Key facts
- The Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) has filed a lawsuit against Penske Media, alleging fraudulent acquisition of the Golden Globe Awards.
- The suit claims Penske Media used its control over Hollywood trade publications to instigate a boycott and make the HFPA vulnerable to acquisition.
- The HFPA is seeking at least $150 million and the reversal of the Golden Globes' asset acquisition.
- Penske Media, through a spokesperson, denied the allegations, stating the transaction closed years ago and received all necessary approvals.
The Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) has filed a lawsuit in California federal court against Penske Media, alleging the company fraudulently acquired the Golden Globe Awards. The HFPA, which owned and operated the awards show until 2023, claims Penske Media orchestrated a scheme to monopolize the awards market by leveraging its control over Hollywood trade publications to instigate a boycott of the HFPA, making it vulnerable to acquisition.
The lawsuit brings claims for monopolization, unjust enrichment, and fraudulent misrepresentation, seeking at least $150 million and a court order to undo the acquisition of the Golden Globes' assets, rights, and properties. The complaint states the acquisition was part of a "clandestine scheme to fraudulently acquire the prestigious and valuable 80-year-old Golden Globe Awards, destroy their founder and former owner, the HFPA, and exert monopolistic control over the Hollywood trades, awards, and advertising markets."
According to the lawsuit, after a media campaign criticizing the HFPA for lacking diversity led to an industry-wide boycott, Eldridge chairman Todd Boehly became interim CEO of the HFPA and worked with then-president Helen Hoehne to fast-track an acquisition. The HFPA claims this negotiation was "conflicted and corrupt," with Boehly sitting on both sides of the deal. The suit also alleges that terms were changed after closing to allow a $27.5 million gift from the HFPA's 2023 profits to Eldridge, an amendment that was allegedly not properly presented or ratified.
Shortly after, Boehly announced a partnership with Penske Media owner Jay Penske for the deal. The lawsuit argues this positioned Penske to control entertainment news and maintain a monopoly over advertising revenue streams.
A spokesperson for the Golden Globes dismissed the lawsuit as "absurdity and irrationality" from a "defunct organization." They stated the transaction closed over three years ago with all required approvals and that any assertion of reversal is false. The spokesperson characterized the suit as an attempt by former HFPA members to divert resources from charitable causes.