‘Justified’ Producer Ingrid Escajeda Joins ‘Empire’ as Co-EP, Inks Overall 20th TV Deal

Ingrid Escajeda is set to join Fox’s “Empire” as a co-executive producer as part of a new two-year overall deal with 2oth Century Fox Television Studios.

Under the pact, Escajeda will develop and supervise projects for the studio.

“We’re always on the lookout for the boldest, most original voices, and we had a great development experience with Ingrid earlier this year that convinced us we wanted to be in business with her exclusively,” said 20th TV’s creative affairs president in a statement.

She continued, “We introduced her to [‘Empire’ Showrunner Ilene Chaiken] and they hit it off immediately, so this deal both helps make sure ‘Empire’ has the best resources to continue to thrive creatively and allows Ingrid to develop her own projects down the road.”

From Imagine Television in association with 20th TV, “Empire” was created by Lee Daniels and Danny Strong. Escajeda will join executive producers Chaiken, Daniels, Strong and Brian Grazer.

Previously, Escajeda served as a supervising producer on FX’s “Justified” for four seasons and as a staff writer on ABC’s “Better Off Ted.” She has also sold a drama to CBS/20th TV, which led to the overall deal.

UTA and Echo Lake Management represent Escajeda.