Dr Pimple Popper creator Whitney White to lead development at Butternut

US-based media company Wheelhouse has named Whitney White, creator of the long-running reality hit Dr Pimple Popper, as executive VP of development at its unscripted prodco Butternut.

Whitney White

White, who created, developed and produced the TLC series during her time leading development at Ping Pong Productions, will be tasked with overseeing the New York-based company’s development efforts across home, food and lifestyle.

In addition to Ping Pong Productions, White was also formerly exec VP at All3Media-backed Woodman Park Productions and has worked as a producer for various Discovery-owned networks.

Butternut, which was launched as a joint venture in 2022 by Wheelhouse and former Food Network and HGTV president Courtney White, has a roster of current shows including Food Network’s Next Baking Master: Paris, HGTV’s Divided by Design and Roku’s Celebrity Family Food Battle.

Outside of Butternut, Liz Fine has been promoted to executive VP of programming at Wheelhouse Entertainment after previously serving as senior VP of programming at both Butternut and another Wheelhouse-owned label, Spoke Studios.

Fine joined Wheelhouse in 2021 after previously serving as a senior VP of original series at VH1 and MTV, where she oversaw titles such as Siesta Key and Love & Hip Hop. Before that, she was VP of programming and development for FYI.

Both White and Fine will collaborate with the teams across all of Wheelhouse’s labels, including Wheelhouse UK, management group DNA and recently launched prodco Twist, which is led by former Discovery executive Jane Latman.

Earlier in the year, Wheelhouse, which was launched by CEO Brent Montgomery in 2018, secured a minority investment from a group led by Jeff Bewkes’ Alignment Growth.