Hong Kong-based entertainment company Legendary East will receive US$220 million in funding from Paul Y. Engineering Group (PYE; 0577.HK) in exchange for a 50% stake in the new venture, Reuters reported. This is the first move into films for Hong Kong-based PYE, which was previously focused entirely on property development and management in Greater China. Legendary East was launched this summer by California-based Legendary Entertainment and led by Thomas Tull. Tull’s firm will retain 40% ownership of Legendary East and mainland film production company Huayi Brothers International (SZSE:300027) will hold 9%. In addition, AID Partners will purchase an undisclosed share of the company for US$35 million. Legendary East will produce two global English-language films per year. The venture is the latest in a string of attempts by Hollywood studios to penetrate the China market through joint ventures. In April, US-based Relativity Media formed a new venture with SkyLand (Beijing) Film-Television Culture Development to produce films for the mainland market.
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