No, that’s not true: In 2016, DreamWorks was acquired by NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast Corporation. Rise of the Guardians (2012) was the last DreamWorks Animation film to be distributed by Paramount Pictures, and The Croods became the first DreamWorks Animation film to be distributed by 20th Century Fox. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has been awarded eight prestigious Scientific Awards for DreamWorks, and in 2018 it received Sci-Tech Award for Premo. For 25 years, DreamWorks Animation has considered itself and its characters part of your family. The claim appeared in a Facebook post (archived here) published on February 19, 2021. On August 1, 2017, it was announced that DreamWorks Animation and Blumhouse Productions would be working on Blumhouse's first animated film, Spooky Jack. The proposal reportedly calls for the combined company to take the name "DreamWorks-Hasbro" and for Jeffrey Katzenberg to become its chairman, but as a matter of policy, neither Hasbro nor DWA publicly comment on mergers and acquisitions. For example, the name Lord Farquad sounds a lot like Lord Fatquad doesn’t it? Type The film is set to be released on September 17, 2021. DreamWorks Animation, L.L.C. However, DWA … There are no current stakeholders of DREAMWORKS ANIMATION SKG, INC. Common Stock cmn. Note: This press release contains forward-looking statements. Jeffrey Katzenberg, an American entrepreneur along with filmmaker Steven Spielberg and music mogul David Geffen, founded the film studio of DreamWorks SKG. DreamWorks Chief Executive Jeffrey Katzenberg made the … See All Results. DreamWorks is an American entertainment company and is not owned by China. The animation division was spun off into a publicly traded company named DreamWorks Animation SKG, Inc. on October 27, 2004. Comcast is buying DreamWorks Animation, the film company behind the "Shrek," ''Madagascar" and "Kung Fu Panda" franchises, for approximately $3.55 … On April 28, 2016, Variety published that NBC Universal purchased DreamWorks Animation for $3.8 billion. Area served The announcement was made before the film's release, on October 3, citing "creative differences". DreamWorks Animation has agreed to buy Classic Media, owner of Casper, Lassie and The Lone Ranger, from private equity group Boomerang Media Holdings for $155 million. The company's NBCUniversal division is acquiring the DreamWorks Animation studio for about $3.8 billion. As of October 2017, its feature films have grossed $14.457 billion worldwide, with a $417.8 million average gross per film. Dreamworks Animation Wiki is a FANDOM Movies Community. In 2005, DWA partnered with HP to introduce HP Halo Telepresence Solutions, technologies that allow people in different locations to communicate in a face-to-face environment in real time. The studio has currently released a total of 39 feature films, including the franchises Shrek, Madagascar, Kung Fu Panda, How to Train Your Dragon, The Croods and Trolls. Two days later, the talks were reported to have fallen through. Jason Kilar, director Official Site of DreamWorks Animation. Classic Media owns such titles as Casper the … Social media users have been sharing posts which say DreamWorks is owned by “communist China” and that DreamWorks owns CBS, CNBC and ABC, … DreamWorks Animation has made a major acquisition by acquiring Classic Media and its stable of properties. Bonnie Arnold and Mireille Soria retained their positions as co-presidents of DreamWorks' Feature Animation division, while Margie Cohn will lead a television animation division for the entire Universal Pictures group. Worldwide Who owns DreamWorks Animation SKG? Universal Pictures now distributes subsequent DreamWorks Animation films, starting on February 22, 2019, with the release of How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World. To build the talent base, Spielberg brought over artists from his London-based studio, Amblimation, while Katzenberg recruited some of the top animation staff from Disney. Subsidiaries All Dreamworks Animation Movies. The post included a brief introductory message that read: “Hey Fact Checkers, […] In July 2012, DreamWorks Animation won a $155 million bid to acquire Classic Media, which has since been renamed to DreamWorks Classics. Burke reaffirmed a commitment to animated features, stating that Universal would be able to release as many as four animated films per-year, divided between DreamWorks and Illumination. Ann Daly, president 5. DreamWorks Animation LLC is an American animation studio best known for making movies such as “Shrek” and “How to Train Your Dragon.” It started as a division of the movie production company DreamWorks Pictures founded in 1994 by Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg, and David Geffen. The Madagascar franchise: Alex the Lion, Gloria the Hippo, King Julien the Ringtail Lemur, Mort the goodman Lemur, The Penguins: