Tom Staggs: Last News

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Kevin Mayer says that the investment strategy at Candle Media, the hard-charging entertainment startup that he heads with Tom Staggs, is product of his career time at Disney and TikTok. While those two companies are behemoths and Candle Media a newcomer, the claim is not as outlandish as it seems. At Disney, Mayer was largely responsible the launch of the direct-to-consumer streaming businesses that became Disney+. And as Disney, Pixar and other group content was made exclusive and contained within a walled garden, it stoked demand for premium independently-made content. Candle Media sets its sights on becoming just such a supplier.

Cynthia Littleton Business Editor Fiddling while Rome burns? Candle Media co-CEO Kevin Mayer asserted that Hollywood should be much more concerned about demographic shifts and changes in consumer behavior as the math doesn’t look good for the traditional TV and film business. Mayer spoke Monday evening at the Paley Dialogue session hosted by the Paley Center for Media at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Beverly Hills.

Candle Media, which launched in 2021 with backing from private-equity giant Blackstone, is restructuring its operations to reflect broader changes in the streaming sector.

Matt Donnelly Senior Film Writer Candle Media, the fledging media company backed by private equity player Blackstone, is undergoing a restructure in order to cut costs. Founded in 2021 by former Disney executives Kevin Mayer and Tom Staggs, the venture made several splashy acquisitions – including Reese Witherspoon’s production label Hello Sunshine – at the offset. Flash forward three years, and free-spending content buyers have cratered back to earth (along with their individual stock prices).

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Moonbug Entertainment, the kids’ entertainment powerhouse behind the hit “CoComelon” franchise, is bringing on board its first chief marketing officer: Peter Stone, a nine-year veteran of Netflix. In the new role, Stone will be responsible for Moonbug’s global marketing strategy, as well as the evolution and growth of its brands. He will be based in Moonbug’s London office and starts Dec.

Media entrepreneur Byron Allen, one of many parties interested in acquiring ABC and other linear TV assets from Disney, said he has “access to plenty of capital,” and Disney’s internal deliberations are the next hurdle to be cleared.

S&P today affirmed its A- investment grade credit rating for Disney after CEO Bob Iger, in a recent interview with CNBC, injected a big dose of uncertainty into what the company may look like going forward.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Tom Staggs and Kevin Mayer, two former high-ranking Disney execs, are working for the Mouse House again — in a consulting capacity. The duo, who are the co-CEOs of media-rollup play Candle Media, have been retained by Disney to help analyze and develop strategic options for ESPN, according to two sources familiar with the arrangement. Staggs, formerly Disney’s chief operating officer, and Mayer, previously chairman of Disney’s Direct-to-Consumer and International and briefly CEO of TikTok, will work with Jimmy Pitaro, chairman, ESPN and Sports Content, on developing a plan for what Disney will do with ESPN going forward.

Bob Iger, with pressure mounting on multiple fronts, has turned to former top Disney executives Tom Staggs and Kevin Mayer, hiring them as consultants to the media giant as it defines its strategy.

TikTok is overhauling its executive ranks, with Chief Operating Officer V Pappas leaving the company and longtime Disney communications chief Zenia Mucha joining in a newly created role.

Kevin Mayer and Tom Staggs’ Candle Media has struck a partnership with TikTok, with an initial focus on Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine to uncover underrepresented independent authors and literary material from the #BookTok community.

EXCLUSIVE: Kevin Mayer and Tom Staggs’ Candle Media has hired a UK development boss for its fledgling True Stories label.

Former ABC News Chief James Goldston has joined Kevin Mayer and Tom Staggs’ Candle Media to head up a new division focused on scripted and non-scripted features and series inspired by true stories. Goldston will serve as President of the new group. 

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Former ABC News president James Goldston is joining Candle Media, founded and led by ex-Disney execs Kevin Mayer and Tom Staggs, to head a new division focused on TV shows and movies based on true stories. Goldston will serve as president of the new division, which will produce scripted and nonscripted features and series “inspired by true stories,” according to Candle. Goldston spent 18 years at ABC News, including seven years as president, before exiting in 2021. overseeing all aspects of America’s number one news division, including #1 rated “Good Morning America” and “World News with David Muir.” He also led ABC News into the streaming era with a series of successful podcast and documentary projects for Hulu and Disney+, including “The Dropout,” produced by Rebecca Jarvis and her team, which became a successful podcast, documentary and Emmy-award winning scripted series for Hulu, and John’s Ridley’s “Let it Fall,” a duPont-Columbia Award-winning documentary on the LA riots. His teams have won five Edward R. Murrow Awards for Overall Excellence, and numerous other prestigious honors in journalism, including a Peabody, duPont-Columbia, and Emmy awards.

EXCLUSIVE: Deadline has learned that Hello Sunshine is shuttering its kids and animation business as part of a strategic decision to focus Candle Media’s kids and animation efforts under Moonbug, the family production studio the corp snapped up for a near $3 billion in November 2021.  

In about 698 days, the Walt Disney Company is supposed to have its fourth CEO in three years.

Brad Pitt’s Plan B Entertainment is selling a majority stake to Paris-based Mediawan, Deadline has confirmed, following news several months ago that the company was seeking a buyer.

Fauda creators Lior Raz and Avi Issacharoff are attending the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa for the world premiere of the fourth season of the show. Since the first season started streaming on Netflix, the Israeli political thriller has built up a huge following in India, and also has a Hindi-language remake, produced by Applause Entertainment for local streamer SonyLiv. 

EXCLUSIVE: The Hitman’s Bodyguard and Has Fallen outfit Millennium Media is partnering with Will Smith’s German film and TV distributor, Telepool, to co-develop three English-language features over the next three years. Millennium Media is set to produce with Telepool serving as executive producer.

Hello Sunshine has added two senior executives. Stefanie Markman is joining the Candle Media company as General Counsel and EVP, Business and Legal Affairs, and Wifreddy Chiang as EVP, Finance and Accounting.

EXCLUSIVE: Candle Media-backed Spanish-language powerhouse Exile Content Studio has promoted Nando Vila to succeed Daniel Eilemberg as Head of Studio.