Reese Witherspoon's media company "Hello Sunshine" recently courted various buyers, and while Apple was one of parties interested in buying Hello Sunshine, the Cupertino company did not end up going through with the purchase.
Hello Sunshine was valued at around $900 million thanks to its involvement in popular series like The Morning Show," "Big Little Lies," and "Little Fires Everywhere," and it would have marked Apple's largest media purchase to date had a deal been established.
Instead, Hello Sunshine is being purchased by an upcoming media venture run by two former Disney executives backed by Blackstone Group. According to The Wall Street Journal, the purchase was made as part of a plan to build an independent entertainment company.
There is no word on how much was paid for Hello Sunshine, but Reese Witherspoon and current CEO Sarah Harden will join the board of the new company and will continue to operate it.
Though Apple did not purchase Hello Sunshine, the two companies will continue to work together. Hello Sunshine is responsible for "The Morning Show" and it is involved in multiple upcoming Apple TV+ projects including "Surface" starring Gugu Mbatha-Raw, "The Last Thing He Told Me" with Julia Roberts, and country music reality series "My Kind of Country."
Recent rumors have suggested that Apple is exploring other purchase opportunities and has expressed interest in film studio A24. A24 has developed hit movies like "Hereditary," "Moonlight," "Lady Bird," and "Midsommar," plus it already has a content deal with Apple.
A24 and Apple have partnered on "Mr. Corman" and "On the Rocks" along with and upcoming films "Sharper," "The Sky is Everywhere," "The Tragedy of Macbeth," "Bride," and more.