Skipper, Kowalski, Rico, Private. Although a spokesperson stated that Meledandri would work with Universal Pictures to determine "the most effective path forward for Illumination and DreamWorks Animation", he did not take over DreamWorks as was previously announced, and the two studios remain separate. Products Parent Animated films We will revisit our evidence and verdict and do some DreamWorks Animation announced Wednesday it has acquired AwesomenessTV, a teen-skewed YouTube channel, for $33 million. In April 2011, the DreamWorks Experience was announced for resorts owned by Gaylord Entertainment in Nashville, Orlando, Dallas, and Washington, D.C. For a four-year contract ending January 1, 2015. On October 12, 1994, a trio of entertainment players, film director and producer Steven Spielberg, former Disney executive Jeffrey Katzenberg, and music executive David Geffen, founded DreamWorks SKG. DWA retained the co-ownership of rights to all films co-produced with Aardman, with an exception being Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit (2005), for which they only kept the worldwide distribution rights. After he goes to sleep, we see that Janice is pregnant.While sleeping Tim begin… Mellody Hobson, chairman of the board of directors 3. Some of Amblimation's artists came to DreamWorks in 1995, when the studio's last feature was completed, with the rest doing so following the studio's closure in 1997. Ranjini United States. DreamWorks Animation, founded by Jeffrey Katzenberg, Steven Spielberg and David Geffen, has been a nightmare of a stock this year. Comcast is buying DreamWorks Animation Comcast is about to get more animated. The report also mentioned a possibility where Sony would handle the United States distribution while 20th Century Fox would handle the international distribution. additional research to double check if we can verify the new information. 1000 Flower Street, Glendale, California, United States With HBO Asia handling affiliate sales, marketing and technical services, the network will launch in several Asian countries (except China and Japan) in the second half of 2015. On June 21, 2016, the acquisition was approved by the United States Department of Justice. DreamWorks Animation has an ongoing partnership with Hewlett-Packard, and the studio exclusively uses HP workstations and servers. Michael J. Montgomery, director 6. It was founded in 1994 as an original live-action film studio by Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen (together, SKG), of which they owned 72%. However, the deal did not include the distribution rights of previously released films, which DWA acquired from Paramount later in 2014. DreamWorks Animation, which has "big plans for the franchise", has become the exclusive worldwide licensor of the merchandise rights, except for Scandinavia, where Dam Things remains the licensor. Industry Although DreamWorks Animation was … Menu. DreamWorks may refer to: . How to Train your Dragon franchise: Toothless, Meatlug, Stoick, Gobber, and other DreamWorks Animation characters. Oriental DreamWorks was initially started as a joint Chinese-American company in 2012. On May 1, Katzenberg and DWA announced their intent to purchase YouTube channel AwesomenessTV, which was finalized later in the month. DreamWorks Animation TelevisionDreamWorksTVDreamWorks PressDreamWorks Live Theatrical Productions[8]DreamWorks ChannelDreamWorks New Media The next year, in February, DreamWorks announced the foundation of a new publishing division called DreamWorks Press, to publish books in print and digital form. dreamworksanimation.com (more commonly known as DreamWorks Animation or simply DreamWorks) is an American animation studio that is a subsidiary of Universal Studios, a division of Comcast through its wholly owned subsidiary NBCUniversal. Movies. Please tell us if you think this claim had been misjudged or requires correction by sending us evidence to support your error claim. A man named Tim Templeton tells a story through his imaginative point of view as his 7-year-old self who lives his days having fun with his parents, Ted and Janice, in the late 1970's and wishes it to be just the three of them forever. On April 11, 2013, DreamWorks Animation announced that it has acquired the intellectual property for the Trolls franchise from the Dam Family and Dam Things. On February 2, 2018, CMC Capital Partners bought DreamWorks', Shanghai Media Group's, and Shanghai Alliance Investment's stake in Oriental DreamWorks, owning the studio in its entirety; Oriental DreamWorks was then renamed "Pearl Studio". The DreamWorks Experience is a package of character interactions and experiences, including shows: Ice shows, Aqua shows, Sailaway parties, parades, wow moments, meet and greets, and character dining, featuring from the Shrek franchise: Shrek, Princess Fiona, Puss in Boots, Kitty Softpaws. Add alert CUSIP Number: 26153C103; Top investors of DreamWorks Animation