‘Big Brother’ Legend Just Got a Massive New Job

Big Brother alum Kalia Booker King just signed a massive deal. Booker inked a deal with Black Panther director Ryan Coogler to head the TV division of his production company, Proximity Media. In her previous gig as the VP of drama at HBO, King played a significant role in bringing shows like the Emmy-nominated series Lovecraft Country, I Know This Much Is True, His Dark Materials, Outside to the network as well as the upcoming Lakers drama based on Jeff Pearlman’s book Showtime: Magic, Kareem, Riley, and the Los Angeles Lakers of the 1980s. 

In addition to developing scripted and unscripted work and building teams of producers, directors, and writers as part of the company’s overall deal with Disney, King, who placed fifth in Big Brother Season 13, will be reporting directly to Coogler, Zinzi Coogler and Sev Ohanian

“We couldn’t be happier about having Kalia on board to help us scale our television business. We are major fans of her storytelling instincts and her reputation for championing artists. It’s an honor to have her on board at Proximity,” partners Ryan and Zinzi Coogler and Ohanian said in a joint statement Wednesday, per The Hollywood Reporter.

During her time with HBO, she worked on at least 20 series, locked in deals with artists like Tessa Thompson and husband-and-wife showrunners Malcolm and Nichelle Spellman. She also managed existing contracts with Issa Rae and Mahershala Ali. Prior to joining the HBO team, King worked with Universal Content Productions where she played a role in bringing Sam Esmail’s Mr. Robot and Homecoming to the screen. 

She’s also made it a large focal point of her career to highlight marginalized voices through various programs. She is credited as the woman responsible for starting a pipeline of opportunity with WarnerMedia’s Access program and partnering with Spelman and Morehouse colleges to open a door for HBCU talent.

“It is an honor to join the Proximity Media Team. I’ve always sought to develop and shepherd transformative content and partnering with one of the most prolific filmmakers of our generation provides a platform and resources to share this vision. I can’t wait to hit the ground running with the incredible Proximity family,” King said in a statement.