Legendary Entertainment Buys Out Wanda’s Remaining Ownership Stake In New Era For Studio

Legendary Entertainment has completed a buyout of Wanda Group’s remaining equity interest in a move CEO Josh Grode said ushers in a new era for the studio.

Financial terms weren’t disclosed but Legendary said it funded the transaction entirely from cash on its balance sheet for the deal led by Grode, without tapping partner Apollo Global. Legendary and Apollo now co-own the company and the board will be evenly split between management and the private equity giant that invested $760 million in Legendary in 2022.

Chinese conglomerate Wanda acquired the studio in 2016. “I think they were in a position where they needed some capital [and] the opportunity arose for us to buy Wanda’s interest at a valuation that would be very accretive to both management and Apollo. And so, as a result, we were able to get a transaction done,” Grode tells Deadline.

Legendary, created in 2000, develops, produces, markets, and finances major motion pictures and television projects across multiple platforms and works in comic book, videogames, licensing and merchandising.

The transaction catalyzes the next chapter for the independent studio, which has grossed over $20 billion at the global box office and is experiencing its most profitable year to date.

“The purchase of Wanda’s remaining ownership interest is the next strategic step in Legendary’s long-range growth plan. With our outstanding creative team, headed by Mary Parent, developing, producing, and marketing high-quality film and television and working with leading artists remains core to our expansion,” said Grode. “I want to thank and acknowledge Wanda, who has been an outstanding and supportive shareholder since 2016, and I congratulate them on this transaction. I look forward to continuing to work closely with the Apollo team as we build on Legendary’s strong momentum together.”

Aaron Sobel and Lee Solomon, partners at Apollo, said, “We are thrilled to expand our relationship with Legendary and further support Josh and Mary and the incredibly talented team. We continue to see Legendary as an outstanding platform for future growth that is well positioned to thrive as the entertainment industry continues to evolve.”   

Legendary stressed that it still retains significant excess liquidity after the transaction to finance its current business and planned expansion.

Grode calls Apollo an idea partner. “When I decided to bring Apollo in a few years ago, I realized that I needed to bring in the right capital to allow us to start down our strategic plan of growth. And private equity played a really great role in that. The guys at Apollo have been unbelievably good partners. They understand the business. They understand the ups and downs. They fully supported us in saying, let’s go buy out Wanda — especially since we didn’t need their capital to do it.”

Apollo is no stranger to showbiz. The giant firm has acquired local TV station groups and production giant Endemol Shine – teaming with Disney to sell to Banijay in 2020 landmark deal. It recently, bid for Paramount Pictures and Paramount Global, first solo then in partnership with Sony. (The Shari Redstone company ultimately ended up with Skydance in a merger set to close next year.)

In 2023, Legendary secured a five-year, $800 million credit facility led by J.P. Morgan.

When Wanda acquired Legendary it was then China’s largest cross-border cultural acquisition. During the past several years, the Beijing-based Legendary East has marketed and distributed key Legendary films, including the Dune and Godzilla franchises, and it will continue as Legendary’s office in China.

Legendary released two of 2024’s most lucrative films. Dune: Part Two and Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire earned over $1.28 billion at the global box office, with the latter becoming the highest-grossing film in the franchise.

Since Grode was appointed CEO in 2018, Legendary’s other major titles have included the Enola Holmes franchise, Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, which was renewed by Apple TV+ and received an order for multiple spinoffs; and International Emmy nominee Drops of God, also for Apple TV+.

Upcoming titles include A Minecraft Movie, based on the world’s bestselling game of all time, starring Jason Momoa and Jack Black; live action-animation hybrid comedy Animal Friends, starring Ryan Reynolds, Jason Momoa, Aubrey Plaza and Dan Levy; a film adaptation of the iconic Street Fighter game; an untitled Alejandro G. Iñárritu film starring Tom Cruise; and additional event films from Denis Villeneuve and the Monsterverse.

Legendary’s team has had creative control for years even with Wanda as owner. Asked what he sees as the biggest now, Grode said, “The biggest difference is that management and Apollo, really, now we own the company. And I don’t think anybody needed any motivation to work hard or do their best work. But, you know, owning the level of equity that we do with Apollo, we now are sitting in a company where there are just so many more options available to us. And my thinking is, when you when you’re a large owner and you’re roughly an equal owner in a company like this, you start to think about, what is this? What’s the logical place to expand? Where’s smart growth?”

Opportunities, he said, “Lie in kind of what we’ve been doing, but just maybe more of it, which is, making great content. We certainly have the bandwidth to increase our output on the theatrical side. We’re known in both film and television for creating great content based on pre-existing intellectual property. I don’t see that changing. I see that accelerating.”