Kevin Reilly's back in the game - though heaven knows, after his recent exit at NBC, one wonders why. Fox Broadcasting this afternoon said he's coming aboard as president of entertainment.
Reilly - I should add, Long Island's own Kevin Reilly - did a terrific job at NBC and for his trouble got shown the door last month. In his new gig, he'll report to former colleague at FX, Peter Liguori, who was upped to chairman of FBCE. All this, by the way, was predicted in Variety late last week.
Here's the canned quote from the press release:
“The television industry has changed more in the last five years than in the past 20,” said [Peter] Chernin [News Corp prez]. “We need to be structured in a way that puts us in the best position take advantage of the myriad new opportunities digital technology has afforded the broadcast television business. When Peter Liguori approached me with the idea of re-teaming with Kevin Reilly, I thought it was a bold move to redefine the structure of the network behind a pair of dynamic executives who have a proven track record of advancing the medium.”
Nice quote and I'm fairly certain it means nothing. But who cares? Fact is, Reilly is a genuine talent who catapulted NBC's Thursday back to its rightful place (ratings may come in time), did a lot of other good things there, and who is one of the brightest guys in the business. FBC is lucky to have him.
Kev's looking good! And "American Idol's" got his back.