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Private equity giant TPG has acquired top-shelf management firm Grandview, with plans of combining it with Untitled Entertainment to form a new representation giant.
The Big Picture: Now that the Hollywood agencies have been consolidated or sold off (TPG sold CAA to Kering owner Francois-Henri Pinault last year), private equity is turning its attention to the largely untapped — and unregulated — waters of management.
Behind The Scenes: TPG is ready to roll up Hollywood again.
- It will combine literary-focused firm Grandview (which counts clients like Top Gun: Maverick director Joseph Kosinski and Rebel Ridge filmmaker Jeremy Saulnier) with actor-focused firm Untitled (clients include Sam Rockwell and Kate Hudson).
- The new company will be named Initial Group and will be led by Grandview’s Jeff Silver and Matt Rosen and Untitled’s Jason Weinberg and Stephanie Simon.
- TPG will likely follow the CAA playbook and look for more acquisitions that could scale Initial, per Deadline.
The Future: Hollywood agencies went through a major period of consolidation over the past few years, driven by private equity cash and a desire to scale. That pushed several representatives to leave for the less restrictive pastures of management, where they can collect commissions on deals, produce projects, and launch brands with talent. Now, private equity sees the dollar signs all over again. With more and more top talent opting to only have a manager instead of an agent, the gold rush could be signaling a shift in representative power.
Go Deeper: Agencies aren’t too happy with this move to management, recently filing a wide-ranging lawsuit against the firm Range Media Partners that alleges it acts as an unlicensed agency.
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