Unscripted producer Wheelhouse has acquired Matthew Kelly and Michael Sorensen’s production company, Anomaly Entertainment.
Wheelhouse, which is home to Netflix’s “Calabasas Confidential” and “Million Dollar Secret,” will now own Anomaly, which was founded in 2017 by Kelly and Sorensen, who are producers and former Discovery Channel commissioners.
Anomaly is best known for delivering a slate of unscripted programs for Discovery’s annual Shark Week, which has totaled to 40 shows, including “Shaq Does Shark Week,” “Great White Abyss,” “Jaws Awakens,” “Legend of Deep Blue” and “Jackass Shark Week.” It will produce “KPop Shark Heroes” starring Ken Jeong and Rei Ami.
Beyond “Shark Week,” Anomaly serves as a supplier to Warner Bros. Discovery, as well as Netflix, HBO Max, ESPN+ and NFL Films.
“Few folks in our world have had the success that Matt and Mike have on both sides of the aisle, buyers and sellers,” Wheelhouse CEO Brent Montgomery said in statement. “We see not just a great cultural fit, especially with their broad work with athletes, entertainers and creators, but also new muscles brought to the Wheelhouse ecosystem.”
“Anomaly was looking for a partner that could help us scale and grow strategically for the future, and for us to land at Wheelhouse is a full circle moment,” Kelly and Sorensen said in a joint statement. “We’ve known Brent a long time and, for us, not only did he and Wheelhouse recognize the value of the business we’ve created, but they also saw synergy in our vision, which is to produce content that elevates talent, especially today’s leading creators and sports figures, and tell their stories in exciting, authentic ways. We’re thrilled to be part of the Wheelhouse family and eager to expand Anomaly across new platforms, while offering even greater capabilities to our clients and collaborators.”
As Anomaly gets folded into Wheelhouse, Kelly and Sorensen will continue creating series and large-scale global formats for the sports, celebrity, comedy and science arena for streaming, YouTube and other platforms.
Anomaly already has a strong background collaborating with creators and celebrities, including Mark Rober, Dude Perfect, Tiffany Haddish, Snoop Dogg, Tracey Morgan, Shaquille O’Neil and Ludacris, among others.
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