Todd Boehly
Todd Boehly was linked to a deal to take over The Telegraph with RedBird IMI
Chelsea owner Todd Boehly has been accused of committing fraud in his takeover of the Golden Globes in a lawsuit.
An anonymous group of former Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) members has submitted a legal filing to the California attorney general’s office.
In the filing, first reported by Puck and confirmed by The Telegraph, the group is urging the AG to look into alleged questionable dealmaking that gave the American billionaire control in 2023.
According to the lawsuit, Mr Boehly is said to have acted as both “purchaser” and seller in the transaction.
At the same time that his investment company bought the Globes, he is said to have been named interim head of the HFPA, which signed off on the deal, as per the court papers.
Puck reports that the HFPA had received another offer from investor Ron Burkle that would have paid members $125,000 a year – considerably more than Mr Boehly.
Jay Penske
In 2023, the Golden Globes’ assets were acquired by Boehly’s private equity firm, Eldridge Industries, along with Dick Clark Productions, which is owned by Jay Penske, the media tycoon.
The lawsuit accuses Mr Boehly of bringing in Mr Penske as a partner over the heads of the HFPA, who did not agree to his involvement.
This “was ostensibly done to cleanse the self-dealing and conflicts of interest presented by Boehly’s status as both the purchaser and the seller in this transaction”, the legal filing stated.
One member of the association, which has been rebranded as the Golden Globes Foundation, told Puck: “There’s no world in which any of us would have agreed to being part of the Penske entertainment media monopoly.”
Mr Boehly was last month linked to a deal to take over The Telegraph with RedBird IMI, the Emirati royal-backed joint venture.
RedBird subsequently exited the deal following new legislation blocking foreign states from owning newspaper assets in the UK.
Waiver needed
The lawsuit accused both Mr Boehly and Mr Penske of having committed fraud and breached their fiduciary duties with the takeover, particularly with regards to their attempts to convert the HFPA into a for-profit entity.
To do so, it will need to obtain a waiver from the California attorney general, which will not provide one if it believes “the proposed distribution of assets is not aligned with the organisation’s charitable purpose”.
Initially, authorities had signed off on the changes to the HFPA, a group of international entertainment journalists that has handed out the Globes for 80 years, and converting its members into employees of a for-profit enterprise.
However, final approval is still pending.
Joseph Zimring, the supervising deputy attorney general for the Charitable Trusts Section of Los Angeles, told Puck that his office was “currently reviewing the final request for a waiver of objection”.
Mr Boehly told the Los Angeles Times in 2022 that reconfiguring the HFPA as a for-profit entity would help professionalise a group that has been damaged for years by scandals and infighting.
The California attorney general’s office has independently been approached for comment by The Telegraph.
Mr Boehly has been approached for comment via Eldridge Industries. Mr Penske declined to comment.
The Golden Globes declined to comment.
Join the conversation
The Telegraph values your comments but kindly requests all posts are on topic, constructive and respectful. Please review our commenting policy.