The latest victim of cost-cutting at NBC is veteran Heroes director/Executive Producer Allan Arkush.

At this weekend’s Eclipse 3 convention in Northampton, UK, actor Greg Grunberg (Matt Parkman) revealed that Arkush had called him to give him the news. He commented “This is someone who’s been working with Tim Kring since the beginning and they just said that the position doesn’t exist anymore. It was the same with Greg Beeman, but it was their decision too.”

The position of Exectuive Producer/Director on the show is an expensive one, with both Arkush and Beeman being heavily involved in production as well as directing multiple episodes in a series arc. By eliminating the position and thinning out the management structure NBC can save hundreds of thousands of dollars on the show, which is one if its most expensive to produce. Last week End Of Show reported how Beeman had blogged his last for Heroes, though Grunberg hinted he may return to direct.

Allan Arkush first worked with Heroes creator Tim Kring on Crossing Jordan where he directed more than twenty episodes. He joined Heroes after the pilot was filmed and his directorial debut on the show was with Season one’s second episode ‘Don’t Look Back’.

Top Three Allan Arkush episodes

‘Company Man’ – Season 1 Episode 17

A close character study on Noah Bennet, this episode is thought by many to be the best in Heroes’ entire three seasons. The noir-feel to the episode is underlined by the increased number of shots and black and white flashback sequences which show the events which have made Bennet who he is.

‘How To Stop An Exploding Man’ – Season 1 Episode 23

The Season one finale shows Sylar finally being defeated, but it’s not enough to save New York with Peter unable to control his dangerous power of radioactivity. Movie obsessive Arkush parallels Marathon Man in the stabbing of Sylar on Kirby Plaza, and uses long shots and dramatic sweeps across the city to close in the action andgive real urgency to the tense finale.

‘The Second Coming’ – Season 3 Episode 1

In an homage to slasher pics Sylar stalks his long-term project Claire Bennet through her empty house. Clever use of shadow and angles make it one of the most suspenseful sequences in the series, culminating in Sylar finally succeeding in taking the cheerleader’s power of cell regeneration and becoming immortal.