Sonia Rovai Appointed Disney Italy VP of Original Production

Disney is strengthening its commitment to locally produced storytelling in Italy, appointing veteran television and film executive Sonia Rovai as Vice President of Original Production for Disney Italy.

What’s Happening:

• According to Variety, Rovai joins The Walt Disney Company’s Italian operation after serving as CEO of Fremantle-owned Wildside since 2024. In her new position, she will lead Disney+’s Italian team and oversee the development and production of local original programming as the streaming service continues to expand its international content strategy.
• Rovai will report to Angela Jain, Head of Content, Disney+ EMEA, and will be responsible for both scripted and unscripted local original productions, including production management and business affairs.
• The executive brings extensive experience across Italy’s television and film industries. During her time at Wildside, the Rome-based production company continued its work on acclaimed Italian productions, including My Brilliant Friend, while more recently producing Netflix’s The Monster of Florence.
• Before joining Wildside, Rovai spent eight years at Sky Italia, where she led the pay-TV company's original series department from 2016 through 2024. During that period, she oversaw more than 80 Sky Original productions, including internationally recognized titles such as Gomorrah, The Young Pope, and ZeroZeroZero.
• “Sonia joins us at a pivotal moment of growth as we scale our originals across the world,” Jain said in a statement. “Italy is a key market for us, and following the greenlight of ‘Murder on Lake Garda’, our goal is to champion local content that enriches and complements our global line-up with true cultural authenticity and local specificity. Sonia brings an incredible wealth of experience to the team and can’t wait to work with the very best of the Italian creative industry.”
• Rovai's appointment comes as Disney+ prepares to expand its slate of Italian originals, with Murder on Lake Garda among the projects already moving forward. Based on Tom Hindle's Sunday Times bestseller of the same name, the series is being directed by Laura Bispuri, whose previous credits include Sworn Virgin and Daughter of Mine. Details about the cast have not yet been announced.
• The series is part of Disney+'s broader effort to develop stories rooted in their respective local markets while making them available to audiences beyond their country of origin. Disney has increasingly positioned international originals as an important part of its streaming strategy, with local storytelling helping the platform reach new audiences and deepen engagement in markets around the world.
• That strategy was highlighted by Disney CEO Josh D’Amaro following the company's third-quarter fiscal 2026 earnings. Disney has said it plans to roughly triple the number of local original series on Disney+ over the next three years as it seeks to drive international user growth and reduce churn.
• D’Amaro has also identified regional content as a key component of Disney+'s international growth strategy, saying the company intends to leverage regional relationships and bring regional programming to the service at scale.
• For Italy, Rovai's extensive background overseeing original programming places her at the center of that strategy. Her experience spans both premium pay-TV and independent production, with credits ranging from Italian-language series to projects that have reached international audiences.
• As Disney+ continues building its international originals slate, her appointment signals a continued focus on working with local creative communities and developing Italian stories for both domestic and global audiences.

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