The dominos continue to fall at Amazon Studios. Following the exits of studio head Roy Price and head of comedy and drama Joe Lewis, Amazon Studios’ head of unscripted programming Conrad Riggs also has been let go, Deadline has learned.
We hear that the reality TV vet will likely get some sort of parachute from the Jeff Bezos-run online retail giant, but nothing like the producer deal Lewis received as a part of his executive exit yesterday.
There had been a lot of rumblings Riggs too was on shaky ground, with sources in TV circles complaining about his management style. While Riggs played a key role in bringing Jeremy Clarkson’s expensive Grand Tour to Amazon, a show that was able to establish itself, there have been few other projects shepherded by Riggs that got traction. The series Riggs and his team created and oversaw include All or Nothing: A Season With the Arizona Cardinals; Eat the World, with Emeril Lagasse; Novak, a docuseries following the life of tennis star Novak Djokovic; and American Playboy: The Hugh Hefner Story. Amazon just launched Lore, based on the praised podcast about true life scary stories.
Riggs is best known for his lengthy tenure as producing partner to Mark Burnett at Mark Burnett Prods., which yielded a slew of reality series hits but ended in a bitter legal battle.
The series of Amazon Studios executive exits, which also include Head of International Productions Morgan Wandell’s departure to join rival Apple in a serious post, have left the company with a depleted leadership team.
Sharon Tal Yguado, who only joined Amazon in January as Head of Event Series, is the most senior scripted executive and will now oversee all scripted development. She is working alongside interim Amazon Studios boss, COO Albert Cheng, who took over when Price was suspended indefinitely October 12. (Price was fired several days later.)
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