Lifetime and LMN executive VP of scripted content Tanya Lopez is not afraid to experiment with industry programming models. While traditional one-hour episode scripted series and limited miniseries continue to dominate the lineups of many cable, broadcast and streaming services, Lopez is looking to blend the programmer’s core of two-hour original movies into a miniseries format she believes will appeal to its loyal and passionate female audience.  

From the upcoming Fallen Angels Murder Club series of movies debuting in April to the Flowers in the Attic: The Origin four-part limited series premiering this summer, Lifetime under Lopez’s tutelage is looking to rewrite the script for the traditional miniseries genre.

If successful, this will add another feather to the cap of Lopez, who has guided the A+E Networks-owned outlets’ programming fortunes since 2007. During that time, she has overseen the development of such Emmy-nominated projects as Robin Roberts Presents: Mahalia, Flint and The Trip to Bountiful while attracting some of the biggest names in the entertainment industry to star in and helm Lifetime projects, including Roberts, Mary J. Blige, Toni Braxton, Janet Jackson and Queen Latifah. 

Lopez outlined Lifetime’s strategy for serving its core female audience in today’s ever-changing TV landscape and shared her thoughts on the industry’s diversity and inclusion efforts in an interview edited for space and clarity.  

Where does Lifetime’s female-targeted brand fit in a very crowded TV marketplace? I think what's happened in all this craziness is that we've become an even stronger brand. I think as people look to see what they can count on and what they know is true, signature brands like Lifetime, History, Disney and A&E give viewers some comfort in knowing that when they turn it on they know what they’re going to get. In that sense, we are still the highest-producing network for movies on television, and our viewers know they can come to us for that. 

What is Lifetime’s strategy behind focusing on original movie franchises rather than traditional scripted series? What we are doing are limited scripted series broken out in two-hour blocks. For instance, we have coming up Flowers in the Attic: The Origin, which is going to tell you all about how Flowers in the Attic started, but we're doing it in two-hour blocks over four nights. If we were a streamer or even a network, you would call that eight episodes. We're calling it a limited series of movies. Our scripted content is flexing — we probably do more scripted television than anyone. We’re doing this with [April’s] The Fallen Angels Murder Club, where we’ll air one movie one week and then another in the franchise the next weekend. That's going to feel, in quotation marks, like a series. Later this year we’re doing another with Angie Harmon starring in Buried in Barstow. That's what we’re calling our scripted anthology of movies: It’s a series of movies that feature continuing characters, but in a two-hour format. 

What’s been your secret to attracting major talent to your original movies both within the television space and from other entertainment media? We go to them and say, we want to tell the story you want to tell and we want to hear what your point of view is on whatever subject matter we’ve decided to tell. What we really want is their passion for the material they’re in to come through. We also depend on them to partner with us to promote these projects — we’re not Marvel, so we need to know that our talent is passionate enough about their projects to get out there and scream about it from the rooftops. 

How important is inclusivity to you in terms of your programming decision-making, and how do you view the industry’s overall diversity efforts? It’s always been part of the Lifetime DNA because we were always trying to be inclusive of all kinds of women. If you think of Strong Medicine and other past Lifetime shows, it's always been a big deal. As we all have become more aware, our company decided that it should be a bigger initiative. It really empowered us to say it's not just what Lifetime should be doing, but what we all should be doing. There’s not a person in this company that doesn’t put it on their priority list. For the industry I think it's like turning around a cruise ship: it’s happening, but not as fast as everyone wants or can do. I do feel positive and optimistic, but it’s not without intent every day.  

How do you see the industry trending in terms of the quality and quantity of content creation and distribution? I think we're all going to have to be more creative, innovative, patient and aggressive — all these things need to come into play. What I've already noticed within our own company is every day you‘re pivoting, because it's moving so fast that in order to be successful, you really have to be open. Those that survive are going to be the ones who are the most flexible and the most willing to give up some things that worked for a long time but that just don’t work now. ■

Lifetime has promoted network programming executives Tanya Lopez and Gena McCarthy to executive vice president roles as the network's head of programming Liz Gateley departs the company, the network said Thursday. 

Gateley, in an internal e-mail, said  that she is departing the company to spend more time with her family. Gateley took over the head of programming role for Lifetime in 2015 and launched such shows as UnReal and Mary Kills People.

