Christopher Spicer Quoted in China Daily on Wanda Group’s Investment in Hollywood, Capitol Hill Concerns

Akin Gump entertainment partner Christopher Spicer has been quoted in two China Daily USA articles regarding a move by the head of China's Dalian Wanda Group to set up a multibillion-dollar investment fund to add capital into some of Hollywood’s biggest studios as well as about U.S. government concerns about foreign acquisitions of strategically important sectors.

In "“Wanda wants part of ‘Big Six’ studios," Spicer said a co-financing investment in various studios is nothing out of the ordinary, though if Wanda did end up owning a U.S. studio, its investment in multiple players in the industry could be problematic down the line.

“If someone owns a majority interest in one of the Big Six studios with production and distribution capabilities and then makes investments in the others,” Spicer said, “putting aside any issues the government may have, you would want all your resources and efforts going into that studio, not a competitor.”

In "Senator calls for closer look at media M&A," Spicer noted that co-financing deals would likely be less of an issue for concerned U.S. legislators than outright acquisitions of the sort that Wanda's chairman and founder has said he wants to do. He added, however, that Legendary Entertainment, which was purchased by Wanda, seems to be "running exactly the same way it was six months ago. I haven't talked to anyone who's said, 'Legendary is so different in its operations now.'"

Spicer spoke last month with The Hollywood Reporter about a separate matter involving Wanda—a partnership with Sony to promote its films in China. To read more about that, please click here.