First-Looks, Overalls & Skydance-PAR Fallout: 2025 Q1 Deals Report
Studio-by-studio, who Docusigned on the bottom line, what it means, and the 'purgatory' of waiting for Ellison to close (and fears he won't)
Ashley Cullins writes for paid subscribers and today she has the first of a special two-part report looking at the year-to-date in deals. On Thursday, she’ll share intel on the state of getting an original film greenlight in 2025, and the fast-shifting landscape for future projects and rising star talent. You can reach her at ashley@theankler.com
“Hollywood is a quarterly business now.”
That refreshingly candid statement by a studio exec I interviewed for my last piece about negotiating talent deals when working outside of L.A. stuck with me. Last December, I took a look back at the most important deals of 2024, but now an annual review seems inadequate. Do you even remember that Amazon took control of the James Bond franchise from the Broccoli family in February? Or that Endeavor went private in March?
Much as the studios are currently reporting their first quarter earnings to Wall Street, we need a Q1-ish check-in about:
The quantity and quality of pacts they’re seeing
Which buzzy stories have broader implications for the industry
Deals they think have been underrated
The overall health of the ecosystem
The first quarter of 2025 was largely marked by the devastating wildfires that burned for almost the entire month of January in L.A. The business didn’t come to a halt, but it slowed as seemingly everyone in Hollywood was no more than one person removed from someone whose home was damaged or destroyed in the fires. Even so, most dealmakers tell me they’ve been as busy or busier so far this year than they were at the end of 2024.
With that in mind, let’s dive into our first 2025 deals review. The goal here isn’t to boil the ocean but rather cut through the noise. Whether you’re talent, a rep, a studio exec or a producer, these are the key takeaways as you shift into summer mode.
In this issue, we’ll cover . . .
Who has scored overall and first-look deals so far this year
Which studios were most and least active in doling out these pacts
Why overalls may be making a comeback but you’re not hearing more about them
The trickle-down effect of talent deals on the rest of workers
How the Paramount deal limbo is freaking everyone out and what is happening in the market in response
Talent Deals: Volume’s Up, Value’s Down
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