Snoopy Heads to Hollywood: Major Studio Snaps Up Peanuts in $457 Million Deal
Good grief: Sony is paying about $457 million for a majority stake in Charles M. Schulz’s Peanuts, bringing Snoopy, Charlie Brown and the gang under its control. The deal, led by Sony Pictures Entertainment and Sony Music Entertainment Japan, marks a major bet on nostalgia.
Sony just bought a big piece of your childhood. The company is taking control of Charlie Brown, Snoopy, and the rest of the Peanuts crew in a deal that screams both nostalgia play and long-term brand strategy.
What Sony actually bought
Sony Pictures Entertainment and Sony Music Entertainment (Japan) have a definitive agreement to buy Canadian media company WildBrain's entire 41% stake in Peanuts Holdings LLC. The price tag: CAN $630 million, which is roughly $457 million USD. As usual, this has to clear regulatory approvals and the standard closing hurdles first.
- Buyer: Sony Pictures Entertainment + Sony Music Entertainment (Japan)
- Seller: WildBrain (the Canadian media company)
- Stake changing hands: 41% of Peanuts Holdings LLC
- Price: CAN $630 million (about $457 million USD)
- Post-deal ownership: Sony entities will indirectly hold 80% of Peanuts Holdings LLC, thanks to SMEJ's existing ~39% stake
- Who keeps the rest: The Schulz family retains the remaining 20%
- Structure: Peanuts Worldwide remains the operational home for rights and business; it is wholly owned by Peanuts Holdings LLC
- Accounting note: With Sony's bigger stake, Peanuts Holdings LLC (including Peanuts Worldwide) becomes a consolidated subsidiary of Sony Group
- Who is running it: SMEJ will lead day-to-day management in partnership with Sony Pictures Entertainment
Why this matters (beyond the merch aisle)
Peanuts started as Charles M. Schulz's comic strip in 1950 and has grown into a global machine across TV, streaming, digital, consumer products, and live events. It's evergreen, it sells in every quarter, and it comes with built-in seasonal moments. In other words: this is catnip for a company that can exploit it across film, TV, music, games, and licensing pipelines.
'We have been part of the Peanuts partnership since 2018, and with this bigger stake we plan to boost the brand using the Sony Group's global network and expertise,' said SMEJ president and group CEO Shunsuke Muramatsu.
Sony Pictures Entertainment boss Ravi Ahuja called Peanuts 'enduring and iconic' and said they plan to keep working with WildBrain and the Schulz family as they chart what's next for the franchise.
So what changes?
Operationally, Peanuts Worldwide still holds and runs the rights. The difference is governance and scale: with Sony now at 80% through its music and pictures divisions, Peanuts gets folded into Sony Group's books and strategy, and SMEJ takes the driver's seat on management.
Translation: expect Sony to swing the full company toolkit at Peanuts. If you thought Snoopy was everywhere before, clear some shelf space.