CAA signs Josh Wakely's Grace Games across all areas
Josh Wakely's Grace Games has signed with CAA for representation across all areas, Variety reported. The new interactive label sits inside Grace: A Storytelling Company and is focused on premium games rooted in globally recognized artists and cultural icons. Grace Games is developing an initial slate of several 8-to-15-hour single-player titles for console and PC. Wakely leads the label with chief operating officer Matt Tedder, formerly of Sprinklr, and chief product officer Daniel Lehrich, whose background includes Netflix Gaming, Activision and Disney. CAA will represent the company as entertainment IP, music rights and games continue to overlap.
THE BREAKDOWN
This is the agency packaging thesis moving into games with recognizable artist IP at the center. Representatives should separate game publishing rights, music rights, likeness rights, merchandise rights and screen adaptation rights before taking a project to market. A single-player title tied to a cultural icon can create soundtrack, live event and brand inventory if the rights stack is clean. Managers should avoid broad all-media grants when a game studio wants access to a client's catalog or likeness. Brand teams should watch these deals because playable IP can become a higher-engagement sponsorship surface than a standard content series.
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