Arcane: League of Legends Creator Buys a Stake in Animation Studio

ign.com:

Riot Games, the creator of League of Legends, has bought a "significant, non-controlling stake" in the animation studio behind Netflix's Arcane.

Riot Games has strengthened its longtime partnership with Fortiche Production, the studio handling animation duties for Arcane, through a new equity investment that will see the League of Legends developer and publisher taking a "non-controlling stake and board advisory role" in the company, following a recent collaboration on the hit Netflix series.

Artwork released to celebrate the collaboration between Riot and Fortiche. (Image credit: Riot Games)

Under the terms of the investment, which closed earlier this year, the board advisory roles at Fortiche will be headed up by Riot's Director of Corporate Development, Brendan Mulligan, and Riot's Chief Content Officer, Brian Wright. Wright is a former Netflix executive, who was hired in September to develop the company's global film, TV and animation strategies.

Riot Games is known for developing and publishing League of Legends and Valorant, and the company is currently working with Fortiche on the second season of Arcane, the critically acclaimed animated series that takes place in the League of Legends universe, as well as "other to-be-announced projects," according to the press release announcing the investment.

"The various collaborations with Riot Games, and especially Arcane, have made Fortiche Production a new major player on the international animation scene," said the co-founders of Fortiche. "Riot Games, by trusting us, has given us the means to achieve our common ambitions and has shown that it is possible to offer new content that can reach a large audience. In 2023, we will celebrate ten years of collaboration: there is no