“So it is with a heavy heart that I must say that I have decided to leave my position at Lifetime,” Gateley said. “This was a dream job for me: to come back to the brand I love, where I started out 17 years ago as Assistant to the Head of Programming, and to BEthe Head of Programming. It was my Working Girl moment.”

Nancy Dubuc, President & CEO, A+E Networks said of Liz Gateley's Departure: "I would like to thank Liz for her enormous contributions to Lifetime, and I am glad she will continue to lend her expertise on some upcoming projects for us. I deeply respect her choice to spend more time with her family.” 

Lopez has been elevated to executive vice president, movies, limited series & original movie acquisitions for Lifetime and LMN. Formerly senior vice president of original movies, Lopez will oversee all original movies for the network. Lopez has overseen the development of numerous hit movies during her tenure at Lifetime, including Steel Magnolias, Flowers in the Attic, I Am Elizabeth Smart, Faith Under Fire and Cocaine Godmother.

McCarthy, who has served as executive vice president of Programming and Development for Lifetime sister network fyi since 2016, will now add the title of Lifetime executive vice presient and Head of Programming and fyi unscripted & head of programming. Prior to fyi, McCarthy served as senior vice president, reality and alternative programming for Lifetime, where she oversaw the development of such shows as Dance Moms, Project Runway All Stars and Bring It!

Joanna Klein will continue to oversee Scripted Series for Lifetime, according to network officials. 

“We are incredibly excited to have Tanya, Gena and Joanna heading up our programming efforts for Lifetime,” said Paul Buccieri, president of A+E Studios and A+E Networks Portfolio Group, and Rob Sharenow, president of programming for A+E Networks in a joint statement. “The passion and creativity they bring to the table is unmatched, and their track records speak volumes, as this team has brought some of the biggest hits in women’s entertainment to Lifetime throughout their careers.”

Gateley's full e-mail appears below, followed by Dubuc's response: 

Many of you know what has been going on in my life in the past several months. With the sudden passing of my beloved nanny of 16 years, a new nanny being a no-show and ghosting me, having stressed-out teenage kids and having to lift my dog to the curb because he has a slipped disk (I kid you not!), there have been some very clear signs from the universe to focus on my family and truly be present every day for my kids and husband, who have very generously supported a career choice that required me to fly across the country every other week for the past three years. So it is with a heavy heart that I must say that I have decided to leave my position at Lifetime. This was a dream job for me: to come back to the brand I love, where I started out 17 years ago as Assistant to the Head of Programming, and to BEthe Head of Programming. It was my Working Girl moment. I am so grateful to Rob and Nancy for this opportunity

During my three years here, I had the privilege to launch UnREAL,making the (at the time) scary decision during my first week here to launch the first three episodes digitally and then lobby for and develop three more seasons of the hit Peabody-winning show. I also had the luck to work with Meghan Hooper White and Sharon Bordas on another show that landed on every “Top 20 of the Year” list: Mary Kills People. With Joanna Klein leading her amazing team, I am proud to have attracted showrunners like Greg Berlanti, Sera Gamble and Jenji Kohan, solidifying Lifetime as a premium scripted destination. I cannot wait for the world to see the upcoming YOU and American Princess.

I am also excited that, with the leadership of Tanya Lopez and Meghan, Lifetime Movies has taken on new levels of brave storytelling (and success in the ratings!) with the award-winning and inspiring true stories like Flint, Surviving Compton, Cocaine Godmother, I Am Elizabeth Smart and Faith Under Fire. I’ll never forget Lifetime’s proud coverage of the historic 2016 Election Live with The View, the launch of unscripted hits like TheRap Game, events like Billboard Women in Music and zeitgeist moments like Glam Masters. My favorite failure, Date Night Live, was a proud galvanizing moment while Project Runwayin its 16th season embraced body diversity with “models of all sizes” for the first time. I know Brie Bryant will do amazing things to launch her inspiring vision in the next chapter of Unscripted at Lifetime.

