NBC Entertainment Chairman Bob Greenblatt has been tasked with overseeing NBCUniversal’s live stage division. Universal Stage Productions (USP), which Universal Pictures President Jimmy Horowitz will continue to lead, will expand the division’s focus to include all NBCUniversal properties.
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“Starting with the enormous success of ‘Wicked,’ Jimmy has built a thriving live stage business and I’m looking forward to working together to grow the business,” Greenblatt said in a statement to TheWrap. “Broadway and the touring business are very robust right now, and while a blockbuster like ‘Wicked’ doesn’t come along every day, I’m eager to extend more of our filmed entertainment to the stage as well as branch out into original ideas.”
Greenblatt was lead producer of 2009’s “9 to 5: The Musical,” with a score written by Dolly Parton and starring Allison Janney. He also produced “A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder” this year, which won the Tony Award for Best Musical. He’s also heading up “Peter Pan Live!,” which stars Christopher Walken as Captain Hook and Allison Williams as Peter, to air on NBC in December.
“Bob and I share a great love for the theater and with his brilliant, creative mind and producing expertise, I know together we can further grow our live stage division in a way that takes advantage of our vast library of intellectual properties and talent across our company,” Horowitz said. “Adding oversight of USP to Bob’s portfolio makes perfect sense and I’m thrilled to be partnering with him.”
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Launched in 2003, USP has produced 10 Broadway shows — from “Wicked” to “Billy Elliot” — that have received 52 Tony nominations and 15 wins.