Producer Erik Feig to launch new studio with $1 billion backing from Saudi Arabia, Japan

Erik Feig, former co-chairman of Lionsgate and current CEO of Picturestart, is embarking on a new venture with help from Saudi Arabia and Japan.

According to a new report from Puck, the film producer is set to launch a new independent studio, called Arena SNK Studios, which will handle everything from film to television to live events.

According to the outlet, Feig’s new studio was backed to the tune of $1 billion by the MiSK Group – a fund controlled by Mohammed bin Salman, the crown prince of Saudi Arabia – by SNK, a Japanese gaming company (which is also owned by MiSK) and by the MBC Group, a media and entertainment conglomerate also controlled by the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia.

A person with knowledge of the deal confirmed the news to TheWrap.

While the Saudis have already invested in entertainment companies – including Live Nation, LIV Golf, Activision Blizzard, etc. – Arena SNK Studios would be their largest investment in a conventional entertainment studio to date.

The timing of this announcement follows another collaboration between Saudi Arabia and Hollywood, which appeared to divide the entertainment industry. We are of course referring to the Riyadh Comedy Festival, which saw Aziz Ansari, Bill Burr, Louis CK, Pete Davidson, Jimmy Carr, Jessica Kirson and Whitney Cummings perform in Saudi Arabia’s capital, despite the country being known for its censorship.

David Cross was one of the most vocal critics of the event, noting that he was “disgusted and deeply disappointed by this whole disgusting affair.”

Ansari, Burr, CK and Cummings all doubled down on their decision to participate, arguing that it was better to engage with the people of Riyadh rather than isolate them.