SKG stock. So far, under Arnold and Soria's current tenure they signed Jason Reitman and Edgar Wright to work on their own animation debuts. The releases of Shrek 2 and Shark Tale also made DWA the first studio to produce two CGI animated features in a single year. The DreamWorks Experience was announced for Royal Caribbean cruise ships, including ships of the Freedom Class : Freedom and Liberty, Voyager Class : Voyager and Mariner, Oasis Class: Oasis, Allure, Harmony, and Quantum Class: Quantum, Anthem, Ovation, in June 2010. In the same year DreamWorks SKG produced The Prince of Egypt, which used both CGI technology and traditional animation techniques. Since his comic book debut in 1949, Casper, the “Official Ambassador of Halloween” has been making friends for generations. Website In 2008, DWA extended its production pipeline into Bangalore, India, where they established a special unit within Technicolor, named DreamWorks Dedicated Unit. In recent years, the animation studio has acquired and created new divisions in an effort to diversify beyond the high-risk movie business. At Guggenheim Partners' TMT Symposium, NBCUniversal CEO Steve Burke discussed how the purchase of DWA would fit into its business strategies. Owner First, in September it was reported that the Japanese conglomerate SoftBank was in talks to acquire DreamWorks Animation for a price of $3.4 billion, but the next day, it was reported that SoftBank had withdrawn its offer. DreamWorks Animation DreamWorks Animation has produced some of Hollywood's iconic films like Shrek, Madagascar, Kung Fu Panda, Trolls, The Boss Baby. On August 22, 2016, NBCUniversal acquired DreamWorks Animation for $3.8 billion, making it a division of the Universal Filmed Entertainment Group. This company is a separate entity that does not have any connection with DreamWorks of NBC Universal. On May 2, 2018, Hulu (which Disney, Fox and NBCUniversal each own 30% of[87]) announced its first-ever license deal with DreamWorks Animation, becoming the exclusive streaming home for future DWA movies feature films, as well as library films. This new unit would produce computer-generated feature films, beginning with Antz in 1998. On February 27, 2018, DreamWorks Animation announced that Kelly Betz has been promoted as Chief Financial Officer. Originally formed under the banner of its main DreamWorks studio in 1997 by some of Amblin Entertainment's former animation branch Amblimation alumni, it was spun off into a separate public company in 2004. It all started after Katzenberg has a dispute with Disney shortly after The Lion King's release, resulting in him leaving (like Bluth) to make his own company which became known as DreamWorks Animation. It was formerly a division of DreamWorks Pictures before became an independent company in 2004 and since 2016, it is a subsidiary of NBCUniversal (Comcast) through its Universal Pictures unit. DreamWorks ClassicsM-GO[9]Oriental DreamWorks (45%)AwesomenessTV (51%) On November 13, 2017, it was announced that DreamWorks Animation had started a shorts program, called DreamWorks Shorts, which will show original animated short films before DWA's feature films, much akin to what Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios do for their feature films. According to a Los Angeles Times report, DreamWorks Animation was in talks with Sony Pictures to distribute its upcoming films, such as the 2013 films The Croods and Turbo. The sale was approved by board members, but subject to regulatory approval. In 2001, Shrek was released and went on to win the first Academy Award for Best Animated Feature Film. Prior to Monday's big pop, shares were down nearly 40%. Like Disney, the deal included 20th Century Fox—which owned the distribution rights to DreamWorks Animation's 2013–2017 releases—and cable entertainment and broadcast satellite networks including FX Networks, Fox Sports Networks, National Geographic Partners, and Fox International Channels. Who bought or sold DreamWorks Animation SKG this quarter? Since 2009, the studio has been a regular guest on the list of Fortune Magazine's 100 Best Companies to Work For. The following executives are on the DreamWorks Animation SKG, Inc.'s board of directors: 1000 Flower Street, Glendale, California, United States. Although the studio also made traditionally animated films in the past, as well as stop-motion co-production with Aardman Animations, all of their films now use computer animation. DWA had streamed exclusively through Netflix since 2013. DreamWorks produces feature films, video games, and television programming. While tucking Tim in bed one night his parents ask if he wanted a baby brother; Tim declines the offer, saying that he is enough. DWA is also the majority owner of AwesomenessTV, a leading video destination for Generation Z and Millennial audiences, and also owns 45% of Oriental DreamWorks, a world-class animation studio in China that produces family