BBC Studios named Zai Bennett as new CEO and Chief Creative Officer for its global content-making division BBC Studios Productions. The executive’s remit - which will span the company’s UK and international production units (including the Natural History Unit), owned labels and invested indies across its Global Entertainment, Factual, Scripted, Kids & Family and Audio genres - will see him bring a creative-first approach to driving the production business forward. He will be tasked with building high value, distributable IP, maintaining BBC returning series and key brands, securing new commissions - and expanding BBC Studios’ international format pipeline through development capabilities in existing markets as well as expansion into new territories. Retaining the producer’s position as a provider of scale original streamer series, whilst also continuing to be the biggest supplier of content to the BBC, will also play a crucial part in his new role. He will take up his new position in November and will report into CEO Tom Fussell, joining BBC Studio’s Executive Committee.
Bennet joins from Sky, where he is currently Managing Director of Content and will take the reins of the UK’s most awarded production company, with BBC Studios Productions responsible for seven of the top 10 performing shows in the UK across 2023, including events such as “Eurovision” and the Coronation of Their Majesties King Charles III and Queen Camilla - plus drama like “Happy Valley 3.” Recent BBC Studios Productions unit output included series two of Jimmy McGovern’s “Time,” the David Attenborough-fronted landmark “Planet Earth III,” Nicolas Winding Refn’s take on children’s classic “The Famous Five,” and an enthralling look at a scientific genius in “Einstein and the Bomb” - whilst its wholly owned production labels delivered shows such as “Baby Reindeer” (Clerkenwell), “Renegade Nell” (Lookout Point) and the recently launched “The Jetty” (Firebird Pictures). As well as 12 production bases in the UK, BBC Studios also has bases in the Nordics, India, Australia, Spain, South Africa, Germany, France and the USA.
At Sky, Bennett is principally responsible for Sky’s portfolio of entertainment services such as Sky Atlantic and Sky Max, Sky’s premium brands, Sky Cinema and Sky Kids as well as Sky’s FTA services like Sky Arts. He has ordered successful award-winning dramas such as “Chernobyl,” “Gangs of London,” “Patrick Melrose,” “This England,” “Bulletproof” and “Discovery of Witches,” award-winning hit comedies like “Brassic” and “Sally4Ever” as well as award-winning entertainment like “Rob and Romesh Versus.” Bennett took Sky Arts FTA in 2020 helping make the arts more accessible for all and launched Sky’s factual services like Sky Documentaries which recently won the factual BAFTA for the second year in a row for Lockerbie. In cinema he has supercharged Sky’s Original films with titles like Michael Mann’s “Ferrari,” “The Beekeeper” and Kate Winslet’s “Lee” - and in Kids he oversaw the launch of Sky Kids linear service in 2023. Bennett also oversees all acquisitions adding titles like “House of the Dragon,” “True Detective” and “The Rookie” to Sky’s offering as well as negotiating major film deals with the Hollywood studios for Sky Cinema.
One of Bennett’s first roles in TV was at Channel 5 where he scheduled the channel’s launch night before joining ITV as part of the core team that launched ITV2, ITV3 and ITV4, working his way up to become Director of the digital channels notably commissioning “The Only Way Is Essex,” “Secret Diary of a Call Girl,” and “Celebrity Juice.” At the same time he oversaw acquisitions for all of ITV. In 2011, Bennett moved to the BBC to become BBC Three’s fourth controller, where he set about commissioning a series of comedy hits including “Bad Education” and “Murder in Successville” as well as “People Just Do Nothing.” He also commissioned documentaries such as “My Murder” and “Life And Death Row” – leading to BBC Three winning the Bafta for Best Documentary three years in a row.
Tom Fussell, CEO, BBC Studios said: “Zai’s risk-taking creative hit-rate speaks for itself. He has impact and gravitas and can propel BBC Studios Productions even faster forward without losing the deeply engrained BBC ethos all who work here share. His deep genre experience in scripted comedy and drama through to factual entertainment, documentaries, film and kids, coupled with the relationships he’s cultivated with the very best creative talent, will complement our production business growth plans and take us to the next level domestically and globally. I can’t wait for him to start.”
Zai Bennett commented: “I’m incredibly excited to be joining the powerhouse that is BBC Studios Productions this autumn. BBC Studios Productions has a special place in the production ecosystem, upholding the BBC’s unique purpose and values in everything they do, while marrying this with creative commerciality to help export the BBC’s brand around the world as a champion for the highest quality programming in every genre. I couldn’t be more thrilled to join Tom’s team, his ambition and plans for BBC Studios are clear, exhilarating and infectious. I can’t wait to work with him and the world-class creative teams across all the genres and divisions to help keep driving BBC Studios Productions’ growth and stature around the world.”
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