EXCLUSIVE: KPopped exec producer Moira Ross is heading to Canada for her next batch of formats.
The former showrunner of The Masked Singer has struck an exclusive deal with Canadian production house Sphere Media to develop a production hub for large-scale U.S. and UK entertainment format co-productions. This will see Ross work with Sphere’s in-house creatives to develop and produce IP, focusing on dating shows, social experiments and talent competitions.
The idea is for these shows to be made out of a hub in Canada, where large-scale studio formats can access local tax credit incentives and bring down the cost of production. Partners in the UK and U.S. will join as co-producers and sell the formats to their local buyers.
Sphere operates in drama, comedy, features films and docs, and is known for adapting international formats and developing its own French-Canadian and English-language unscripted titles.
Working out of Québec, it has adapted more than 40 formats in recent years, including Fremantle’s Got Talent and Five Guys a Week, NBCUniversal’s One Question, ITV’s What Would Your Kid Do, and the BBC’s Dementia Choir. Local formats include The Advent Calendar and House of Secrets, and it is currently on the second season of Drag Brunch Saved My Life, which is for its Bell Media stablemate, Crave.
Britain-born Ross is among entertainment’s most experienced producers. She has most recently been exec producer on Apple TV’s music series KPopped and the BAFTA-nominated Hannah Waddingham’s Home for Christmas. She was showrunner on Fox’s The Masked Singer and exec producer on So You Think You Can Dance.
She ran her own label, Panda, under the All3Medias umbrella, and further back was Editor, Format Entertainment at the BBC, where she was among the team that launched Strictly Come Dancing in the UK, using her experience working on Dancing with the Stars in the U.S. to inform decision making. She was also showrunner on the first five seasons of the BBC’s version of The Voice.
“I’ve had the privilege of working at the centre of several golden eras of global formats, and now this opportunity really excites me,” said Ross in a statement to Deadline. “I’m drawn to Sphere for its creative culture, collaborative approach and the possibility of producing in multiple languages.
“Producers everywhere are under intense pressure to deliver more with less – whilst pre-production budgets shrink and expectations keep rising. Canada feels uniquely positioned at this moment to be a global hub and partner with clear advantages in cultural alignment and budget competitiveness. I see huge potential to build exciting, ambitious, premium formats here where we can breathe life into fresh ideas and put every dollar on screen.”
Sphere CEO Bruno Dubé added: “Moira’s creative leadership and deep experience in global formats make her an exceptional partner. This agreement will also allow us to unlock new creative and commercial opportunities with U.S. and UK partners while further strengthening Canada’s position as a hub for premium entertainment formats.
“In collaboration with Sphere’s highly talented roster of creators and producers – Kim Bondi, Marie-Pier Gaudreault and Renaud Chassé – we will create ambitious content for the global market.”
English (US) ·