Spyglass zooms in on Whitney for TV push

Gary Barber has brought a former Miramax and Legendary Entertainment executive into his revived production shingle Spyglass Media as president of television.

Lauren Whitney

Lauren Whitney will join the LA-based firm on April 1.  She will report to Barber who is chairman and CEO of the company, which relaunched in March with financial backing from Lantern Entertainment.

The firm was originally a movie producer called Spyglass Entertainment, which was launched by Barber and Roger Birnbaum in 1998 and was behind feature films such as Shanghai Noon and Seabiscuit. It was scaled back in 2009 after Barber and Birmnaum left for MGM but is now back with a new focus on TV production.

Whitney will oversee television development and production for broadcast, cable and OTT services. She is also tasked with reinvigorating the company’s IP and library titles, including the format rights to Project Runway, and films such as The King’s Speech and Inglourious Basterds.

Whitney comes to Spyglass after a year at Miramax where she was also president of television. Prior to joining Miramax, Whitney was president of scripted television at Legendary Entertainment.

Barber said: “Lauren has discerning taste, stellar industry relationships and has overseen production on a variety of compelling series across all platforms. We are fortunate to have Lauren’s talents and creative leadership as we build on our television business.”

Whitney added: “There is extraordinary opportunity for a well-capitalised, independent premium content company that controls IP, and can be agile and aggressive in its deal-making. Gary has an exceptional track record and an ambitious plan for the future of Spyglass. I am thrilled to be joining his team.”

Spyglass also recently announced the appointments of Kristin Cotich as executive VP of worldwide communications and Cheryl Rodman as chief legal officer.