Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer is buying the assets of Evolution Media and rolling them into MGM’s television division led by Mark Burnett, president of the Television Group & Digital.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Founder and CEO Douglas Ross will be president of the acquired business and Alex Baskin, executive vice president of programming and development, will become Evolution’s president of programming and development.
Evolution Media produced series including “The Real Housewives of Orange County,” “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” and “Vanderpump Rules” for Bravo, as well as other series for E! network, CBS, NBC and Disney Channel.
Those productions will join MGM Television’s current series including “Survivor” (CBS), “The Voice” (NBC), “Shark Tank” (ABC), Jamie Foxx’s “Beat Shazam” (FOX) and Steve Harvey’s “FUNDERDOME” (ABC), along with scripted series “Fargo” (FX), “The Handmaid’s Tale” (Hulu), “Vikings” (HISTORY) and the upcoming “Get Shorty” (EPIX).
“Doug and Alex have been creating and producing hit series for decades. These guys have talent and drive and will help our MGM Television ‘hit machine’ to continue to grow and grow,” said Burnett in a statement.
“After 30 years of being fiercely independent, we couldn’t be more proud and excited to join forces with the dynamic, creative and supportive leadership team at MGM. We look forward to working with Gary, Mark and Barry to supercharge Evolution and to write the next chapters in the company’s history with them,” said Ross in a statement.
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Earlier this year, MGM dropped about $1 billion to buy the whole of Epix from co-owners Viacom and Lionsgate.
"The addition of EPIX provides MGM with a premier distribution platform that complements our strong stable of new and library content in both film and television. The acquisition creates increased revenue diversity, new opportunities for growth, and earnings accretion for the benefit of stockholders," said Gary Barber, chairman and CEO of MGM, in a statement.