Skydance Media (formerly known as Skydance Productions) is an American production company based in Santa Monica, California. Founded by David Ellison in 2006, the company raised $350 million to co-produce and co-finance films with Paramount Pictures since 2009 and has been renewed twice out to 2021. The company specializes in film, animation, TV and video games.
Skydance is responsible for feature-length films including True Grit, Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol, G.I. Joe: Retaliation, Star Trek Into Darkness, World War Z, Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation, Terminator Genisys, Star Trek Beyond, Jack Reacher: Never Go Back, Life, Baywatch, Geostorm, Annihilation, Mission: Impossible – Fallout, Gemini Man and Terminator: Dark Fate. Skydance's future feature film slate includes Top Gun: Maverick and 6 Underground.
History[]
Skydance Productions was formed in 2006 by David Ellison. The firm's first film was Flyboys in 2006, starring Ellison and co-financed with MGM.[3]
In the fall of 2009, Skydance and Paramount Pictures signed a four-year co-financing, production and distribution agreement. While Paramount would also have the additional option of distribution. Before August 2010, Skydance hired Dana Goldberg, formerly of Village Roadshow Pictures, to oversee development and production. In August 2010, Ellison raised $150 in equity and a four-year, $200-million revolving credit facility led by JPMorgan Chase. One of the equity investors was David's dad, Larry Ellison. Plans were for producing four to six films a year.[3]
On May 1, 2013, Skydance launched Skydance Television, hiring Marcy Ross as division president.[4] Skydance renewed it slate deal with Paramount in the summer of 2013 for four more years.[5]
In 2016, Skydance raised $700 million in new financing. The refinancing included $200 million in equity from a group of investors, and a $500 million line of credit from J.P. Morgan Chase.[5] On May 3, 2016, Skydance Media used part of its new financing to purchase game developer The Workshop Entertainment, Inc. The Workshop Entertainment was renamed and organized as Skydance Interactive, LLC.[6] David Ellison's company also created a production label named Uncharted in December 2016 in order to house content that falls outside of the action, sci-fi or fantasy genre.[7]
On March 16, 2017, Skydance launched the Skydance Animation division by forming a multi-year partnership with Madrid-based Ilion Animation Studios. Two projects are already in the works, with one of them originally eyeing a March 2021 release.[8] In August 2017, Skydance and Paramount renewed their slate deal for another four years to 2021, with the addition of Skydance's animated films for distribution.[9]
On January 25, 2018, Tencent bought a 5% to 10% minority stake.[2][10] Jun Oh was hired by Skydance Media as head of theatrical, interactive and legal affairs in October 2018.[11]
Films[]
Released[]
| Release | Title | Production | Distribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| September 22, 2006 | Flyboys | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Ingenious Film Partners, and Electric Entertainment | MGM Distribution Co. |
| December 22, 2010 | True Grit | Mike Zoss Productions, Scott Rudin Productions | Paramount Pictures |
| December 21, 2011 | Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol | Bad Robot Productions, TC Productions | |
| December 19, 2012 | The Guilt Trip | Michaels/Goldwyn | |
| December 21, 2012 | Jack Reacher | TC Productions | |
| March 28, 2013 | G.I. Joe: Retaliation | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Hasbro Studios, and Di Bonaventura Pictures | |
| May 16, 2013 | Star Trek Into Darkness | Bad Robot Productions, K/O Paper Products | |
| June 21, 2013 | World War Z | Plan B Entertainment, GK Films | |
| January 17, 2014 | Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit | Di Bonaventura Pictures | |
| July 1, 2015 | Terminator Genisys | China Movie Channel | |
| July 31, 2015 | Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation | Bad Robot Productions, Alibaba Pictures, China Movie Channel, TC Productions | |
| July 22, 2016 | Star Trek Beyond | Alibaba Pictures, Huahua Media, Bad Robot Productions, Sneaky Shark, and Perfect Storm Entertainment | |
| October 21, 2016 | Jack Reacher: Never Go Back | TC Productions, Shanghai Film Group and Huahua Media | |
