Comcast Makes It Official: Jeff Shell to Replace Steve Burke

Comcast Corp. on Monday announced its changing of the peacock guard: Steve Burke, chief executive of NBCUniversal for nearly nine years, will hand over the reins to TV and film executive Jeff Shell on Jan. 1.

Steve Burke

According to The LA Times, Burke will serve as chairman of the company for eight months, then retire on Aug. 14, following the Summer Olympics in Tokyo.

Shell, 54, a Los Angeles native, has been in charge of NBCUniversal’s West Coast properties, including NBC Entertainment and Universal Pictures, for nearly a year. Burke has been grooming Shell in various roles for more than a decade.

Comcast, the Philadelphia cable giant, owns NBCUniversal. Burke’s departure comes at a pivotal time for the company, which has two signature events in 2020: the launch of Peacock, a planned streaming service, and the broadcast of the Olympics. In addition to NBC and the Universal film studio, the company owns DreamWorks Animation; Universal Studios theme parks; cable channels USA, Bravo, MSNBC and CNBC; and European satellite TV provider Sky.

“Jeff Shell is the ideal executive to take the helm at NBCUniversal,” Comcast Chief Executive Brian Roberts said in a statement. “I have worked closely with Jeff for many years and he is an extraordinary leader who inspires loyalty, delivers strong results and cares deeply about our company, its employees and partners.”

Jeff Shell

News of Burke’s upcoming retirement — at the age of 62 — rocked the media industry. Over the last 21 years, Burke has been Roberts’ trusted lieutenant, and most high-level media executives try to hold on to power into their 70s. Burke separately serves on the board of Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. He has been CEO of NBCUniversal since January 2011, when Comcast bought the media giant from General Electric Co.

“While this has been a dream job, it has always been my plan to hand off the baton at the right moment and move on to the next chapter of my life where I can pursue a different set of interests,” Burke said in a statement, noting that Shell “is the right leader to usher in the next phase of growth and success for NBCUniversal.”

Burke is credited with rebuilding NBCUniversal. The legendary NBC network was in fourth place when Comcast acquired the company and was losing about $600 million a year. Burke ousted the old regime and began investing in content. NBC has won the prime-time season for the last six years. The film studio was weighed down by executive infighting and the lack of a cohesive franchise strategy. The studio has gone on to post two record years.