It seems that Reese Witherspoon is getting back more control over her media agency, which she started all the way back in 2016. According to the latest reports, Pierre-Antoine Capton, owner of one of the biggest French media conglomerates, partnered with Reese Witherspoon to buy back a percentage of her own media company that she started in 2016.Here is what we know about the deal.
About Reese Witherspoon buying back her firm
Variety reported that a European independent studio giant, co-founded and led by CEO Pierre-Antoine Capton, joined forces with Reese Witherspoon to buy back her production company, Hello Sunshine, from Blackstone-backed Candle Media. Earlier, her company had been acquired in 2021 for a whopping USD 900 million. The move occurred during the height of the streaming war spending boom.Now, as per the outlet, Capton’s company and Witherspoon have bought back Hello Sunshine for a discount, reportedly in the low-to-mid eight figures. The space is now back under Witherspoon’s name; she founded the company in 2016. While talking to the outlet about the deal, Capton confirmed that 100% of the ownership is now back with Reese and his company.He stated, “I won’t confirm. The bottom line is that we acquired 100% of Hello Sunshine along with Reese and Mediawan, from Candle Media, and the money we’re investing is going toward development and content creation. It’s truly being invested in the company.” This is not the only celebrity company Capton has added to his fleet. He also bought Brad Pitt’s Plan B Entertainment in 2022 and Peter Chernin’s North Road earlier this year.As to why the other conglomerate was ready to sell off Witherspoon’s firm? They had accumulated massive debt, roughly amounting to USD 1 billion, according to the report. In an attempt to deleverage, the company started divesting original assets, including selling back digital outlet, which ended up resulting in them offloading the ‘Legally Blonde’ star’s company back to her at a much lower rate than what they had acquired it for back in 2021.While talking to The Wrap about the buyout, Witherspoon stated, “I’m investing alongside Mediawan and joining Pierre-Antoine Capton and his teams because this is the perfect home for this new media landscape. It’s also a homecoming. Peter Chernin and Jesse Jacobs believed in Hello Sunshine from day one. I’m deeply proud of what our incredible team has built and grateful to Blackstone and Candle Media for their partnership and unwavering support. The best is still ahead.”DISCLAIMER: Figures presented in this article are derived from various public sources and are considered approximate unless explicitly noted. We may include direct input from celebrities or their teams when available. We are open to feedback on toientertainment@timesinternet.in.
