Japanese entertainment conglomerate Toho Co. will acquire a major U.S. animation distributor, its latest push to embrace animation and expand beyond its home market.
Toho’s U.S. unit will buy 100% of the shares in New York-based GKids Inc., according to a Wednesday statement. The company will become a wholly owned subsidiary. The two firms have already worked together to release films in the U.S., with GKids handling last year’s Oscar-winning Studio Ghibli feature “The Boy and the Heron.” Financial terms were not disclosed.
It’s a fresh push by Toho — a company best known for unleashing the Godzilla franchise — to strengthen its resources in animation. The company also has announced it would take a 6.1% stake in CoMix Wave Films, a Tokyo-based animation studio. In May, Toho said it would acquire Science SARU, the animation studio responsible for producing the Netflix series “Scott Pilgrim Takes Off.”
“We believe that by combining this with our licensing, product and e-commerce capabilities, we’ll have a strong foundation to deliver animation more directly and widely,” Toho said in its statement. The company also hopes the move will strengthen its business in the U.S., where the Godzilla films have been building up a presence, it said.
The company expects GKids to become a consolidated subsidiary in February, with minimal impact on earnings.
Sarah Hilton reports for Bloomberg.
