Activist investor Carl Icahn and his son Brett made a last-minute approach to Relativity CEO Ryan Kavanaugh before the company’s Thursday bankruptcy filing, sources tell On the Money.
Icahn — who has previously held stakes in both MGM and Lions Gate — is rumored to be looking to install his son at the head of a studio, and Relativity may provide a possible director’s chair.
Icahn is believed to have held talks as late as last week.
But Kavanaugh wasn’t going for it. The money involved likely was not enough to change the murky financial picture at the Beverly Hills-based operation. Relativity laid off 75 staffers last week.
On Thursday, Relativity and its lenders filed for Chapter 11 and will move toward an auction process due to end by October.
Sources believe Icahn will be among those circling that auction price, hoping to do better than the one offered by “RM Bidder LLC,” a group likely composed of Relativity’s biggest debtholders.
Icahn most recently was a big stakeholder in Netflix and made up to $2 billion in profit after selling out.
Tinseltown spies wonder if Netflix’s Reed Hastings will be among those eyeing the 11-year-old mini-studio.
Even while in bankruptcy court, Relativity is expected to continue operating its film and TV business.
Icahn’s office did not return several calls for comment.