Warner Bros. Animation Signs First Overall Deal With Wellesley Wild

Overall deals in television used to be realm of the live-action world, but the animation industry has been getting a taste of such deals after Netflix entered the game a few years back and started siphoning away creative talent like Alex Hirsch and Shion Takeuchi with overall deals.

Disney Television Animation responded last year with an announcement of 17 overall deals, and today Warner Bros. Animation (WBA) confirmed that it has signed its first overall deal.

Writer/producer Wellesley Wild, who is showrunner and executive producer on WBA/Amblin Television’s upcoming Hulu revival of Animaniacs, has signed an exclusive, multi-year overall deal with the studio. Here are details:

• Under the terms of the pact, Wild will develop, write and produce new animated projects — for adult, kid, and family audiences — at WBA across all platforms, including premium/pay and basic cable channels, streaming/on-demand and digital platforms, and broadcast networks.
• Though Wild’s deal is ostensibly for the animation division, the deal allows him to develop work for other divisions of Warner Bros. Television Group — such as Warner Bros. Television, Warner Horizon Scripted Television and digital venture Blue Ribbon Content. Wild will be able to develop, write, and produce original live-action projects as part of the deal.
• WBA says that the overall deal represents its commitment to producing both original material and “leveraging the studio’s extensive library of characters, which include Looney Tunes, Hanna-Barbera, Scooby-Doo!, [and] DC,” among others.
• Prior to Animaniacs, Wild wrote on 10 seasons of Family Guy, rising to the level of executive producer. He co-wrote the feature films Ted, Ted 2, and A Million Ways to Die in the West with Seth MacFarlane and Alec Sulkin. He has also served as co-executive producer on the MacFarlane-created series The Orville.
• Statement from Warner Bros. Animation president Sam Register: “From his impressive run on Family Guy to his notable list of credits, Wellesley knows how to produce quality animation and entertain audiences. The amazing work he is currently doing on Animaniacs is just one example of the versatile storytelling he brings to the studio. This will be invaluable as we continue to expand our programming focus into more areas, including adult animation.”
• Added Wild: “Warner Bros. Animation has provided the support, flexibility and passion that top the wish list of any creator, so I’m thrilled to continue our relationship and adding to the legacy of this storied studio.”
• Wild is repped by Clifford Murray at Management 360 and attorney Ken Richman of Hansen, Jacobson, Teller, Hoberman, Newman, Warren, Richman, Rush, Kaller & Gellman, LLP.