LeBron James will play against the 76ers

Todd Boyd has been watching athletes and the entertainment industry for decades. But he sees something different in LeBron James and SpringHill Company, the production entity at the forefront of James’ growing media empire. “I’ve been in Hollywood since Superman was a boy,” said Boyd, a professor at the University of Southern California. For decades, he’s seen athletes get involved in the movie and TV business, typically on-screen. Think NFL great Jim Brown and NBA legends Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Shaquille O’Neal and Ray Allen. -via Andscape / December 9, 2022

At first, he had questions about whether SpringHill would be anything more than a vanity project featuring LeBron-centric content. “LeBron made his name as a basketball player initially, so there’s no guarantee when he came into Hollywood that he was gonna have the same success in that environment,” Boyd said. By now, though, Boyd has seen enough: “They’re seen as a legitimate entity as opposed to an opportunity to make a fast buck,” he said. “They’re taken seriously.” -via Andscape / December 9, 2022

The TV and film studio was founded by James and lifelong friend and business manager, Maverick Carter, in 2007. Their entertainment businesses also include UNINTERRUPTED, an original content company focusing on athlete empowerment with shows such as the Emmy Award-winning The Shop on YouTube (formerly on HBO) and NBA champion Iman Shumpert’s Iman Amongst Men podcast, and Robot Company, a brand consultancy and marketing agency. After raising more than $100 million last year, the parent firm, SpringHill Co., claimed a valuation of $725 million. But the studio is the most provocative element of James’ now decade-plus dive into storytelling and a case study in the shifting power dynamics of modern media. -via Andscape / December 9, 2022