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Add Legendary Entertainment to the list of media companies that can capitalize on the burgeoning desire for premium Hollywood content.
The company behind last spring’s “Godzilla vs. Kong”, one of the few blockbusters of the pandemic era, and the upcoming adaptation of “Dune,” is in discussions to sell a stake or potentially merge its operations with another actor. Bloomberg reported in April that Legendary had brought in investment bank LionTree LLC to explore possible deals, including a merger with a Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC). This path, one that uses a publicly traded shell company as a means of raising capital by tapping into the market, has recently been promoted by Bustle and Core Scientific. But talks appear to have intensified in recent weeks, with the company exploring something separate and outside of a SPAC, according to insiders.
This could be fueled by the increase in transactions in the entertainment industry. Over the past few weeks, news broke that A24, Imagine Entertainment, and Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine have all been exploring sales. At the same time, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer is awaiting its $ 8.45 billion sale to Amazon for regulatory approval while WarnerMedia and Discovery await government approval for their merger.
Any deal would likely be less than the $ 3.5 billion Dalian Wanda paid to acquire Legendary in 2016 from founder Thomas Tull because that pact included taking on substantial debt. Under the leadership of CEO Joshua Grode, who took over the company in 2017, Legendary became profitable. It also maintains healthy cash flow through its dozens of movies, a movie roster that includes “The Dark Knight,” “The Hangover,” and “Jurassic World,” which generate income.
A spokesperson for Legendary declined to comment.
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