FilmNation Entertainment Names Melissa Morkus SVP, Physical Production

Matt Grobar
·2 min read

EXCLUSIVE: FilmNation Entertainment, the independent studio behind such Oscar-winning titles as Promising Young Woman and Arrival, has appointed Melissa Morkus to the role of Senior Vice President, Physical Production.

Coming to the company from MGM, where she spent just over two years as Vice President, Physical Production, Morkus will be tasked with overseeing all aspects of physical production as FilmNation continues to expand its slate, focusing primarily on television, as she has throughout her career.

More from Deadline

Morkus served, prior to her time at MGM, as Director, Physical Production for eOne Television, where she worked on the first season of Showtime’s hit drama series Yellowjackets. She prior to that worked in physical production at Marvel Television, where she co-produced Seasons 3 of Daredevil and Jessica Jones as well as Season 2 of Cloak & Dagger.

Morkus will be based in Los Angeles, reporting to FilmNation’s Executive Vice President, Physical Production and Post, Mike Jackman.

Said Morkus in a statement to Deadline, “I’m excited to be joining the FilmNation Entertainment team and work with them to produce the compelling and boundary pushing content they are known for.”

Added FilmNation’s COO Milan Popelka and EVP Business and Legal Affairs / General Counsel Alison Cohen, “We couldn’t be more thrilled to welcome Melissa to the FilmNation team. Her sophistication and depth of experience across an incredible variety of high-end series make her an invaluable asset to the company, especially as we continue to expand both our television production pipeline, and our overall physical production capabilities.”

Currently developing projects for Amazon, Hulu, Peacock, Sky and others, FilmNation is best known to date on the TV side for Derek Cianfrance’s miniseries I Know This Much Is True, based on the same-name novel by Wally Lamb, for which Mark Ruffalo pulled double duty as twin brothers Dominick and Thomas Birdsey and went on to win an Emmy. The studio most recently wrapped production on Edward Berger’s conspiracy thriller Conclave starring Ralph Fiennes, Stanley Tucci, John Lithgow and Isabella Rossellini, as well as renowned Greek filmmaker Christos Nikou’s Apple-bound English-language debut Fingernails starring Jessie Buckley and Riz Ahmed.

FilmNation is currently in theaters with Nicole Holofcener’s Sundance dramedy You Hurt My Feelings starring Julia Louis-Dreyfus and will also soon see the release of their musical drama Flora and Son from filmmaker John Carney, which Apple snapped up out of Sundance, as well as SXSW 2023’s Down Low, starring Zachary Quinto and Lukas Gage, and Tayarisha Poe’s The Young Wife, starring Kiersey Clemons and Leon Bridges.

Best of Deadline

Sign up for Deadline's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Click here to read the full article.