Talented female showrunners have brought many of our favorite TV shows to life. Despite pay disparity and lack of representation and opportunity—Women and Hollywood reports that only 27.6% of showrunners in 2020 were women—female showrunners continue to pave the way for quality television.
From overseeing every script to the last say on the final cut, the role of the showrunner is one of the toughest in the business, and this list of female showrunners you should know exemplifies the drive and talent it takes to bring stories to life.
Female Showrunners You Need to Know
Charlotte Brown
Charlotte Brown became a trailblazer for women in Hollywood when she became the first-ever woman showrunner of a primetime series back in 1977 for Rhoda after being hired to write for the sitcom. Previously she wrote episodes of The Mary Tyler Moore Show, The Partridge Family, and The Bob Newhart Show.
Quinta Brunson
Quinta Brunson is the star, showrunner, and creator of the Emmy award-winning sitcom, Abbott Elementary, which was inspired by her mother’s experience as a kindergarten teacher who worked in Philadelphia public schools and also used her middle-school teacher’s name, Ms. Abbott, for the title.
Read More: Why Quinta Brunson Won An Emmy: An Abbott Elementary Pilot Script Breakdown
Yvette Lee Bowser
Yvette Lee Bowser became the first African-American woman to create her own primetime series with the ‘90s comedy Living Single. Since then, she has served as the showrunner for the Netflix drama Dear White People and most recently for Hulu’s Unprisoned.
Ilene Chaiken
Ilene Chaiken created and was showrunner for the autobiographical series The L Word, and helped develop and executive produce the TV adaptation of The Handmaid’s Tale before leaving the project to become the showrunner on Fox’s Empire. She also served as showrunner for Law & Order: Organized Crime.
Diane English
Diane English is best known for serving as creator and showrunner for the groundbreaking, award-winning sitcom, Murphy Brown, including its most recent spinoff.
Kerry Ehrin
Before co-creating and being showrunner on the A&E Psycho prequel series Bates Motel, Kerry Ehrin served as a producer for Friday Night Lights and Parenthood. She most recently served as showrunner for Apple TV’s The Morning Show.
Tina Fey on ‘SNL’
Tina Fey
After leaving her job as head writer on Saturday Night Live and host of its Weekend Update, Tina Fey served as creator, star, and writer of NBC’s 30 Rock, and was the co-creator and co-showrunner of the Netflix series Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. Most recently she served as the showrunner for the short-lived sitcom, Mr. Mayor.
Read More: 7 of the Funniest Female TV Screenwriters Working Today
Sera Gamble
Sera Gamble has made her mark in the sci-fi world, having served as the showrunner for two seasons on Supernatural, before being the showrunner for Syfy’s The Magicians. Most recently she serves as creator and showrunner of the Netflix drama You.
Abbi Jacobson and Ilana Glazer
While they’ve gone on to star in other projects, the comedic duo is best known for creating and showrunning the Comedy Channel classic, Broad City.
Mindy Kaling
After writing, producing, and starring in the hit sitcom The Office, multi-hyphenate Mindy Kaling went on to create and show-run The Mindy Project. Afterward, she served as showrunner for her other comedic projects, including Champions, The Sex Lives of College Girls, and Never Have I Ever.
Read More: 5 Things Mindy Kaling Can Teach You About Writing Comedy
Marta Kauffman
Marta Kauffman is best known for co-creating and co-showrunning the beloved sitcom Friends. In addition to her writing and creating the comedy series, Dream On and Veronica’s Closet, Kauffman also served as the showrunner for the Netflix series Grace and Frankie.
Gloria Calderón Kellett
Gloria Calderón Kellett was a writer and producer on How I Met Your Mother, Rules of Engagement, Devious Maids, and iZombie, before going on to becoming the co-creator and showrunner of the Netflix remake of Norman Lear’s family comedy One Day at a Time.
Nahnatchka Khan
Nahnatcka Khan is probably best known for being the executive producer and showrunner for ABC’s Fresh Off the Boat. But comedy fans might also know her as the executive producer and showrunner for the short-lived, but beloved sitcom Don’t Trust the B—- in Apartment 23. She was also the showrunner for the sitcom Young Rock, based on the life of professional wrestler and actor Dwayne Johnson.
Jenji Kohan
Jenji Kohan
Before she created, executive produced, and was showrunner of the award-winning dramedies Weeds and Orange Is the New Black, Jenji Kohen wrote episodes for classic sitcoms like The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and Mad About You. Most recently she served as executive producer for GLOW.
Marti Noxon
Marti Noxon has been writing and producing female-centric shows for decades, including everything from Buffy the Vampire Slayer to Private Practice to Unreal and Dietland. She served as a showrunner for the mini-series Sharp Objects.
Julie Plec
Julie Plec pretty much has been the go-to showrunner and creator for sci-fi teen series for the last decade. She’s served as showrunner for The Vampire Diaries and its spin-off, The Originals, as well as that spin-off’s spin-off, Legacies, and most recently ran the Peacock series The Vampire Academy.
Shonda Rhimes
What list would be complete without Shonda Rimes who rose to fame as the creator, head writer, executive producer, and original showrunner of Grey’s Anatomy? Afterward, she served as the creator and showrunner for the popular series Scandal and continues to executive produce for many series under her Shondaland banner, including How to Get Away with Murder and Bridgerton.
Read More: 5 Trademarks of Shonda Rhimes
Amy Sherman-Palladino
Before creating, executive producing, and serving as showrunner on the 2000s dramedy Gilmore Girls, Amy Sherman-Palladino was a writer for the sitcom Roseanne. She’s also served as producer and showrunner for Bunheads and the Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life, and mostly recently for the Emmy-winning The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.
Joey Soloway
Joey Soloway served as writer and producer for the HBO drama Six Feet Under before going on to run Showtime’s United States of Tara before creating, writing, executive producing, and showrunning the Emmy-winning Amazon family drama Transparent.
Lena Waithe
Lena Waithe
Lena Waite became the first Black woman to win the Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series for Master of None. She then went on to create and show-run the BET comedy series Boomerang and the Showtime series Twenties. Among her many producing credits, she’s also the creator of the Showtime drama series The Chi.
Phoebe Waller-Bridge
Phoebe Waller-Bridge is best known for creating and starring in the Emmy, Golden Globe, BAFTA, and SAG-winning dramedy Fleabag, but before that, she also created and starred in the U.K. dramedy Crashing. Additionally, she served as the showrunner for the first season of Killing Eve.
