China’s Dalian Wanda Group, a media and property firm, is set to acquire a majority stake in Hollywood film studio Legendary Entertainment, according to multiple reports Tuesday.
Reuters, citing a source close to the matter, reported that the company had clinched the deal for just over half of the film studio, valuing Legendary Entertainment at between $3 billion and $4 billion. Dalian Wanda is chaired by China’s wealthiest man, Wang Jianlin. Bloomberg put Wang’s net worth at $33.3 billion Wednesday.
The Chinese firm has previously made moves to gain influence in the U.S. entertainment business, acquiring movie chain AMC Entertainment Holdings in 2012 for $2.6 billion. In China, Dalian Wanda owns malls, shopping centers, and hotels, as well the country’s biggest movie chain.
According to the Motion Picture Association, China rakes in the second highest box office revenues globally, second only to the United States.
The remaining minority stake in Legendary Entertainment will be owned by the film’s founder and CEO and the rest of its managers.
The involved parties have reportedly signed off on an agreement, though it has not yet been made public. The deal could be publicly announced as soon as next week.
Legendary Entertainment has churned out blockbuster films like The Dark Knight, Jurassic World, and The Hangover franchise.
Reports earlier Tuesday suggested that Dalian Wanda was in advance talks to buy a majority stake in the film studio.