Olander to Lead Development and Production for all Alternative Series and Specials

Heather Olander will oversee development and production of alternative reality (aka unscripted) series, events and specials on behalf of the network. Over the months that Nexstar has owned the CW network most of their scripted series, aimed at fantasy and super hero fans, have been cancelled to be replaced by unscripted series. The CW is 75%-owned by Nexstar Media Group, Inc. which owns the CW Flagship KTLA5 in Los Angeles, CA, USA. Unscripted programming could make up more than 50% of The CW’s upcoming slate following its sale to Nexstar.

“As we re-imagine our programming strategy, we are truly fortunate to have Heather Olander leading the unscripted team at The CW,” commented Brad Schwartz. “Heather is an industry dynamo with a stellar reputation for discovering talent and cultivating relationships with content producers. With her boundless creativity, I’m confident we’ll develop innovative nonfiction series for The CW Network that catalyzes conversations.”

Olander did the same for USA Network including the Chrisley Knows Best franchise (prior to Todd and Julie being sentenced to prison for fraud), Temptation Island reboot, Miz & Mrs, and Straight Up Steve Austin.

Ms. Olander joined NBCUniversal in 2011 as the SVP of Alternative Development & Programming for USA Network. In 2014, she added oversight of alternative programming for Syfy. In 2019, Heather took on the additional responsibility of running alternative development for NBCUniversal’s AVOD service, Peacock, and was elevated to Executive Vice President, Alternative Development & Programming, USA/Syfy/Peacock. Prior to joining NBCUniversal, she served as VP, Original Series Development and Current Programming at MTV from 2003-2010.