A trio of entertainment veterans — Lloyd Braun, Sarah Bremner And Noah Oppenheim — came together to form an independent production studio Entertainment Prologuewith an investment of Jeff Zucker and RedBird Capital Partners.
Prologue, with offices in New York and Los Angeles, is created to develop and produce scripted series and premium film content, and will house existing projects already in progress. Depending on the company, it will be able to finance and co-finance productions. Braun, a longtime television executive, was most recently president of WME; Bremner is a former Netflix film executive and most recently served as president of Ava DuVernay’s Array Filmworks; and Oppenheim was once president of NBC News.
The amount of RedBird Capital’s investment in Prologue is not disclosed. RedBird’s investment will be overseen by Zucker, the former CEO of CNN who is an operating partner of RedBird. (The funding is separate from RedBird IMI, a joint venture between RedBird Capital Partners and Abu Dhabi-based International Media Investments, which Zucker leads as CEO.)
“We are thrilled to partner with Jeff Zucker and RedBird to launch Prologue Entertainment,” Braun, Bremner and Oppenheim said in a joint statement. “Together, we aim to create captivating fictional films and series, often drawing inspiration from real-world characters and events, resulting in projects that are both entertaining and engaging.”
Zucker, in a statement, commented: “My investment philosophy has always been driven by working with the best in the industry. Lloyd, Sarah and Noah are great examples, and they fit well into our growing portfolio. We know that what matters is premium storytelling and content, and that’s what we’re already focused on producing at Prologue Entertainment.
Upcoming projects for the studio include:
- “Zero Day” (Netflix) with Robert De Niro: Six-episode series co-created and produced by Oppenheim, Eric Newman and New York Times journalist Michael S. Schmidt. The series is scheduled to premiere on February 20, 2025.
- Untitled Kathryn Bigelow film for Netflix: Currently in post-production, the thriller is written by Oppenheim and directed by Bigelow.
- “The Root of All Evil” (Atomic Monster/Blumhouse): A psychological thriller based on journalist Ravi Somaiya’s report on an exorcism in Mexico, with adaptation by Sean Tretta.
- “Trapped”: A female survival thriller with a screenplay by Jill Blankenship. Named to the 2024 blacklist, announced this week.
Braun began his career as an entertainment attorney, representing talent such as Larry David, Howard Stern and David Chase. He left his law practice to become president of Brillstein-Grey Entertainment, where he ran its television studio and initiated the development of series such as “The Sopranos,” “Just Shoot Me” and “NewsRadio.” From 1998 to 2004, Braun led the television production arm of Disney and ABC Entertainment Television Group, overseeing the development of series such as “Lost,” “Desperate Housewives,” “The Bachelor,” “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Jimmy Kimmel Live.” After his tenure at ABC, he became head of Yahoo Media Group before founding media companies BermanBraun and Whalerock Industries. Most recently, he served as president of global talent agency WME.
Bremner is a film and television producer and executive. At Array Filmworks, she oversaw a slate including Ramin Bahrani’s Oscar-nominated “The White Tiger,” “Colin in Black & White” (Netflix), “DMZ” (HBO Max), “Naomi” (CW) and “ Queen Sugar.” (OWN). Prior to Array, the UK native spent five years with Netflix’s original film group, leading the development and production of titles including “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” “The Two Popes,” “Rebecca,” Project Power” and “Bright”. She began her entertainment career at Nina Jacobson’s Color Force and previously held creative positions at A&E Studios, Exclusive Media and Paramount Pictures.
As head of NBC News, Oppenheim launched three streaming networks (NBC News Now, Today All Day and Dateline 24/7) and founded NBC News Studios, executive producer of “The Thing About Pam” and several documentary films . Among his film credits, Oppenheim wrote the Oscar-nominated biopic “Jackie,” which won the best screenplay award at the Venice Film Festival, and co-wrote the film trilogy The Maze Runner.
RedBird Capital Partners, founded in 2014 by Gerry Cardinale, currently manages approximately $10 billion in assets on behalf of a global group of institutional investors and family offices. The company’s media and entertainment investment portfolio includes Skydance Media (which is expected to merge with Paramount Global in 2025), All3Media, Matt Damon’s Ben Affleck and Artists Equity, LeBron James and Maverick Carter’s Media Res and SpringHill Company .
(In the photo above, l. right: Lloyd Braun, Sarah Bremner, Noah Oppenheim)