Sharon Levy is departing Banijay's Endemol Shine North America (ESNA) after nearly a decade with the company, stepping down from her post as CEO. Her exit comes as part of a broader restructuring following this summer's completion of the $8 billion merger between Banijay and All3Media, with Banijay Americas CEO Ben Samek now overseeing the combined company's U.S. operations.
A Banijay Americas spokesperson praised Levy's tenure in a statement: "Sharon has played an integral role in building ESNA into the creative powerhouse it is today, and her influence has been felt across Banijay America and the wider Banijay group. She has built a varied and healthy slate of titles that continue to thrive year-over year, spanning global franchises, creative IP extensions and scripted hits. We are deeply grateful for her leadership and vision, and on behalf of our colleagues globally, we wish her every success in the next chapter of her career."
Levy joined Endemol Shine North America in 2017 as president of unscripted and scripted TV. She was named chief content officer in 2021 before being promoted to CEO in 2023, a period during which ESNA transitioned from serving a dual role as both a studio and Banijay Americas' holding company to operating solely as an independent production company.
Under her leadership, ESNA's output included the Emmy Award-nominated "Lego Masters," the "MasterChef" and "MasterChef Junior" franchises on Fox, TBS's revamped "Wipeout," USA/Peacock's "The Courtship," the revived "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" on ABC, "Fear Factor: House of Fear" on Fox, "Deal or No Deal Island" on NBC, and "The Summit" on CBS. She also oversaw Netflix's scripted series "Ripley" during her time at the company.
Before joining Endemol Shine, Levy spent seven years as executive vice president of original series at Spike TV, where she led the acquisition, creation and production of programming including "Ink Master," "Bar Rescue," "Auction Hunters" and "Deadliest Warrior."
