Julie Pizzi has been named president of entertainment and development at Bunim/Murray Productions. She was formerly the company’s president of entertainment and development.
Bunim/Murray (BMP), which was originally founded in 1987 by Mary-Ellis Bunim and Jonathan Murray, is owned by Banijay. Cris Abrego is chairman of Banijay’s American operations and is also president and CEO of Endemol Shine Holdings.
BMP is the studio behind “The Real World,” “Road Rules” and “Keeping Up With the Kardashians.” “The Real World” is returning via Paramount+ (the rebranded and expanded CBS All Access) beginning with a reunion of the groundbreaking and original reality show’s original New York cast.
“Julie brings a wealth of unscripted production experience to her new role and has been a part of the Bunim/Murray family for more than 20 years, making her the ideal candidate to lead the studio into the next decade,” Abrego said on Wednesday. “Bunim/Murray is one of the true pioneers in the unscripted industry and thanks to Julie and many others, it has a tremendous amount of momentum with numerous new ground-breaking series on the way.”
“I started my career at Bunim/Murray and was mentored by its founders, the late Mary-Ellis Bunim and Jonathan Murray,” Pizzi said. “I have incredible admiration for the company they created and it’s important for me to continue to build on what they built in both nurturing creativity and developing content that is both innovative and entertaining.”
“At the same time, I look forward to working with Cris Abrego, his team and Banijay globally as we shepherd Bunim/Murray into its next successful chapter,” she continued. “Cris is an industry leader, who also worked at BMP during the company’s early years. He understands the uniqueness of the company, the brand and its culture.”
Pizzi recently developed and executive produced Netflix’s “Bill Nye Saves the World.”
Between stints at Bunim/Murray, Pizzi launched reality and documentary company PB&J Television. She returned back to Bunim/Murray in 2015.
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