Ben Silverman's Electus Seals Development Deal With National Geographic Channel

Ben Silverman’s Electus has sealed a development deal with National Geographic Channel, the companies announced Friday.

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The deal, a so-called three-for-one pact, includes one series green light. That project is described as an “immersive reality series” that recreates the arduous 66-day journey of the Mayflower. The other two projects were not disclosed.

“Our vision for the Mayflower series is to recreate, as closely as possible, the real experiences that the original passengers faced,” Electus CEO Chris Grant said in a statement. “With that in mind, this is the perfect way to bridge NatGeo’s brand of organic storytelling with the reality TV genre that Electus is so well-known for.”

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Added Nat Geo president Howard Owens: “National Geographic Channel is making a targeted effort to be in business with the best and brightest television makers in the world and Ben [Silverman] and Chris [Grant] set the standard.”

Owens was named president of Nat Geo last November with a mandate to capitalize on his Hollywood relationships to bring fresh programming to the Washington, D.C.-based network. Before that, he was managing director of Silverman’s Reveille, where he was among a cadre of former WME agents (along with Grant and Mark Koops) that Silverman brought with him to Reveille when he left the agency.