Fox just keeps combining things. This time it is Fox 21 and Fox Television Studios that have merged into one entity, Fox 21 Television Studios, which will be presided over by in-house executive Bert Salke (pictured above with Dana Walden).
Assisting the newly named president with the transition will be Twentieth Century Fox Television’s Executive Vice President of Brand Management and Digital Strategy, Mark Pearson. Together, the duo will integrate the teams and create a business plan and strategy for the new division, which will develop and produce scripted and unscripted projects for all distribution platforms.
Fox 21 Television Studios will be headquartered at 10351 Santa Monica Boulevard.
“The executive talent at Fox 21 and FTVS is extraordinary and we realized that with David Madden‘s move to FBC , we had a fantastic opportunity to combine these two groups into a single, more powerful organization,” commented Walden and Gary Newman, chairmen and chief executive officers of Fox Television Group. “Bert Salke’s record speaks for itself. He is an enormously talented executive who has built Fox 21 into an industry leader, infused with an intense, distinctive brand that is reflected in every project he develops. He is undeniably the best person to lead this new company. We chose the name Fox 21 Television Studios to honor the rich legacies of great content created by each unit, from ‘Homeland,’ ‘Sons of Anarchy’ and ‘Tyrant’ at Fox 21, to ‘Burn Notice,’ ‘The Americans’ and ‘The Killing’ at FTVS.”
“I’m grateful to Gary and Dana for the incredible support they’ve given me at Fox 21 and for this opportunity,” Added Salke. “Our task is to merge the two companies into a cohesive new entity that will maximize the best of what each individual studio offered before. In the coming weeks, I look forward to getting to know my new colleagues and rolling up my sleeves, with Mark’s help, to devise the best structure and business plan — and to help make the new studio the ‘go-to’ supplier of the most undeniable programming possible.”
Right off the bat, the combined company’s roster will include “Homeland,” “The Americans,” “Sons of Anarchy,” “Tyrant” and “The Killing,” with eight projects in the pipeline, such as “American Crime Story: The People V. O.J. Simpson,” “The Bastard Executioner,” “Clan of the Cave Bear” and “The Comedians.”
More projects are in the development phase.
Salke began at Fox 21 in July 2010. Before joining the studio, he partnered with Chris Brancato in Brancato/Salke, a company based at Twentieth before moving to ABC Studios (then Touchstone TV), where they developed and executive produced drama pilots and television series.
The new studio chief began his career as an executive before shifting to producing, working at Twentieth Century Fox under Scott Rudin and at Lorimar and FBC under Peter Chernin.
Here is the internal Fox memo, which was signed by Walden and Newman:
Dear Colleagues,
This morning we are excited to announce the formation of Fox 21 Television Studios.
This new company unites the talented executives of Fox 21 and Fox Television Studios, who will now work together to develop and nurture outstanding content for distribution across all platforms. We chose the name Fox 21 Television Studios to honor the rich legacies of great programming created by each unit, from Fox 21’s “Homeland,” “Sons of Anarchy,” and “Tyrant,” to FTVS’ “Burn Notice,” “The Americans” and “The Killing.”
We are also pleased to share that Bert Salke has been named President of the new division which, under his leadership, will benefit from his strategic vision. Over the coming months, Bert will be working with Mark Pearson to merge these two great production units into a stronger, and more powerful, company.
The press announcement, which will be released shortly, is attached.
Please join us in congratulating Bert and the united team at Fox 21 Television Studios.