The New York Times Company is in exclusive negotiations to acquire the online movie buff community Letterboxd, the Times reported Thursday.
The price is reported to be about $330 million, which amounts to more than 20 times Letterboxd’s projected earnings for 2026 of about $15 million. The New York Times said that the deal was not yet final.
Variety reported in September that the New York Times and A24 were among the bidders for the company, with Netflix, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Skydance, private-equity giant TPG and Reddit co-creator Alexis Ohanian also expressing interest.
Co-founders Matthew Buchanan and Karl von Randow are expected to remain in charge, reporting to a N.Y. Times executive, the report said.
A24 had promised independence in operating the site, but dropped out when the price rose, according to the report. Letterboxd numbers some 30 million film-obsessed users who use the site to keep track of what they have watched and rate the titles with a star system.
The purchase would be a natural continuation of companies the Times has acquired including The Athletic, Wirecutter and Wordle.
Variety has contacted the New York Times for comment.
Source: Variety · Pat Saperstein
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