A+E Networks, looking to expand its content creation capabilities, said it made a strategic equity investment in talent agency Range Media Partners.
The deal gives A+E Studios a first look at TV projects from Range clients. A+E Studios will also be co-production partners for Range’s scripted television projects.
Range, formed in 2020 and headed by Peter Micelli, represents actors including Emilia Clarke, Bradley Cooper, Benicio Del Toro, Gabrielle Union, Michael Fassbender, Tom Hardy, Vince Vaughn, Naomi Ackie, Kingsley Ben-Adir, Jerrod Carmichael, Stephan James, Anna Kendrick, Shailene Woodley, Danny McBride/Rough House Pictures, Michael Shannon, Ramy Youssef, Taron Egerton, Kiersey Clemons and Keira Knightley.
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Its stable also includes writers and filmmakers Amy Aniobi, Michael Bay, M. Night Shyamalan, Luca Guadagnino, Martin McDonagh, Damon Lindelof, Gareth Edwards, Tim Van Patten and Alma Har’el, and musical artists Jack Harlow, Justin Tranter, Midland, Wale, HARV, PARTYNEXTDOOR, Bazzi and MAX.
“We are thrilled to partner with Peter Micelli and Range Media Partner,” said Paul Buccieri, chairman of A+E Networks Group, owned by The Walt Disney Co. and Hearst. “We were drawn to their impressive team and roster of entrepreneurially-minded talent and believe this investment will create strategic opportunities to accelerate the growth of our scripted and nonfiction content creation unit on a global scale.”
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Buccieri said the investment “underscores both our confidence in the trajectory of the industry and more specifically, the role Range will play within it. This alignment will enable diversification of our storytelling and content, amplify our efforts to shift from curator to creator, and bolster our ultimate goal to become a global IP powerhouse.”
A+E Studios and Range already have one project, White House Doctor, in development at Fox.
“We have a large roster of projects ready for the marketplace, all of which perfectly fit the Range Media Partners/A+E Studios strategic alliance of bringing together high-end artists to create and produce in a talent-friendly environment to bring their visions to the screen," said Barry Jossen president and head of A+E Studios.
The companies see demand for music-related unscripted projects. Range Music will also be able to provide y music services for A+E Networks content and soundtrack needs.
The strategic investment from A+E Networks will fund further expansion of Range’s talent representation capabilities and the incubation of talent-affiliated consumer businesses, as well allow for other growth avenues, including a significant investment in the Web3 ecosystem, the companies said.
“We are humbled to partner with remarkable artists, who are driven by the need to know more and do more. We are privileged to be joined by the like-minded team at A+E Networks (some of whom we have worked with for decades), who share our passion for innovation, business strategy and compelling storytelling, as we enter this next chapter,” said Range CEO Peter Micelli.
A+E Networks Studios is the primary scripted programming supplier for A+E’s A&E Network, Lifetime and History Channel. It also produces scripted programming for other outlets including Netflix, ABC, Showtime, Peacock, HBO Max, AMC, Fox and NBC.
A+E Networks nonfiction content creation units - Category 6 Media and Six West Media – produce more than 400 hours of content annually, with a current slate of projects for external outlets including Disney Plus, HBO Max, PBS, WarnerMedia, Discovery, ID, and WE.
Range Media’s launch was bankrolled in part by Micelli who was with Entertainment One when it was sold to Hasbro for $3.8 billion.
Range was also backed by Steve Cohen’s Point72 Ventures, former New York Knicks coach David Fizdale, former Microsoft chief marketing officer Mich Mathews-Spradlin, and Grubhub founder and CEO Matt Maloney. ■
