Imagine Entertainment

Imagine Entertainment (formerly Imagine Films Entertainment and also known simply as Imagine) is an American film and television production company founded in 1986 by director Ron Howard and producer Brian Grazer.



Background
Brian Grazer and Ron Howard met in 1982 on Night Shift, with Howard directing and Grazer co-producing. They followed it up by working on 1984's Splash.

Imagine Films Entertainment
Early on, the company sealed a production and distribution deal with Universal Pictures, which was set to expire in November 1992. The deal was to fund 50% of 30 films. Imagine an IPO in 1986 at $8 for a package of one share and one warrant. Shares rose to $19.25 before falling in the stock market crash in 1987 to $2.25. A pay television broadcast agreement was made with Showtime.

By May 1992, 48% of the stock was public traded and worth $9.375. The duo agreed to a new six deal with Universal while concurrently offering $9 a share to buy the company's public outstanding share to start a new company with its assets. If not, they planned to leave the company at their contract expiration in November to start the new company anyway. Universal was providing the cash for a buyout of an equity stake in the new company.

Imagine Entertainment
In 2000, the partnership teamed up with 20th Century Fox for development of TV series, an agreement set to expire at the end of 2016. In 2011, the company had three weak box office performers with The Dilemma, Cowboys & Aliens and Tower Heist. Because of their weak financial pact renewal with Universal in January 2012, Imagine laid off 5 employees, including production executive Jeremy Steckler. This also moves Imagine from exclusive to a first look deal. By 2013, Imagine was considering other funding methods for the company's films including crowdfunding for a Friday Night Lights movie.

In November 2013, Michael Rosenberg was promoted to co-chairman followed in December 2013, with Erica Huggins being promoted to his previous position as president. Industry insiders indicated in late January 2016 that a deal with Raine Group was in the works that would have Raine become a partner of the production company while contributing $100 million.

In 2017, Imagine had made a six-picture deal with Warner Bros. and Australian visual effects/animation studio Animal Logic to develop, finance, and produce six animated/live-action films.

In 2018, Imagine acquired a controlling stake in Jax Media.

Feature-film division
The feature-film division has participated in over sixty productions and is associated with Universal Pictures, which has distributed many of Imagine's productions, some with other studios. Erica Huggins was hired as senior vice president of motion picture production and was elevated to executive vice president in 2006, and later to co-president of production in 2010.

1980s
1987 1988 1989
 * Like Father Like Son (With Tri-Star Pictures)
 * Willow (With Lucasfilm Ltd. & Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer)
 * Vibes (With Columbia Pictures)
 * Clean and Sober (With Warner Bros.)
 * The 'Burbs (With Universal Pictures)
 * The Dream Team (With Universal Pictures)
 * Parenthood (With Universal Pictures)

1990s
1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999
 * Cry-Baby (With Universal Pictures)
 * Opportunity Knocks (With Universal Pictures)
 * Kindergarten Cop (With Universal Pictures)
 * Problem Child (With Universal Pictures)
 * Backdraft (With Universal Pictures)
 * Closet Land (With Universal Pictures)
 * The Doors (With TriStar Pictures)
 * My Girl (With Columbia Pictures)
 * Problem Child 2 (With Universal Pictures)
 * Boomerang (With Paramount Pictures)
 * Far and Away (With Universal Pictures)
 * HouseSitter (With Universal Pictures)
 * CB4 (With Universal Pictures)
 * Cop and a Half (With Universal Pictures)
 * For Love or Money (With Universal Pictures)
 * Greedy (With Universal Pictures)
 * The Cowboy Way (With Universal Pictures)
 * My Girl 2 (With Columbia Pictures)
 * The Paper (With Universal Pictures)
 * Apollo 13 (With Universal Pictures)
 * The Chamber (With Universal Pictures)
 * Fear (With Universal Pictures)
 * The Nutty Professor (With Universal Pictures)
 * Ransom (With Touchstone Pictures)
 * Sgt. Bilko (With Universal Pictures)
 * Inventing the Abbotts (With 20th Century Fox)
 * Liar Liar (With Universal Pictures)
 * Mercury Rising (With Universal Pictures)
 * Psycho (With Universal Pictures)
 * Bowfinger (With Universal Pictures)
 * EDtv (With Universal Pictures)
 * Life (With Universal Pictures)
 * The Gelfin (With Universal Pictures) not filmed

