The sale, first announced this past August, includes almost 6,500 titles, but notably omits popular franchises such as ‘Peppa Pig,’ ‘Transformers,’ ‘Dungeons & Dragons,’ ‘Magic: The Gathering,’ ‘My Little Pony,’ ‘Power Rangers,’ ‘Play-Doh,’ ‘Monopoly’ and ‘Clue,’ which will receive ‘significant development, production and financing capabilities.’
That’s a wrap! Lionsgate has officially closed on its acquisition of Hasbro’s Entertainment One (eOne) for $375 million, a mere $125 million shy of the original deal first reported in August. The company had been on the market since November 2022, with the caveat that “Hasbro will maintain the capability to develop and produce animation, digital shorts, scripted TV and theatrical films for audiences related to core Hasbro IP.”
According to a press release from Hasbro, “The sale will include a talented team of employees, a content library of nearly 6,500 titles, active productions for non-Hasbro owned IP like The Rookie, Yellowjackets and Naked and Afraid franchises, and the eOne unscripted business, which will include rights for certain Hasbro-based shows like Play-Doh Squished.” The sale also includes Hasbro’s interest in the Canadian film & TV operations of eOne Canada Limited.
Notably, popular franchises such as Peppa Pig, Transformers, Dungeons & Dragons, Magic: The Gathering, My Little Pony, Power Rangers, Play-Doh, Monopoly and Clue will remain with Hasbro and see “significant development, production and financing capabilities.”
“The eOne acquisition concludes a busy year in which we continued to execute our strategy of strengthening our studio business as we prepare for the separation of Lionsgate and Starz into pure play standalone companies,” Lionsgate CEO Jon Feltheimer said. “As we’ve conducted our integration planning, our analysis has reaffirmed our conviction that eOne will be a valuable and highly accretive addition to our business. We are pleased to welcome eOne’s talented group of employees to our Lionsgate family.”
Hasbro originally acquired eOne for $3.8 billion in August 2019. The Lionsgate deal is set to close by the end of the year.
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