NEW YORK — The New York Times Company is in exclusive talks to buy Letterboxd, the social network where tens of millions of film lovers log, rate and argue about movies, for about $330 million, according to a report in the Times itself on Thursday, 5 November 2026. The report, citing two people familiar with the discussions, stressed that no agreement has been reached and the negotiations could still fall apart — until a deal is signed, this is a story about a possible sale, not a completed one.
If the talks produce a deal, it would be one of the most striking media acquisitions of the year: a 175-year-old newspaper buying a community built by movie obsessives, at roughly 22 times the platform's projected 2026 earnings — and the latest step in the Times Company's transformation from newspaper publisher into digital products company, after The Athletic, Wirecutter and Wordle. For Letterboxd's members, the question is simpler: what happens to the diary, the lists and the community they built?
What Happened
On Thursday, 5 November 2026, the Times reported that its parent company had entered exclusive negotiations to acquire Letterboxd for roughly $330 million, according to two people familiar with the discussions. Exclusive talks mean the two sides are negotiating alone — a stage that usually signals serious intent, but guarantees nothing.
The proposed price is roughly 22 times Letterboxd's projected 2026 earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of about $15 million, according to the Times — 330 divided by 15 equals 22. It is a rich valuation — earnings of only about 4.5 per cent of the price — and it suggests the Times is buying Letterboxd not for what it earns today, but for what it could become inside a much larger digital business.
Under the terms under discussion, co-founders Matthew Buchanan and Karl von Randow would remain in charge, reporting to a Times Company executive, according to the Times. Letterboxd would most likely continue as a standalone site and app — keeping its own branding and community — while using the Times Company's advertising technology, the report said. Neither company has confirmed the talks: the Times Company declined to comment, according to Reuters, and Letterboxd has not announced a sale.
Reuters reported the talks and the price the same day, Deadline confirmed that evening that the company was in advanced talks, and The Verge and IndieWire also covered the negotiations. As of Monday, 9 November 2026, no new development has been reported — no signed agreement, no collapse, no official announcement. Four days on, the story remains where the Times left it: exclusive talks, a reported price, and no deal yet.
Illustration: A film lover's phone showing a movie-logging app, with a notebook and cinema ticket stubs on a desk.
Background
Letterboxd began in Auckland, New Zealand, in 2011, founded by Buchanan and von Randow as a place to log the films you watch, rate them, write reviews and follow friends whose taste you trust. Growth came slowly, then suddenly: about 3 million members in January 2021, 28 million by April 2026, and 30.7 million at the end of the second quarter of 2026 — up 43 per cent from a year earlier, TheWrap reported — with earlier reporting putting the count near 35 million by October 2026.
The growth has been driven overwhelmingly by young film fans: more than half of members are under 35, according to TIME, which reported in April 2026 that it had more than 28 million users across more than 190 countries; its biggest cohort is aged 18 to 24. LionTree banker Alex Michael described Letterboxd in September as "a phenomenon" that draws 30 million monthly users "with zero paid marketing". For media companies desperate to reach younger audiences, that combination is the asset.
In 2023, Canadian holding company Tiny acquired a 60 per cent stake, valuing Letterboxd at $50 million to $60 million, according to the Times; the co-founders kept the remaining 40 per cent. In about three years, the value being discussed has risen roughly sixfold — 330 divided by 55, the midpoint of the 2023 range, is six.
Tiny began seeking a buyer earlier this year, exploring a sale from July 2026 at around $250 million, according to Engadget. The price climbed through the year — $250 million, then $300 million in September, now the reported $330 million — as bidding intensified. Investment bank LionTree ran the sale process.
The list of suitors was long. Variety reported in September that the Times and A24 were among the bidders; Netflix, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Skydance, private equity firm TPG and Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian also expressed interest, according to the Times and other reports, as did an investor group led by Madison Wells chief executive Gigi Pritzker. A24 was at one point reported to be in late-stage talks, promising to keep Letterboxd independent, according to IndieWire — but was priced out as the number rose, Reuters reported. By Thursday night, Deadline reported, A24 was the only other remaining bidder, and it was out of the running. The Times, a newspaper rather than a studio, was left alone at the table.
That matters, because who buys Letterboxd shapes what it becomes: a studio owner would raise obvious conflict-of-interest questions, while a newspaper owner raises different ones, about advertising and subscriptions. According to TheWrap, a competing bidder had warned that other buyers could put parts of the service behind a paywall.
Why It Matters
The first reason this deal matters is the price, and what it says about the value of a passionate community. Letterboxd is projected to earn about $15 million in 2026, rising to more than $20 million in 2027, according to reports on the sale process. At $330 million, the Times would be paying about 22 times this year's earnings, or about 16.5 times next year's projected figure — 330 divided by 20 equals 16.5. Those are multiples more typical of fast-growing technology companies than of media businesses — a bet on a young audience notoriously hard for traditional media to reach.
The second reason is what Letterboxd would mean for the Times Company's strategy. The publisher has spent a decade building digital products beyond news — Wirecutter in 2016, Wordle in 2022, The Athletic in 2022 for $550 million. The strategy has worked: the company added 420,000 digital-only subscribers in the third quarter of 2026, taking its total to 13.8 million, according to Reuters, toward a 15 million goal by the end of 2027. Letterboxd would add something the bundle lacks: a social network organised around culture rather than news, sport or puzzles — and a direct line to the 18-to-24-year-olds who are its future subscribers.
The third reason is what the deal would mean for film culture itself. Letterboxd has become, for a generation of moviegoers, the place where film culture happens: where a small independent release finds its audience, a festival favourite builds word of mouth, and the canon is argued over in public, one star rating at a time. That is why the ownership question provokes such strong feelings: a community that feels owned by its members, built review by review over fifteen years, does not take kindly to being treated as an asset to be flipped.
