 | |
| Industry | Entertainment |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2010; 15 years ago (2010) |
| Founder |
|
| Headquarters | Beverly Hills, California, United States |
Key people |
|
| Products |
|
| Owner | Robert Kirkman, LLC |
| Parent | Image Comics |
| Divisions |
|
| Subsidiaries |
|
| Website | www |
Skybound Entertainment is an American multiplatform entertainment company founded byRobert Kirkman and David Alpert.[5][6] It operates in concert withImage Comics.[7]
Skybound Entertainment is the company behind the long-running comic series,The Walking Dead,[8] created by Robert Kirkman andTony Moore. Since the company’s founding in 2010, Skybound has developed properties in traditional and new media, including comics, gaming, television, film, and digital media series. The company has since launched into the virtual reality space, and in 2017, created an in-house digital studio for online content.[9]
In 2016, Skybound Entertainment expanded internationally with the opening of Skybound North inVancouver,[10] led by formerLucasfilm Animation executiveCatherine Winder.
In April 2018, Skybound created Skybound Games to publishindie games and license video games based on its intellectual property.[11] In September 2018 it established Skybound Stories, a joint venture withSky Group creating narrative videos games for mobiles.[12]
In 2021, Skybound became the largest shareholder in the listed game developer 5th Planet Games.[13] This strategic move was aimed at gaining better access to the European market. Two years later, in 2023, Skybound became the majority shareholder of the company.
In addition to the Eisner Award-winning comic book series,The Walking Dead, Kirkman’s other titles include long-running superhero comicInvincible,Outcast,Super Dinosaur,Oblivion Song, andFire Power.
With a creator-owned driven platform, Skybound has also created other popular comic book titles that include fantasy adventure comicBirthright, by Josh Williamson, and the historical fiction comic,Manifest Destiny by Chris Dingess.
In 2017, Skybound released the revenge comic,Extremity, by creatorDaniel Warren Johnson, and their first vampire horror comic,Redneck, byDonny Cates.Kill the Minotaur by writers Christian Cantamessa and Chris Pasetto, and artist Lukas Ketner is set to hit comic shops on June 14, 2017. Recently[when?], they have also started "Skyward" from the writer of the TV showLucifer. In April 2021, it was announced a five issue miniseries calledSkybound X would launch to celebrate 10 years of Skybound, with the book featuring different stories per issue, with one story being Rick Grimes: 2000 by Kirkman andRyan Ottley.[14]
In February 2023, it was announced that Robert Kirkman and Lorenzo De Felici would launchVoid Rivals, a new series that would kick-off a new shared comic universe.[15] In June 2023, it was later revealed that the book would launch theEnergon Universe and that it would publish comics based onTransformers andG.I. Joe. This would includeVoid Rivals by Kirkman and De Felici,Transformers byDaniel Warren Johnson (which debuted in October 2023),Duke by Joshua Williamson and Tom Reilly (which debuted in December 2023), andCobra Commander by Williamson and Andrea Milana (which debuted in January 2024).[16]
In 2021, it was announced that Skybound would start a new line entitled Skybound Comet, with graphic novels meant forYA andMiddle Grade readers. The first of these books includeClementine: Book One byTillie Walden in July 2022,Everyday Hero Machine Boy by Tri Vuong and Irma Kniivila in September 2022, andSea Serpent's Heir Book One by Mairghread Scott and Pablo Tunica in October 2022.[17]
After Alpert and Kirkman's success withAMC’sThe Walking Dead, the duo announced plans for their second television adaptation for Kirkman's comic,Outcast in October 2013.[18] The series received a pickup order fromCinemax in February 2015.[19]Outcast centers on protagonist, Kyle Barnes, played byPatrick Fugit, fighting a demon that has plagued his small Virginia town for decades. The series lineup includesPhilip Glenister,Brent Spiner,Reg E. Cathey, andWrenn Schmidt. The first season premiered on June 3, 2016 and it was renewed for a second season.
Skybound partnered withViki to develop Korean pre-apocalyptic dramaFive Year. The series will be shot in Korea as a K-drama with a local cast and crew, and the parties plan to distribute the first 16-episode season on Korean television. The series, based on an original story by Kirkman, centers on a family facing an impending apocalypse within the next five years. In 2017, Skybound announced a partnership with 360 Powwow to produceFive Yearin various Latin American markets.
