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Mike Darnell
Producer, Actor, Additional CreditsBorn May 18, 1962 (63 years)
Michael Darnell is an American entertainment executive. As president of Alternative Entertainment at the Fox network and subsequently president of Unscripted Television at Warner Bros., Darnell was in charge of some of the most successful and longest-running franchises in television history, including American Idol, The Bachelor franchise, The Voice, Family Guy, Futurama, Hell's Kitchen, Kitchen Nightmares, MasterChef, Little Big Shots, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, So You Think You Can Dance, Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?, The Simple Life, Temptation Island, and many more.
When he was 12, his family moved to California, where he eventually appeared in, or voiced-over, some sixty commercials. He also appeared in TV episodes such as Sanford and Son, Welcome Back, Kotter and Kojak. Later he worked as a bank teller to help pay his way through Cal State-Northridge. He also played piano at a night spot. Soon after graduating, he had an internship at Entertainment Tonight, which he says he "hated", before he started working at Fox's West Coast flagship station KTTV, within their news department.
When he was 12, his family moved to California, where he eventually appeared in, or voiced-over, some sixty commercials. He also appeared in TV episodes such as Sanford and Son, Welcome Back, Kotter and Kojak. Later he worked as a bank teller to help pay his way through Cal State-Northridge. He also played piano at a night spot. Soon after graduating, he had an internship at Entertainment Tonight, which he says he "hated", before he started working at Fox's West Coast flagship station KTTV, within their news department.
Known For
Filmography
| 2024 | The Kings of Tupelo: A Southern Crime Saga (TV Series) · as Executive Producer |
| 2023 | Loteria Loca (TV Series) · as Executive Producer |
| 2023 | Superpowered: The DC Story (TV Series) |
| 2023 | 100 Years of Warner Bros. (TV Series) · as Executive Producer |
| 2022 | The Wheel (US) (TV Series) · as Executive Producer |
| 2022 | |
| 2021 | Harry Potter: Hogwarts Tournament of Houses (TV Series) |
| 2021 | Paris in Love (TV Series) · as Executive Producer |
| 2021 | Family Game Fight! (TV Series) · as Executive Producer |
| 2021 | |
| 2020 | Helter Skelter: An American Myth (TV Series) · as Executive Producer |
| 2019 | Mental Samurai (TV Series) · as Executive Producer |
| 2019 | The World's Best (TV Series) · as Executive Producer |
| 2015 | 500 Questions (TV Series) · as Executive Producer |
| 2008 | The Moment of Truth (TV Series) · as Executive Producer |