Pierre-Antoine Capton of Mediawan on Acquiring Hello Sunshine from Reese Witherspoon and Doubling Down on Hollywood Amid Consolidation (Exclusive)

Following Mediawan's 2022 acquisition of Plan B Entertainment from Brad Pitt and Peter Chernin's North Road earlier this year, Mediawan has brought in another Hollywood heavyweight: Reese Witherspoon's Hello Sunshine. As with its previous deals, which were partly financed through equity, Mediawan is bringing Witherspoon into its shareholder base, joining a roster of talent and producers.

After acquiring Brad Pitt's Plan B Entertainment in 2022 and Peter Chernin's North Road earlier this year, Medeavan has signed on another Hollywood star, Hello Sunshine, Reese Witherspoon.

As with its previous partially equity-financed acquisitions, Mediavan brings Witherspoon into its portfolio, joining a roster of talent and producers who have invested in the Paris-based group, including Dede Gardner and Jeremy Kleiner of Pitt, Chernin and Plan B partners, as well as Shane Seinerman and Ailey. The company also launched LuckyChap International, the London-based arm of Margot Robbie's company, last November. RELATED STORIES Netflix's Ted Sarando on If He Sees Paramount-Warner Bros. as Competition, and If He Likes Casey Blues: 'We Released a Very Good Lunch' Danny Boyle Says 28 Years Later Part 3 'Next Up' Jack Murphy and Jack Book Murphy.

"For our 10th anniversary today, we're working with Brad Pitt, Margot Robbie and Reese Witherspoon - all three of whom are highly creative and recognized as such - this defines the company's DNA in terms of independence, its commitment to talent and its creativity," Mediawan co-founder and president Pierre-Antoine said after an exclusive interview with Warranty. Popular in Variety

Mediavan also managed to buy Hello Sunshine at a fraction of that option, valuing the company at $900 million when Blackstone-backed Candle Media acquired a majority stake in 2021.

Variety understands that Mediavan paid tens of millions of dollars lower, though Capton declined to disclose the exact figure or financial terms.

"I can't confirm. The bottom line is that we bought 100% of Hello Sunshine from Candle Media along with Reese and Mediawan, and the money we invest goes into development and content production. It's really an investment in the company," said Kapton, who introduced former Hello Sunshine shareholders Shernin and Jesse Jacobs to Hello Sunshine.

The momentum has shifted in favor of European companies, as traditional Hollywood power players are under pressure to cut costs, streaming platforms are becoming more selective, and American independent producers are eager to work in Europe, where they can produce and own IP for less. While Madhyawan has made a name for itself in Hollywood over the past five years, another European giant with French roots, Banijay, which recently merged with British powerhouse All3Media, is also looking to capitalize on the US script market, which it has yet to break into.

Mediawan's acquisition of Hello Sunshine also shows how much the business has changed since the streaming boom that boosted Hello Sunshine's previous valuation. Candle Media, founded by former Disney executives Kevin Mayer and Tom Staggs, had bet heavily on Witherspoon's star power, social media presence and Reese's book club, but monetizing the model has become more difficult in recent years.

As for whether Hello Sunshine would have been better under Mediawan than the Candle era, Kapton pointed to Witherspoon's company's established track record, notably Big Little Lies, The Morning Show and the Apple TV series Lucky, which is a Reese Book Club selection.

"They've been really great creatively," said Kapton, who worked on the deal alongside Mediawan CEO Elizabeth Darvieu and Guillaume Isabelle, head of strategy and M&A. "Unfortunately, every now and then investment deals are done with companies that might be seen as financial strategies. That's not the case for us." "With Reese, we're really looking for creativity, independence and vision. That's what we're passionate about, so we don't put financial pressure on it. It's really editorial, artistic, creative that we're looking for."

Kapton also said that Mediavan plans to bring Reese's Book Club internationally, including through possible productions in France and other parts of Europe.

"It's a rare thing for all Mediavan producers - be it Italian, German, British or Australian - to have access to all the IP that Reese can use through their 'Book Club.' We were there."

“The goal is not for Reese to produce more himself, because he's already produced a lot, but to create co-productions with our various producers. That's what we hope for."

Asked about the skepticism surrounding the Hello Sunshine deal, similar to the doubts raised when Plan B was acquired by Mediawan, Kapton pointed to the latter's recent successes.

"Plan B" produced "F1" and "Adolescence" last year. "They've announced an incredible line-up of series and movies, so we're very happy." "We had to trust each other, and it also took time to show what Madiavan is all about," Kapton said.

Capton also sees more ways for Mediawan to expand its footprint in the US. Peter Chernin joining the group has helped us become more ambitious and with the support of KKR and the help of our local teams, we will do something completely unique.

While he declined to address rumors that Mediawan is one of the companies bypassing Lionsgate, he said: “In our model, the more we can distribute globally, the better off we are. So, we are looking at all possible opportunities."

The French executive, who splits his time between Los Angeles and Paris, is also optimistic about the prospects for groups like Mediavan, the recent merger of Paramount and Warner Bros. even as Skydance prepares for massive downsizing.

"Skydance is committed to producing a certain number of films each year," he said, referring to Backrooms (North Road), The Teenagers (Plan B) and Florian Zeller's star-studded Bunker and Moringe Pictureee. Cruise is made by producers who are part of Mediavan. He continued: "I am convinced that these successes will only grow with our global integration.