or


[06/15/06 - 12:00 AM]
NBC Entertainment and NBC Universal Television Studio Announce New Executive Casting Assignments

[via press release from NBC]

NBC ENTERTAINMENT AND NBC UNIVERSAL TELEVISION STUDIO ANNOUNCE NEW EXECUTIVE CASTING ASSIGNMENTS

Grace Wu Becomes Senior Vice President, Casting, NBC Entertainment, While Steven O'Neill Is Named as Vice President, Casting, NBC Universal Television Studio

Emmy Award-winning Casting Director Jennifer McNamara Becomes Vice President, Casting, NBC Entertainment in New York; Casting Executive Brian Dorfman Also Joins NBC as Vice President, Casting, NBC Entertainment, in Burbank.

BURBANK/UNIVERSAL CITY, Calif. � June 15, 2006 � Grace Wu has been promoted to Senior Vice President, Casting, NBC Entertainment, while veteran NBC casting executive Steven O'Neill has been named to take Wu's former position as Vice President, Casting, NBC Universal Television Studio.

In other NBC casting department changes, Emmy Award-winning casting director Jennifer McNamara ("Sex and the City") will become Vice President, Casting, NBC Entertainment in New York � O'Neill's former assignment � while ABC Entertainment/Touchstone Television casting executive Brian Dorfman also joins NBC as Vice President, Casting, NBC Entertainment, in Burbank.

The announcements were made today by Marc Hirschfeld, Executive Vice President, Casting, NBC Entertainment, and Nancy Perkins, Senior Vice President, Casting, NBC Universal Television Studio.

Hirschfeld spoke of Wu, McNamara and Dorfman:

"I'm excited to have Grace Wu returning to the network after her two-year stint at NBC Universal Studio. During the NBC Universal integration, Grace demonstrated her creativity and leadership skills under Nancy Perkins. As my Senior Vice President, she will be supervising the day-to-day casting on both the NBC current series as well as being network casting exec for USA and SCI FI projects. She'll also work closely with me and the network development team as we head into pilot season.

"It was a real coup to have landed Jen McNamara as my new Vice President of Casting at NBC New York. She is one of the best and most well-respected casting directors currently working there. She did a terrific job casting our new '30 Rock' pilot starring Tina Fey and Alec Baldwin, and she'll continue to cast the series in addition to supervising casting of the 'Law & Order' dramas, 'Kidnapped' and 'The Black Donnellys,' as well as finding and auditioning new emerging talent on the East Coast.

"I've always respected Brian Dorfman's work at ABC/Touchstone and I'm thrilled he's joining our NBC West Coast team as Vice President Casting. He's got impeccable taste in talent, strong management skills and great relationships with agents, managers and talent. I really feel like I've assembled my 'Dream Team.'"

Said Perkins of O'Neill and Wu: "Like the whole community, I'm delighted to have Steven back in Los Angeles and can't wait to work side by side with him. And as much as I'll miss having Grace at the studio I'm happy we'll get to keep working together when she's back at the network. How lucky am I?"

Wu will report to Hirschfeld. Prior to becoming Vice President of Casting for NBC Universal Television Studio, Wu was appointed Director of Casting, NBC Entertainment, in October 2000 and earlier served as Manager in 1999. During her network term, she supervised casting for "Friends," "3rd Rock from the Sun," "Just Shoot Me," "NewsRadio," "Ed" and "Freaks & Geeks."

Previously, while at Liberman-Hirschfeld Casting Agency, Wu worked on casting for "Seinfeld," "MadTV" and "The Larry Sanders Show."

O'Neill, who reports to Perkins, will be responsible for overseeing all of the studio's vast network and cable television projects.

O'Neill returns to the West Coast after nine years in New York as Vice President, Casting, where his duties included oversight of network, studio and cable channel casting on the East Coast. After joining NBC in 1993 as a Manager, Casting, he was promoted to Director one year later before heading to New York. Earlier in his career, he was a casting executive at Touchstone Television and began as a casting assistant at the CBS network in New York.

McNamara, a two-time Emmy winner for her work casting the fourth and fifth seasons of "Sex and the City," reports to Hirschfeld. She also has served as casting director on NBC's new Fall comedy "30 Rock" (starring Tina Fey), "The Street," "Hope & Faith," among others.

In addition, McNamara has been casting director for many feature films, including "Boys Don't Cry," "Gone Baby Gone" (New York casting), "Mr. Gibb," "Southern Belles" (which she also produced), "Thumbsucker" (New York casting), "Super Troopers" and "Unconditional Love." She also worked as a casting associate on "The Cider House Rules," "Shakespeare in Love" and "Good Will Hunting."

Dorfman comes to NBC from ABC Entertainment/Touchstone Television, where he has been Vice President, Casting for Comedy, since July 2002. He also will report to Hirschfeld. While at ABC, Dorfman also was Executive Director of casting for Comedy.

