Golden Globes sale was a 'sham,' Hollywood Foreign Press alleges in $150-million suit against Penske, others
The Hollywood Foreign Press Association has launched a 150-million-dollar lawsuit against media executive Jay Penske, billionaire Todd Boehly, and other entities regarding the 2023 sale of the Golden Globes. The legal filing describes the acquisition as a sham process built on fraud and monopolistic behavior.
The complaint alleges that Penske and Boehly engineered the 2022 industry boycott of the awards to drive down the value of the organization. By doing so, the suit claims they positioned themselves to acquire the show and its assets at a bargain while installing a for-profit model that effectively turned the awards into a pay-to-play system.
According to the lawsuit, the defendants established control over major industry trades, secondary awards, and critical advertising markets. This alleged monopoly gives them the ability to dictate entertainment news dissemination and control advertising revenue streams worth more than one billion dollars annually.
Attorneys for the HFPA also argue that charitable funds were diverted to serve commercial interests. The filing cites specific examples, such as using foundation money to cover expenses for for-profit viewing parties, and claims that former members were forced into employment with the new entity to maintain access to tickets and voting rights.
Penske Media has rejected the claims, labeling the lawsuit as an expression of irrationality from a defunct organization. The company maintains that the transaction closed three years ago with all necessary approvals, and they consider the current legal challenge to be an illegitimate distraction from the new management's operations.