The Art of the Sell: Inside the Pitch Room with TV’s Top Showrunners (Part 1)

For any aspiring or established television writer, the pitch is the ultimate test of a TV series. It’s the moment an idea transforms from concept to potential TV show. A panel of industry TV titans—Mara Brock Akil, Mindy Kaling, Mike Schur, Molly Smith Metzler, and Eric Newman—convened to peel back the curtain on the process, offering insights into how their acclaimed Netflix series came to be – from the initial spark, to their take on a topic, to the finished product.

Sirens: Molly Smith Metzler

Molly Smith Metzler, the writer, showrunner, and executive producer behind the new limited series Sirens, opened the discussion reflecting on the show’s recent launch and surprising audience reactions. Sirens, which swiftly climbed into Netflix’s Top 10, caught the creator by surprise. “It’s always unexpected that anyone watched it,” Metzler quips.

Metzler’s approach to adapting Sirens offers a fascinating counterpoint to conventional IP development. Unlike her critically acclaimed series Maid, which was a faithful adaptation of a beloved memoir, Sirens evolved from her own play, Elemeno Pea. “When you adapt your own play, especially one that’s not enjoyed a Broadway run, you can kind of toss it,” she explains. The stage version, a 90-minute piece with five characters confined to a single room, was dramatically expanded for the screen. Characters only spoken of in the play, like Kevin Bacon’s Peter Kell, were brought to life, and the hinted-at “lush world of billionaires” became a vibrant reality in the series.

For Metzler, the genesis of Sirens also lay in a desire for a different emotional experience. After the intense and often somber tone of Maid, she sought to create something “really fun.” The pitch, in essence, was: “Let’s trash my play. Sounds great!” This playful disregard for strict fidelity to the source material, even when the source is her own, underscored a refreshing confidence and a clear vision for an engaging, lighter narrative.

[More: Sirens: From Stage To Stream. How Molly Smith Metzler’s Play Became a Mythic TV Series]

A Man on the Inside: Mike Schur

Mike Schur, the celebrated creator, writer, and director of Netflix’s A Man on the Inside, shares a moment of unexpected recognition: receiving a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Initially, Schur admitted, “I did not in all honesty know that writers were eligible,” assuming the call was a prank. He also wryly observed the “funeral-like” quality of the ceremony, with old friends gathering to say kind things.

Schur’s show, A Man on the Inside, presents a unique comedic challenge: exploring aging and memory loss. The series is based on The Mole Agent, a beautiful Chilean documentary. Schur’s producing partner, Morgan Sagat, proposed the idea with a specific actor in mind: Ted Danson. “I watched it and just immediately knew that he was right,” Schur recalls.

The premise revolves around an elderly man who, after losing his wife, answers a peculiar classified ad: “Wanted man, 75 to 85, good with technology.” He infiltrates a retirement home as a spy, only to find community, friendship, and purpose. For Schur, the allure lay in tackling subjects often “seen as shameful and embarrassing” in American culture. “Aging specifically, that’s like the best case scenario right? That’s what we all hope we will be able to do and yet it’s never depicted accurately I think on TV or rarely,” he notes.

Having honed his craft on iconic half-hour comedies like The Office, Schur acknowledges its monumental influence. “It’s like the un-sitcom of the modern era… it influenced so much of what came after it.” After years of writing variations of workplace comedies, Schur felt a pull towards something more challenging. “Well, there’s like I should do something that’s hard and weird,” he muses.

[More: Michael Schur Sends Ted Danson On An Undercover Mission in “A Man On The Inside”]

Forever: Mara Brock Akil

Mara Brock Akil, the writer, director, and executive producer of the globally acclaimed Forever, shares her profound experience with the show’s success, including its renewal for a second season and consistent presence in the global Top 10. For Akil, this reception was “blowing me away.” Beyond the impressive metrics, the most impactful feedback came from friends and viewers who shared how the show facilitated crucial conversations within families, particularly about parenting styles and challenging topics with children.

Forever is an adaptation of Judy Blume’s novel, a project Akil initially hadn’t anticipated. Drawn by a general interest in what was “catching my attention,” which at the time was her oldest son’s journey through adolescence, Akil instinctively responded when news broke that Blume’s body of work was becoming available for screen adaptation. While her first thought was Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret., she later found Forever on the available list.

