Lionsgate Studios, the entertainment company whose library spans the “Hunger Games” and “John Wick” franchises, has attracted acquisition interest from European media powerhouses Banijay and Mediawan.
The Banijay interest was first reported by Reuters. Bollore, the French conglomerate that holds a controlling stake in pay-TV operator Canal+, is not bidding, Variety has learned.
The studio, which carries a market value of some $3.8 billion, has engaged an investment bank to assess inbound approaches, the sources told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity because the talks are confidential. No deal is guaranteed, and Lionsgate could ultimately choose to remain independent.
Banijay, the company behind hit franchises “Big Brother” and “Survivor,” is weighing a bid, though any formal approach from that quarter may be delayed while the company works through its integration of All3Media, which it merged with earlier this year. Last week Banijay chair Jeff Zucker told Variety, when asked whether they were eyeing a newly-independent ITV Studios, that he and CEO Marco Bassetti were currently focused on the newly integrated company but “in the years ahead we will look to be opportunistic” and so wouldn’t “rule anything in or out” in terms of further acquisitions. “We’ll look for other opportunities as they come up,” Zucker said.
