Deadline reported exclusively in February that Lionsgate Television was reducing the number its producing deals by more than half following the company’s acquisition of indie TV studio eOne from Hasbro.
Today, during Lionsgate’s Q1 FY2025 earnings call, CEO Jon Feltheimer disclosed the full extent of pact elimination.
“In television, we’re reducing the number of combined Lionsgate and eOne producer deals by 70% with $30 million in projected annualized savings,” he said.
As Deadline reported, the deep cuts followed a two-month review of the combined talent roster of Lionsgate Television and eOne, which I hear included nearly 60 overall and first-look deals before the reductions.
Talent deals have been among the hardest hit in the ongoing post-Peak TV industry contraction, which accelerated after the strikes. In addition to studios and platforms signing fewer deals — most of them tied to successful shows — there also has been a shift from the higher-priced overall pacts to the less expensive first-look agreements.
For Lionsgate, the deal cuts also were part of a post-merger restructuring and consolidation as Lionsgate absorbed eOne’s assets.
Speaking of that, Jim Packer, Lionsgate’s head of worldwide TV and digital distribution, touted the acquisition for making Lionsgate Canada a major player, giving Lionsgate full control in key territories over some of its biggest franchises such as Hunger Games and John Wick. He also noted that eOne brought in The Rookie and other procedurals, a genre that has been a soft spot in the Lionsgate library.