The Hollywood Foreign Press Association has shed its non-profit status and agreed to sell the Golden Globes to acting CEO Todd Boehly’s Eldridge Industries and turn the embattled organization into a private venture, the HFPA announced Thursday.
The sale’s proposal from Eldridge Industries LLC, which is founded and chaired by the billionaire Boehly, creates a private entity to manage its Golden Globes assets, according to the announcement, while its charitable and philanthropic programs will be preserved in a separate non-profit entity. This plan gives the company all rights to the Golden Globes’ intellectual property and allows it to oversee modernization and professionalism of the Golden Globe Awards.
last November reported exclusively of Boehly’s intention to make the Globes a for-profit organization, though the plan was denied at the time.
Although the terms of the vote weren’t disclosed, a source stated that 76 members voted in favor and 18 voted against. The total number of HFPA members was just over 100.
The fate of the 2023 Golden Globes remains unclear, as the HFPA is undergoing reforms after a Los Angeles Times exposé found that the organization had no Black members, leading to a boycott of the Golden Globes among Hollywood publicists that has shown few signs of being lifted. This year, the awards show was not televised.
“This is a historic moment for the HFPA and the Golden Globes,”Helen Hoehne was the president of HFPA. “We have taken a decisive step forward to transform ourselves and adapt to this increasingly competitive economic landscape for both award shows and the journalism marketplace. Our Special Committee and team of legal and financial advisors did an incredible amount of work in reviewing, analyzing, and comparing the options presented to us. We are excited to move forward with a mandate to ensure we continue our support for increasing diversity in all areas and maintaining our life-changing charitable and philanthropic efforts.”
The transition will include the creation of staff and an executive group to lead the new organization. The HFPA also confirmed plans to add additional Golden Globes voter, who previously said they would not be full members.
According to the HFPA Boehly was not part the review, recommendation, or approval process. It adds that in recent months, the HFPA’s financial adviser, Houlihan Lokey, yielded several submitted proposals from a number of companies and investment groups. Each proposal was reviewed and analyzed by the HFPA’s Special Committee, alongside its legal adviser, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP.
The committee was composed exclusively of the three outside independent members of the HFPA’s board: Sharlette Hambrick, Jeff Harris and Dr. Joanna Massey.
“This review process was comprehensive, deliberate and thoughtful to ensure fairness and accuracy,”Hoehne was also added. “Per our bylaws, the decision ultimately rested with our membership, who voted on the proposal. As we look forward to celebrating our 80th anniversary event in January 2023, we are incredibly excited about this new era for our Association.”
Experts have questioned the decision to sell ownership of Boehly to Boehly. Cheryl Boone Isaacs, whose group had submitted its proposal to the HFPA had already criticized the group as a’scammer. “not equitable”Its ownership can be changed. Further, four attorneys with expertise in nonprofits recently told that a for-profit structure would IncreaseIt is important to increase transparency, not decrease it that has plagued the HFPA in recent decades and led to a boycott of Hollywood publicists, studios, and networks. The HFPA is a nonprofit organization and must file an annual public financial statement detailing all revenue and payouts, as well contributions.
A for-profit corporation would be “playing by different rules,”Jan Breslauer is an attorney in arts and entertainment. “If you become a private corporation for profit, you’re no longer going to be showing everybody your finances every year.”
Experts have also questioned the ethics of having Globes voters participate in the profits of the awards show — a key element of Boehly’s initial proposal — as well as his plan to recruit new voters for the annual Globes who would not be full-fledged members or share in any profits from the for-profit venture.
Others raised red flags about Boehly’s involvement in making decisions about selling HFPA assets to a company he would then own. Boehly also owns MRC, which produces award winning TV shows such as “Ozark” “The Great” as well as the Golden Globe Awards telecast — and shares the $60 million annual licensing fee paid by NBC to air the awards show.
The billionaire’s involvement “raises conflicts all over the place,”One veteran California lawyer in the non-profit field said that. “To be engaged on behalf of proposing this because he’s really also on the other side, that’s where this all feels like it’s totally inappropriate.”
Until the HFPA determines additional disclosure is necessary or appropriate, it will not comment further.
