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Blackstone’s Billion-Dollar Bet on Hollywood, Reese Witherspoon Falls Short
- Former Disney executives spent freely at top of the market
- Hollywood strikes, industry cutbacks have crimped profits
Reese Witherspoon
Photographer: Miceal Train/AFP/Getty Images
Blackstone Inc. has given former Walt Disney Co. executives Kevin Mayer and Tom Staggs more than $1 billion to build the next great entertainment company. That investment has been put to the test this year.
Earnings at Candle Media, which Mayer and Staggs started in 2021, are expected to come in about 50% below what the companies they acquired had forecast for 2023, according to people familiar with the matter.