Skybound producedRobert Kirkman’s Secret History of Comics. This six-part docuseries explores a wide range of topics from the history and world of comic books and premiered on AMC on November 12, 2017.
In 2017, it was announced that a film based on Kirkman's second longest running comic seriesInvincible was being developed byUniversal Pictures, withSeth Rogen andEvan Goldberg set to write/direct/produce the film with Kirkman serving as an executive producer. In 2018, it was announced that anadult animated series also based onInvincible was being developed forAmazon Prime Video featuringSteven Yeun asInvincible andJ.K. Simmons asOmni-Man. The series is executive produced by Kirkman, who, in addition to serving as the creator, wrote the pilot and the season finale, with Simon Racioppa, David Alpert,Catherine Winder, Seth Rogen, and Evan Goldberg serving as co-executive producers. The series was released on March 26, 2021 to general acclaim and was renewed by Amazon for a second and third season, with the second season released in two parts; the first part released in November 2023 and the second part in March 2024. Following the second season finale the series was renewed for a fourth season on July 26, 2024. The third season released in February 2025. The company's other film projects include the feature filmAIR, starringThe Walking Dead’sNorman Reedus and Academy Award-nominated actorDjimon Hounsou. That same year, it was announced thatSpin Master Entertainment andAtomic Cartoons would make an animated television series based onSuper Dinosaur, a comic that Kirkman created alongsideJason Howard in 2011. Theshow launched in 2018.
In 2019, Universal Pictures announced the development ofRenfield, a horror-comedy film about the characterof the same name based on a pitch by Robert Kirkman, withChris McKay set to direct. The film was produced by McKay, Kirkman, David Alpert, Bryan Furst, and Sean Furst in a joint-venture between Skybound and Universal. It released on April 14, 2023.
In November 2023, Skybound announced that it had acquired theSpike and Mike's Festival of Animation.[20][21]
In 2015, Skybound released the first-ever narrative virtual reality series,Gone, for Samsung's Milk VR platform.Gone surrounds the disappearance of a young girl from a playground, and the family's journey in learning what happened. The series was filmed in 360 degrees and includes shifting perspectives with "hotspots." "Hotspots" are used as clues, offering a fully immersive experience.Gone was directed byJ.T. Petty
As of 2016, Skybound is set to produce a horror VR series,Lies Within, the first project out of Skybound’s partnership with interactive theatrical companyDelusion.
In 2017, Skybound opened an in-house studio to create and expand original digital content. Since the opening of the space, Skybound developed a Live.me series focusing on diversity in TV and media hosted byYvette Nicole Brown. Other original content filmed in the studio include the weekly seriesSkybound’s Happy Hour.Happy Hour features special guests every week to createThe Walking Dead inspired cocktails. Former guests have includedRoss Marquand andMichael Traynor.
 | |
| Company type | Division |
|---|---|
| Industry | Video games |
| Founded | April 4, 2018; 7 years ago (2018-04-04) |
| Founder | Robert Kirkman |
| Headquarters | , US |
| Parent | Skybound Entertainment |
| Divisions | Howyaknow, LLC |
| Website | www |
In April 2018, Skybound announced the formation of Skybound Games, a publishing division focused onindie games, while also forming a mobile division Howyaknow, LLC.[22] Coinciding with the announcement, the company also signed publishing deals for console versions of the gamesSlime Rancher andThe Long Dark.[22]
In October 2018, due to the collapse ofTelltale Games, Skybound Games announced they would be working on finishing up the final two episodes ofThe Walking Dead: The Final Season, "Broken Toys" and "Take Us Back", to end the game adaptation of their series.[23] In addition to continued digital release, Skybound Games also released physical editions of the game forPlayStation 4,Xbox One, andNintendo Switch.[24]
In February 2019, Skybound Games announced plans to release the remastered versions of six classicDungeon & Dragons games:Baldur's Gate,Baldur's Gate II,Baldur's Gate: Siege of Dragonspear,Icewind Dale,Planescape: Torment, andNeverwinter Nights, developed for modern computers byBeamdog, as console versions (both as physical and digital) later in the year.[25] In 2020, Skybound Entertainment raised a new round of funding from the gaming companyCom2uS Studios. The two companies signed a deal to develop aThe Walking Dead mobile game.[26]
Skybound's party game,Superfight, kickstarted in 2013.Superfight is a game where players battle made up superheroes against each other, in ridiculous, and often heated, hypothetical arguments. In 2014 Darin Ross partnered with Skybound to publish the game.Superfight has 19 expansion packs to date.
