Bunim/Murray Hires A. Smith Exec Rupert Dawson As SVP Development

EXCLUSIVE: Rupert Dobson is exiting his development executive post at American Ninja Warrior producer A. Smith & Co to join fellow reality TV producer Bunim/Murray as SVP Development. He will be tasked with developing formats for broadcast networks and streaming platforms, and will report to Entertainment and Development president Julie Pizzi.

At A. Smith, Dobson helped create original formats including NBC’s The Titan Games with Dwayne
Johnson and Fox’s Mental Samurai. His team also developed Netflix’s Death by Magic among other nonscripted series.

“We are very fortunate that Rupert is joining our development team,” Bunim/Murray Productions CEO Gil Goldschein said Wednesday. “He is a strong creative executive with an impressive track record developing formats that have succeeded on both network and premium streaming platforms. He will play an integral role as we continue to ramp up our development capabilities.”

Bunim/Murray’s current programming includes E!’s juggernaut Keeping up with the Kardashians and Total Divas, MTV’s The Challenge, A&E’s Born This Way, USA Network’s Miz and Mrs. and Netflix’s Emily’s Wonder Lab among many others. The Banijay Group-based reality pioneer that created MTV’s The Real World was inducted into the TV Academy Hall of Fame in 2012.

“I’m very excited to be joining the team at Bunim/Murray to help build on their tremendous success across so many genres,” said Dobson, who before A. Smith worked at BASE Productions and in the UK for Twofour. “They are true innovators, and I look forward to being a part of their push into new areas of this rapidly evolving marketplace.“

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