Jenny Groom has been named head of MGM Alternative at Amazon MGM Studios, the company announced on 4 November 2026, with Variety, Deadline, The Hollywood Reporter and TheWrap reporting the appointment from an internal memo by nonfiction head Jenn Levy. Groom will start on Monday 30 November, after Thanksgiving, Variety’s published memo says.
Key facts
- Role: head of MGM Alternative at Amazon MGM Studios, reporting to nonfiction chief Jenn Levy
- Start date: Monday 30 November 2026 (Levy memo via Variety)
- Remit: legacy MGM unscripted brands (Survivor, Shark Tank, The Voice), the format catalogue, Prime Video development and third-party sales
- Predecessor: Barry Poznick departed about a year earlier (Deadline)
- Most recent job: EVP of unscripted development at BBC Studios from January 2025 (Deadline)
What the brief covers
Levy’s staff note, quoted by the trades, puts Groom over MGM’s long-running unscripted brands and format catalogue, with a brief to create new shows for Prime Video and to sell formats outside Amazon. Deadline places MGM Alternative’s production footprint around The Real Housewives titles via Evolution Media, On Patrol: Live, and Big Fish Entertainment series such as History’s Greatest Mysteries, and notes the division moved under Amazon MGM Studios in 2025. No compensation, contract length or headcount change was published with the announcement.
Path from NBCUniversal to BBC Studios
Groom spent nearly two decades at NBCUniversal, most recently as EVP of unscripted programming, where Variety and Deadline say she oversaw or commissioned titles including The Traitors, Love Island, The Voice, America’s Got Talent and American Ninja Warrior, and worked on Password and That’s My Jam. She joined BBC Studios in January 2025 as EVP of unscripted development, where Levy’s memo credits Nation’s Dumbest (Fox) and Dancing with the Stars: The Next Pro (ABC/Hulu). Deadline and Variety also note consulting work with Hello Sunshine and Hartbeat, and an EP credit on Netflix’s Funny AF with Kevin Hart.
Why it matters for Amazon’s unscripted push
Levy framed the hire as putting someone with both buyer and seller experience in charge of MGM Alternative as a “key creative asset” for Amazon’s unscripted ambitions. The appointment fills a senior vacancy left by Poznick and lands as Amazon MGM continues to run legacy MGM formats alongside Prime Video originals. Related FilmBunch coverage includes Prime Video’s German originals hire of Sasha Bühler, Amazon MGM’s Japan originals spending plan, and Toni Collette’s Apple TV Lenni. More under Distribution & Streaming.
Our reading
For unscripted buyers and format sellers, the signal is Amazon putting a dual-side operator on MGM’s franchise and format engine rather than a pure studio producer. The next evidence is which new Prime Video format or third-party sale Groom attaches to after the 30 November start, and whether Evolution and Big Fish output stays under the same Alternative umbrella.
Sources
- Variety, Former BBC Studios, NBCUniversal Exec Jenny Groom Named Head of MGM Alternative (4 November 2026; Levy memo; role; start 30 Nov; BBC/NBCU credits)
- Deadline, Jenny Groom Joins Amazon As Head Of MGM Alternative (4 November 2026; Barry Poznick predecessor; Real Housewives / Evolution / Big Fish scope)
- The Hollywood Reporter, Amazon MGM Studios Names Jenny Groom Head of MGM Alternative (4 November 2026)
- TheWrap, Amazon Adds BBC Studios’ Jenny Groom as MGM Alternative Head (4 November 2026)