Laurene Powell Jobs’ Emerson Collective Buys Stake In Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine; Otter Media Ups Its Stake

Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine has received a funding infusion from Emerson Collective, the social change catalyst founded by Laurene Powell Jobs. Otter Media, the WarnerMedia company that invests in and launches global OTT media services, has also increased its stake in Witherspoon’s company. Both investors are minority owners; Witherspoon and her management team remain majority owners.

The investments will support the company’s continue growth in the area of premium storytelling celebrating women across multiple platforms. The private company did not divulge the size of either investment.

“We very intentionally chose strategic investors who passionately and unequivocally support our mission of changing the landscape for women by putting them at the center of every narrative we create, elevate and champion,” said Hello Sunshine CEO Sarah Harden. “We are extremely proud to extend our relationship with Otter Media, who has been a devoted partner since the beginning. We are truly honored to begin working alongside the team at Emerson Collective given their commitment to supporting impactful storytelling.”

Said Otter Media CEO Tony Goncalves: “Hello Sunshine has built a unique platform for female storytellers. Fans love Hello Sunshine for its commitment to making women’s stories come to life and we are proud to continue supporting them through the next chapter of their journey.”

Hello Sunshine launched two years ago and has gone at breakneck pace. There is the second season of the Emmy-winning HBO drama series Big Little Lies, the limited series Little Fires Everywhere (Hulu), the limited series Daisy Jones and the Six (Amazon), Are You Sleeping (Apple), and the Untitled Morning Show Project (Apple). Hello Sunshine’s first unscripted show Shine on With Reese (DirecTV) launched in July, followed by the digital series Master the Mess (DirecTV). Feature films projects that have been announced include A White Lie (Tristar), The League of Wives (Fox 2000), Where the Crawdads Sing (Fox 2000), Legally Blonde 3 (MGM), and a documentary about Martina Navratilova. How It Is and My Best Breakup are Hello Sunshine’s first two podcasts.

In an effort to become a full-fledged lifestyle brand, other Hello Sunshine initiatives included the recently completed 10-city live tour Hello Sunshine x Together Live, and the company has entered into a unique partnership with expert personality Eve Rodsky, whose debut book Fair Play: The 5 New Rules to Revolutionize Your Marriage, Home and Sense of Purpose will be published in the fall. Hello Sunshine also started Reese’s Book Club, which highlights books with female protagonists and plots, and partnered with Audible to highlight the female-centered books from Reese’s Book Club, as well as to produce upcoming original audio content.

This marks another investment in content generation for Powell Jobs, whose Emerson became a minority owner in Steve Golin’s Anonymous Content, followed by a majority stake in Atlantic Media, publisher of The Atlantic magazine.