LuckyChap Entertainment
| Company type | Privately held company |
|---|---|
| Industry | Film and television production |
| Founded | 2014 |
| Founder | Margot Robbie, Tom Ackerley, Josey McNamara, Sophia Kerr |
| Headquarters | Los Angeles, Bromsgrove , United States, United Kingdom |
Area served | British and American markets |
Key people | Margot Robbie (Founder), Tom Ackerley (Founder), Josey McNamara (Founder), Sophia Kerr (Founder), Brett Hedblom (Vice President of Television) |
| Products | Films and television series emphasizing female perspectives |
LuckyChap Entertainment Limited is a privately held production company operating across British and American markets, established in 2014 by Margot Robbie, Tom Ackerley, Josey McNamara, and Sophia Kerr. With offices based in Los Angeles and Bromsgrove, the firm specializes in projects that emphasize female perspectives in film and television.
The company's slate features acclaimed titles such as I, Tonya (2017), Hulu's Dollface (2019), Birds of Prey and Promising Young Woman (both released in 2020), Netflix's Maid (2021), along with the 2023 films Barbie and Saltburn.
By the year 2024, productions from LuckyChap have collectively garnered 25 nominations at the Academy Awards and 18 nods from BAFTA. Their inaugural feature, I, Tonya, earned the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in 2018. The film Promising Young Woman was honored with both the Academy Award and BAFTA for Best Original Screenplay and Outstanding British Film in 2021. In 2024, the film Barbie secured the Academy Award for Best Original Song.
Formation
LuckyChap Entertainment was created by Margot Robbie, Tom Ackerley, Sophia Kerr, and Josey McNamara. Robbie, an Australian actress recognized for prominent roles in films such as The Wolf of Wall Street, Suicide Squad, and The Legend of Tarzan, sought to gain more artistic autonomy through establishing this company.
Robbie and Kerr both hail from Queensland's Gold Coast, while British partners McNamara and Ackerley brought extensive experience as assistant directors to the team. Robbie met Ackerley during the filming of Suite Française in 2013; their relationship began in 2014 and they wed in 2016. Following a shared experience at the London premiere of The Wolf of Wall Street, all four founders relocated to a residence in Clapham, London, where they conceived the idea of launching a production company. The name "LuckyChap" is a nod to Charlie Chaplin, though its precise meaning remains ambiguous. Brett Hedblom holds the position of Vice President for television at LuckyChap.
Productions
LuckyChap Entertainment’s first major cinematic release came in 2017 with I, Tonya, a biographical drama centered on American figure skater Tonya Harding, featuring Margot Robbie in the lead role. Made on an $11 million budget, this theatrical debut earned Allison Janney an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, alongside wins at BAFTA and Golden Globe awards plus multiple other nominations. This achievement firmly established LuckyChap’s reputation within the industry.
In 2018, LuckyChap co-produced the neo-noir thriller Terminal alongside Beagle Pug Films and Highland Film Group. Although filmed prior to I, Tonya, it did not perform well commercially, generating $843,970 compared to I, Tonya’’’s $53.9 million box office revenue.
In 2019, LuckyChap collaborated with Automatik Entertainment and Paramount Pictures to release Dreamland, a period action drama set in the 1930s that was filmed two years earlier, starring Robbie as an outlaw figure. That same year, the company took part in Film Victoria's Placement Program aimed at fostering emerging female producers.
Broadening its scope into television, Brett Hedblom was appointed Vice President of Television. In 2018, LuckyChap sold the comedy series Dollface to Hulu, which debuted in 2019. Produced jointly with ABC Signature Studios and Clubhouse Pictures, it stars Kat Dennings.
Throughout 2019, LuckyChap worked on producing Birds of Prey (And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn), which premiered in early 2020. This film was created in partnership with Clubhouse Pictures and Warner Bros., directed by Cathy Yan. As part of the DC Extended Universe, it focuses on Harley Quinn assembling an all-female superhero ensemble. The movie earned over $200 million globally, becoming LuckyChap’s highest-grossing release at that point.
