TV Hot Spot: News

Mark Burnett Wants His MTV

Post by: Sal

Having done all variety of competition shows, from island survival to middleweight boxing, Mark Burnett will now tackle the awards show.

The "Survivor" and "Apprentice" creator will executive produce this year's MTV Movie Awards, which for the first time will air live. The awards are scheduled to air on June 3.

Appearing at the Television Critics Association press tour Thursday, Burnett said he's a big fan of the movie awards and doesn't want to change the core of the show: The movie parodies will remain, he says, as will the awards' off-kilter categories like Best Kiss and Best Villain. He does, however, want to incorporate user-generated elements into the show and to make sure the awards don't feel "overproduced."

"MTV is almost the antithesis of that," he says, adding that he hopes to let presenters and performers go "off prompter" if they want to and that he'll try to incorporate some bombshell moments into the broadcast to make it appointment viewing.

Salli Frattini, who's exec produced the awards for the past decade, will work alongside Burnett on this year's show. The two have worked together in the past, in the early days of "Eco Challenge."

"Mark has great ideas and vision for the Movie Awards, and I know he's going to bring some fresh energy to the show," MTV president Christina Norman says in a statement. "I can't wait to see how his vision comes together to create a one of a kind experience for the Movie Awards, on television and online."