Paul Lee is a British director, producer and executive. He is currently the CEO of the television and movie studio '. He founded the BBC's U.S. cable network BBC America and ran

ABC Family The American cable television, cable and satellite television network that is now known as Freeform (TV channel), Freeform was originally launched as the CBN Satellite Service on April 29, 1977, and has gone through several different owners (and s ...

ABC Entertainment The American Broadcasting Company (ABC) is an American commercial broadcast television network. It is the flagship property of the ABC Entertainment Group division of The Walt Disney Company. The network is headquartered in Burbank, Calif ...

and ABC Studios for the Walt Disney Company. During his tenure, Lee is credited with championing racial diversity and changing the face of American television with hit shows including '' Black-ish'', '' Scandal'', '' How to Get Away with Murder'', '' American Crime'', '' The Goldbergs'', '' Quantico'' and '' Fresh Off the Boat''.

Early life

Paul Lee was born in London to South African Jewish parents Emanoel Lee and Janine Lee (born Amato) and educated at The Dragon School, Oxford, Winchester College and New College, Oxford.

Career

Lee was a director for the BBC Music and Arts department where he made Primo Levi for Bookmark, and Kalashnikov & Woody Guthrie for the BBC strand Arena. Woody Guthrie helped Arena win the

British Academy Television Awards The BAFTA TV Awards, or British Academy Television Awards are presented in an annual award show hosted by the BAFTA. They have been awarded annually since 1955. Background The first-ever Awards, given in 1955, consisted of six categories. Until ...

for best series in 1989. Lee was the writer and director of Oblomov (1989) for Arena. It was the first foreign scripted film to be made in the Soviet Union before the collapse of the Berlin Wall. It was filmed entirely on location in Moscow and the sleepy town of Kostroma on the banks of the Volga. In 1998, Lee was the Founder and CEO of the U.S. digital cable network BBC America. He is credited with helping introduce U.S. audiences, U.K. formats such as renovation programming

Changing Rooms ''Changing Rooms'' is a do-it-yourself home improvement show broadcast in the United Kingdom on the BBC between 1996 and 2004. The series was revived on Channel 4 in 2021. The show was one of a number of home improvement and lifestyle shows p ...

, reality soaps '' The Hotel'' and mockumentaries like '' The Office''. ''The Office'' (2013) won the

Golden Globe Awards The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of t ...

for Best Television series: Musical or Comedy. It was the first British comedy in 25 years to be nominated for a Golden Globe and the first ever to win. In 2004, Lee was recruited by the Walt Disney Company and named president of

. Programs like '' The Secret Life of the American Teenager'' and '' Pretty Little Liars'' helped ABC Family succeed with the coveted 18-34 demographic, knocking MTV out of the top spot. In 2010, Lee took the helm of the ABC Entertainment Group where he oversaw

and ABC Studios. Under Lee, ABC became known as a leader for storytelling in the areas of female empowerment and diversity. Lee championed: '' Scandal'' (2012) which, led by Kerry Washington was the first U.S. broadcast drama since '' Get Christie Love!'' (1974) to feature an African-American female lead; '' How to Get Away with Murder'' (2014), which starred Viola Davis, made history when she became the first-ever African-American woman to win an Emmy Award for Best Actress in a Drama Series; '' Quantico'' (2015) which, led by Priyanka Chopra, marked the first time a South-Asian female actress headlined a network television series; American anthology crime drama '' American Crime'' (2015), created by Academy Awards winner John Ridley presaged the Black Lives Matter movement. During its run, the series received 16 Primetime Emmy Award nominations, honoring

Regina King Regina Rene King (born January 15, 1971) is an American actress and director. She is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and four Primetime Emmy Awards. In 2019, ''Time'' magazine named her one ...

with two consecutive wins for Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or Movie. The series also received 5 Golden Globe nominations, Screen Actors Guild Awards and Writers Guild of America Awards nominations, in addition to winning three NAACP Image Awards. His TGIT: Thank God It's Thursday block on Thursday night anchored by Shonda Rhimes' ''Grey's Anatomy'', ''Scandal'' and ''How to Get Away with Murder'' and his Wednesday night comedy block anchored by ''Modern Family'' and ''Black-ish'' helped elevate ABC to first position in entertainment programming. Additionally, Lee cultivated diverse comedy voices that had not been heard on U.S. broadcast television led by Kenya Barris' '' Black-ish'' (2014) and Nahnatchka Khan's '' Fresh Off The Boat'' (2015). In 2016, Lee departed the Walt Disney Company and founded the TV and Movie studio ' backed by Creative Artists Agency. ' produced '' Mare of Easttown'', starring

Kate Winslet Kate Elizabeth Winslet (; born 5 October 1975) is an English actress. Known for her work in independent films, particularly period dramas, and for her portrayals of headstrong and complicated women, she has received numerous accolades, incl ...

for HBO; '' Dickinson'', starring

Hailee Steinfeld Hailee Steinfeld (born December 11, 1996) is an American actress and singer. She is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Hailee Steinfeld, various accolades, including a Peabody Award, and nominations for an Academy Award ...

for Apple TV+; '' The White House Plumbers'', starring Woody Harrelson and Justin Theroux for HBO; Adam McKay's ''

The Uninhabitable Earth "The Uninhabitable Earth" is an article by American journalist David Wallace-Wells published in the July 10, 2017 issue of ''New York'' magazine. The long-form article depicts a worst-case scenario of what might happen in the near-future due to ...

'' for HBO Max; Danny Boyle's ''

Pistol A pistol is a handgun, more specifically one with the chamber integral to its gun barrel, though in common usage the two terms are often used interchangeably. The English word was introduced in , when early handguns were produced in Europe, an ...

'' for FX; Jenny Han's '' The Summer I Turned Pretty'' for Amazon and '' Dummy'', starring

Anna Kendrick Anna Cooke Kendrick (born August 9, 1985) is an American actress. She has received various accolades, including a Satellite Award, five Teen Choice Awards, three MTV Movie Awards, and nominations for an Academy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award a ...

for Roku. The studio also produces Arthur Mathews and Matt Berry's ''Toast of Tinseltown'' for the BBC.

Personal life

He is married to Deirdre Lee and has two sons.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Paul American Broadcasting Company executives British Jews Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Television people from London Presidents of American Broadcasting Company Entertainment