TBS & TNT’s Michael Bloom Steps Down, Segues To WarnerMedia Producing Deal

Michael Bloom, SVP Unscripted Series and Specials for TNT and TBS, is exiting the networks after more than three years. He is launching a Los Angeles-based production company, Bongo Pictures, which has a first-look deal with WarnerMedia Entertainment. There is no word yet on his replacement.

Bloom, a 20-year industry veteran, oversaw the creative development and production of unscripted content across all platforms for both TBS and TNT. During his tenure, he shepherded the launches of such series as James Corden’s Drop the Mic, Snoop Dogg Presents The Joker’s Wild and Chasing the Cure with Ann Curry; as well as the upcoming The Misery Index starring The Impractical Jokers troupe and Jameela Jamil, and Shaquille O’Neal’s Shaq Life among others.

“Michael is one of the true industry pros in the nonfiction space and has been pivotal in reshaping our unscripted business,” said Kevin Reilly, Chief Content Officer, HBO Max and President, TNT, TBS, and truTV. “Thankfully he will continue to be a part of our next major unscripted push through this new venture.”

Unscripted fare continues to be an important part of the TNT and TBS programming mix, especially on TNT. The network has been beefing up its unscripted offering with the migration of TBS’ Drop the Mic and The Joker’s Wild. TNT also recently experimented with live medical crowdsourcing reality series Chasing the Cure, which simulcast on TBS. Shaq Life also is headed to TNT, while The Misery Index will air on TBS.

This marks Bloom’s return to producing. “It’s an exhilarating time to be a producer with all these new frontiers and old rules thrown out the window,” he said. “I’m inspired to get back to my producing roots and do what I love the most. WarnerMedia has been a wildly creative place to work, and with Bongo, I hope to create distinct and significant content that evokes the same feeling as when you hear those drums – that something awesome is about to happen.”

Before joining TBS and TNT in June 2016, Bloom was SVP of IMG’s Original Content group. There, he was instrumental in creating the architecture for ELeague, the eSports co-venture between Turner and WME | IMG.

Prior to IMG, Bloom served as executive development consultant for AMC, where he helped established the nonfiction programming department and AMC’s first nonfiction series including The Talking Dead and Comic Book Men. In 2011 as SVP Original Programming for Fox Sports Media Group, he launched Fox Sports 1 and grew Fox Sports Originals. Bloom began his career in 1990 at MTV Networks in on-air and off-air marketing. There he produced Nickelodeon’s Rocket Power and served as showrunner on MTV Beach House.

Bloom is repped by WME and Brian Lazarus at Zifferen Brittenham.