Mattel Taps Michelle Mendelovitz as Head of Television Studios
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Mattel is bringing on a TV veteran to lead its Mattel Television Studios division.
The toy giant, which owns IP like Barbie and Hot Wheels, has hired Michelle Mendelovitz to lead its TV studios division. Mendelovitz was most recently executive producer at HiddenLight, the production company from Hillary and Chelsea Clinton, but she previously served as senior VP and head of drama development at Disney 20th Television Studios, and as a senior creative executive for scripted & unscripted programming at Apple.
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She will report to Josh Silverman, Mattel’s chief franchise officer.
Mattel has made leveraging its toy IP for the screen a top strategic priority. The runaway success of this year’s Barbie movie only underscored that effort. Mattel’s TV series include programs based on Barbie, Barney, Thomas & Friends, Hot Wheels, and Fireman Sam, among others.
“Michelle is a powerful creative leader with a wealth of experience working with top studios and creators to make innovative, quality content across genres and platforms,” says Ynon Kreiz, Mattel’s CEO. We are excited for her to join at a time of such momentum for the company, and for the important role she will play in developing stories that resonate in culture and growing Mattel’s global fan base.”
“Mattel is a globally revered brand that I’ve always admired for its ability to empower and relate to their audience generation after generation,” Mendelovitz adds. “Taking that bold spirit to speak to themes that impact people’s worlds, while simultaneously entertaining audiences of all ages, is what we are focused on as we grow Mattel Television Studios into an inspiring storytelling home for best-in-class creators. I’m so thrilled and honored to join the Mattel team as we take our brands and franchises to a whole new level.”
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