In 2020, they launched Promising Young Woman, a female-centric revenge black comedy directed by Emerald Fennell starring Carey Mulligan. Co-produced with FilmNation Entertainment and Focus Features, it received widespread critical praise and secured an Academy Award along with two BAFTA honors.
LuckyChap maintains a first-look agreement with Warner Bros. Pictures and Warner Bros. Television for developing both films and series. Under this arrangement, they co-produced Barbie (2023) alongside Mattel Films and Warner Bros., featuring Margot Robbie. Initially slated for release in 2017 but postponed multiple times, it finally premiered in July 2023 alongside Oppenheimer, giving rise to the cultural phenomenon dubbed "Barbenheimer." With global box office receipts exceeding US$1.4 billion, Barbie became both the top-grossing film of 2023 and LuckyChap’s most commercially successful project to date.
Focus
LuckyChap Entertainment defines itself as an organization committed to elevating female narratives created by women, aiming to confront gender disparities prevalent in the film sector, particularly among directors and screenwriters.
In 2019, the company collaborated with Christina Hodson, known for writing action titles such as Birds of Prey and Bumblebee, to initiate the 'Lucky Exports Pitch Program' (LEPP). This month-long program brought together six female screenwriters, including four women of color, who worked collectively in a writers' room to develop action-oriented scripts.
The company prioritizes employing predominantly female production teams and centers its projects around women-led stories. Executive Margot Robbie has expressed her initial interest in male characters due to their more compelling story arcs. Academic analysts A. Setianto and M. Win recognize Birds of Prey for its depiction of women's quests for autonomy, while N. Curtis and V. Cardo interpret the character Quinn as a symbol of agency over her own body and sexuality.
Location
LuckyChap Entertainment originally operated from a modest office situated on the Warner Bros lot in Los Angeles. Following growth, the company moved to a more spacious location in Downtown Los Angeles, designed to foster an "open, collaborative environment" with a feminine touch, highlighted by a custom neon sign displaying the LuckyChap name.
Future
Through their Warner Bros partnership, LuckyChap sold the television project Shattered Glass to NBC. Robbie and Hedblom teamed up with Australia's ABC network, Hoodlum production company, ABC Studios International, and Robbie's agent Aran Michael to develop Shakespeare Now, a ten-episode series reimagining William Shakespeare from women's perspectives with an entirely female production crew. In December 2020, LuckyChap secured a first-look television agreement with Amazon Studios.
The firm co-produced Netflix’s dramedy Maid (2021), adapted from Stephanie Land’s memoir, alongside Molly Smith Metzler, John Wells Productions, and Warner Bros. Television.
Together with Scott Free Productions, LuckyChap is working on a film adaptation of Disney’s Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, with Michele and Kieran Mulroney penning the script and direction by Bert and Bertie.
Additionally, they are producing the holiday comedy Naughty, which is directed by Olivia Wilde.
In March 2024, LuckyChap announced a collaboration with Vertigo Entertainment to develop a feature film inspired by the life simulation game The Sims.
