The auction math
Lenders are putting the 55-acre Radford Studio Center in Studio City on the block at a foreclosure auction scheduled for Nov. 24 in Pomona. Netflix, which had been negotiating to buy the property from a Goldman Sachs-led lender group, is expected to be the top bidder.
The lender group is seeking an estimated $1.3 billion, roughly the debt tied to the lot. But the final price is likely to land far below that. Netflix has considered paying as much as $400 million, about 22% of the $1.85 billion Hackman Capital paid for Radford in 2021.
A Netflix spokesperson said the deal is “progressing on the agreed upon timetable and with the agreed upon sets of milestone dates.” A person familiar with the situation was blunter: “It’s a done deal.”
Why owning beats renting
Netflix has built its Los Angeles footprint mostly as a tenant. It has been the anchor at Hudson Pacific Properties’ Sunset Studios and has also shot at Raleigh Studios. Owning Radford would give it a sprawling production campus and a way to consolidate shoots now spread across the region.
That is a cost-structure move, not just a facilities upgrade. Since 2018, Netflix has filmed more than 300 movies and TV shows primarily in Los Angeles. Converting rent into owned capacity can lower the marginal cost of producing at a time when every content dollar is under scrutiny.
- Likely price: about $400 million, versus a $1.85 billion 2021 valuation.
- Scale: a 55-acre production campus in Studio City.
- Strategic shift: from anchor tenant to owner-operator.
The office signal
A second data point sits behind the auction. Cushman & Wakefield is marketing a loan secured by Netflix’s animation office on Vine Street, a roughly 95,000-square-foot campus fully leased to Netflix through January 2031, with $23.8 million in remaining rent. The offering is for the debt, not the property.
That does not mean Netflix plans to leave. One person close to the company said there have not been any conversations with the landlord about changing the Vine lease. The timing is still notable because that lease expires months before Netflix’s ICON, EPIC and CUE leases at Sunset Studios expire in September 2031.
What to watch
A competing bidder could still appear and push the price above $400 million. Private equity or institutional real estate investors could see a distressed asset, though appetite is thought to be limited with LA production near historic lows.
For the screen business, the takeaway is not just a real estate headline. If Netflix secures a major Los Angeles campus at roughly one-fifth of its prior sale price, it has lower fixed costs and more control of production capacity, which can translate into more competitive commissioning and a stronger negotiating position with creators, crews and vendors.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
