LeBron James and Maverick Carter’s media outfit The SpringHill Company and Fulwell 73, the production company behind Friends: The Reunion and Carpool Karaoke, are to merge.
The combined companies will be backed by a group of partners including Fenway Sports Group, RedBird Capital Partners, UC Investments, Nike, Epic Games, Main Street Advisors and Eldridge Industries.
As part of the transaction, existing shareholders will invest $40m into the companies’ growth initiatives.
The new company will have offices in Los Angeles, New York, London and Sunderland in the UK.
Fulwell 73 was founded nearly 20 years in the UK by partners Ben Winston, Leo Pearlman, James Corden, Ben Turner and Gabe Turner.
Its credits include The Grammys, Hulu’s The Kardashians, and Max’s Friends: The Reunion. Fulwell73 has also produced award-winning specials for Adele and Sir Elton John, and documentaries including Ed Sheeran: Sum Of It All and Sunderland ‘Til I Die.
Fulwell recently announced plans to build one of Europe’s largest film and HETV studios in Sunderland – CrownWorks Studio – which will break ground this year.
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The SpringHill Company produces feature films and TV series, YouTube shows, live tours, apparel and consumer goods, and brand campaigns. Its productions include Emmy Award-winning series The Shop, Paramount Plus’ How Music Got Free, A Motown Christmas for NBC and Peacock, and Netflix’s Starting 5, Hustle and Top Boy.
The combined companies’ initial business focus will be in television and film content, digital content through its owned network business, live events and brand strategy through The SpringHill Company’s New York-based brand consultancy firm Robot.
“Since Fulwell 73’s inception, we’ve tried to make content that entertains, informs, and excites, while sparking conversations around the world,” said Fulwell 73 partners Ben Winston, Leo Pearlman, Ben Turner, Gabe Turner and James Corden, in a joint statement. “That’s the mantra at The SpringHill Company as well. Together, we’ll continue doing what we do best, and now we’ll do it as a global entertainment studio with more to offer our partners. We recognize the major shifts underway in entertainment and the world and we’re excited to build a company with The SpringHill Company that’s designed for the future.”
“At The SpringHill Company, we’ve always given athletes, artists and brands a platform to tell meaningful and diverse stories in all forms and formats, from digital-native shows and IRL experiences to streamed series and theatrically released movies,” said Maverick Carter, CEO of The SpringHill Company. “We found like-minded partners in Fulwell 73, partners who understand this business and the critical importance of building opportunities for talent across the media and entertainment landscape. Like everyone, we see the ways audience behaviour is shifting and the demands on storytellers are evolving. We are excited for those changes and feel ready to adapt alongside the Fulwell 73 team.”
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