Lightworkers Media is an American independent Christian media and film production company founded by President Roma Downey and her husband Mark Burnett and owned by Amazon MGM Studios.
LightWorkers Media produced the Emmy-nominated The Bible on the History channel as well as A.D. The Bible Continues on NBC, The Dovekeepers on CBS (based on the novel by Alice Hoffman), Women of the Bible on Lifetime, and Answered Prayers on TLC. They also produced the feature films Ben-Hur, Son of God, Little Boy, Woodlawn and On a Wing and a Prayer.
History
Lightworkers Media was formed by Mark Burnett and Roma Downey with a partial stake held by Hearst Corporation, which owned a stake in Burnett's One Three Media.[1] One of its first productions was The Bible for History, premiered in early 2013.[2]
On September 22, 2014, MGM acquired a 55% stake in Lightworkers Media and One Three Media and consolidated the two companies into MGM's new TV production unit, United Artists Media Group, with Burnett as CEO.[1] On December 14, 2015, MGM announced that it had acquired the remaining stakes in UAMG in a stock and cash deal, and that Burnett would become the new CEO of MGM Television, replacing the outgoing president Roma Khanna.[3]
With MGM purchasing out of Hearst and Burnett and Downey's shares in UAMG, a channel in the works was still a planned streaming service. However, Hearst and Burnett and Downey retained their stakes in the channel.[4] MGM announced the formation of Light TV on November 16, 2016, with a launch planned for December on thirteen Fox TV stations.[5]
Filmography
The Bible
The series is the first project together from husband and wife producing team Mark Burnett and Roma Downey.[9] In addition to Burnett and Downey, executive producers include Richard Bedser and History's Dirk Hoogstra and Julian P. Hobbs.[10] The first episode of the mini-series was seen by 13.1 million viewers, the largest cable television audience of 2013 to date.[11] The finale delivered 11.7 million total viewers.[12]
The Bible shattered sales records in its first week of home video release, selling 525,000 units to become the top-selling TV miniseries of all time.[13] In total, with subsequent airings, 'The Bible' has been seen by more than 95 million viewers.[14]
External links
References
- Mike Fleming Jr, Anita Busch. MGM Buys 55% Of Roma Downey And Mark Burnett's Empire; Relaunches United Artists Deadline, Penske Business Media, September 22, 2014, retrieved March 6, 2017^
- Brian Lowry. Review: 'The Bible' Variety, February 28, 2013, retrieved March 6, 2017^
- Mark Burnett Named President of MGM Television Variety, December 14, 2015, retrieved December 14, 2015^
- David Lieberman. MGM Taps Mark Burnett To Run TV Operation After Buying Out JV Partners Deadline, Penske Business Media, December 14, 2015, retrieved March 6, 2017^
- Anita Busch. Roma Downey, Mark Burnett And MGM Launch Light TV With Fox Stations On Board Deadline, November 16, 2016, retrieved March 6, 2017^
- Lesley Goldberg. ‘The Bible’ Follow-Up ‘A.D.’ Gets Series Order at NBC The Hollywood Reporter, December 17, 2013^
- Lisa de Moraes. Ann Peacock To Adapt ‘The Dovekeepers’ For CBS Event Series From Mark Burnett, Roma Downey Deadline Hollywood, January 22, 2014^
- Caroline Brew. The Baxters: First Look at Roma Downey Amazon Series Variety, Variety Media, February 13, 2024, retrieved April 20, 2024^
- Gary Levin. Mark Burnett to produce 'The Bible' USA Today, Gannett Company, May 24, 2011, retrieved August 28, 2011^
- Rick Porter. Mark Burnett producing 'The Bible' miniseries for History Channel Zap2it, May 24, 2011, retrieved August 28, 2011^
- Hibberd, James. Mark Burnett's 'The Bible' begets record ratings Entertainment Weekly, March 4, 2013, retrieved April 2, 2013^
- History's "The Bible" Finale Delivers 11.7 Million Total Viewers Futon Critic, April 1, 2013, retrieved April 2, 2013^
- THR Staff. Mark Burnett's 'The Bible' Becomes Top-Selling Miniseries on Blu-Ray and DVD Hollywood Reporter, April 8, 2013, retrieved April 17, 2020^
- #1 TV on DVD in the last 5 years Hollywood Jesus, April 8, 2013^