NBCU alum Ben Crompton succeeds Andrew Llinares as global head of entertainment at Fremantle

NBCUniversal executive Ben Crompton has been appointed to the role of global head of entertainment at production and distribution giant Fremantle, succeeding Andrew Llinares.

Ben Crompton

Crompton joins the London-based company with extensive experience in originating, developing and delivering global formats.

He most recently worked at NBCUniversal, where he was VP of international unscripted for just over two-and-a-half years. There, he led the development of formats, IP and third-party projects.

Prior to that, Crompton launched and led Lime Pictures’ US operation. In the role of executive VP US, he delivered shows including Dance Monsters (Netflix), True Love or True Lies (MTV), Dating No Filter (E!) and Who Do You Believe? (ABC).

He has also held senior creative and strategic roles at Warner Brothers in Australia, Eyeworks and ITV Studios.

Crompton’s appointment comes after Fremantle announced in February that Andrew Llinares would leave his position as director of global entertainment in the spring.

Llinares, who is set to return to making programmes, took on the role in early 2023 following Rob Clark’s retirement.

RTL Group-owned Fremantle credited Llinares with playing a central role in leading and shaping its global entertainment portfolio and format development.

In 2025, Fremantle’s entertainment arm delivered 345 commissions and 302 productions in 62 territories, including Too Hot to Handle for Netflix and Pandora’s Box for RTL. The company’s slate for The London TV Screenings last week included shows such as Hitster, Handcuffed, Special Delivery, Hole in One and The Advent Calendar.

Jennifer Mullin, group CEO, Fremantle, said: “We are thrilled to welcome Ben to Fremantle. He is a business minded leader with a deep understanding of the industry, not only from a development and production perspective, but also from a commercial and strategic viewpoint.

“I look forward to working closely with Ben and our hugely talented team at this extremely exciting time for our business – as we build on our successes and continuing to push the creative boundaries together.”