Jenny Groom joins Studios in development leadership role with Ryan O’Dowd and Krystal Whitney promoted

Jenny Groom Ryan ODowd Krystal Whitney

Jenny Groom, Ryan O’Dowd, Krystal Whitney

BBC Studios has brought in NBC Universal’s former unscripted content chief Jenny Groom as part of an expansion of its leadership team.

Groom, who spent the first two decades of her career at NBCU, has been made executive vice-president of unscripted development amid promotions for Ryan O’Dowd to president of unscripted and Krystal Whitney to executive vice-president of current programming.

O’Dowd will continue to lead the unscripted business in LA reporting to managing director of BBCS Global Entertainment Matt Forde. Both Groom and Whitney will report into O’Dowd.

Joining to build on a slate that includes Dancing with the Stars, The 1% Club and Netflix competition series Outlast, Groom has most recently been a creative consultant and executive producer working with indies including Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine and Kevin Hart’s Hartbeat Productions.

Her NBCU commissions include The Traitors, Love Island, Password, That’s My Jam and Baking It. She also oversaw all unscripted competition formats across NBC, Peacock, Bravo, E! and USA Network.

Forde said: “She has had an absolutely stellar career to date, and we know she will bring incredible drive and ambition to our unscripted business in the U.S. market.”

Last year O’Dowd became executive producer for Dancing with the Stars, delivering a record-setting season. He also executive produces Outlast and true-crime docuseries Murder Among the Mormons for Netflix.

During his nine years at the company, he previously in the role of executive vice-president of entertainment and music and is behind the US Weakest Link reboot after an 18-year hiatus.

Meanwhile Whitney, who joined BBC Studios in 2020 and served as senior vice-president of current programming, shaped the creative vision for Weakest Link and Life Below Zero, and is also an executive producer of both The 1% Club and Outlast.

O’Dowd said: “In what is a transformative time across the global entertainment landscape, it’s a true privilege to lead our growing Los Angeles unscripted business and to have this opportunity to work with such a brilliant team, who are the absolute best-in-class.

“Jenny has proven to be one of the most respected executives in the business, boasting an impressive track record building and leading some of the nation’s biggest unscripted hits across both broadcast and streaming. I’ve had the pleasure of working with her on multiple series, and she’s the perfect person to lead our U.S. development as we grow domestically and internationally.”