“CSI” exec producer Naren Shankar has inked a new three-year overall pact with Paramount Network Television.
Mid-seven-figure deal replaces an agreement Shankar made with CBS Prods. and Alliance Atlantis just last year.
In an unusual move, Par prexy David Stapf decided to tear up that deal in order to hammer out a new pact with Shankar that covers both his “CSI” duties and exclusive rights to his future development. The 2004 agreement allowed Shankar to develop for other studios.
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New deal also promotes Shankar to co-showrunner of “CSI,” a year after he was bumped up to exec producer. He’ll share the gig with longtime “CSI” showrunner Carol Mendelsohn.
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Stapf called Shankar, who holds a PhD in applied physics, “one of the smartest writers I’ve ever worked with.”
“Under the tutelage of Carol, he’s grown into a gifted showrunner,” Stapf said. “He knows how to solve problems not only on the page but also in the day-to-day production process.”
Even with the extra brainpower, Shankar “is down to earth and relatable” and “knows how to write character and science,” Stapf added.
Shankar noted that he started his career as a science consultant on Par-produced “Star Trek: The Next Generation.”
“So it’s kind of cool to be back here,” he told Daily Variety, calling the deal a “no-brainer” given his solid relationships with Stapf, CBS/Par exec Nancy Tellem and Eye entertainment prexy Nina Tasslker.
Scribe said he and Mendelsohn have “been working so closely together already, especially last year,” that his new status as co-showrunner won’t be a radical change.
And while it’s early to talk about future development, Shankar said he hopes to draw on his past experiences working on a number of different kinds of shows, including sci-fi, fantasy and crime drama.
“Right now we’re seeing a bit of a renaissance for broadcast television, so hopefully I’ll be able to do something people haven’t seen before,” he said.
Shankar has been with “CSI” since 2002.
Before “CSI,” Shankar, repped by the Rothman Brecher Agency, spent three seasons on the revival of “The Outer Limits” and was an exec producer on Sci Fi’s “Farscape.”