In the wake of Hasbro's recent sale of eOne to Lionsgate, the company is forming a new entertainment division to oversee its film, television, and animation ventures.
Hasbro is currently said to be exploring new and continuing transmedia opportunities for several IPs, including Dungeons & Dragons, Transformers, GI JOE, NERF, Play-Doh, Magic: The Gathering, Peppa Pig, and My Little Pony.
Olivier Dumont will be the overall head of Hasbro Entertainment as president, while Zev Foreman will lead film projects and Gabriel Marano control the television side of the new division.
"Entertainment is core to Hasbro’s strategy and its mission to entertain and connect generations of fans through the wonder of storytelling and exhilaration of play,” said Tim Kilpin, president of toy licensing and entertainment for Hasbro, courtesy of Variety.
“Audiences can count on Hasbro to keep creating compelling and fun entertainment that brings to life our wide array of iconic brands, including ‘Peppa Pig,’ ‘My Little Pony,’ and ‘Transformers,’ reaching audiences through varied platforms in ways that resonate in today’s fast-paced world.”
Earlier this month, Lionsgate closed a $500 million deal to acquire eOne from Hasbro. Back in 2019, Hasbro purchase eOne for $3.8 billion.
The difference in price is attributed to the fact that Hasbro is retaining several of the more popular IPs they originally acquired from eOne, such as Peppa Pig. Hasbro previously sold the music division of eOne for $385 million back in 2021.
With that deal, Lionsgate now controls the ABC police procedural The Rookie, Showtime's Yellowjackets, film development rights to a Monopoly movie, and Grey's Anatomy among others. It's reported that Lionsgate gained the rights to over 6,500 titles in the deal.
The news comes as Hasbro's chief rival, Mattel, is riding a wave of success, thanks to the unanticipated box office success of the Barbie movie.