Fremantle is advancing its production and development executive teams with a duo of strategic new hires. Jhamal Robinson recently joined the company in the newly formed position of head of U.S. productions unscripted and scripted, while Emily Knight has joined as sr. VP of unscripted development.
“As our production slate continues to grow in both scale and ambition, it’s essential that our leadership team evolves alongside it,” said Suzanne Lopez, COO, Fremantle North America. “Adding these two exceptional executives to our leadership team will help ensure Fremantle remains at the forefront of delivering groundbreaking programming across every platform.”
In this newly created role, Robinson will oversee the company’s expansive U.S. portfolio of both unscripted and scripted programming, reporting to Lopez, COO. His remit will include oversight of all aspects of physical production for Fremantle, including the company’s U.S. productions for Eureka and Original Productions studios, while leading strategic planning, execution, and delivery of premium content across broadcast, streaming, and digital platforms.
“Fremantle has an extraordinary creative legacy and a robust slate across both unscripted and scripted programming,” said Robinson. “I look forward to partnering with the team to align production and creative pipelines in ways that support our studios and continue delivering premium content for audiences across all viewing platforms.”
Robinson brings decades of senior production leadership to Fremantle, with deep experience in building and scaling operations across broadcast and streaming platforms. Most recently, he served as executive VP of physical production and head of A.I. Studio at A+E Global Media, where he led the physical and postproduction teams while integrating emerging technologies across global content portfolios. Previously, he was VP of production management for the U.S. and Canada at Netflix, overseeing production strategy and management for the streamer’s original film, series and unscripted slates across North America. In addition, Robinson is an Emmy Award winner for his work on Clean House with Niecy Nash.
Knight will report to Jimmy Fox, executive VP of unscripted development and sales at Fremantle, where she will help drive the development of the company’s next era of globally distinctive formats. As sr. VP of unscripted development, she will build on Fremantle’s unmatched format legacy by advancing a dynamic slate of bold, globally scalable unscripted concepts.
“Fremantle is synonymous with world-class unscripted television, and the opportunity to work alongside Jimmy is incredible,” said Knight. “His creative instincts and appetite for scale align perfectly with how I approach development, and I’m so excited to help build the next generation of standout global formats with the fantastic team here.”
Knight joins Fremantle from AGC Studios, the studio behind The Tindler Swindler, where she has been serving as the sr. VP of development. Previously, she was head of development at leading U.K. companies including Expectation and All3 Media’s Maverick, contributing to series such as Ex on the Beach, Escape, and reboots of 10 Years Younger and How to Look Good Naked. She brings to Fremantle a stellar track record of creating and selling formats across multiple genres to both networks and streamers.
Fremantle is part of RTL Group, a global leader across broadcast, streaming, content and digital, itself a division of the international media, services, and education company Bertelsmann.
