Markman was most recently at Netflix, where she spent the last eight years leading the legal department of American/Canes/British original series such as Stranger Things, Bridgerton, From Scratch and Outer Banks. Prior to Netflix, she worked on business and legal affairs at Viacom and features at New Line. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions. The parties have agreed not to disclose details of the transaction. Hello Sunshine was represented in the transaction by Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC and Kirkland & Ellis LLP acted as legal advisor. Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP acted as legal advisor to Blackstone and the new media company. www.wsj.com/articles/reese-witherspoons-hello-sunshine-to-be-sold-to-media-company-backed-by-blackstone-11627914600 In August 2022, the company opened its doors in the Unscripted division in the UK. [34]. Sarah Rothman (917) 623-6060 sarah.rothman@ledecompany.com In February 2019, Hello Sunshine received an investment from Laurene Powell Jobs` Emerson Collective with Otter Media also increased its stake in the company. [16] In addition to producing content, Hello Sunshine also organizes a book club called Reese`s Book Club x Hello Sunshine. [9] Witherspoon announces a new selection of books on Instagram each month, and the book club aims to promote women`s stories.
The book club has more than 500,000 followers on Instagram and more than 70,000 followers on Facebook. Hello Sunshine also had a filmmakers` lab to teach 20 girls aged 13 to 18 the art of filmmaking. [10] Hello Sunshine investors and partners include AT&T (through formation and subsequent investments from Otter Media), Emerson Collective, Seth Rodsky and Jim Toth. Hello Sunshine has acquired the film rights to the novel The Gilded Years. Zendaya has signed on to star in the adaptation that will be called A White Lie, and Witherspoon will star in and produce Legally Blonde 3, which was scheduled to premiere on Valentine`s Day 2020,[21][22] but was postponed to 2022,[23] In November 2018, it was announced that Hello Sunshine would produce the novel League of Wives as a feature film starring Fox 2000. but due to the dissolution of Fox in 2000 following Disney`s acquisition of 21st Century Fox, the fate of the project is unknown as of February 2020. [24] Meredith O`Sullivan (310) 754-6016 meredith.osullivan@ledecompany.com In early August 2021, Witherspoon (after considering selling the company and hearing interest from Apple[17]) sold part of the company to a Blackstone-backed media company led by former Disney executive Kevin A. Mayer and Tom Staggs, Witherspoon and other investors retaining a stake in the new company.
[18] Chiang was Executive Vice President of Finance and Operations at Stuart Ford`s AGC Studios, leading finance, accounting and corporate development. He oversaw production funding for the company`s feature and television roster, including the Emmy-nominated The Tinder Swindler. He had held a similar position at Ford`s former company, IM Global, where he led the internal team during the subsequent merger with Open Road. Previously, he worked in investment banking at Qualia Legacy Advisors. Upcoming Hello Sunshine projects include From Scratch, the limited-edition Netflix series adaptation of the bestseller The New York Times; the series Daisy Jones and the Six for Amazon; The last thing he said to me, with Jennifer Garner; Something At Tiffany`s, a film adaptation of Melissa Hill`s novel starring Zoey Deutch and Shay Mitchell for Amazon; Your Place Or Mine with Reese Witherspoon, Ashton Kutcher and Jesse Williams; and Run Rose Run, an adaptation of James Patterson`s novel of the same name, starring Dolly Parton. LOS ANGELES & NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Hello Sunshine, the mission-driven media company that puts women at the center of every story, founded in 2016 by Reese Witherspoon, today announced a definitive agreement to acquire a majority stake in a newly formed company led by Blackstone`s senior entertainment executives Kevin Mayer and Tom Staggs. A leading global investment firm. The current management team of Reese Witherspoon and Hello Sunshine, led by CEO Sarah Harden, will continue to oversee the day-to-day operations of Hello Sunshine and will remain a significant shareholder of the Company.
Under the terms of the agreement, Witherspoon and Harden will join the board of directors of the new media company. The company is also behind the five-time Emmy-nominated limited edition series Little Fires Everywhere (Hulu), HBO`s Golden Globe® Season 2 and the Emmy-winning series Big Little Lies.
