NBC has named Lisa Katz and Tracey Pakosta the co-presidents of scripted programming at NBC Entertainment. They were, respectively, executive VP of drama and comedy. Both will report to Robert Greenblatt, chairman of NBC Entertainment.
“Lisa and Tracey have impeccable taste, strong leadership and a deep understanding of the NBC brand,” Greenblatt said. “It was Lisa who was one of the first to discover and cultivate what is now the phenomenon of This Is Us, and she continues to bring that astute eye to all that she does for NBC; and Tracey has shepherded in a new era of smart comedies, reigniting audiences to once again tune in on Thursday nights. Their relationships with top showrunners and talent are second to none, and I have no doubt their combined experience and expertise will build on the incredible momentum the network has right now.”
Katz joined NBC as executive VP of drama in July 2016 and has since been overseeing the buying and development of all one-hour projects as well as shepherding the pilots and first seasons of all new dramas. In her previous role at 20th Century Fox Television, Katz developed This Is Us for NBC and Empire for Fox.
Pakosta has been at NBCUniversal since 2011, where she began as executive VP of comedy for Universal Television before being recruited to run comedy at the network in 2015. Pakosta developed The Good Place, Superstore and A.P. Bio, among other series. At Universal Television, Pakosta shepherded Brooklyn Nine-Nine, The Mindy Project and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt.
Prior to working at Universal Television, Pakosta was a partner at Green Mountain West, Craig Ferguson’s production company for CBS Television Studios.
Last week, Jennifer Salke departed NBC, where she was entertainment president, to run Amazon Studios.
