Colin Davis Joins Sony Pictures TV as Comedy Head, as Brian Tannenbaum Takes Over Scripted at Roku

Roku Channel scripted series head Colin Davis has jumped to Sony Pictures Television Studios as the studio’s new exec VP of comedy development, Variety has confirmed. As part of the exec shuffle, back at Roku, Brian Tannenbaum has replaced Davis as head of scripted on an interim level.

Davis will report to Sony Pictures TV Studios co-president Jason Clodfelter and oversee comedy development for all platforms. Davis’ team will include comedy development senior VP, animation VP Frank Ochoa and comedy development manager Jackie Wertheimer. He starts on May 1.

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At Roku, Davis oversaw the launch of series including the “Reno 911” reboot and Kevin Hart’s “Die Harter,” as well as the greenlight and release of the feature “Weird: The Al Yankovic Story.” Davis joined Roku as part of its acquisition of Quibi content; he had previously led scripted at that very brief short-form subscription service. Before Quibi, he handled comedy development at Turner, working on shows such as “Search Party.” His interim replacement, Tannenbaum, also joined Roku from Quibi..

“His passion and understanding of television are infectious, and he embodies an entrepreneurial spirit that is essential in today’s landscape,” said Clodfelter in a statement. His vast relationships are undeniable, and we are fortunate to have Colin at the helm of our comedy development team.”

Davis fills the spot that had previously been held by former comedy development exec VP Glenn Adilman, who left last fall as part of organizational changes made by new Sony Pictures TV Studios president Katherine Pope.

Sony Pictures TV comedies include Apple TV+’s “The Afterparty,” Netflix’s “Cobra Kai” and ABC’s ending “The Goldbergs.” It’s also behind upcoming series “Platonic” (Apple TV+), “Sausage Party: Foodtopia” (Amazon Prime Video), “Twisted Metal” (Peacock), “The Pradeeps of Pittsburgh” (Amazon Freevee) and “Hoagie Bros.” (Fox).

Back at Roku, as Tannenbaum fills Davis’ role (at least for now), head of creative affairs Lydia Antonini continues to oversee drama and Morgan Pichinson continues to oversee comedy for Roku Originals.

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