Wheelhouse snags Alignment investment, eyes ‘strategic acquisitions’

Brent Montgomery (Source: Wheelhouse)

Brent Montgomery’s production firm Wheelhouse has received an undisclosed investment from US-based private equity firm Alignment Growth.

Financial details have not been revealed but six-year-old Wheelhouse said it intends to use the injection to “attract industry-leading talent” and accelerate growth via strategic acquisitions.

Alignment Growth partner Jeff Bewkes will join the board at Wheelhouse, which was founded by former ITV America CEO in 2018 after he sold Leftfield Entertainment to the company four years earlier.

Wheelhouse has since expanded to house production companies including Spoke Studios, Campfire, Butternut, Wheelhouse UK and DNA.

It also has production partnerships in place with Jimmy Kimmel’s Kimmelot and Chef David Chang’s Majordomo Media, while shows on the slate range from Netflix’s King Of Collectibles and Buying Beverly Hills to Hulu’s Secret Chef and Max’s Smartless: On the Road.

The $350m Alignment Growth fund was launched last year and its deal with Wheelhouse marks the US prodco’s first outside investment.

The Wheelhouse-Alignment Growth deal was spearheaded by Alignment Growth partner Kevin Tsujihara, Wheelhouse president Rob Lia and chief strategy officer Ed Simpson, who leads M&A.

Montgomery said: “We are building Wheelhouse as a collective of global creatives who not only shine on their own, but truly want to partner with one another across labels and divisions so we’re thrilled that Alignment’s investment will allow us to supersize our efforts engaging talent in front of and behind the camera.”

Bewkes added: “We are excited to partner with and support Brent, a seasoned operator and a magnet for the best talent in non-scripted. His success in the space is unparalleled, and his team is well-positioned to build Wheelhouse into one of the preeminent names across the industry.”