Lionsgate invests in Telltale
TV and movie firm puts up "significant" amount [UPDATE: Telltale also adds John Riccitiello to its board]
Update: Telltale has now sent out a press release regarding the Lionsgate investment and Jon Feltheimer's addition to the board. Interestingly, that same release mentions that former EA boss and current Unity Technologies CEO John Riccitiello will also be joining the board.
"Telltale has created something entirely new. Their games combine linear storytelling and gameplay in an entirely new way that is fresh, unique, and compelling," said Riccitiello. "I'm excited to partner with Kevin and his team at Telltale as they build on their success in bringing together some of what is the best of television, film and video games."
Original story:
Lionsgate, the film and TV company which is behind Weeds, Orange is the New Black and The Hunger Games, has invested heavily in Telltale Games, developers of The Walking Dead games.
The exact amount was not disclosed, but was described as "significant." Lionsgate CEO Jon Feltheimer will also join Telltale's board.
"Our partnership with Kevin Bruner and his team at Telltale continues to accelerate our momentum in the game space," Lionsgate's Peter Levin told Variety. "The convergence between premium filmed entertainment brands and original game properties is a natural direction in which to continue diversifying our content business, and Telltale is the perfect partner with whom to explore this dynamic area of growth."
Given Telltale's success with adaptations of IP from other media, the partnership makes eminent sense. In fact, the two companies are planning on creating new IP with the specific purpose of spinning it out to both TV and games. Until now, Telltale has focused on adapting IP rather than creating it, so there's likely to be input on that side of the deal from the Lionsgate team.
"Lionsgate is one of the most innovative, entrepreneurial and impressive content companies in the world today," added Kevin Bruner, Telltale CEO. "I'm delighted to welcome an experienced executive like Jon, a leader who shares our unique vision, to our board. Lionsgate has a great track record in developing and marketing feature films as well as platform-defining premium scripted television. This partnership will accelerate Telltale's ability to create not only original games, but episodic television series based on our game properties - an area at the cutting edge of industry growth."