Viacom Inc. (VIAB, VIA) and Day Zero Productions announced Haroon Saleem as President of Production for Day Zero Productions, an international production and distribution company led by Trevor Noah, host of Comedy Central’s The Daily Show with Trevor Noah. Saleem is based in Los Angeles and reports directly to Noah.

Viacom is a partner in Day Zero Productions and holds exclusive first look rights on all projects developed by Noah and Day Zero Productions across all media, including television, feature films, digital and short-form video content.

As part of the relationship, Paramount Players is adapting a feature film from Noah’s memoir, Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood, to which Academy Award-winner Lupita Nyong’o is attached to star as Trevor’s mother, Patricia.

With more than two decades of experience, Saleem most recently served as executive vice president of production at Red Hour, where he oversaw The Package for Netflix as well as the upcoming Friendsgiving for Endeavor Content. He was an executive on films and franchises including The Chronicles of Narnia, The Tooth Fairy, Chasing Mavericks, The Pursuit of Happyness, Into the Forest, I Am Legend and Hancock. Saleem also produced the pre-show for the 2010 Stand Up To Cancer telecast, founded The 008/Generation for Change, which supported the 2008 Obama campaign, and created the non-profit I VOTE in 2012, which promoted voter-driven social causes for young professionals. Saleem was born on the Mediterranean coast of Libya and raised in a small desert town in Southern California.