In the age of peak TV, showrunners have quickly become some of the most powerful peeps in the biz. Unlike executive producers, who are frequently a name-only presence, showrunners are much more on-the-ground influential. If you’re looking to get cast on a series, it’s important to understand just what a showrunner actually does, which is why we’ve rounded up wise words from some of today’s most successful showrunners below.
Showrunners are hard-working architects.“You’re running the show—literally. You’re putting it together, from no idea to ‘Hey, this is what you’re now going to watch on the screen.’ It’s hiring writers; it’s sitting with [the series creator] before we even have writers and arcing out where the season would go, how we’re going to explore these characters. It’s looking at casting and deciding who’s going to get the parts. And it’s being on set and [communicating] with the director and saying, ‘I need the joke this way.’ Then in editing, it’s revising all that stuff and doing music. It’s continuing to always be there.” —Prentice Penny, showrunner of HBO’s
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