Netflix announced that it had signed Shonda Rhimes to an exclusive, multi-year deal.
“Shonda Rhimes is one of the greatest storytellers in the history of television,” Ted Sarandos, Netflix’s chief content officer, said in a statement. “Her work is gripping, inventive, pulse-pounding, heart-stopping, taboo-breaking television at its best … We’re so excited to welcome her to Netflix.”
Rhimes, who created Scandal and Grey’s Anatomy, is moving production company ShondaLand away from Disney’s ABC studios. While Rhimes will continue to work with ABC on projects that are still on the air and in development for ABC, her new projects will fall under the new umbrella of Netflix’s deal.
As for Rhimes, she said that she was looking to “build a vibrant new storytelling home for writers with the unique creative freedom and instantaneous global reach.”
“The future of Shondaland at Netflix has limitless possibilities,” she added.
The Wall Street Journal reported that Rhimes has generated around $2 billion in revenue for ABC and that the new production deal would see Rhimes earning around $10 million a year.