Brad Grey TV Signs Exclusive With Fox

Brad Grey Television, an independent company that produces “The Sopranos” for HBO and “Just Shoot Me” for NBC, has signed an exclusive deal with 20th Century Fox Television to create new shows, executives announced Wednesday.

The three-year deal unites Grey--one of Hollywood’s most successful talent managers and producers--with a studio that has more shows on the air than any other TV producer.

The Fox studio has 24 prime-time shows on broadcast networks this year and expects to have at least 16 in the fall.

Neither side would discuss the financial details.

But sources said Fox will cover development overhead, share in the profits and underwrite programs the networks pull into their lineups. Fox also will have first choice of cable TV series, if the distribution rights are available.

For 11 years, Grey’s shows have been distributed by Sony Pictures Entertainment, which packaged them with other successful programs for syndication.

Sony’s decision last fall to get out of TV production left the studio with fewer offerings for syndication.

“It’s essential for a company like ours to partner with a company with great leverage, and our friends at Fox clearly represent that,” Grey said.

Although Grey has partnered with other studios in the past, this is his first exclusive deal with Fox.

For the studio, Grey and his television team represent not only a solid record of programs, but also access to talent.

For example, CBS is considering a television show based on the film “My Big Fat Greek Wedding,” which Grey is producing with Rita Wilson and her husband, Tom Hanks.

“He has found not only shows that work, but shows that are different from other things on the air,” said 20th Century Fox Television President Gary Newman.