The Obamas’ Higher Ground Hires SMAC’s Ethan Lewis As Unscripted Chief

EXCLUSIVE: President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama have found their unscripted boss.

The pair’s media company Higher Ground has hired Ethan Lewis, formerly Head of Unscripted & Branded Content at Michael Strahan and Constance Schwartz-Morini’s SMAC Entertainment.

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Lewis joins as SVP of Unscripted/Non-Fiction. His hire comes after there was much speculation in the unscripted and non-fiction business that the Obamas’ production company was looking to bolster it non-scripted credentials.

Lewis, who reports to Higher Ground’s Head of Film and Television Tonia Davis, produced and sold shows including HBO’s doc series The Cost of Winning, ESPN’s 30 for 30: Deion’s Double Play, Wiz Khalifa: Behind the Cam for Apple Music and the upcoming Bishop Sycamore high school football scandal documentary for HBO with Adam McKay’s Hyperobject Industries.

He began his career at WME, developing content and branding opportunities between talent and its advertising agency Droga5, before moving to Adaptive Studios, where he worked on Verizon Go90’s reality competition series, The Runner and Project Greenlight Digital Studios, the digital content arm of HBO’s Project Greenlight. He also worked at global non-scripted financing and distribution company The Story Lab, before joining SMAC Entertainment in 2018.

Higher Ground’s non-fiction projects include natural history docu-series Our Great National Parks. The company was also responsible for feature doc American Factory as well as Michelle Obama’s Becoming. The company also has a slew of scripted projects in the works as well as kids and family series, feature films, documentaries and podcasts.

Davis said, “Ethan is a seasoned producer who understands how to identify and tell captivating unscripted stories. Experienced with both networks and brands, Ethan is passionate, savvy, and forward-thinking. As we look to build out our unscripted slate, we know Ethan will make an excellent addition to the Higher Ground team.”

Lewis added, “I am thrilled to be joining the amazing team at Higher Ground. Whenever I watch or listen to a Higher Ground project I know I’m getting something of the highest quality with a story that matters. I’m excited to be a part of the team and continue that work with new unscripted and non-fiction stories.”

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