| March 24, 2017 | Life | Columbia Pictures, Mockingbird Pictures | Sony Pictures Releasing |
| May 25, 2017 | Baywatch | under Uncharted; Shanghai Film Group, Huahua Media, Seven Bucks Productions (uncredited), The Montecito Picture Company, Fremantle Entertainment and Flynn Picture Company | Paramount Pictures |
| October 20, 2017 | Geostorm | Electric Entertainment, RatPac-Dune Entertainment | Warner Bros. Pictures |
| February 23, 2018 | Annihilation | Scott Rudin Productions, DNA Films | Paramount Pictures |
| July 27, 2018 | Mission: Impossible – Fallout | Alibaba Pictures, Bad Robot Productions, TC Productions | |
| October 4, 2019 | Gemini Man[12] | Alibaba Pictures, Fosun Pictures and Jerry Bruckheimer Films | Paramount Pictures |
| November 1, 2019 | Terminator: Dark Fate | 20th Century Fox, Tencent Pictures, TSG Entertainment and Lightstorm Entertainment | Paramount Pictures
20th Century Fox Tencent Pictures |
| December 13, 2019 | 6 Underground | Bay Films | Netflix |
Upcoming[]
| Top Gun: Maverick | Don Simpson/Jerry Bruckheimer Films, TC Productions and Tencent Pictures | Paramount Pictures |
| Without Remorse | Midnight Radio and Weed Road Pictures | |
| Snake Eyes | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Hasbro Studios, Allspark Pictures and di Bonaventura Pictures | |
| The Tomorrow War | Phantom Four Films and Lit Entertainment Group | |
| Luck[13] | Paramount Animation, Ilion Animation Studios and Nickelodeon Movies | |
| The Old Guard | Denver and Delilah Productions | Netflix |
Television[]
Television series[]
| First Broadcast | Last Broadcast | Title | Network | Seasons | Episodes | Production |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 27, 2014 | December 15, 2015 | Manhattan | WGN America | 2 | 23 | Skydance Television |
| May 8, 2015 | TBA | Grace and Frankie | Netflix | 4 | 52 | Okay Goodnight!, Skydance Television |
| October 1, 2017 | January 6, 2018 | Ten Days in the Valley | ABC Network | 1 | 10 | Skydance Television |
| February 2, 2018 | TBA | Altered Carbon | Netflix | 2 | 18 | |
| June 4, 2018 | July 30, 2018 | Dietland | AMC | 1 | 10 | |
| June 6, 2018 | TBA | Condor | Audience Network | 1 | 10 | MGM Television, Skydance Television, Paramount Television |
| August 31, 2018 | TBA | Jack Ryan | Amazon | 2 | 16 | Paramount Television, Skydance Television, Platinum Dunes |
| TBA | TBA | Untitled Miraculous live-action TV series[14] | TBA | TBA | TBA | ZAG Inc. |
| TBA | TBA | Foundation Series | Apple | TBA | TBA | Skydance Television |
Skydance Interactive[]
Skydance Interactive is a game studio focused on developing ambitious titles, managing projects licenses to other developers, and developing innovative game mechanics and software for VR and emerging platforms. The division of Skydance Media was launched in 2016[15]. In 2017, its first VR game, Archangel was launched. The game recently expanded into an online multiplayer upgrade, Archangel: Hellfire[16].
In 2017, Skydance Interactive partnered with Skybound Entertainment to develop a number of original virtual reality video games based on the expansive world of The Walking Dead universe[17]. The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners will be the inaugural title co-developed by the two companies. The studio is located in Marina del Rey, CA.
Games[]
| Release | Title | Production |
|---|---|---|
| April 6, 2018 | PWND | Skydance Interactive |
VR Games[]
| Release | Title | Production |
|---|---|---|
| July 18, 2017 | Archangel | Skydance Interactive |
| TBA | The Walking Dead: Saints and Sinners |
Skydance Animation[]
Skydance formed a multi-year partnership in March 2017 with Madrid-based Ilion Animation Studios and in July, announced its first two animated feature films — Luck, which opens on March 19, 2021, and Split. On October 10, 2017, Bill Damaschke was hired to head the division as president of animation and family entertainment.[18]
Skydance Animation has signed on directors Alessandro Carloni (Kung Fu Panda 3) to direct Luck, Vicky Jenson (Shrek) to direct Split, and Nathan Greno (Tangled) to helm Powerless.[19]
Skydance Animation has hired former Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios CCO John Lasseter as Head of Animation starting in late January 2019 supplanting Damaschke.[20] This decision has been met with disapproval from contributors to some Skydance projects, owing to prior allegations of sexual harassment against Lasseter during his time with Pixar.