Illustration: A cinema auditorium filled with an audience, faces lit by the glow of the screen and their phones.
The reassurances reported so far are designed to calm those fears: the founders would stay, the platform would remain standalone, and its branding untouched. But reassurances in a negotiation are not guarantees in a contract, and Letterboxd's members have seen beloved independent platforms change hands before. The tension between a community's sense of ownership and a corporation's need for a return on a $330 million investment is the real story of this deal, and it will not be resolved by a press release.
There is also a narrower, practical question: money. Letterboxd offers a free service alongside a paid membership, and its appeal rests partly on how much is available without paying. If the Times folded Letterboxd into its subscription bundle, or put popular features behind a paywall, it would change the economics of the platform for millions of users — and risk the goodwill that makes the community valuable. No change to pricing or access has been announced, and nothing in the reporting suggests the Times plans one — but the question will hang over the talks until the companies say otherwise.
What Happens Next
The next step is the simplest to describe and the hardest to predict: turning exclusive talks into a signed agreement. Exclusive negotiations do not guarantee a transaction, and deals at this stage can still collapse over price, final terms, or a change of heart. The Times' own report was explicit — no agreement has been reached, and the negotiations could still fall apart. Until a joint announcement or a regulatory filing appears, the acquisition remains a set of talks rather than a transaction.
If a deal is agreed, the questions will be about structure and timing: whether the Times pays cash, stock or a combination; what the final price is; and what is promised in writing about Letterboxd's independence, its free tier and its data practices. A signed deal would also bring scrutiny from Letterboxd's members and the film industry, watching for any sign that the platform's independence has been compromised.
If the talks collapse, Letterboxd would return to a market that has already shown how much it is wanted. The sale process drew interest from Netflix, Sony, Skydance, TPG, Alexis Ohanian and the Pritzker-led group, and a failed negotiation would not erase that interest, though it might reset the price. Tiny would face the same choice it faced in July: hold, or try again with another buyer.
For Letterboxd's members, the honest advice for now is to wait. Nothing about the service has changed, and the most important development to watch for is an official statement from the companies — not another round of anonymous sourcing. When it comes, it will answer the questions that matter: is there a deal, at what price, and what has been promised? Until then, the $330 million figure is a number in a negotiation, not a price paid — and the future of film's favourite social network remains, fittingly, unwritten.
Illustration: A stack of newspapers beside vintage film reels on a desk, symbolising a media acquisition deal.
Sponsored: explore today's featured sponsored offers
FAQ
Is the New York Times buying Letterboxd?
Not yet. The New York Times Company is in exclusive talks to acquire Letterboxd for about $330 million, according to a report in the Times itself on 5 November 2026, citing two people familiar with the discussions. No agreement has been reached, and the talks could still fall apart — until the companies announce a signed deal, this is a negotiation, not a completed purchase.
How much would the Times pay for Letterboxd?
The price under discussion is roughly $330 million, according to the Times — about 22 times Letterboxd's projected 2026 earnings of around $15 million (330 divided by 15 equals 22). The price has climbed during 2026, from about $250 million when the sale process began in July to $300 million in September. The final price, if a deal is signed, could differ.
Who owns Letterboxd now?
Letterboxd is majority-owned by Tiny, a Canadian holding company, which acquired a 60 per cent stake in 2023 at a valuation of $50 million to $60 million, according to the Times. Co-founders Matthew Buchanan and Karl von Randow kept the remaining 40 per cent, and under the terms under discussion would remain in charge, reporting to a Times Company executive.
Would Letterboxd change if the Times buys it?
According to the Times' report, Letterboxd would most likely continue as a standalone platform, keeping its own site, apps and branding, while using the Times Company's advertising technology. No change to membership pricing or access has been announced — but these are reported plans, not commitments in a signed agreement.
Who else wanted to buy Letterboxd?
The LionTree-run sale process attracted interest from A24, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Netflix, Skydance, private equity firm TPG, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, and an investor group led by Madison Wells chief executive Gigi Pritzker, according to the Times and other reports. A24 was the last remaining rival bidder before being priced out as the price rose. The Times emerged as the sole party in exclusive talks, partly because a newspaper owner raises fewer conflict-of-interest concerns than a film studio.
Sources
- The New York Times, "New York Times Company in Advanced Talks to Acquire Letterboxd," 5 November 2026 — first report of the exclusive talks, citing two people familiar with the discussions.
- Reuters, "New York Times Company in advanced talks to acquire Letterboxd for roughly $330 million," 5 November 2026 — corroboration of the talks, the proposed price, A24's exit and the Times' subscriber figures.
- TheWrap, "New York Times Enters Exclusive Talks to Buy Letterboxd for $330 Million," 5 November 2026 — thewrap.com — price multiple, membership figures and the paywall warning from a rival bidder.
- Deadline, "New York Times in advanced talks to acquire Letterboxd," 5 November 2026 — evening confirmation of the advanced talks and the state of the bidding.
- The Verge, "The New York Times is reportedly in talks to buy Letterboxd for $330 million," 5 November 2026 — corroboration and reporting that Letterboxd would remain standalone.
- Citybiz, "New York Times in Exclusive Talks to Acquire Letterboxd for $330 Million," 6 November 2026 — citybiz.co — summary of the reported terms, the LionTree sale process and the founders' ownership.
- Engadget, "The New York Times Company is reportedly trying to buy Letterboxd for $330 million," 6 November 2026 — engadget.com — the July 2026 start of the sale process at around $250 million.
Comments
Post a Comment