Lionsgate Looking To Acquire STX Entertainment
deadline.comLionsgate is looking to absorb part of, or all of STX Entertainment, Deadline has learned from sources.STX was recently rescued back in early December from a draconian merger with Eros by Jahm Najafi’s Phoenix-based The Najafi Companies for $173M.As Deadline first reported, that move by Najafi was an interim step on the way to a later, possibly bigger, transaction.
It sounds like, Lionsgate is it. A key element of the agreement then was a “go-shop period,” a 45-day span during which the board of directors of ErosSTX, with the assistance of its financial advisor, Lazard, could solicit alternative proposals from third parties.
Reportedly there are other suitors in the mix for the STX assets which include Jennifer Lopez’s highest grossing live-action domestic movie, Hustlers ($105M) and the Bad Moms comedy franchise.Separately, a Lionsgate and STX spokesperson declined to comment.Variety first had the news about Lionsgate’s serious kicking of the tires of STX.STX launched with the 2015 Joel Edgerton directed horror movie The Gift in 2015.
Initially, the studio’s plan was to make movies for the underserved adult audience which could cross over, and at lesser cost than major studios.
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