HBO’s Ben Wasserstein has inked an exclusive first-look deal with former HBO chairman and CEO Richard Plepler’s EDEN Productions.
Wasserstein, who most recently served as HBO’s senior VP of Original Programming, has signed onto the three-year-old production company to develop comedy and drama series, limited series and films for EDEN’s multiyear deal with Apple TV+.
The former SVP, who will be based on the West Coast, will work alongside Heather Karpas, who recently joined EDEN from ICM Partners in 2020.
“Ben is one of the most talented creative executives of his generation,” Plepler said in a statement. “I’m thrilled he’ll be bringing his superb eye for talent and material to EDEN.”
Prior to moving up the ladder as SVP of Original Programming at HBO, Wasserstein joined the company in 2016 and oversaw the development of comedy series including “Barry,” “The Rehearsal,” “Somebody Somewhere,” “Los Espookys,” “Avenue 5,” “Veep,” “Divorce,” “Sally4Ever” and “Curb Your Enthusiasm.”
Wasserstein also previously worked as a journalist and the editorial director of The New Republic, before eventually joining Fair Harbor Productions in 2009, where he worked on series like HBO’s “Looking” and “Bored To Death” as well as SundanceTV’s “The Red Road.”
EDEN Productions, which was launched in 2020 by Plepler with a multiyear deal with Apple TV+, has produced limited series “Blackbird,” docuseries “Lincoln’s Dilemma” and “The Problem with Jon Stewart,” among others.
The television and film production company is also currently developing “Firebug” and “Small Mercies” with Dennis Lehane along projects with “Three Pines’” Emilia di Girolamo, “Call My Agent!’s” Fanny Herrero, Taffy Brodesser-Akner, Lara Shapiro and Gideon Raff.
