Casey Bloys has been promoted to president of programming for HBO, replacing Michael Lombardo, who had held that job since 2007.
A 12-year HBO veteran, Bloys has been on a fast track at the pay channel. He was promoted to president of series, late night and specials in January. At the time, head of drama development Michael Ellenberg left the network.
Prior to that Bloys oversaw comedy series, including the gestation of such shows as “Veep” (last year’s Emmy winner) and “Silicon Valley.”
Bloys, 44, takes over at a moment when HBO is in need of replenishing its lineup of shows. The mega-hit “Game of Thrones” is heading into its last two seasons, and the half-hour “Girls” will end after its next season.
In addition, some recent offerings have been disappointments, either creatively or in terms of audience, including the expensive music drama “Vinyl” and second season of “True Detective.” An eagerly anticipated version of “Westworld” was also delayed.
Although still the leading premium channel, HBO is facing tougher competition — for both talent and award recognition — from relatively new players, like Netflix and Amazon. The streaming services have joined pay rivals Showtime and Starz, and basic cable outlets such as AMC and FX, in aggressively offering original series.
Bloys will report to CEO Richard Plepler. Like CNN, the network is a part of Time Warner.