Mike Darnell
- Executive
- Producer
Mike Darnell, currently President of Warner Bros. Unscripted Television, is regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of reality television. Since joining the Warner Bros. studio in 2013, he has since grown the unscripted portfolio exponentially, currently overseeing 50+ series, from prime time formats to premium documentaries, consisting of over 2,000 hours of programming annually.
Darnell and his team produce hit shows such as the long-running franchise "The Bachelor" and "The Bachelorette", Emmy-winning music competition "The Voice", as well as "Little Big Shots", "Mental Samurai", "Family Game Fight", "Ellen's Game of Games", plus the multi-Emmy winning "The Ellen DeGeneres Show", among others. In addition, his division produced the recently launched and Emmy-nominated "Friends: The Reunion", which quickly became the most watched special in the history of HBO Max.
Some of his upcoming releases include the Ava DuVernay filmmaker competition "One Perfect Shot" for HBO Max, a U.S. version of the hit BBC celebrity game "The Wheel" for NBC, the Channing Tatum-produced competition "Finding Magic Mike" for HBO Max, the comedy-hybrid series "True Story" with Ed Helms and Randall Park for Peacock, and the Paris Hilton docuseries "Paris in Love", also for Peacock. In addition, Darnell's division is producing the first unscripted projects centered in the world of Harry Potter, including a Helen Mirren-hosted quiz show "Hogwarts Tournament of Houses", and a premium Harry Potter 20th Anniversary reunion special for HBO Max.
Prior to Warner Bros, Darnell was President of Alternative Entertainment at Fox Broadcasting, where he spent 19 years developing and overseeing hundreds of iconic and top-rated shows. After first coming to the network from the local news division, Darnell quickly made a name for himself as he fast-tracked the genre with more than sixty specials per year, including breakout shows like "Alien Autopsy: Fact or Fiction?", "Magic's Biggest Secrets Revealed", "World's Scariest Police Chases", and "When Animals Attack!".
During his Fox tenure, he continued to create some of the highest rated franchises on television such as "Temptation Island", "Hell's Kitchen", "MasterChef", "Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader", "So You Think You Can Dance", as well the creation of the famed animated series "Family Guy". Darnell also made TV history with "Joe Millionaire" (in which he created and oversaw) when the finale reached 40 million viewers and still remains the most-watched unscripted telecast on television. In addition, Darnell was known for launching and overseeing the mega-hit "American Idol", where he was in charge of the series for its first 12 seasons while it quickly became a pop culture phenomenon and was easily the highest rated show on the air, elevating Fox as the #1 network for a record of 8 consecutive seasons.
Born in Philadelphia, Mike and his family moved to Los Angeles at the age of 12 to pursue his career as a child actor. He voiced or appeared in over 60 commercials and was also featured in several TV series, which included "Sanford and Son", "Kojak", "Gimme a Break", "Big John Little John", and "Welcome Back Kotter".
Darnell and his team produce hit shows such as the long-running franchise "The Bachelor" and "The Bachelorette", Emmy-winning music competition "The Voice", as well as "Little Big Shots", "Mental Samurai", "Family Game Fight", "Ellen's Game of Games", plus the multi-Emmy winning "The Ellen DeGeneres Show", among others. In addition, his division produced the recently launched and Emmy-nominated "Friends: The Reunion", which quickly became the most watched special in the history of HBO Max.
Some of his upcoming releases include the Ava DuVernay filmmaker competition "One Perfect Shot" for HBO Max, a U.S. version of the hit BBC celebrity game "The Wheel" for NBC, the Channing Tatum-produced competition "Finding Magic Mike" for HBO Max, the comedy-hybrid series "True Story" with Ed Helms and Randall Park for Peacock, and the Paris Hilton docuseries "Paris in Love", also for Peacock. In addition, Darnell's division is producing the first unscripted projects centered in the world of Harry Potter, including a Helen Mirren-hosted quiz show "Hogwarts Tournament of Houses", and a premium Harry Potter 20th Anniversary reunion special for HBO Max.
Prior to Warner Bros, Darnell was President of Alternative Entertainment at Fox Broadcasting, where he spent 19 years developing and overseeing hundreds of iconic and top-rated shows. After first coming to the network from the local news division, Darnell quickly made a name for himself as he fast-tracked the genre with more than sixty specials per year, including breakout shows like "Alien Autopsy: Fact or Fiction?", "Magic's Biggest Secrets Revealed", "World's Scariest Police Chases", and "When Animals Attack!".
During his Fox tenure, he continued to create some of the highest rated franchises on television such as "Temptation Island", "Hell's Kitchen", "MasterChef", "Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader", "So You Think You Can Dance", as well the creation of the famed animated series "Family Guy". Darnell also made TV history with "Joe Millionaire" (in which he created and oversaw) when the finale reached 40 million viewers and still remains the most-watched unscripted telecast on television. In addition, Darnell was known for launching and overseeing the mega-hit "American Idol", where he was in charge of the series for its first 12 seasons while it quickly became a pop culture phenomenon and was easily the highest rated show on the air, elevating Fox as the #1 network for a record of 8 consecutive seasons.
Born in Philadelphia, Mike and his family moved to Los Angeles at the age of 12 to pursue his career as a child actor. He voiced or appeared in over 60 commercials and was also featured in several TV series, which included "Sanford and Son", "Kojak", "Gimme a Break", "Big John Little John", and "Welcome Back Kotter".
