E1 Entertainment has hired veteran Los Angeles development executive Larry Gilbert to drive its North American drama slate deeper into U.S. primetime.

Gilbert, who in March departed Mel Gibson’s production shingle Icon Productions after three years as VP of television development, has joined E1 Entertainment’s Los Angeles office as VP of current programming.

Reporting to Noreen Halpern, E1’s president of dramatic programming, Gilbert comes on board after the Canadian producer sold The Bridge to CBS and CTV and Copper to ABC and Global Television.

The Canadian indie studio is also shopping a third Canadian cop drama, Shattered, to the U.S. networks after it was picked up by Global Television.

E1 Entertainment, which diversified into TV production and distribution last year by acquiring Blueprint Entertainment, Barna-Alper Productions and Oasis Pictures, also recently sold Hung to HBO and Testees to FX in the U.S. market.

The 10-part Hung will bow on June 28 on HBO Canada.

Before Icon Productions, Gilbert was a coordinator of drama development at the UPN network, and a post production coordinator at New Line Cinema.