Reese Witherspoon and French content group Mediawan announced on Tuesday that they are buying back Hello Sunshine, the women-focused production company Witherspoon founded in 2016, from Candle Media.
Hello Sunshine was sold in 2021 at a valuation of around $900 million to Candle Media, the entertainment group backed by Blackstone. The parties did not disclose the terms of the buyback, though TheWrap cited a person familiar with the deal describing the price as in the "low- to mid-eight figures".
A return to independent ownership
Witherspoon founded Hello Sunshine to change how women were represented in media. The company went on to produce "Big Little Lies", "The Morning Show" and "Little Fires Everywhere", alongside animated series and podcasts, and is also home to "Reese's Book Club".
"Mediawan has built a global, independent studio by putting creators first… I'm investing alongside Mediawan and joining Pierre-Antoine Capton and his teams because this is the perfect home for this new media landscape," Witherspoon said.
Mediawan co-founder and CEO Pierre-Antoine Capton welcomed the deal. Mediawan already owns or partners with Plan B Entertainment, Chernin Entertainment and See-Saw Films, among others.
Deal details
Co-founder Seth Rodsky will join the company's board alongside Witherspoon and Mediawan representatives. Moelis & Company advised Candle Media on the transaction.
The sale marks a reversal of one of the biggest bets of the streaming-era production boom, when Candle Media paid a near-billion-dollar valuation for the female-driven studio at the height of the content arms race.
Sources:
- Reese Witherspoon, France's Mediawan to buy Hello Sunshine — AFP via Philstar
- Reese Witherspoon to Buy Back Hello Sunshine — TheWrap
Hello Sunshine was sold in 2021 at a valuation of around $900 million to Candle Media, the entertainment group backed by Blackstone. The parties did not disclose the terms of the buyback, though TheWrap cited a person familiar with the deal describing the price as in the "low- to mid-eight figures".
A return to independent ownership
Witherspoon founded Hello Sunshine to change how women were represented in media. The company went on to produce "Big Little Lies", "The Morning Show" and "Little Fires Everywhere", alongside animated series and podcasts, and is also home to "Reese's Book Club".
"Mediawan has built a global, independent studio by putting creators first… I'm investing alongside Mediawan and joining Pierre-Antoine Capton and his teams because this is the perfect home for this new media landscape," Witherspoon said.
Mediawan co-founder and CEO Pierre-Antoine Capton welcomed the deal. Mediawan already owns or partners with Plan B Entertainment, Chernin Entertainment and See-Saw Films, among others.
Deal details
Co-founder Seth Rodsky will join the company's board alongside Witherspoon and Mediawan representatives. Moelis & Company advised Candle Media on the transaction.
The sale marks a reversal of one of the biggest bets of the streaming-era production boom, when Candle Media paid a near-billion-dollar valuation for the female-driven studio at the height of the content arms race.
Sources:
- Reese Witherspoon, France's Mediawan to buy Hello Sunshine — AFP via Philstar
- Reese Witherspoon to Buy Back Hello Sunshine — TheWrap
