
The Jim Henson Company has hired Tara Billik (pictured) to oversee its movie pipeline as VP of feature films.
Based in LA, Billik officially started her new role this week and reports to CEO Lisa Henson. She will oversee the development of Henson’s upcoming feature projects, which span animation, fantasy and sci-fi.
The slate includes a Netflix adaptation of 1999 kids fantasy novel The 13 1/2 lives of Captain Bluebear by Walter Moers. Also in the pipeline is a sequel to 1986 fantasy flick Labyrinth for TriStar Pictures.
Prior to joining Henson, Billik served as VP of film and TV at Mythical Entertainment (Good Mythical Morning) for a year, and before that, she was VP of development and production at Gunpowder & Sky (Alt).
Family features are familiar territory for this experienced development exec, who began her career as an assistant and creative exec at LA’s GK Films, where she worked on Martin Scorcese’s big-screen book adaptation Hugo and CG-animated western Rango, which were both released in 2011.
Henson’s recent films have, for the most part, been rooted in the fantasy genre. The company produced Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio, which launched globally on Netflix last December and collected an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature at this year’s Oscars ceremony. And earlier this month, the studio’s live-action flick The Portable Door dropped on streamers Stan (UK and Australia) and MGM+ (US).