In 2017, Skybound signed a deal with Druid City Games for release of its gameThe Grimm Forest, which raised over $400,000 onKickstarter.
| Release date | Film | Details | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Director(s) | Production companie(s) | Distributor(s) | Budget | Gross | ||
| 2015 | Air | Christian Cantamessa | Automatik Entertainment | Stage 6 Films Vertical Entertainment | — | — |
| 2023 | Renfield | Chris McKay | Giant Wildcat | Universal Pictures | $65 million | $26.7 million |
| 2025 | The Electric State | Anthony Russo Joe Russo | AGBO | Netflix | $320 million | — |
| Year | Show | Details | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Creator(s) | Production companie(s) | Network(s) | Season(s) | Episodes | ||
| 2010–2022 | The Walking Dead | Based onThe Walking Dead by:Robert Kirkman andTony Moore andCharlie Adlard Developed by:Frank Darabont | Idiot Box Productions Circle of Confusion Valhalla Entertainment AMC Studios | AMC | 11 | 177 |
| 2015–2023 | Fear the Walking Dead | Based onThe Walking Dead by: Robert Kirkman and Tony Moore and Charlie Adlard Developed by: Robert Kirkman andDave Erickson | Square Head Pictures Circle of Confusion Valhalla Entertainment AMC Studios | 8 | 113 | |
| 2016 | Scare PewDiePie | Felix Kjellberg | Maker Studios | YouTube Red | 1 | 10 |
| 2016–2019 | Outcast | Based onOutcast by: Robert Kirkman and Paul Azaceta Developed by: Robert Kirkman | Circle of Confusion Fox International Studios | Cinemax | 2 | 20 |
| 2018–2019 | Super Dinosaur | Based onSuper Dinosaur by: Robert Kirkman andJason Howard Developed by: Kevin Burke Chris "Doc" Wyatt | Spin Master Entertainment Atomic Cartoons Corus Entertainment | Teletoon(Canada) | 1 | 26 |
| 2020–2021 | The Walking Dead: World Beyond | Based onThe Walking Dead by: Robert Kirkman and Tony Moore and Charlie Adlard Developed by:Scott M. Gimple Matthew Negrete | Idiot Box Productions Circle of Confusion Valhalla Entertainment AMC Studios | AMC | 2 | 20 |
| 2021–present | Invincible | Based onInvincible by: Robert Kirkman,Cory Walker andRyan Ottley Developed by: Robert Kirkman Simon Racioppa | Skybound North Wind Sun Sky Entertainment Point Grey Pictures Skybound Animation Amazon MGM Studios | Amazon Prime Video | 3 | 25 |
| 2022 | Tales of the Walking Dead | Based onThe Walking Dead by: Robert Kirkman and Tony Moore and Charlie Adlard Developed by: Scott M. Gimple Channing Powell | Illiterate Manifesto Idiot Box Productions Valhalla Entertainment Circle of Confusion AMC Studios | AMC AMC+ | 1 | 6 |
| 2023–present | The Walking Dead: Dead City | Based onThe Walking Dead by: Robert Kirkman and Tony Moore and Charlie Adlard Developed by: Eli Jorné | Idiot Box Productions Valhalla Entertainment Circle of Confusion Schneibot AMC Studios | AMC | 1 | 6 |
| Psi Cops | Bart Batchelor Chris Nielsen | Corus Entertainment Oddfellows Labs Skybound Galactic Wind Sun Sky Entertainment Sony Pictures Television | Adult Swim(Canada) | 1 | 24 | |
| The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon | Based onThe Walking Dead by: Robert Kirkman and Tony Moore and Charlie Adlard Developed by:David Zabel | Idiot Box Productions Valhalla Entertainment Circle of Confusion Remainder Men AMC Studios | AMC | 2 | 7 | |
| 2024 | The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live | Based onThe Walking Dead by: Robert Kirkman and Tony Moore and Charlie Adlard Developed by: Scott M. Gimple Danai Gurira Andrew Lincoln | Valhalla Entertainment Circle of Confusion Hush Hush Films Gurazoo Productions Idiot Box Productions AMC Studios | AMC | 1 | 6 |
| Classified | Kagiso Lediga | Diprente Films Amazon Studios | Amazon Prime Video Amazon Freevee | 1 | 8 | |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
