Fremantle executive Jill Kellie exits after four years of digital and drama deals
Fremantle executive Jill Kellie has left the company after more than four years cutting deals that decide where its shows appear.
Fremantle confirmed the departure to Deadline in September 2026. Kellie held the title of vice-president of Commercial Strategy, Commercial and International. Deadline
Kellie joined Fremantle in January 2022 as director of Acquisitions, Scripted Content. She served as acting vice-president of Scripted Acquisitions before her promotion to vice-president of Commercial Strategy in 2024. Based in the United Kingdom, she reported to Jens Richter, chief executive of Commercial and International. Fremantle announced that promotion in January 2024. Fremantle
A large part of her brief sat outside the traditional TV sale. She pushed Fremantle's digital distribution business. That meant working on content deals for YouTube, FAST channels, meaning free channels funded by advertising, and ad-supported streaming services.
She also brokered first-look deals, which give a studio the first chance to finance a production company's new ideas. They included a first-look drama deal with Roughcut and a first-look and development deal with Me+You Productions, the team behind I Am Ruth. The Me+You deal was struck in January 2024.
Fremantle announced its Fudge Park pact in October 2024. That first-look development deal with the maker of Big Boys was also brokered by Kellie. Jonathan Blyth is managing director at Fudge Park. Fremantle
Before Fremantle, Kellie worked in commercially focused roles at BBC Studios and ITV Studios. Earlier spells included BBC-backed home entertainment business 2Entertain and Universal Pictures International.
Her exit follows other senior departures in the same division. They include Vasha Wallace and chief operating officer Bob McCourt. The change comes ahead of MIPCOM Cannes, the annual market in France where broadcasters, streamers and producers buy and sell programmes and formats.
Fremantle will head to that market with titles including Kill Jackie and Baywatch on its slate. The company posted half-yearly revenues of €835M ($948M) in August 2026.
For viewers, executives in these roles rarely appear on screen. Their deals decide whether a drama lands first on broadcast television, a streamer, YouTube or a free ad-supported channel. A departure does not pull shows from screens, but it can affect what gets backed next and where audiences find it.
