SP Media Investment Launches Lionsgate-Controlled Joint Venture to Expand Its Platform
Key Facts
Lionsgate and SP Media, led by producer, financier and entrepreneur Steven Paul, announced on October 26, 2026, the launch of a joint venture aimed at expanding Lionsgate’s platform. The company said SP Media made a significant equity investment to fund joint investments in new projects, without disclosing the amount. Lionsgate will retain majority ownership and control of the venture, according to its statement published via PR Newswire. The structure gives the group a controlling role in managing the entity, while allowing the partner to participate in projects that expand its business. Lionsgate Chief Executive Jon Feltheimer said Paul’s investment “will help drive the continued growth of these businesses.”
The arrangement includes a defined production and distribution component: SP Media will produce independent feature films, while Lionsgate will distribute them. The announcement did not describe the agreement as a partnership to produce or distribute television projects, limiting that track to independent feature films. In addition, Lionsgate said the venture provides resources to continue diversifying 3 Arts and other group activities. The statement does not specify the resources allocated to each activity or which projects will benefit. It places independent production, distribution and the expansion of existing businesses within the scope of the announced partnership.
The agreement comes as Lionsgate says its film and television library comprises more than 20,000 titles. In a company disclosure, it said the library grew at a compound annual rate of 7% over the previous ten years. Television properties’ share of library revenue also rose to nearly one-third, compared with 15% ten years earlier. These indicators show how television content’s weight in library revenue expanded over that period, alongside growth in the library’s size. The agreement adds a track for producing independent films for distribution by the group to the portfolio of businesses the company is seeking to diversify.
The partner’s background includes Paul’s experience as chairman, founder and chief executive of Crystal Sky Pictures and SP Media Group, according to Lionsgate. The announcement cited projects associated with him, including the Baby Geniuses franchise and the films Ghost Rider, Ghost Rider 2: Spirit of Vengeance and Ghost in the Shell. It also referred to Rambo: Last Blood, which Lionsgate distributed. These projects provide context for his production experience, while the announcement did not specify the new films planned under the joint venture. The company said Moelis advised it financially and Lazard advised SP Media, while Paul Hastings represented the latter in the transaction.
The market is looking to the company’s next financial disclosure on November 5, 2026, when Lionsgate plans to release results for the second quarter of its 2027 fiscal year after the market closes. That quarter ended on September 30, 2026, making the results the next announced date that could provide a picture of financial performance in the period before the venture announcement. In the first quarter of fiscal 2027, the company reported revenue of $776.6 million, up 48% year over year. Its net loss from continuing operations attributable to Lionsgate Studios shareholders was $28.8 million in the quarter ended June 30, 2026, compared with a loss of $94.0 million a year earlier. The venture announcement did not specify an expected financial impact from the agreement or when the investment, production and distribution would be reflected in results.