The Firm was a film and television production and talent management company based in Santa Monica, California. Established in 1997, it ceased operations in November 2008 and was relaunched by its founder, Jeff Kwatinetz, in August 2015. The Firm's divisions also include a record label and a marketing group.[1][2]
History
The Firm was founded by managers Jeff Kwatinetz and Michael Green in 1997. Operating originally out of Kwatinetz' Malibu apartment, the company was described by the Los Angeles Times as "racing through the music industry with the velocity of a bullet train" and by 2000, represented a stable of actors and musicians that had generated more than $1.5 billion in gross revenue.[3] Kwatinetz partnered with David Baram and Rick Yorn to help run the operation later bringing on new talent including Criss Angel and Denzel Washington.
In 2002, The Firm purchased Michael Ovitz's Artist Management Group (AMG) and in 2004, it merged with entertainment consulting company Integrated Entertainment Partners (IEP), led by Rich Frank, a former president of Disney studios.[4][5][6] During its first incarnation, the company represented Leonardo DiCaprio, Cameron Diaz, Robert De Niro, Kelly Clarkson, Korn, Ice Cube, Snoop Dogg, Dixie Chicks, Linkin Park, Backstreet Boys, Jennifer Lopez, Britney Spears, Limp Bizkit, and DC Pierson, among others. In addition to the individual successes of their clients, the company was noted for its prescience in melding celebrities with consumer brands and for its role as an architect of the $2.6 billion acquisition of Warner Music by a private equity consortium.[7] While in 2003, the subsidiary Firm Films had reached a first-look deal with 20th Century Fox.[8]
Several months after the Firm was closed, Kwatinetz and Frank founded Prospect Park, an entertainment company which replicated the scope of The Firm.[2][7][9] Financed through Kwatinetz' personal assets, Prospect Park focused on TV and film development and production and included an artist management division and a record company. In 2013, it launched the short-lived Online Network with the soap operas One Life to Live and All My Children.[2][7][9] The company shut down both shows in 2013 as it filed a lawsuit against ABC, from whom they had licensed the rights to both series.[10][11] Prospect Park declared bankruptcy in 2014, pending an outcome on the lawsuit.[12]
Reactivation
In August 2015, it was announced that the Firm had been reactivated, a decision which Kwatinetz said was based on feedback from the creative community. Prospect Park senior executives Jeremy Summers, Angelica Cob-Baehler and Josh Barry transitioned to The Firm, and Robbie Brenner, formerly the president of production at Relativity Media, was named president of The Firm's film division shortly after the company relaunched.[13]
Under the banner of Prospect Park Productions, the Firm produces the television series Salem for WGN America and USA Network's Royal Pains; as of 2015, Salem was in its third season and Royal Pains in its eighth. As of 2015, the company had projects in development for broadcast, cable and digital platforms which included Black Heart for ABC, Talent for NBC,Tough Love for Amazon, Hard Foul for Showtime, A Midsummer’s Nightmare (Lifetime), Relics (Sony International Networks). Prospect Park produced FX's Wilfred, which ran from 2011 through 2014.[1][14]
