Canadian YouTuber and former late night star Lilly Singh has partnered with Blink49 Studios and Bell Media on a unique first-look global scripted and second-look unscripted deal under her Unicorn Island Productions banner.
Under the deal, Singh and Unicorn’s head of development, Polly Auritt, will focus on creating and producing television content that showcases underrepresented communities. Projects created under the pact will be executive produced by Singh and Auritt along with Carolyn Newman, executive VP of global scripted at Bell Media, and Virginia Rankin, executive producer for Blink49 Studios.
Singh, a Scarborough, Ont. native, is also known by her YouTube name Superwoman and has more than 38 million followers across her social media platforms. She is a judge on Rogers Media’s “Canada’s Got Talent,” and is coming off two seasons of her late night series, “A Little Late With Lilly Singh,” which aired until summer 2021 on NBC. Up next she stars in Disney+’s “The Muppets Mayhem.”
The performer is also a New York Times best-selling author and runs the book club Lilly’s Library, which spotlights South Asian stories. She was among Forbes’ 30 Under 30 on the outlet’s Hollywood & Entertainment list and has been named one of the most influential people on the Internet by Time.
Blink49 launched last November with a content-first mission to partner with writers, creators, partners and talent. Since then, the Toronto-based company, which has offices in L.A. and Vancouver, has had a strong start, signing Canadian creator Sheri Elwood (“Call Me Fitz”) to a first-look deal in its inaugural talent pact last March. A few days later it announced it had acquired TV adaptation rights to Canadian author Marissa Stapley’s novel “Things to Do When it’s Raining,” and in January it confirmed it had optioned the rights to Canadian author Charlene Carr’s upcoming 2023 novel “Hold My Girl.”
“I am thrilled to be collaborating with Blink49 Studios and Bell Media since they are like-minded champions of underrepresented voices,” Singh said. “With their support, I’m looking forward to bringing compelling and inclusive stories to audiences around the world.”
John Morayniss, CEO of Blink49 Studios, added: “We’re delighted to be in business with Lilly and Polly who are passionate storytellers, particularly when it comes to underrepresented voices in our media landscape.”
Justin Stockman, VP of content development and programming at Bell Media, said: “Lilly is a singular creative talent, and along with Polly and the team at Unicorn Island Productions, has a distinct perspective that is so compelling for viewers. Bell Media is thrilled to join forces with our partners at Blink49 to work with Lilly and the team at Unicorn Island Productions on developing content and amplifying new voices.”
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