Prior to his tenure at ABC, Dorfman served as a Casting Director at Warner Bros. Television, where he worked on the comedy "Two of a Kind and "Whose Line Is It Anyway?" Earlier, he served at the studio on staff as an associate casting director on the series pilots for "Trinity" and "The Adversaries." He began at Warner Bros. as a casting coordinator from 1996-97.





  [june 2006]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
    


· 30 ROCK (NBC)
· ED (NBC)
· FREAKS & GEEKS (NBC)
· FRIENDS (NBC)
· HOPE & FAITH (ABC)
· JUST SHOOT ME (NBC)
· SEX AND THE CITY (HBO)
· STREET, THE (FOX)
· WHOSE LINE IS IT ANYWAY? (CW)





[11/21/25 - 01:01 PM]
Netflix Wins Drama Series "Trigger Point" and Orders Hot Package Straight to Series
Joel Edgerton stars in an action crime drama about a group of former Tier One Special Forces Operators who sell their elite skills to the criminal underworld behind the front of a private military contracting firm - and the FBI agent who's hunting for them.

[11/21/25 - 12:13 PM]
"Henry David Thoreau" to Air on PBS March 2026
The three-part, three-hour film examines the life and work of the 19th-century writer in the context of antebellum New England and the larger United States, as well as through the universal themes he focused on in his writings.

[11/21/25 - 12:00 PM]
CBS Series Top L+7 Multiplatform Competitive Charts
Seven weeks into the 2025/26 broadcast season, "Tracker" is the #1 series, averaging 14.2 million viewers across broadcast and streaming.

[11/21/25 - 11:00 AM]
Video: New Trailer of Upcoming Drama "Memory of a Killer" Starring Patrick Dempsey and Michael Imperioli - Premiering This January on FOX
Dempsey stars as a hitman, Angelo Doyle, leading a dangerous double life while hiding an even deadlier personal secret.

[11/21/25 - 09:00 AM]
What's New on HBO Max This December
New films due next month include "The Family McMullen," A24's "Ne Zha II," A24 documentary "Architecton," and Bleeker Street's "Spinal Tap II: The End Continues."

[11/21/25 - 09:00 AM]
"TMZ Presents: TMZ's Most Outrageous Moments of 2025" Premieres Tuesday, December 2 at 9/8c on FOX
TMZ brings you an ultimate year-end spectacle packed with the most jaw-dropping moments, epic surprises, and unforgettable blunders of 2025!

[11/21/25 - 09:00 AM]
Video: We TV Releases Exclusive Sneak Peek of the New Season of "Love During Lockup"
The prequel to "Love After Lockup," "Love During Lockup," reveals the fascinating moments that occur when people in the free world look for love and begin relationships with inmates, capturing their journey as they count down the days, weeks, months, or even years until the anticipated release.

[11/21/25 - 07:39 AM]
Great American Media Celebrates "Christmas as It's Meant to Be" as the Exclusive Broadcast Home of the 2025 National Christmas Tree Lighting
Great American Media will exclusively broadcast the ceremony on Great American Family Friday, December 5 at 8 p.m. ET, with streaming available on Great American Pure Flix through January 31, 2026.

[11/21/25 - 06:03 AM]
FOX Sports' FIFA World Cup 2026 Final Draw Presentation Features Unprecedented 3 1/2 Hours of Live Coverage on Broadcast Television
FOX Sports' veteran sportscasters Rob Stone and Jenny Taft will anchor the network's on-site broadcast alongside former U.S. Men's National Team (USMNT) stars and acclaimed analysts Alexi Lalas and Stu Holden.

[11/21/25 - 01:01 AM]
Video: "The Night My Dad Saved Christmas 2" - Official Trailer - Netflix
When the sneaky director of a toy company kidnaps Santa, it's up to a father and son to rescue him and save Christmas from disaster.

[11/20/25 - 04:55 PM]
"Dancing with the Stars" Jumps to Season Highs with Epic "Prince Night"
The show rose dramatically over its year-ago penultimate episode in Total Viewers, with its best semifinals performance in seven years.

[11/20/25 - 02:50 PM]
Video: Watch the Trailers - "OWN for the Holidays" Returns with Three Festive New Movies
"Fake Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," "The Christmas Showdown," and "Very Merry Mystery" are on tap in the coming weeks.

[11/20/25 - 01:16 PM]
"Christmas in Nashville" Unveils Star-Studded Performer Lineup for Dec. 3 Country Music Holiday Special on NBC
Bill Murray & His Blood Brothers, Lauren Alaina, NE-YO, The War and Treaty and Trace Adkins are set to perform holiday favorites.

[11/20/25 - 12:32 PM]
"The Tonight Show" Enters the Upside Down - "Stranger Things" Cast to Make a Series of Guest Appearances on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon"
Millie Bobby Brown will co-host with Fallon on December 7, which is the final post-"Sunday Night Football" special episode of the season.

[11/20/25 - 12:30 PM]
Video: Acorn TV Debuts Trailer and Key Art for "The Madame Blanc Mysteries" Two-Part Christmas Special
Created by and starring Sally Lindsay, the special is set to premiere on Monday, December 15 and Monday, December 22, respectively, in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.