I also love the new faces of Lifetime — Laverne Cox, Penn Badgley, Shay Mitchell and Catherine Zeta-Jones (and don’t forget Meghan and Harry!) — but perhaps my favorite thing in the world is to give people their first chance at something.   This job gave me the opportunity to give deserving WOMEN their first chances: Shiri Appleby and Constance Zimmer directing episodic television (and they did a damn good job), Stacy Rukeyser showrunning, Kyra Sedgwick directing Story of a Girl and getting a DGA nomination, and finally, presenting what had to be the first ever 100% all-female series creator panel at TCA. 

I am so happy to have had the opportunity to work with Rob Sharenow and Paul Buccieri to establish the structure of Lifetime’s programming team going forward. I am excited that Tanya Lopez will continue to oversee all the movies including our originals and will be adding acquisitions to her purview.Gena McCarthy will return to Lifetime to lead Unscripted Programming, and Joanna Klein will continue to oversee Scripted Series. I love that Lifetime’s programming future will be controlled by three powerful women who love the brand as much as I do. 

And here’s to the F word. For me, this letter conjures up many fond words.: Fempire. Flint. Faith Under Fire. Our muse: the “Fireheart.” But most importantly, the incredible Friends I’ve made here and will miss. Keep fighting the fight for #MeToo and #TimesUp, as we have always been the leaders of equality for women. In fact, there are some exciting passion projects of mine in this space that we are about to announce, for which I may stay on board.  

You have and will change the world, Lifetime. You have changed mine.

 -------------------------------

Nancy Dubuc, President & CEO, A+E Networks

I would like to thank Liz for her enormous contributions to Lifetime, and I am glad she will continue to lend her expertise on some upcoming projects for us. I deeply respect her choice to spend more time with her family. I also echo Liz’s delight, and I am personally proud that three strong women will be leading Lifetime’s programming teams. Congratulations to Tanya and Gena on their promotion.

When it comes to musical icons, there are few names and personalities bigger than Michael Jackson, Elvis Presley, The Notorious B.I.G, New Edition or Tupac Shakur.

On cable, those artists are among many music legends featured in original movie biopics, scripted series and limited series that are aimed at longtime fans, but also bring young, diverse audiences to their respective networks.

Original movies such as Lifetime’s Michael Jackson: Searching for Neverland, limited scripted series like CMT’s Sun Records — about when Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins were starting out at the famed Nashville studios — and miniseries like BET’s The New Edition Story are giving viewers shows to tap their feet to while illuminating the lives of favorite musical performers.

“Biopics on their own have always been a way to do a true story, and with music added, it just elevates the entertainment value,” Tanya Lopez, Lifetime’s senior vice president of original movies, said. “I think people come to these shows to learn something different about these artists — it’s not just Behind the Music,” referring to VH1’s venerable music-documentary series.

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Though music biopics are not new to the television landscape, networks have recently turned up the volume on the genre, especially with more recent artists (than, say, The Beatles) intriguing both younger and older viewers. The more contemporary music stars have a built-in audience from millions of social-media followers — and the older stars are being rediscovered by young millennials.

Lopez said the network’s musical biopics — which includes this past February’s Britney Ever After, on the life and career of Britney Spears, and previous films showcasing R&B legends Toni Braxton and Whitney Houston — have appealed to younger, more diverse viewers that extend beyond Lifetime’s target demo of women 25-54.

Connecting With Music Fans
“It’s an audience that was really connected to music and, more specifically, to the period when they listened to that artist’s music,” she said.

BET’s January three-part miniseries The New Edition Story, about the 1980s R&B group, drew more than 29 million viewers across its three-night run, many of them young viewers discovering the group for the first time.

BET CEO Debra Lee said the series combined the group’s triumphs and tribulations over the years with familiar songs that appealed to a broad cross-section of viewers in a scripted format that tends to underscore the drama of the storytelling better than a traditional documentary feature.

The series’ success has led BET to develop a spinoff miniseries about New Edition member Bobby Brown.

“Scripted really gives us a chance to be authentic and create drama from a storyline, as opposed to a reality setting,” Lee said.

Of course, viewers who watch biographical flicks about music stars expect artists’ top hits to be part of the soundtrack. But music isn’t always needed to convey the movie’s message. Michael Jackson: Searching for Neverland, for example, focused more on Jackson’s relationship with his three children than on the King of Pop’s musical portfolio. It pulled in 2 million viewers for the May 29 premiere, Lifetime’s second biggest original movie of the year behind the January remake of Beaches, according to Lopez.

