American Idol and So You Think You Can Dance producer Simon Lythgoe has signed with Buchwald.
The new representation follows Lythgoe’s Legacy Productions opening a new office in Nashville in early January. Lythgoe — whose father is So You Think You Can Dance co-creator and former judge Nigel Lythgoe — opened the new headquarters in the heart of country music to continue an expansion into multi-platform storytelling.
“It’s time to bring some synergy to the mediums of music, television, film, and social media. This is about producing creative content across all platforms. We can build on our strengths, get creative, and entertain the world,” Legacy Productions president Simon Lythgoe said in a statement.
The Nashville base aims to draw the city’s creative community around Music Row to collaborations that unite music, social media live entertainment to create new storytelling formats. Lythgoe has made earlier forays into country music-based storytelling in Nashville, where Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash and other music legends launched their careers.
In 2011, he and his father teamed to produce a country music singing-songwriting competition series, CMT’s Next Superstar, for the Nashville-based country music network.
Without giving details, Legacy Productions said it’s at work on a music project with the Vatican and a social media-based talent competition to find the next superstar that blends traditional and next-generation ways to discover breakout talent.
Legacy Productions will also look to develop new scripted projects for streaming platforms, and expand into music management and live touring. Lythgoe over three decades has created new formats and popular shows, most recently with Netflix’s Meet Me Next Christmas holiday movie, which stars Christina Milian and Devale Ellis.