Kevin Hart Steps In As CEO of HARTBEAT Production Company Amid Leadership Shakeup

Kevin Hart has taken over as CEO of his production company, HARTBEAT, marking the third leadership change in less than two years.

Days before Thanksgiving last year, Kevin Hart’s production company laid off about 20 people, nearly one quarter of its work force. Not long after that, the chief executive officer, chief financial officer and chief content officer of Hartbeat all departed.

The departures are amicable, but followed a disagreement about the direction of the company, which produces films and TV shows, audio series and branded content, according to several people familiar with the matter. Hart has stepped in as CEO, at least for the time being, the third leader for the company in less than two years.

The turmoil at Hartbeat reflects the challenges facing all independent production companies during Hollywood’s current age of austerity. As major studios and networks cut their output and budgets, production companies aren’t selling as many shows or getting the same terms. Hartbeat is a profitable, diversified media company in a down market. There are worse places to be.

But Hartbeat isn’t just another production company. It’s one of a handful of firms run by major celebrities that capitalized on the streaming boom to raise hundreds of millions of dollars at valuations that boggled the mind. Hartbeat raised $100 million from Abry Partners at a reported valuation of $650 million in 2022. These companies are tweeners — much larger than your average production company, but not large enough to be a proper studio.

That was fine during the streaming boom when media companies produced more film and TV than at any point in Hollywood history. But it’s become more of an issue as the industry suffers through a recession. These companies are too big to subsist on producer fees and too small to command ownership of most of their output.

We’ve covered the challenges of Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine and LeBron James’ SpringHill. Unlike SpringHill, Hartbeat is profitable and has a more modest staff. Yet like those companies, Hartbeat must figure out how to deliver on a valuation that is far too high given its financial performance.

One of the most successful comedians and actors of his generation, Hart has always been one of the hardest-working people in Hollywood. He is one of the biggest touring comedians alive, acts in at least one movie every year and appears in more commercials than you can remember. He started producing film and TV projects more than a decade ago.

Celebrities that want to produce only need a few employees. They need a producing partner to run the show, executives to oversee development of projects and a couple assistants. These companies collect fees for producing the projects in which their famous founders star. The good ones, like Margot Robbie’s LuckyChap Entertainment or Brad Pitt’s Plan B, build up slates that have nothing to do with their founder.

Hart had ambitions of building something more. He wasn’t content to be a famous multi-millionaire. He wanted to be a billionaire. He formed a separate company, Laugh Out Loud, to create comedy video for the internet. He built an advertising business with clients like Lyft and Procter & Gamble. He produced YouTube videos and podcasts for SiriusXM. He was a media entrepreneur before many of his peers.

Hart formed the current incarnation of Hartbeat in 2022 by merging all his businesses under one roof.

via: Bloomberg

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