Jon Stewart is filling out his producing team for his Apple TV+ series, bringing in “CBS Evening News” veteran Brinda Adhikari as his showrunner. “Daily Show” alum Chelsea Devantez will serve as his head writer.
Additionally, Lorrie Baranek will be the executive in charge of production.
The untitled series, which has been picked up for multiple seasons, is described as a “one-hour, single-issue series [that] will explore topics that are currently part of the national conversation and his advocacy work,” according to Apple. Each season will be accompanied by a companion podcast that will “continue the discussion.” No word yet on how frequently the new show will air.
Adhikari, who most recently was part of “CBS Evening News,” won a 2020 Edward R. Murrow Award for Best Newscast for a story she led on the treatment of migrant children in detention facilities at the U.S.-Mexico border. Devantez got her start with Stewart’s version of Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show.” She recently wrote, directed and starred in the film “Basic” and served as a writer on Tina Fey and Robert Carlock’s upcoming Peacock comedy “Girls5Eva.”
Stewart’s show falls under a new multiyear first-look deal with his company Busboy Productions. Stewart previously had a deal at HBO, which included plans for an animated cable news parody series that was later scrapped.
Former HBO boss Richard Plepler will executive produce the new show via his EDEN Productions banner, which signed an overall deal with Apple back in January. Stewart’s manager James Dixon will also executive produce.
The project will mark Stewart’s first return to regular TV work since exiting Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show” in 2015. He most recently wrote and directed the film “Irresistible,” which starred Steve Carell and Rose Byrne and was released in June.
The Hollywood Reporter first reported the Tuesday hires.
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