Discovery Communications has named a veteran Hollywood executive as the new head of Discovery Channel. The New York Times reports that Rich Ross was named president of the Discovery Channel in the U.S.

Ross succeeds Eileen O’Neill, who was named as global president of Discovery Studios in August. In the meantime, Marjorie Kaplan has been leading the network.

Ross has served as chief executive of Shine America, the production company behind shows such as “The Biggest Loser,” since 2013. Before that, he was the chairman of Walt Disney’s studios group and president of Disney Channels Worldwide.

“I am so excited to join David and the great team at Discovery,” Ross said in a statement. “This network is the gold standard of programmers and to be able to add to its depth of great content with new stories and new characters is simply thrilling.”

Rich Ross