FOX Entertainment Pacts with CSI’s Carol Mendelsohn

FOX Entertainment has signed a multiyear first-look broadcast-direct deal with producers Carol Mendelsohn (CSI) and Julie Weitz.

Under the terms of the agreement, Mendelsohn and Weitz will develop scripted dramas for the FOX network. Greenlit programs will be wholly owned by FOX Entertainment, and Mendelsohn and Weitz will serve as executive producers under their Carol Mendelsohn Productions banner.

Mendelsohn served as showrunner and executive producer of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, as well as co-created and executive produced spin-offs CSI: Miami, CSI: NY and CSI: Cyber. Weitz and Mendelsohn have executive produced multiple pilots for broadcast and cable, including Chiefs, Doomsday and The Jury, as well as the series Game of Silence and Dogs in the City.

As the first project under the pact, FOX Entertainment Studios optioned the book The Bomb Maker, written by the novelist Thomas Perry, and is currently meeting with potential writers. Mendelsohn and Weitz will executive produce the project. The Bomb Maker follows former commander Dick Stahl, who is called in after the majority of the LAPD Bomb Squad is killed by a house bomb. On his first day back, the now three-person team is dispatched to a suspected car bomb, and it quickly becomes clear to him that they are dealing with an unusual criminal mastermind―one whose intended target appears to be the Bomb Squad itself.

“Carol is one of the great architects of broadcast television’s most influential and long-standing dramas,” said Michael Thorn, president of entertainment, FOX Entertainment. “Together with Julie, we have two of the most talented, respected producers in the industry; and we are excited to bring their creativity and powerful storytelling to FOX, starting with their development of The Bomb Maker. This deal underscores our pledge to being home to the best creators in the business while offering them creative flexibility and a direct relationship with our network and programming team, which are rare commodities in today’s marketplace.”

“There was an instant meeting of the minds when Julie and I sat down with Michael Thorn and Brooke Bowman,” said Mendelsohn. “This is a uniquely creative opportunity for us, and we’re excited by our new partnership and all its possibilities.”