entertainment for both Chinese and global audiences. In January 2017, Christopher DeFaria joined DreamWorks Animation in the newly created position of president of the DreamWorks Feature Animation Group. Diversification and expansion (2012–2015), The DreamWorks Experience: Royal Caribbean Cruiseline, The DreamWorks Experience: Gaylord Hotels 2011 - 2015. On January 31, 2006, DWA entered into a distribution agreement with Paramount Pictures, which acquired DWA's former parent and distribution partner, DreamWorks SKG. On January 5, 2015, DreamWorks Animation announced that Bonnie Arnold, producer of the How to Train Your Dragon series and Mireille Soria, producer of the Madagascar series were named co-presidents of the studio's feature animation division. Snopes has also previously debunked this claim stating that there might be some confusion between Pearl Studio, an animation company that was formerly known as Oriental DreamWorks. Comcast In August 2012, DreamWorks Animation formed a joint venture with Chinese investment companies to establish a Shanghai-based entertainment company, named Oriental DreamWorks, to develop and produce original Chinese films and their derivatives. In 2005, AMD signed a three-year deal to provide processors to the studio. Universal also now owns the rights to DreamWorks' back catalogue. Predecessor Beginning with Shrek 2 (2004), all released films, other than some co-produced with Aardman, were expected to be produced with CGI. How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World, DreamWorks Animation’s New Management Structure, DREAMWORKS ANIMATION SKG, INC. - FORM 10-K (Annual Report), M-GO video on-demand movie service launches, streams to PCs, Samsung and Vizio players, https://dreamworks.fandom.com/wiki/DreamWorks_Animation?oldid=139852, Jeffrey Katzenberg, co-founder, chief executive officer and director, Mellody Hobson, chairman of the board of directors, This company has only produced three G-rated films (which are. However, on December 11, 2017, Comcast officially dropped the bid, saying that "We never got the level of engagement needed to make a definitive offer.” On December 14, Disney officially confirmed its acquisition of 21st Century Fox, which is currently under review from the United States Department of Justice Antitrust Division. Who owns DREAMWORKS ANIMATION SKG, INC. Common Stock cmn? The channel first premiered in English on August 1, 2015, and a Thai-dubbed channel launched in September 2015. One of … Donald Trump told people to drink bleach to cure COVID-19. Founded On April 28, 2016, Comcast officially announced that its NBCUniversal division intended on acquiring DreamWorks Animation for $3.8 billion, valuing the company at $41 per share. Casper also boasts more than $1 billion in retail sales worldwide. The Kung Fu Panda Franchise: Po the Panda, Tigress the Tiger. It is based in Glendale, California and produces animated feature films, television programs and online virtual games. Jeffrey Katzenberg, co-founder, chief executive officer and director 2. Both NBCUniversal and Comcast are American companies. The same year DW acquired majority interest (90%) in PDI, and reformed it into PDI/DreamWorks, the Northern California branch of its new business division. Films will be available on the service in 2019, while original series will be available later in 2020. The same month, DreamWorksTV channel debuted on YouTube and operated by AwesomenessTV. Renewal of the deal with Paramount was also open, but only with more favorable terms for Paramount. DreamWorks Animation was created by filmmaker Steven Spielberg, musical icon David Geffen, and animation wizard Jeffrey Katzenberg. The first short film to be produced under the program will be Bird Karma, which will premiere in Spring 2018. On February 15, 2017, Universal acquired a minority stake in Amblin Partners, strengthening the relationship between Universal and Amblin, and reuniting a minority percentage of the DreamWorks Pictures label with DreamWorks Animation. The studio formerly distributed its own and third-party films. DreamWorks Pictures (also known as DreamWorks SKG or DreamWorks Studios, commonly referred to as DreamWorks) is an American film production company, and a label of Amblin Partners. Lucian Grainge, director 9. The studio has received three Academy Awards, as well as 41 Emmy Awards and numerous Annie Awards, and multiple Golden Globe & BAFTA nominations. Films produced by DreamWorks Animation were formerly distributed worldwide by its main DreamWorks studio from 1998 to 2005, Paramount Pictures from 2006 to 2012, and 20th Century Studios from 2013 to 2017. DWA also inherited interests in PDI/DreamWorks. It would not include the broadcast Fox network and Fox Television Stations, Fox Sports, and Fox News Channel units, all which will be spun-off into a new independent company. October 12, 1994 In May 2018 Hulu signed a deal with Dreamworks, becoming the