Meadowlark, the production company set up by former ESPN boss John Skipper, has struck its latest sports deal – inking a first-look deal with Backstage Media, Deadline reports.
Backstage Media is a content development company founded by former ESPN and NFL exec John Marvel and Sports Illustrated writer and podcaster Mike Silver.
The deal will see the two companies develop several projects in audio and television across multiple sports.
Marvel is the former managing editor of news and features at NFL Media Group and ex-VP and executive editor of ESPN.com and also worked at Golf Digest Properties, while Silver has contributed to NFL 360 and co-authored with Kurt Warner book All Things Possible that has been adapted as feature film American Underdog.
It is the latest deal for Meadowlark, which was founded by Skipper and national radio and podcast host, Dan Le Batard in 2021. Last week, it teamed with GQ Studios to adapt Joshua Hammer’s longform story Angels of the Avalanche Age as a feature doc and last November struck a first-look deal with Apple.
“There is no bigger advocate of storytelling than John Skipper and Meadowlark is the perfect partner for Backstage Media,” said John Marvel, managing partner of Backstage. “Having worked with John and Dan in the past, it makes perfect sense for us to team together on a variety of projects given their like-minded passion for pushing boundaries.”
“It’s a thrill to join forces with a media company committed to fiercely independent voices and fearless storytelling,” Silver added. “John Marvel and I have access to some of the most compelling personalities in sports and entertainment, and the opportunity to fuse our creative efforts with the vision and leadership of John Skipper and his team is an absolute dream.”
“We founded Meadowlark to tell great stories,” said John Skipper, Meadowlark CEO.” We’re thrilled to add Mike, John, and Backstage to the network of creators we’re building, as they both have a terrific eye for finding premier content.”