Films
| † | Indicates titles pending release |
| Year | Title | Director | Box Office | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | I, Tonya | Craig Gillespie | $53.9 million | |
| 2018 | Terminal | Vaughn Stein | $843,970 | |
| 2019 | Dreamland | Miles Joris-Peyrafitte | $320,814 | |
| 2020 | Birds of Prey | Cathy Yan | $205.4 million | |
| Promising Young Woman | Emerald Fennell | $20.3 million | ||
| 2021 | The Humming of the Beast | Francisca Alegría | — | |
| 2023 | Boston Strangler | Matt Ruskin | — | |
| Barbie | Greta Gerwig | $1.446 billion | ||
| Saltburn | Emerald Fennell | $21 million | ||
| 2024 | My Old Ass | Megan Park | $5.7 million | |
| 2025 | Borderline | Jimmy Warden | $8,254 | |
| 2026 | Wuthering Heights | Emerald Fennell | rowspan="13" Template:Unreleased | |
| rowspan="12" scope="row" Template:TBA | Avengelyne | Olivia Wilde | ||
| Bad Bridgets | Rich Peppiatt | |||
| Big Thunder Mountain Railroad | Bert and Bertie | |||
| Everybody Wants to Fuck Me | Jonathan Schey | |||
| Monopoly | TBA | |||
| My Year of Rest and Relaxation | Yorgos Lanthimos | |||
| Naughty | Olivia Wilde | |||
| Oceans | Lee Isaac Chung | |||
| Tank Girl | Miles Joris-Peyrafitte | |||
| The Sims | Kate Herron | |||
| Stagtown | Benjamin Brewer | |||
| Whoever You Are, Honey | TBA |
Television
| Year | Title | Network |
|---|---|---|
| 2019–22 | Dollface | Hulu |
| 2021 | Maid | Netflix |
| 2022 | Mike | Hulu |
| 2025 | Sirens | Netflix |
| TBA | The Wildest Animals in Griffith Park | TBA |
| Life Is Strange | Amazon Prime Video | |
| Sterling Point |
Awards and nominations
| Award | Year | Category | Project | Recipient | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Academy Awards | 2018 | Best Actress | I, Tonya | Margot Robbie | Template:Nom |
| Best Supporting Actress | I, Tonya | Allison Janney | Template:Won | ||
| Best Film Editing | I, Tonya | Tatiana S. Riegel | Template:Nom | ||
| 2021 | Best Picture | Promising Young Woman | Ben Browning, Ashley Fox, Emerald Fennell, Josey McNamara | Template:Nom | |
| Best Director | Promising Young Woman | Emerald Fennell | Template:Nom | ||
| Best Actress | Promising Young Woman | Carey Mulligan | Template:Nom | ||
| Best Original Screenplay | Promising Young Woman | Emerald Fennell | Template:Won | ||
| Best Film Editing | Promising Young Woman | Frédéric Thoraval | Template:Nom | ||
| 2024 | Best Picture | Barbie | David Heyman, Margot Robbie, Tom Ackerley, Robbie Brenner | Template:Nom | |
| Best Supporting Actor | Barbie | Ryan Gosling | Template:Nom | ||
| Best Supporting Actress | Barbie | America Ferrera | Template:Nom | ||
| Best Adapted Screenplay | "Barbie" | "Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach" | Template:Nom | ||
| Best Costume Design | "Barbie" | "Jacqueline Durran" | Template:Nom | ||
| Best Original Song | "I'm Just Ken" | "Mark Ronson and Andrew Wyatt" | Template:Nom | ||
| "What Was I Made For?" | "Billie Eilish and Finneas O'Connell" | Template:Won | |||
| Best Production Design | "Barbie" | "Sarah Greenwood and Katie Spencer" | Template:Nom | ||
| British Academy Film Awards | 2018 | Best Actress in a Supporting Role | I, Tonya | Allison Janney | Template:Won |
| 2021 | Outstanding British Film | Promising Young Woman | Ben Browning, Emerald Fennell, Ashley Fox, Josey McNamara | Template:Won | |
| Best Original Screenplay | Promising Young Woman | Emerald Fennell | Template:Won | ||
| Golden Globe Awards | 2018 | Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture | I, Tonya | Allison Janney | Template:Won |
| Primetime Emmy Awards | 2022 | Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie | Maid | Margaret Qualley | Template:Nom |
| Outstanding Directing for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie | Maid | John Wells | Template:Nom | ||
| Outstanding Writing for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie | Maid | Molly Smith Metzler | Template:Nom |
External links
- Articles with short description
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- Entertainment enterprises founded in 2014
- American enterprises established in 2014
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- Margot Robbie
- Mass media enterprises founded in 2014
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