NBA star Stephen Curry is on a roll. Not only is he one of the highest paid basketball players, he is now a Hollywood mogul. He has just inked a film and TV pact with Sony Pictures Entertainment.
Curry’s development deal will include gaming and virtual reality projects all under his new production company shingle, Unanimous Media.
The shingle is named for the Golden State Warriors point guard’s distinction in 2016 of becoming the first NBA player to sweep the Most Valuable Player Award’s 131 votes, according to Hollywood Reporter.
It is a first-look film and TV deal that can be branched off into electronics, gaming, and virtual reality. Unanimous Media work out of the Sony Pictures studio lot in Culver City, California.
Expect the projects to be family friendly given Curry’s lifestyle and beliefs. Curry often tweets psalms from the Bible to his 12.5 million followers. The film and TV development will focus on faith and family-friendly content. So far, no projects have been announced. Curry did, however, say in a statement the he hopes to use the platform to “affect the world positively” and “share inspiring content.”
“I’ve been blessed to have this platform and I want to use it to affect the world positively,” Curry, 30, said in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter. “Partnering with Sony to share inspiring content with a global audience was a foregone conclusion.”
The dollar amount of the deal was not publicly disclosed, but Sony said the multiyear-media deal was the biggest ever for a professional athlete, Market Watch reported.
This seems to be a good time for the Curry. In 2017, he signed the NBA’s richest contract–$201 million over five years. To date, it’s the biggest sports deal ever outside of baseball. Curry also has several endorsement deals, including Under Armor and JPMorgan Chase, which pay him about $35 million annually, according to Forbes. And, he topped the list of best-selling jerseys among consumers for three years in a row. In fact, he has been called by other ballplayers and basketball observers the greatest shooter in NBA history.
“We’re thrilled to work alongside Steph to bring his positive, affirming brand to create content in the scripted and non-scripted television landscape,” said Chris Parnell, co-president of Sony Pictures Television, in a statement.
Curry is currently on the injured list. The Golden State Warriors guard is recuperating from a badly sprained ankle. But he is expected to rejoin the team during the second round of the NBA playoffs.
Curry’s wife, Ayesha, has had a long-running cooking show on Discovery Communications’ Food Network.
Congratulations @StephenCurry30 w/ ur partnership with sony..We're excited!! #comingsoon #staypositive
— MD (@mmrd1996) April 23, 2018
