Back in June, it was reported that David Levine, then Disney’s vice president of kids programming for the U.K., Europe, and Africa, was to leave the company after a 16-year stint. The executive has found a new job: he is now head of studio at the fast-growing start-up Moonbug Entertainment.
The company, which is based in London and L.A., has made a business out of acquiring preschool IPs — such as Youtube mega-hits Little Baby Bum and My Magic Pet Morphle — and developing them, creating spin-off shows, licensing them for merchandise, and other brand extensions. Its shows end up on major streaming platforms, from Netflix to Hulu, as well as Youtube, Joyn, Amazon Prime Video, Sky, and Roku. Founded in 2018, it claims to be “one of the largest digital media companies in the world,” with a content library totaling more than 550 hours.
Levine will be tasked with driving Moonbug’s IP expansion by developing properties like Cocomelon and Blippi (both of which also started out on Youtube). He will report to René Rechtman, the company’s co-founder and CEO.