February 2026

Entertainment veteran Sheila Ducksworth is president of the CBS Studios/NAACP Venture. Based in Los Angeles, Calif., at CBS Studios, Ducksworth supervises development and production of content for broadcast, cable and streaming platforms.

Ducksworth has worked across multiple facets of the industry, both as a buyer and a seller; and across various distribution outlets, with production company, studio and network experience.

Ducksworth is executive producer of the soap opera BEYOND THE GATES. BEYOND THE GATES is the first soap opera to debut on broadcast television in over a quarter century. Also remarkable, this series is the first hour-long soap opera to feature a predominantly Black cast in the history of daytime television.

Prior to boarding the CBS Studios/NAACP Venture, Ducksworth spent three years as head of scripted television and production for Will Packer Media, where she executive produced both the series “Ambitions” and “Wendy Williams: The Movie.”

Ever the tastemaker and innovator, Ducksworth previously served as CEO and executive producer of Ducksworth Productions, where she received a NAMIC nomination with Kym Whitley for “It’s Kymplicated”; executive produced the Regina Hall, Jill Scott, Eve and Brooklyn Sudano-starrer “With This Ring,” alongside Gabrielle Union and Tracey Edmonds; and produced the film “Why We Laugh: Funny Women” with Lionsgate Entertainment, Codeblack Films and entertainment legend and executive producer Joan Rivers.

Adding to her accomplishments, Ducksworth served as head of television for powerhouse television players Susanne Daniels and Tracey Edmonds, running development and production of their respective companies.

Ducksworth is a native New Yorker. She received her BA in economics and political science from Yale University.