's television series that combines live-action, sketch comedy, animation, and puppetry. It is produced by Sesame Workshop (known as the Children's Television Worksh ...
,
Studio Ghibli is a Japanese animation studio based in Koganei, Tokyo."Studio Ghibli Collection - Madman Entertainment". ''Studio Ghibli Collection - Madman Entertainment''. Retrieved 2020-12-14. It has a strong presence in the animation industry and has exp ...
,
South Park ''South Park'' is an American animated sitcom created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone, and developed by Brian Graden for Comedy Central. The series revolves around four boysStan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, Eric Cartman, and Kenny McCormickand the ...
, and a
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
output deal. Some of Reilly's programming at Max included
Ridley Scott Sir Ridley Scott (born 30 November 1937) is an English film director and producer. He directs films in the Science fiction film, science fiction, Crime film, crime, and historical drama, historical epic genres, with an atmospheric and highly co ...
’s Raised by Wolves, Love Life starring
Anna Kendrick Anna Cooke Kendrick (born August 9, 1985) is an American actress. Known for playing upbeat and endearing characters in comedies and musicals, List of awards and nominations received by Anna Kendrick, her accolades include nominations for an Aca ...
, the ballroom competition show, Legendary and
Justice League The Justice League, or Justice League of America (JLA), is a group of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The team first appeared in ''The Brave and the Bold'' #28 (March 1960). Writer Gardner Fox conceived the ...
: “ the Snyder Cut” as a re-conceived multi-part event. In May 2019, Reilly signed a new, four-year deal with
WarnerMedia Warner Media, LLC (Trade name, doing business as WarnerMedia) was an American multinational corporation, multinational mass media and show business, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate owned by AT&T. It was headquartered at the 30 ...
that would have kept him at the company through 2022. It had expanded his oversight of the company's basic cable networks to include
truTV TruTV (stylized as truTV) is an American basic cable Television channel, channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The channel primarily broadcasts reruns of Television comedy, comedy, Reality television, docusoaps and reality shows, with a rec ...
in addition to TBS, TNT, and the direct-to-consumer streaming service (
HBO Max Max (known in other countries as, and soon to be reverted globally to HBO Max) is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. It is a proprietary unit of Warner Bros. Discovery Streaming on behalf of Home Box Of ...
). Reilly departed in August 2020 amidst a company-wide restructuring.


Board memberships

Reilly has been chairman of the board of trustees and remains on the board for The Nature Conservancy of California. He is also a member of the Los Angeles Chapter of the Young Presidents' Organization and served 8 years on the board of trustees for the American Film Institute, the Television Academy, and on the advisory board for the Peabody Awards. Reilly also serves on the Advisory Council for Cornell's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.


Awards and recognition

In 2016, he was inducted into the ''
Broadcasting & Cable ''Broadcasting & Cable'' (''B&C'', or ''Broadcasting+Cable'') was a telecommunications industry monthly trade magazine and, later, news website published by Future US. Founded in 1931 as ''Broadcasting'', subsequent mergers, acquisitions and ...
'' Hall of Fame. In 2018, Reilly received the
Brandon Tartikoff Brandon Tartikoff (January 13, 1949 – August 27, 1997) was an American television executive who was head of the entertainment division of NBC from 1981 to 1991. He was credited with turning around NBC's low prime time reputation with several ...
Legacy Award from the National Association of Television Program Executives (NATPE).


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Reilly, Kevin 1962 births American television executives Businesspeople from New York (state) Cornell University alumni Fox Broadcasting Company executives Living people NBC executives People from Manhasset, New York Presidents of Fox Broadcasting Company Entertainment Presidents of NBC Entertainment