exclusive streaming home for future DWA movie feature films, as well as library films. Chris DeFaria (President, DreamWorks Feature Animation Group)Bonnie Arnold (President, Feature Animation)Margie Cohn (Head of Animation TV)Jeffrey Katzenberg (Chairman, DreamWorks New Media)[7]Chris Meledandri (Senior Advisor) Part of the intent of the deal was in part to establish a more reliable income for DWA to defray the financial risk of solely relying on the theatrical film market. It has produced or distributed more than ten films with box-office grosses of more than $100 million each. Casper is the star of thousands of comic books (over 100 million sold), hundreds of cartoon TV episodes, and a Hollywood film produced by Steven Spielberg. In August 2012, DreamWorks Animation signed a five-year distribution deal with 20th Century Fox for both domestic and international markets. Who bought or sold DREAMWORKS ANIMATION SKG, INC. Common Stock cmn this quarter? DreamWorks Animation (often referred only as DreamWorks and formerly DreamWorks Animation SKG) is an American animation studio company based on Glendale, California. DreamWorks' digital, marketing, consumer products, and gaming divisions will be absorbed into NBCUniversal. On March 13, 2007, DreamWorks Animation announced it would release all of its films, beginning with Monsters vs. Aliens (2009), in stereoscopic 3D. Does “Communist China” own DreamWorks Animation? Felix the Cat, the black-and-white cartoon born in 1919 during the silent film era, now belongs to DreamWorks Animation. Two years later they extended the deal for an additional four films. In 1997, DreamWorks partnered with Aardman Animations, a British stop-motion animation studio, to co-produce and distribute Chicken Run (2000), a stop-motion film already in pre-production. Founders TV Shows. The purchase was closed on August 22, 2016; the company now operates as a division of the Universal Filmed Entertainment Group. Release Calendar DVD & Blu-ray Releases Top Rated Movies Most Popular Movies Browse Movies by Genre Top Box Office Showtimes & Tickets Showtimes & Tickets In Theaters Coming Soon Coming Soon Movie News India Movie Spotlight. 3 facilities Add alert CUSIP Number: 26153C953; Top investors of DREAMWORKS ANIMATION SKG, INC. Common Stock cmn stock. DreamWorks Animation itself previously licensed content from Classic: It is producing an animated feature film based on the time-travel cartoon Mr. … The unit is owned by Technicolor, but DreamWorks hires and trains the animators, who then contribute to DreamWorks projects. On December 21, 2016, Mireille Soria stepped down from her position as co-president of DreamWorks' Feature Animation division. Shrek 2 (2004) is among the 50 highest-grossing films of all time, and fourteen of the films are among the 50 highest-grossing animated films, with Shrek 2 being the ninth all-time highest. Pearl Studio will still collaborate with DreamWorks to produce the upcoming film, Abominable, with the film's original director, Jill Culton, returning. DDU at first worked only on TV specials, such as Merry Madagascar (2009), Scared Shrekless (2010), and DVD projects. On October 6, it was announced that Abhijay Prakash will be COO of DWA. The company is praised by its employees for its openness, culture of collaboration, and a free breakfast and lunch, a perk not found at many other companies. Beginning in 2010, the studio had planned to release five feature films over the course of every two years, but the next year the studio revisited their plans, "but beyond 2012, Katzenberg said the studio will play it by ear, even if that means abandoning his proclamation that DWA would try to release three pictures in a single year, every other year." Less than four months after Comcast announced its $3.8 billion plan to pick up DreamWorks Animation SKG, the deal is closed. Due to the success of CGI animated films, DWA decided the same year to exit hand-drawn animation business after the next two of total four hand-drawn films. Subsidiary Amblimation The answer to this is an easy no, because of the fact the first Shrek is made to make fun of Disney. Katzenberg headed the new division, while Spielberg and Geffen remained on board as investors and consultants. The next day, DWA completed a five-year licensing agreement with Super RTL to start that September for the Classic Media library and the Netflix slate. DreamWorks Animation currently maintains its Glendale campus, as well as satellite studios in India and China. Burke explained that Meledandri planned to "take a lot of the existing DreamWorks franchises and add value as we create new franchises", and that the main goal was to "take the low-single-digit returns of the movie business and turn it into a different kind of business" by creating new intellectual property that can be merchandised and adapted into theme park attractions. The studio was reported to be acquired two separate times in the