Legendary Entertainment Submits Takeover Offer for Lionsgate

Legendary Entertainment has made a bid to acquire Lionsgate, according to Bloomberg. The studio, known for producing "Dune" and "Minecraft" franchises, is controlled by Apollo Global Management and its management team. An acquisition would grant Legendary access to Lionsgate's extensive film and television intellectual property, including the "Hunger Games" and "John Wick" series, as well as a theatrical distribution network.

This interest in a potential deal first emerged in July 2025, following several on-and-off discussions between the two companies. This move comes after ongoing pressure from activist investor Anson Funds, who has urged Lionsgate to adopt artificial intelligence or sell itself. A spokesperson for Lionsgate declined to comment, while representatives for Legendary and Apollo did not immediately respond to TheWrap's request for input.

Other entities that have shown interest in Lionsgate, although not submitting formal takeover bids, include Banijay, Mediawan, and France's Bollore Group. Netflix previously stated that it has no interest in acquiring Lionsgate, having previously attempted to buy Warner Bros. Discovery's studio and streaming assets for $83 billion, which fell through after Netflix declined to match a rival bid from David Ellison's Paramount Skydance. Following the news, Lionsgate's shares surged more than 15% in Tuesday's trading.