Banijay eyes US scripted push after All3Media deal
Banijay wants to make more scripted television, and America is on its list.
Chief executive Marco Bassetti set out the plan on 12 October at Mipcom Cannes, the international television market in Cannes. He spoke alongside Banijay Entertainment chair Jeff Zucker in a keynote session titled "Banijay Entertainment: The Next Chapter" Variety.
Bassetti said Banijay has never touched the US scripted business. Scripted means dramas and comedies performed from a script. Its future may include the US, he said.
That entry would not be simple. Bassetti said it would require the right people, the right IP, meaning stories and characters the company can own and remake, and investment. US scripted is quite different from scripted in Europe, he added.
Zucker said US scripted expansion is something Banijay will look at in the years ahead. The company is incredibly well capitalised now, he said. Zucker is also chief of RedBird IMI, Banijay's investment partner.
The comments came in Banijay's first major post-merger interview on stage at Mipcom. The appearance on 12 October opened the four-day gathering, which is scheduled for 12 to 15 October 2026.
The merger is the $8 billion acquisition of All3Media by Banijay Entertainment and RedBird IMI. Banijay now encompasses All3Media, the London-based production group. All3Media chief executive Jane Turton has become deputy chief executive of the combined company.
Scale was a big part of the pitch. Bassetti said Banijay operates in 25 countries. The combined company holds more than 265,000 hours of content, according to the executives Variety.
Banijay is best known for unscripted television, meaning reality, game and competition shows made without actors. Its formats include The Traitors, Big Brother and MasterChef. Bassetti said the group makes Amazon's LOL in around 13 territories, Netflix's Physical: 100 in five territories, and Love Is Blind in seven or eight territories.
Asked about further mergers and acquisitions in the US, meaning deals to buy other companies, Zucker said Banijay does not need anything. It is open to any great ideas, he said.
Turton is also part of the Mipcom conversation. She has joined the lineup for Mipcom and Variety's C Suite Conversations series.
For people watching at home, this is about where the next shows come from. A push into scripted would put a company built on reality hits into direct competition for writers, actors and long-running drama series.