Holly Edwards, who previously served as Skydance Animation’s Head of Production, has been promoted to the position of president at Skydance Animation.[21]
Animated films[]
| Release | Title | Production | Distribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| March 19, 2021 | Luck | Ilion Animation Studios | Paramount Pictures |
| TBA | Split (Working Title) | Ilion Animation Studios | |
| TBA | Powerless (Working Title) | ||
| TBA | The Fourteenth Goldfish[22] |
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Business Search on Skydance + LLC". California Secretary of State. https://businesssearch.sos.ca.gov/CBS/SearchResults?SearchType=LPLLC&SearchCriteria=Skydance&SearchSubType=Keyword&Filing=False. Retrieved January 10, 2019.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Faughnder, Ryan. "China's Tencent acquires minority stake in Skydance Media - LA Times". http://www.latimes.com/business/hollywood/la-fi-ct-tencent-skydance-20180125-story.html. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Claudia Eller. "David Ellison raises $350 million to co-fund movies with Paramount", Los Angeles Times, August 16, 2010. Retrieved on December 28, 2010.
- ↑ Lacey Rose. "Skydance Productions to Launch TV Division, Taps Former Fox Exec Marcy Ross as President", The Hollywood Reporter, April 3, 2013. Retrieved on July 25, 2014.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Jr, Mike Fleming. "David Ellison’s Skydance Raises $700 Million In Funding For Film, TV Slates", Deadline, 2016-03-29. (in en-US)
- ↑ "Skydance Media Buys Game Developer The Workshop And Launches Interactive Division", Deadline, May 3, 2016. Retrieved on January 10, 2019. (in en)
- ↑ McNary, Dave. "David Ellison’s Skydance Launches Uncharted Label With ‘Baywatch’", Variety, 2016-12-09. (in en-US)
- ↑ Fleming Jr, Mike (March 16, 2017). "Skydance Launches Animation Studio With Spain-Based Ilion". http://deadline.com/2017/03/skydance-animation-studio-launch-ilion-animation-studios-1202044553/. Retrieved March 16, 2017.
- ↑ "Skydance, Paramount Ink New Four-Year Deal", The Hollywood Reporter, August 7, 2017. Retrieved on January 10, 2019. (in en)
- ↑ Lang, Brent; Donnelly, Matt (October 10, 2018). "As Annapurna Stumbles, Billionaire Larry Ellison Exerts Control". Variety. Archived from the original on January 17, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190117082726/https://variety.com/2018/film/news/annapurna-larry-ellison-megan-ellison-vice-1202975648/. Retrieved February 4, 2019.
- ↑ "David Ellison’s Skydance Taps Jun Oh to Lead Theatrical, Interactive Business and Legal Affairs", The Wrap, October 22, 2018. Retrieved on January 10, 2019.
- ↑ McNary, Dave. "Ang Lee Eyes Sci-Fi Actioner ‘Gemini Man’ at Skydance". https://variety.com/2017/film/news/ang-lee-gemini-man-skydance-1202392681/. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
- ↑ Zahed, Ramin (March 6, 2019). "Casey Leonard Makes Magic for Nickelodeon Movie ‘Lucky’". Animation Magazine. https://www.animationmagazine.net/animated-people/casey-leonard-makes-magic-for-nickelodeon-movie-lucky/. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
- ↑ "Skydance Developing Live-Action Adaptations Of ‘Miraculous – Tales Of Ladybug & Cat Noir’ For TV & Film", Deadline, 2018-09-05. (in en-US)
- ↑ "Interactives Archive - Skydance Media" (in en-US). https://skydance.com/interactive/.
- ↑ "Archangel: Hellfire Review - The Best VR Mech Combat Game Yet - UploadVR", UploadVR, 2018-07-17. (in en-US)
- ↑ Blake, Vikki. "‘The Walking Dead’ Universe Heads to VR With ‘The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners’", Variety, 2018-07-18. (in en-US)
- ↑ McNary, Dave. "Skydance Hires Bill Damaschke for Animation-Family Entertainment Post", Variety, October 10, 2017. (in en-US)
- ↑ Busch, Anita. "Skydance Media Taps ‘Tangled’s Nathan Greno In Multiyear Deal, Will Direct ‘Powerless’", Deadline, February 22, 2018. (in en-US)
- ↑ "Ousted Pixar Chief John Lasseter Hired by Skydance Animation", Variety, January 9, 2019. Retrieved on January 10, 2019. (in en)
- ↑ Donnelly, Matt; Donnelly, Matt (2019-02-14). "Skydance Animation Names Holly Edwards President Under John Lasseter" (in en). https://variety.com/2019/film/news/skydance-animation-president-holly-edwards-john-lasseter-1203140399/.
- ↑ McNary, Dave. "‘Fourteenth Goldfish’ Animated Movie in Works From Skydance", Variety, 8 June 2018. Retrieved on 20 September 2018.