ABC Taps ViacomCBS Alum for Drama

ABC Entertainment has appointed Brianna Bennett as senior VP of network drama.

In her new role, Bennett will lead the drama series development team and oversee the department’s day-to-day operations, including creatively supervising the production of new drama pilots. Bennett comes from ViacomCBS, where she had served as VP of drama development since 2014.

At ViacomCBS, she was involved with the development of Evil and SEAL Team for CBS/Paramount+; Clarice and NCIS: Hawai’i for CBS; Dynasty, Nancy Drew, In the Dark and Walker for The CW; Insatiable for Netflix; The Lost Symbol for Peacock; the upcoming Good Sam for CBS; and the upcoming 4400 and Tom Swift for The CW.

Prior to ViacomCBS, Bennett worked at FOX, where she worked on Sleepy Hollow, The Following, Gang Related, Almost Human, Red Band Society and Empire.

Simran Sethi, executive VP of development and content strategy at ABC Entertainment, said, “Brianna is an amazing creative executive whose intellect, instinct and passion will drive our drama development forward as we continue to prioritize, nurture and sustain culturally inclusive and impactful storytelling. Her depth of experience and love of broadcast television will serve ABC’s commitment to bold and groundbreaking content with a watchful eye toward intersectionality.”

Bennett commented: “I’m looking forward to working with Simran and the entire team on developing the next great drama for ABC, a network that has long been defined by some of the most important and trailblazing shows of our time. This is an exhilarating time to be a creator and writer in entertainment, especially for new and up-and-coming voices—there’s no limit to the stories we can tell.”