Elizabeth Boykewich

Elizabeth Boykewich is head of Casting and Talent for Freeform. She oversees all casting and talent deal negotiations for the network's movies, pilots, live-action series, animation, alternative and reality programming, as well as original movies for Disney+. She manages both studio and network casting and was integral in launching and defining the Freeform brand, understanding the millennial and Gen-Z audience to discover the up-and-coming talent who drive the cultural conversation and become the future stars of tomorrow. Boykewich is also heavily invested in the holistic development of homegrown celebrities. By providing opportunities in-house to direct, write and produce episodes on the network, she has led Freeform in becoming a platform for talent to break out in the broader industry. She is also responsible for leading the network's on-screen diversity and inclusion efforts since the beginning of her tenure and has been instrumental in driving Freeform to the top as the most inclusive cable television network to date. Series under her oversight include the multiple award-winning hits "Pretty Little Liars," "grown-ish," "Good Trouble," "The Bold Type," "Cloak & Dagger," "Siren," "The Fosters," "Switched at Birth," "Shadowhunters," "The Secret Life of the American Teenager," "Bunheads," "Baby Daddy," "Melissa & Joey," "Stitchers," "Young & Hungry" and "10 Things I Hate About You." Upcoming series include "Motherland," "Everything's Gonna Be Okay" and "Party of Five." Boykewich has overseen over 400 projects for the network and is directly involved in all talent deals, including integration, ad sales, multiplatform content and synergy efforts across the network and studio. Boykewich's passion for developing and nurturing the careers of rising stars and casting diverse voices has won Freeform critical acclaim, along with numerous awards, including the Teen Choice Awards, People's Choice Awards, NAACP, GLAAD, Imagen, Saturn Awards and Television Critics Association Awards. Boykewich attended Ohio University's prestigious Professional Actor Training Program on a talent scholarship and quickly rose through the ranks from casting intern to casting director. When Boykewich branched out into film and television work in New York City, she quickly developed a reputation as the go-to person for talent searches. She spearheaded the nationwide talent search for the lead role in Disney's remake of "The Parent Trap," which launched Lindsay Lohan into the national spotlight. She also found Angus T. Jones for "See Spot Run" ("Two and a Half Men"), America Ferrara for "Gotta Kick It Up," and the Sprouse twins for "Big Daddy" (Disney Channel's "Zack and Cody"). Boykewich finished her tenure in New York as casting director for "Late Night with Conan O'Brien." During her first years in Los Angeles, Boykewich worked on a string of feature film hits in every genre: "Fifty First Dates," "Anger Management," "X-Men," "X2," "Big Daddy," "Deeds," "The Animal," "Fifty First Kisses" and many others. In 2004, Boykewich moved to the executive suite at Paramount Television and helped oversee Paramount's 2004 pilots, including "NUMB3RS," "Medium" and "Second Time Around." Boykewich is a member of the Casting Society of America, Academy of Television Arts & Science, Women in Film, Step Up Women's Organization, HRTS and is a sought out mentor within the Walt Disney Television company. She holds a master's degree in spiritual psychology from the University of Santa Monica and a Bachelor of Fine Arts in theatre arts from Ohio University, but she likes to say that her most important degree is her meditation teacher certification, because ... Hollywood.