end of 2014. DreamWorks SKG (1994–2004)Independent (2004–2016)Universal Studios (2016–present) As the only entertainment company on the list, they ranked 47th in 2009, 6th in 2010, 10th in 2011, 14th in 2012, and 12th in 2013. In 1995, DreamWorks signed a co-production deal with Pacific Data Images to form subsidiary PDI, LLC (PDI owned 60% of PDI, LLC, while DreamWorks SKG owned 40%). Burke also outlined that the purchase would be beneficial to Universal's expanding presence in China (where it is building a new Universal Studios park in Beijing) DreamWorks Animation's last film with 20th Century Fox was Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie, and their first two films with Universal Pictures were How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World and Abominable with Trolls World Tour, The Croods: A New Age, The Boss Baby: Family Business, Spirit Untamed, and The Bad Guys in development. China owns DreamWorks Animation. There are no current stakeholders of DreamWorks Animation SKG. In 2010, DWA became the first studio that released three feature-length CG-animated films in a year. A post claiming that DreamWorks is owned by China is circulating on Facebook, and it is false. Thomas E. Freston, director 7. Together with Intel, they co-developed a new 3D film-making technology, InTru3D. “DreamWorks Animation is a great addition to NBCUniversal,” said NBCUniversal CEO Steve Burke. Take your favorite fandoms with you and never miss a beat. The next month, DWA announced a multi-year content deal to provide 300 hours of exclusive original content to the video on demand Internet streaming media provider, Netflix. DreamWorks Animation originated as a division of DreamWorks SKG, a company founded in 1994 by Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg, and David Geffen (the “S,” “K,” and “G” of the company name). In June, the rights to Felix the Cat were acquired by DreamWorks Animation from Felix the Cat Productions, owned by Don Oriolo. DreamWorks Pictures, an American film production company of Amblin Partners . Feb 22, 2021 6:54:00 PM DreamWorks is an American entertainment company and is not owned by China. They made an agreement with their former parent to distribute all of their films until they deliver twelve new films, or December 12, 2010, whichever came last. Three years later, DreamWorks SKG created DreamWorks Animation, a new business division that would regularly produce both types of animated feature films. Now they have sold the rights to DreamWorks Animation, which has been developing brands it owns for its movies (from Kung Fu Panda to How to Train Your Dragon to … With Aardman doing stop-motion, they covered all three major styles, besides traditional and computer animation. As president, DeFaria will oversee all aspects of DWA's feature animation business, including slate strategy, development, production; innovation and technology; and business affairs. Theatrical animated feature filmsTelevision animated series DreamWorks Records, a now-defunct record label that was a division of the film studio; DreamWorks Television, an American television production company and division of the film studio; DreamWorks Animation, an American animation studio and former division of the film studio that is … Eventually they started contributing to DreamWorks' feature films as well, beginning with animating part of Puss in Boots (2011). Two weeks later, PDI/DreamWorks completely shut down as part of its parent company's larger restructuring efforts. Headquarters The agreement granted Paramount the worldwide rights to distribute all animated films, including previously released films, until the delivery of 13 new animated feature films or December 31, 2012, whichever came last. After Gaylord was bought out by Marriott, Marriott owners did not renew contract. Lewis Coleman, vice chairman 4. With the Netflix and Super RTL deals in place for TV, DWA announced executive hiring for its new television group, DreamWorks Animation Television in late July. But on February 2, 2018, Universal has taken over the distribution rights to DreamWorks Animation's library and, in the wake of the Disney-Fox merger, purchased Fox's distribution rights to the 2013–2017 library. Jeffrey Katzenberg was to remain involved in the company as head of DreamWorks New Media, but was to cede control of the studio to Illumination's CEO Chris Meledandri, who would oversee both. Steven SpielbergJeffrey KatzenbergDavid Geffen Katzenberg, formerly the head of film and television production of the Walt Disney Company, took charge of the new company’s animated film production. Number of locations On November 16, 2017, it is reported that NBCUniversal's owner Comcast attempted to purchase 21st Century Fox, following the news 10 days earlier that The Walt Disney Company negotiated with Fox to acquire the same assets. The same year, the company purchased the film rights to the Trolls franchise.