Russell Wilson and Ciara during a King County Library event in Tukwila in February 2019. (GeekWire File Photo / Kurt Schlosser)

Russell Wilson and Ciara are getting into the film and television production business with Amazon Studios.

The Seattle Seahawks quarterback and his Grammy-winning entertainer wife have signed a first-look deal to develop and produce scripted series and films with Amazon, Variety reported on Tuesday. The couple has formed a production company called Why Not You Productions.

Wilson and Ciara called Amazon Studios “one of the most exciting studios in entertainment” and said the studio has “shown a strong belief in our vision to bring inspiring stories to the world.”

 

The couple has a friend at the top at Amazon in CEO Jeff Bezos. Beyond making pancakes together with Bezos back in 2018, Bezos was also an investor in Wilson’s social networking startup TraceMe. The company was eventually acquired by Nike.

Wilson is also CEO of West2East Empire, a brand management and production company based in Seattle, and the couple runs the nonprofit Why Not You Foundation along with other ventures, including a fashion line. Ciara has sold more than 23 million records and 22 million singles worldwide.

Wilson, who is in his 10th season with the Seahawks, told The Hollywood Reporter that he hopes to be seen as more than a football player, and as someone who is “innovative and creative, someone who builds something from nothing. We want to be able to impact lives. We just want to tell stories that connect with the world and to the emotions.”

Jennifer Salke, head of Amazon Studios, called Wilson and Ciara a “true powerhouse producing duo.”

“We share a passion for developing diverse and emotionally connecting stories that can inspire the world and spread positivity and hope. Our world certainly needs it,” Salke said in Variety.

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