Vox Media Acquires Award-Winning Film and TV Producer, Epic

Epic Brings its Academy Award-Winning and New York Times Bestselling Nonfiction Storytelling Capability to Vox Media’s Audiences and Advertising Partners

Monday, April 15, 2019 (New York, New York) — Vox Media, the leading modern media company, announced today the acquisition of Epic, which includes Epic Magazine, the nonfiction storytelling powerhouse, and its sister company Epic Digital, the true story consultancy and content studio for leading brands. The Epic team is behind such films as Argo and the upcoming Apple series, Little America, and has projects at major studios such as 21st Century Fox and MGM, and brands such as IBM, Google, GE, and Ford.

This marks Vox Media’s first acquisition in the film and entertainment space. Epic will remain an independent division within Vox Media Studios, the company’s entertainment unit that creates and distributes premium programming for film, television, and podcasting.

Epic has over 40 film and TV projects currently in development and has a first-look deal with 21st Century Fox. Current projects include Little America, the anthology series coming to Apple’s streaming service with Kumail Nanjiani, Emily V. Gordon, Alan Yang and showrunner Lee Eisenberg serving as executive producers alongside Epic co-founders Joshuah Bearman and Josh Davis; a film about the Silk Road drug empire scripted by the Coen brothers; the forthcoming feature film King of the Jungle, starring Seth Rogen and Michael Keaton, based on the Wired article by Davis; and a film that will center on John DeLorean, with George Clooney set to direct. Epic also specializes in finding and telling captivating nonfiction stories on behalf of Fortune 500 businesses such as Google, IBM, GE, Ford, and many more, and is behind projects including Google: Moonshot and GE: Together We Work.

Based in California, Epic was founded in 2013 by Bearman and Davis and includes the leadership team of Dan Fierman (General Manager & Editor-in-Chief), Kiana Moore (Head of Epic Digital), Arthur Spector (Head of Film & TV) and Melis Tusiray (Chief of Staff & Head of Operations).

Since its founding 10 years ago, Vox Media has defined what it means to be a modern media company. With high quality, impactful storytelling across many platforms, technology that enables creators, and innovative businesses, Vox Media is committed to building a better future for the industry — and getting the future of media right. Publishing across dynamic platforms, the breadth and depth of Vox Media’s work could surprise even the most avid fan. Since Vox Media moved into the OTT and television space they’ve seen the success of shows such as Eater’s No Passport Required (PBS), Vox’s Explained (Netflix), and American Style (CNN). Additionally, the Vox Media Podcast Network is one of the fastest-growing collections of high-quality podcasts and home to more than 100 active shows.

Vox Media’s acquisition of Epic both expands and deepens this work. Together, the teams can hunt for stories that both astonish and resonate, bringing them to an ever-curious and ever-widening audience. The acquisition also expands Vox Media’s diverse suite of advertising capabilities, which currently includes the Vox Creative brand studio and the Concert advertising marketplace. Epic’s unique and powerful approach to branded content can now also benefit Vox Media clients.

“In Epic, I see not only a company known for sophisticated, character-driven work, but also a group of innovators who, like Vox Media, set out to build a new business model to sustain great storytelling — for the benefit of both consumers and brands,” said Marty Moe, President of Vox Media Studios. “With the distribution power and infrastructure that Vox Media has honed over the past decade, Epic’s important work will entertain and inform more fans than ever before.”

“We started our companies to thrill, surprise, and entertain audiences with big, ambitious true stories and cannot wait to continue that work inside the Vox Media family. The team at Vox Media shares our commitment to create innovative nonfiction and elevate the journalistic craft, something that feels more important than ever,” said Joshuah Bearman.

“We launched Epic Digital because people just want brands to tell the truth. Companies have an opportunity right now to reconnect with audiences by finding real stories and telling them well. Epic Digital helps by embedding story hunters inside a company and then working to bring those stories to life in fun, innovative ways that actually connect with audiences,” said Josh Davis.

About Vox Media
Vox Media is the leading independent modern media company. Known for building the best media brands and the technology that enables them, we are committed to building a better future for the industry — and getting the future of media right. Vox Media’s editorial networks include Vox, The Verge, SB Nation, Eater, Polygon, Recode, and Curbed. Our diverse storytelling and advertising businesses include the Concert publisher-led marketplace, the Vox Creative brand studio, the Chorus publishing platform, and the company’s entertainment division Vox Media Studios, which includes the Vox Media Podcast Network and Epic.

About Epic
Epic was founded by journalists Josh Davis and Joshuah Bearman in 2013 to publish extraordinary true stories that get noticed. Based in California, Epic works with Fortune 500 companies like Google and IBM to provide brand insights and more than 40 of our articles have been optioned by Hollywood, including Argo, which won the Academy Award for Best Picture. Epic’s first television show, Little America, is forthcoming on the new Apple streaming service later this year.

Contact:

Vox Media
Meridith Webster
meridith.webster@voxmedia.com

Epic
Melis Tusiray
melis@epicmagazine.com

Find us:
@voxmediainc
@epic