Kevin Spacey, Dana Brunetti to Lead Relativity Studios

BEVERLY HILLS: Amid its bankruptcy restructure, Relativity Media has acquired Trigger Street Productions, the entertainment production company owned and operated by Kevin Spacey and Dana Brunetti, with both execs now assuming leadership posts at the studio.

Spacey will become chairman of Relativity Studios and Brunetti will become president of Relativity Studios, effective mid-February. Together, they will oversee all creative content and film production for the company.

Relativity filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in July after failing to pay down its debt. Relativity sold its TV division to a group of lenders last fall, leaving Ryan Kavanaugh, the chairman and CEO of Relativity, to restructure the rest of the company.

"I am thrilled to welcome Kevin and Dana to Relativity," said Kavanaugh. "Kevin's incredible creative success as a two-time Academy Award winner and star and producer of the critically acclaimed House of Cards speaks for itself. Dana has remarkable instincts and an impressive track record of producing films such as Fifty Shades of Grey and Captain Phillips. Both men share my passion for film and Relativity's unique 360 degree content engine, and I could not be more excited to partner with such talented professionals."

"They thought we were crazy when we chose to do House of Cards with an online streaming service; they thought I was crazy when I went to run The Old Vic Theatre when no one thought it could be saved; and this move with Relativity will be proof for some that we really are crazy," said Spacey. "This is an incredible opportunity to make great entertainment. I'm thrilled at this next evolution in my career, having run an independent production company to now be able to run a studio is a great challenge, and I've learned that in the end it's the risk takers that are rewarded." 

"While other studios are focusing on tentpoles and franchises, there is a void with an eager audience for films that are character driven with great storytelling that can be made at a reasonable budget," commented Brunetti. "Being a disruptor at heart, I look forward to the opportunities that being inside a studio system will present."