“When you’re talking about biopics on these musical artists, the challenge is to tell a part of the story that no one has heard,” Lopez said. “This was more about his personal life than his entertainment life where he was actually creating and performing music, but you can still use the musical star that is Jackson to grab the audience’s attention.”

USA Network will dance to a different beat with the upcoming limited series about the life and death of hip hop icons Biggie “Notorious B.I.G.” Smalls and Tupac Shakur. The true-crime anthology series, Unsolved: The Murders of Tupac and the Notorious B.I.G., delves into the police investigations of the 1996 fatal shooting of Shakur and the 1997 murder of Smalls.

Alex Sepiol, USA’s senior vice president of development, said the series, slated to debut in 2018, hopes to draw fans of mysteries, period dramas and the music industry, as well as fans of the two artists.

“Ideally there are a lot of entry points for people … it’s a fascinating investigation and case that intersects with these distinctly American icons of Biggie and Tupac,” Sepiol said. “It’s finding that overlap of a really good mystery and compelling narrative that also touches on the world of hip hop.”

Docuseries as Film Fodder
The success of these productions has cable executives looking in-house for inspiration and material for new music biopics.

TV One, for example, is looking to convert episodes of its long-running Unsung documentary series into scripted biopics after finding ratings success with the 2016 movie Love Under New Management: The Miki Howard Story, which became the network’s most widely viewed original movie, according to officials.

TV One is planning two 2018 Unsung-influenced movies based on R&B groups DeBarge and Xscape, as well as a biopic this year about Bobbi Kristina, the daughter of Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown.

“Our Unsung movies are setting the standard for biopics of music artists,” D’Angela Proctor, TV One senior vice president of original programming and production, said. “We have a treasure trove of musical shows from Unsung to build our movies around.”

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While multicultural cable TV series have been getting all the press recently, made-for-TV movies with people of color both in front of and behind the camera are very quietly receiving major play on a number of cable networks and streaming services.

Recent multicultural-themed original cable movies have drawn both critical acclaim and large audiences. HBO’s Bessie, starring Queen Latifah as blues artist Bessie Smith, drew 13 Emmy nominations this past July — the most for any made-for-cable movie.

Lifetime’s Whitney, which chronicled the life of the iconic performer Whitney Houston, drew 5.1 million viewers this past January, the biggest audience for an original cable movie this year other than those on kids-targeted Disney Channel.

Lifetime has produced several original films in the last three years featuring predominantly African-American actors and actresses, in an effort to reach African-American women, who represent 36% of the network’s movie audience.

Lifetime senior vice president of original movies Tanya Lopez said movies such as Whitney — as well as Trip to Bountiful, based on the popular play of the same name and starring Cicely Tyson, and an African-American version of 1989’s Steel Magnolias — super-serve that already strong base.

As many as three multicultural-themed movies are being developed for Lifetime and Lifetime Movie Network, she added, though she would not reveal specifics.

TV One, responding to viewer requests for more storytelling, is airing a monthly movie series. D’Angela Proctor, the network’s head of original programing, said original movies allows TV One to develop stories around universal themes that appeal to a wider swath of viewers than a more tightly-focused scripted series.

Original movies, such as the network’s upcoming Runaway Island and Girlfriends Getaway 2, also provide the network with content that has a long shelf life and can work well on various platforms, she added.

UP, formerly Gospel Music Channel, has consistently delivered movies featuring people of color in prominent roles as it looks to broaden its audience base. It recently teamed with actor-producer Robert Townsend on a July basketball-themed film, Playin’ for Love (see Q&A with Townsend), and is developing several movies, including three holiday films with diverse casts: My Christmas Wish, Angels in the Snow and Marry US for Christmas, Barbara Fisher, senior vice president of original programming for UP network, said.

Networks have also used original movies as pilots for potential scripted series. BET’s 2013 airing of original drama Being Mary Jane was so successful that the network turned the Gabrielle Union starrer into a scripted series, with its third season now in production.

“These long leads not only provide great content for us, but also give us an indication of whether this is something we can take further and make into a series,” BET president of programming Stephen Hill said.

Added UP’s Fisher: “There’s not enough people pitching me series with diverse casts or diverse leads, so it’s a great way for me to go back to our movies, which already have that, and use them as possibilities for expanding into series.”