A+E Networks said it has cooked up a multi-platform programming deal with Buddy Valastro, the celebrity chef featured in TLC’s long-running series Cake Boss.
The deal calls for Valastro and his family to create multiple new series and holiday specials that will be produced by A+E’s Six West Media in association with Valastro’s Cakehouse Media. Valastro will also be featured in a Lifetime holiday movie.
In all, more than 60 hours of original content will be coming out of the oven.
“Buddy is not only a powerhouse in the culinary world, he is an incredible talent who shares our passion to create the type of quality content that has made A+E Networks a leader in factual entertainment,” Rob Sharenow, president of programming for A+E Networks, said. “Buddy will bolster A+E Networks’ industry-leading lifestyle genre catalogue as a bona fide star with a tremendous fanbase. The fact that he is a passionate creative partner is icing on the cake.”
Cake Boss started on TLC in 2009 on TLC, featuring Valastro and his family-owned business Carlo’s Bake Shop in Hoboken, New Jersey. The show ran on TLC through 2017 and appeared on Discovery Family in 2019 and 2020.
Valastro also appeared in spinoffs, including The Next Great Baker, Kitchen Boss, Bake Your Rich and Bakery Boss. He injured his right hand in his home bowling alley in 2020 and needed two surgeries to repair it.
Valastro will serve as an executive producer on all projects. They will be produced for A+E Networks portfolio of networks and distributed worldwide by A+E.
“Our partnership with A+E is everything my family and I were looking for in a home on television — a media company with worldwide reach and distribution and thoughtful creative partners who can execute our shared vision from development to broadcast,” said Valastro. “I look forward to a long and successful collaboration with the incredible team at A+E and to bringing audiences the shows they crave, as we continue to grow as a business and a family.” ■
