Shawn Levy to Join Disney's 20th Television in 2027 After Netflix Run

Shawn Levy will move from Netflix to Disney.

The producer-director has set an overall deal with 20th Television, the television studio owned by Disney. Variety reported the agreement on 28 September 2026.

An overall deal means a studio pays a producer to develop new projects exclusively for it. In this case, Levy and his company, 21 Laps Entertainment, will create and produce shows for Disney. The work is for television, not a single series order.

Levy's run at Netflix began in 2017. That tenure covers almost a decade of development and production for the streamer. The Disney chapter does not start straight away.

He and 21 Laps will begin developing and producing projects at Disney in October 2027, according to Variety. That is more than a year away. The switch is not immediate.

Development is the earliest stage of television. It covers pitches, scripts and pilots, meaning trial episodes shot to test an idea. Production follows only if the studio orders a series. A start date of October 2027 puts that early work more than 12 months out.

Writers, directors and crews are hired project by project. An overall deal gives them a home base for that hiring. It also tells buyers where new ideas from that producer will go first.

For fans, this means patience. Nothing on screen changes now. Any series that comes from the Disney agreement must still be written, cast, shot and scheduled, which is work measured in months and often years.

20th Television operates as Disney's main television studio. It supplies series to Disney's broadcast, cable and streaming outlets. Producers signed there work with its executives to shape projects for those slots.

21 Laps Entertainment is Levy's production banner. Companies like it bring ideas, attach talent and oversee daily production. The October 2027 date applies to both Levy and the company, so the move is collective.

What makes this stand out is the calendar. A Netflix tenure that began in 2017 will run for a full decade before the Disney work begins. Long gaps between announcement and start are common when contracts overlap, giving existing commitments time to finish.

The key date for viewers is October 2027. That is when new Levy and 21 Laps projects can start at Disney. Until then, the deal is paperwork and planning.