Blue Ant Media has entered an agreement to acquire Vancouver-headquartered studio Thunderbird Entertainment in a transaction valued at $89 million.

Announced Wednesday (Nov. 26), the transaction will see Blue Ant Media acquire all shares of Thunderbird at $1.77 per share.

The deal is subject to customary approvals, including from the Competition Bureau of Canada, the Toronto Stock Exchange and Thunderbird shareholders, according to a news release. It is expected to close in Q1 of calendar 2026.

Thunderbird Entertainment is the parentco of Great Pacific Media and animation studio Atomic Cartoons.

Following the acquisition, Thunderbird CEO Jennifer Twiner McCarron (pictured right) will join Blue Ant Studios to oversee its kids, young adult and animation business. Additionally, one Canadian independent Thunderbird board member will join the Blue Ant board of directors. The Blue Ant Media management team will remain unchanged.

Blue Ant Media went public earlier this year following its reverse takeover and management buyout agreement with Boat Rocker Media, which saw it acquire Toronto-based unscripted prodcos Insight Productions and Proper Television and animated company Jam Filled Entertainment. The company acquired the streaming company MagellanTV for US$12 million shortly after.

“The acquisition of Thunderbird is anticipated to add scale and complementary capabilities that strengthen Blue Ant’s studio business and enhance our earnings and cash flow,” said Blue Ant CEO Michael MacMillan (pictured left) in a statement. “Thunderbird’s world-class service work and proprietary content creation strengthens Blue Ant’s studio portfolio and fortifies our ability to develop, package and monetize content across multiple platforms, while improving operating efficiency across our combined businesses. We are thrilled to carry on the momentum we started with the RTO this summer.”

Added Twiner McCarron: “This transaction brings Thunderbird into a larger, more diversified media group with stronger commissioning opportunities, global distribution and greater emphasis on IP ownership and monetization. It creates a powerful platform for future growth, while also delivering compelling value for shareholders.”

In a call with investors on Wednesday morning, MacMillan said the deal was the result of “direct negotiation and discussion between Thunderbird and Blue Ant” following the closure of its RTO in August.

“For Blue Ant, this acquisition strengthens our studio business in several important ways,” he said. “It expands our production capacity as well as our technical innovation, specifically the use of AI in our production workflows. It brings added distribution opportunities and consumer products expertise, and enhances our ability to develop, package and monetize content across multiple platforms with existing and new global customers.”

“Financially, we expect annual cost synergies of $7 million, which can start to be realized shortly after close, driven by duplicated public company costs and other efficiencies,” he added.

Blue Ant also reported its Q4 and year-end financial results for fiscal 2025. The company saw a 4% increase in revenue for the fiscal year, coming to $204 million from $196.4 million in fiscal 2024.

The increase was attributed to growth in smart-TV advertising and increased revenue from its acquisitions of Insight, Proper and Jam Filled in the Boat Rocker deal. The increase was offset by fewer production deliveries in fiscal 2025 compared to the prior year.

The addition of the former Boat Rocker-owned companies also drove a 12% increase in revenue for Q4, coming to $60.8 million from $54.2 million in Q4 2024.

Thunderbird released its Q1 fiscal 2026 financial results as well. Revenue fell by 19% to $36.8 million in the quarter from $45.7 million in Q1 2025. The decrease was due to a delay in production deliveries.

“As the entertainment industry continues to evolve, scale and global reach are becoming more important than ever. To compete, grow, and bring stories to wider audiences, Thunderbird needs to be part of a larger organization with strong resources and global connections,” said Twiner McCarron in the investor call. “Joining Blue Ant Media allows Thunderbird Entertainment to do exactly that.”

Updated on Nov. 26 

Photo of Michael MacMillan by Christopher Wahl

Photo of Jennifer Twiner McCarron courtesy of Thunderbird Entertainment