Mindy Kaling will receive the Norman Lear Achievement Award from the Producers Guild of America at the 34th Annual Producers Guild Awards, taking place at The Beverly Hilton on February 25.
The creator of “The Sex Lives of College Girls” joins previous honorees Greg Berlanti, Marta Kauffman, Amy Sherman-Palladino, Ryan Murphy, Shonda Rhimes, Dick Wolf, Jerry Bruckheimer, Lorne Michaels, Aaron Spelling, David E. Kelley and Lear himself. The honor recognizes a “producer or production team for outstanding work on television.”
“Comedy can break boundaries and advance culture; Mindy Kaling’s immense contributions to the television comedy landscape are prime examples of this truth,” PGA Presidents Stephanie Allain and Donald De Line said in a statement. “Kaling is known for her groundbreaking work on ‘The Office,’ a beloved and endlessly rewatchable contemporary classic, but it’s her work producing series from diverse female perspectives that is reshaping the industry. From ‘The Mindy Project’ to ‘I’ve Never Had One’ to ‘College Girl Sex Lives,’ Kaling has shown just how much audiences have been craving relatable, fun stories about characters we’ve rarely seen as TV leads. . We are very happy to present him with the Norman Lear Award at this year’s PGA Awards ceremony.”
Kaling added: “It is a great honor to be asked to receive the Norman Lear Award, an award named for the prolific and innovative producer who inspires me so much. It is humbling to be included in this prestigious group of past winners, and I am very grateful to the Producers Guild for this recognition.”
The Emmy-nominated writer-producer is a New York Times bestselling author, director and actress and recent Tony Award winner for her work as a producer on Broadway’s “A Strange Loop.”
At 24, Kaling joined the eight-person writing team of “The Office” as the only woman. During her eight seasons on the show, she served as producer and executive producer on more than 120 episodes, earning her five consecutive Emmy Award nominations for Outstanding Comedy Series. She also notably played Kelly Kapoor, writing 26 episodes (more than any other writer) and directing two episodes. Her work led to her being the first woman of color to be nominated for an Emmy in any writing category.
After her stint on “The Office,” Kaling created, starred in, and executive produced “The Mindy Project,” which ran for six seasons, first on Fox and then on Hulu. She also wrote, produced and starred in her feature film debut, “Late Night,” opposite Emma Thompson. Kaling currently serves as the creator and executive producer of Netflix’s critically acclaimed “Never Have I Ever” and HBO Max’s “The Sex Lives of College Girls.”
His upcoming projects include “Legally Blonde 3” and the animated adult comedy prequel to Scooby-Doo, “Velma.” The prolific creative has two production deals: one at Warner Bros. Television and a recently signed deal with Amazon Publishing and Amazon Studios, where she will launch a boutique literary line, Mindy’s Book Studio, with the goal of adapting material into films for streaming on Prime. . Video.