“Immediately I could go back to the feeling of what it was when I read that book,” Akil explains, recognizing a deep connection between the novel’s essence and her contemporary concerns as a parent. Her vision for the adaptation centered on preserving the “feeling from yesteryear” while offering a modern lens to universal experiences. She posed a crucial question: “What was then is now… who’s the most vulnerable today?” Her answer, tragically, was young Black boys, particularly in the wake of events like the murders of Trayvon Martin and George Floyd.

By centering a Black family and protagonist (Justin, replacing Katherine from the book, with Keisha Michael) within the context of private white institutions in Los Angeles, Akil found a potent new story angle. This demographic shift allowed the show to explore contemporary challenges of identity, class, and social navigation, while still resonating with the universal experience of first love and the complexities of growing up. Judy Blume herself was intrigued by this approach, recognizing how a seemingly simple change in protagonist could unlock new relevance for the classic story. Forever demonstrates that powerful adaptation can mean less about literal translation and more about finding timeless emotional truths within a new cultural context.

[More: Mara Brock Akil Offers A Fresh Take on Judy Blume’s “Forever”]

Zero Day & American Primeval: Eric Newman

Eric Newman, co-creator and co-showrunner of Zero Day and executive producer of American Primeval, offers  a candid glimpse into the unique pressures of overseeing two major productions simultaneously. Joking about navigating “the bottomless hole that is my self-esteem,” Newman attributes the overlapping schedules to “strikes and COVID and… schedule shifts.” While Zero Day filmed in New York (a “great place to work”), American Primeval endured a “brutal” winter shoot in Santa Fe.

Newman’s longstanding relationship with Netflix, tracing back to the early days of Narcos, underscores his consistent track record. He expressed gratitude for the supportive environment, where even projects that didn’t fully launch were met with understanding. “Making a TV show,” he affirms, “is a lot of work… 100 plus days per show.”

Zero Day, while not an adaptation, felt “ripped from the headlines” in its prescient exploration of truth and alternate reality. Newman co-created the series with Noah Oppenheim, then head of NBC News. The genesis of the idea stemmed from a fundamental question: “Where are we going as a civilization with regards to our relationship with the truth?” Oppenheim, from his vantage point in news, lamenting the shift towards a “state of being in which… the truth is unfortunately subjective.”

This concern converged with a story about a high-level national investigation being overseen by a man succumbing to Alzheimer’s. The metaphorical resonance was profound: “The mechanism for which we determine truth is actually broken.” The show explores what happens when George Mullen, Robert De Niro’s character, is in charge of something so critical when his own grasp on reality is faltering.

Newman recounts pitching this idea to Robert De Niro, who immediately “sparked to it.” De Niro’s early and enthusiastic commitment was a powerful sales tool, as Newman wryly notes, “we could have sold him anything.” De Niro’s deep involvement, from reading every page to providing notes, further elevated the project. The series, despite its intentional apolitical stance, still faced the contemporary challenge of a deeply polarized audience, a lesson learned in its reception.

[More: American Primeval: A Non-Nostalgic Look At America’s Brutal Past]

Running Point: Mindy Kaling

Mindy Kaling, the executive producer and writer of Running Point, illuminates the inspiration behind her latest series. Known for creating memorable stories and characters, including the beloved Never Have I Ever, Kaling’s personal connection to basketball, particularly the Boston Celtics, provides a unique entry point for her show about the back office of a professional basketball team.

Kaling reveals that the initial spark came from Jeanie Buss, owner of the Los Angeles Lakers, who, admiring The Office, suggested Kaling explore the world of the Lakers. After delving into books about the team, Kaling found an undeniably “sexy and interesting high stakes workplace.” The crucial element was Buss’s openness: “She said nothing is off limits.” While fictionalized for practical reasons (mostly litigation, Kaling jokes), the essence of the Lakers’ “showtime” culture, with its blend of glamour and intense fandom, proved irresistible.

Kaling’s shows, though diverse in setting, share a common thread: “demented ambitious women” who are often underestimated and carry a chip on their shoulder. Running Point embodies this archetype through its depiction of a woman navigating the cut throat world of professional sports. The passionate, almost personal, investment fans have in their teams resonated deeply with Kaling: “If they’re doing well, they’re the greatest heroes in the world, and if they’re doing badly, you take it so personally.” This emotional intensity, combined with the “big personalities” and reverence for the game exemplified by Jeanie Buss and her team, made for a “juicy” narrative premise.

by Staff Writer

From our in-house editorial team.