Hank and John Green — aka YouTube’s Vlogbrothers — promoted chief operating officer Julie Walsh Smith to the role of acting CEO of their educational entertainment studio, Complexly, and hired Gabriel Blanco (most recently with Mythical Entertainment) as the company’s first chief creative officer.
Earlier this year, Hank Green stepped away from his role as CEO of the company to receive treatment for Hodgkin lymphoma, a type of cancer of the lymphatic system. He’s currently spending time recovering and will be leading some upcoming special projects. As acting CEO, Smith maintains “close contact” with the Greens, who will serve as creative and strategic advisers to Complexly.
Founded in 2012, the Green brothers’ Complexly has produced some of the longest-running programming on YouTube including “SciShow,” “Crash Course” and “PBS Eons.” The company’s mission is to create trustworthy media that “inspires curiosity and lowers barriers to knowledge.” Complexly’s multiple YouTube channels have more than 30 million subscribers and over 5 billion views to date.
Smith and Blanco are tasked with expanding Complexly’s programmatic reach and developing new series and formats, as well as monetizing its content library of nearly 10,000 original videos. Additionally, they will seek to grow the studio’s presence in edtech and academia through new strategic partnerships.
“I’m very excited to see Julie and Gabriel moving into new leadership roles at Complexly,” John Green said in a statement. “These talented and forward-thinking executives will accelerate Complexly’s efforts to make widely available, reliable, and entertaining educational content for learners around the world.”
Hank Green added, “Of course, John and I aren’t going anywhere. We have so much we want to help Complexly accomplish. We’ll still be deeply involved in developing content and strategy that will help this company reach students and learners of all kinds around the world.”
Smith has been COO of Complexly since 2016. Under her operational leadership, the studio has doubled in headcount and revenue. She also oversaw partnerships with WNYC Studios, Arizona State University, YouTube and PBS, as well as the launch of some of the studio’s most well-known shows. In her new role as acting CEO, Smith will oversee all aspects of the company’s day-to-day operations and long-term strategic planning.
Blanco joins Complexly from Rhett & link’s Mythical Entertainment, where he was senior VP of production and operations, overseeing all studio operations, content production and live events. Prior to Mythical, he was a production executive at Particular Crowd, an independent feature film division of Warner Bros. Discovery, where he managed a slate of more than 50 films. Earlier in his career, Blanco built and led a live action advertising department at The Mill’s L.A. studio and was a freelance producer for many years.
“Creating content that both entertains and educates is a rare privilege in this industry, and I am beyond honored to be joining the team at Complexly,” Blanco said in a statement provided by the company. “What Hank and John have built over the last decade has been a remarkable testament to the adaptability and universal relatability of educational media. As YouTube replaces our televisions as the broadest distributor of original content, I can think of no studio better positioned to reach more audiences across the globe than Complexly.”
Smith commented, “Complexly is beloved by learners and teachers worldwide thanks to the conscientious and enthusiastic work of Hank, John, and our brilliant teams. It takes a world-class group of partners and staff to realize our vision to cultivate curiosity and build knowledge in more people, more ways, and more places. Going into our 13th year, I’m thrilled to welcome Gabriel to our leadership team and am honored to lead Complexly in this new role.”
Hank and John Green, in addition to teaming on Vlogbrothers and Complexly, are the founders of video-creator convention VidCon and Subbable, a crowdfunding platform for creators that they sold Patreon. More recently, the brothers launched a project to raise money to improve maternal health care in Sierra Leone.
John Green is author of bestselling books including “The Fault in Our Stars,” “Turtles All the Way Down” and “The Anthropocene Reviewed,” while Hank has penned several popular sci-fi novels. John resides with his family in Indianapolis, and Hank lives in Montana with his wife and son.
Pictured above (l. to r.): Hank Green, John Green, Julie Walsh Smith, Gabriel Blanco
