Pia Barlow joins Amazon MGM as original series marketing chief
Amazon MGM Studios hired HBO Max veteran Pia Barlow to lead marketing for Prime Video’s U.S. and global original series.
By Georgia Hale · Staff Writer
3 min read
Pia Barlow is joining Amazon MGM Studios in a new top marketing role, Variety reported, moving from HBO Max to oversee campaigns for Prime Video’s original series in the U.S. and worldwide.
Barlow will start Aug. 3 as head of original series marketing at Amazon MGM Studios, according to Variety. The job puts her in charge of marketing efforts tied to Prime Video’s U.S. and global original series slate.
She will report to Sue Kroll, Amazon MGM Studios’ global head of marketing for film, series and brand, Variety reported. The role is newly created and sits alongside the film side of the operation, where Stephen Bruno serves as vice president of film marketing and also reports to Kroll.
What will Pia Barlow do at Amazon MGM Studios?
Barlow will lead the marketing strategy for Prime Video original series made for both the U.S. and international audiences, according to Variety. In plain terms, that means she will help shape how Amazon sells its shows to viewers, from launch campaigns to broader audience outreach.
Kroll announced the hire in a memo to staff on Friday, Variety reported. In that memo, Kroll said Barlow brings wide experience across film and television and told employees she was eager for Barlow to begin working with the team.
The move gives Amazon MGM Studios an executive with a long streaming and premium TV résumé at a moment when Prime Video competes for attention in a crowded field of franchise shows, prestige dramas, comedies and unscripted programming.
Who is Pia Barlow?
Barlow most recently served as head of originals marketing at HBO Max, according to Variety. In that job, she led campaigns for shows including The Pitt, Euphoria, House of the Dragon, Hacks and HBO’s coming Harry Potter television adaptation.
Before her HBO Max post, Barlow worked at Netflix on marketing for series such as Orange Is the New Black, Master of None, Making a Murderer and Queer Eye, Variety reported. She also helped build Netflix’s international originals marketing strategy.
Her career began at HBO in 2003, where she worked on marketing campaigns for Girls, Boardwalk Empire and Silicon Valley, according to Variety.
Barlow’s other past roles include senior vice president of marketing at Twentieth Century Fox Film, Variety reported. She also held an executive role at Netflix overseeing global creative and social media marketing campaigns for nonfiction and kids and family originals.
The hire brings Barlow back into a high-profile series marketing seat, this time inside Amazon MGM Studios, as the company separates leadership for its series and film marketing work under Kroll.
This story draws on original reporting from Variety.