ben silverman

Please, Ben Silverman, Don’t Move to England!

It sounds like we might not have much to worry about anyway, but we just wanted to put our feelings on the record. Nikki Finke says that NBC wunderkind (and Vulture hero) Ben Silverman could be mulling a job offer in the U.K. Yes, another company actually wants to pay him to do whatever it is he does! In recent weeks, multiple sources have reported that he is inexplicably at the top of a wish list to replace the departed CEO of Britain’s money-bleeding ITV. And according to an “NBC insider,” Silverman is “considering it,” and “the only question is whether they can pay him enough money” (thankfully, the company lost $4.4 billion last year). Also, on Tuesday, says Finke, Jeff Zucker “told Hollywood privately” that “there are changes and they’ll be imminent [at NBC]” while somehow implying that they’d involve Silverman (though this could mean practically anything — maybe they’re giving him a raise!).

Throwing cold water on all of this, though, are a network spokesperson who tells Finke that “Ben is under contract to NBC” and another source “close to him” who confirms that he re-upped his deal with the Peacock “awhile back,” even though no formal announcement was ever made.

But look, Ben, if you’re still thinking about the ITV deal, we’d like you to consider a few things. First, the skiing in Britain is awful. Also, a Google search for “‘white tiger rental’ england” produces zero relevant results. Additionally, Vulture cannot, at this time, afford to open a remote office in the U.K., so our coverage of your high jinks would likely suffer. Plus, if you were a TV programmer in Britain, whose television shows would you steal?

3RD UPDATE: Jeff Zucker Privately Pledging “Imminent Changes” At NBC And Universal [DHD]

Please, Ben Silverman, Don’t Move to England!