Jimmy Kimmel is forging a new path with his production company. Kimmel has divested his stake in Wheelhouse Entertainment , the production group founded by Pawn Stars producer Brent Montgomery , and Wheelhouse similarly no longer owns a stake in the late-night comedian’s production company Kimmelot . The move comes after Alignment Growth, the investment vehicle run by Jeff Bewkes and Kevin Tsujihara, acquired a minority stake in Wheelhouse earlier this year, the first outside investment that Wheelhouse took since its launch.
Montgomery launched Wheelhouse Entertainment in January 2018 after he stepped down as CEO of ITV America, the U.S. arm of the company that acquired his group Leftfield Entertainment for $360M in 2014.
Kimmel came on board in November 2018 as a partner as he launched his own production company, Kimmelot, in partnership with Wheelhouse, taking an equity stake in the overall business at the time. The two companies will continue to work together on shows and Deadline understands the two companies have a number of projects in various stages of development and production. Since its launch, Kimmelot has produced series including ABC’s Live In Front Of A Studio Audience, Generation Gap and The Prank Panel as well as Hulu’s High Hopes and Comedy Central’s Crank Yankers .
The company also produces Who Wants To Be A Millionaire as well as ESPN docuseries Once Upon A Time In Queens: The Wild Ride of the ’86 Mets . It is run by former CAA agent Scott Lonker..