Cinemax exec to lead Makeready TV unit

Cinemax’s Scott Nemes is leaving the premium cable channel to become head of television at Makeready, film producer Brad Weston’s new LA-based production outfit.

Effective immediately, he will lead TV operations as head of television, reporting directly to Weston, who launched the business in March.

The role will see Nemes (pictured) overseeing all television development, financing and acquisitions.

Makeready, which has a distribution deal with Entertainment One Television, is aiming to produce shows for premium cable, OTT and emerging platforms, deficit funding to get projects off the ground.

“Scott is a wildly important hire for us as making high quality television is a priority and a major driving force of our business plan,” said Weston.

“Our goal is to work with great talent and match what we have done historically and what we plan to do on the feature side – make bold choices, support talent and hope the ideas cut through and find an audience. Scott has fantastic taste and I am confident he will make this happen.”

Nemes joins from HBO-owned Cinemax, where he was senior VP. There he oversaw a rebrand and series such as Banshee, The Knick and Outcast.

He has also worked as SVP of production and development at financing and production firm The Film Department, was SVP at Adelstein Productions, and VP of development for Immortal Entertainment.

Makeready already has several series in development including a Leonardo DiCaprio-backed project from David James Kelly.

Negotiations are ongoing with an unnamed network over an adaptation of Wesley Lowery novel They Can’t Kill Us All, and the company has acquired a manuscript from journalist Karla Cornejo Vilavincencio about heartbreaking and uplifting stories of undocumented immigration called Undocumented America.

Furthermore, Makeready has scored a deal with writer and executive producer Amy Harris for its Chloe Grace Moretz-backed series Catching Out.