2000s
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
 * Nutty Professor II: The Klumps (With Universal Pictures)
 * How the Grinch Stole Christmas (With Universal Pictures)
 * Going Francisco (with Universal Pictures and Gingo Movies)
 * A Beautiful Mind (With Universal Pictures and DreamWorks)
 * 8 Mile (With Universal Pictures)
 * Blue Crush (With Universal Pictures)
 * Stealing Harvard (With Columbia Pictures and Revolution Studios)
 * Undercover Brother (With Universal Pictures)
 * The Cat in the Hat (With Universal Pictures and DreamWorks)
 * Intolerable Cruelty (With Universal Pictures and Mike Zoss Productions)
 * The Missing (With Columbia Pictures and Revolution Studios)
 * Friday Night Lights (With Universal Pictures)
 * The Alamo (With Touchstone Pictures)
 * Cinderella Man (With Universal Pictures and Miramax Films)
 * Flightplan (With Touchstone Pictures)
 * Fun with Dick and Jane (With Columbia Pictures)
 * Inside Deep Throat (With Universal Pictures)
 * Curious George (With Universal Pictures)
 * The Da Vinci Code (With Columbia Pictures)
 * Inside Man (With Universal Pictures and 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks)
 * American Gangster (With Universal Pictures and Scott Free Productions)
 * Changeling (With Universal Pictures)
 * Frost/Nixon (With Universal Pictures and StudioCanal, Working Title Films, Relativity Media)
 * Angels & Demons (With Columbia Pictures)
 * Curious George 2: Follow That Monkey! (With Universal Pictures)

2010s
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
 * Robin Hood (With Universal Pictures)
 * Take Me Home Tonight (With Relativity Media and Rogue Pictures)
 * The Dilemma (with Universal Pictures and Spyglass Entertainment)
 * Cowboys & Aliens (with Universal Pictures, Paramount Pictures, DreamWorks Pictures and Platinum Studios)
 * Restless (with Sony Pictures Classics and Columbia Pictures)
 * Tower Heist (with Universal Pictures and Relativity Media)
 * J. Edgar (with Warner Bros. Pictures, Malpaso Productions and Wintergreen Productions)
 * Katy Perry: Part of Me (with Paramount Pictures, Insurge Pictures and MTV Films)
 * High Stakes (with Universal Pictures and Weed Road Pictures)
 * Rush – independently financed (with Universal Pictures, Exclusive Media, Cross Creek Pictures, Revolution Films and Working Title Films)
 * Get on Up (with Universal Pictures)
 * The Good Lie (with Warner Bros., Alcon Entertainment, Black Label Media, and Reliance Entertainment)
 * Curious George 3: Back to the Jungle (with Universal 1440 Entertainment)
 * In the Heart of the Sea (with Warner Bros. Pictures, Village Roadshow Pictures and Roth Films)
 * Inferno (with Columbia Pictures)
 * Lowriders (with Universal Pictures)
 * Kindergarten Cop 2 (with Universal Pictures, Universal 1440 Entertainment and Where's Arnold Productions)
 * Pelé: Birth of a Legend
 * The Dark Tower (with Columbia Pictures, Media Rights Capital and Weed Road Pictures)
 * American Made (with Universal Pictures and Cross Creek Pictures)
 * Solo: A Star Wars Story (with Lucasfilm)
 * The Spy Who Dumped Me (with Lionsgate Films)
 * Pavarotti (with Polygram Entertainment, Decca Records and White House Pictures)

2020s
2020
 * Hillbilly Elegy (with Netflix)

Television division
Its television division, Imagine Television has participated in at least twenty productions and is associated with 20th Century Fox Television.