“Barbie” and “Saltburn” producer Margot Robbie’s LuckyChap is launching LuckyChap International, a film and television company headquartered in London. The new entity, created as a joint venture with Mediawan Group, whose portfolio includes Plan B and See-Saw Films, will be led by Mona Qureshi and Tanya Qureshi. The company will officially operate in the UK and Europe and will produce international film and television projects. It will open in January.
LuckyChap is run by Oscar nominee Robbie, as well as Tom Ackerley, Josey McNamara, and Milan Popelka. Since its founding in 2014, it has become one of Hollywood’s most successful production companies.
Pierre-Antoine Capton’s Paris-based Media One has recently made a series of splashy moves in English-speaking markets. Earlier this year, Media One partnered with Plan B to set up a London location and appointed “Baby Reindeer” producer Ed McDonald to run the banner. It also acquired a majority stake in See-Saw Films and entered into a partnership with The SpringHill Company.
Mona Qureshi joins LuckyChap after serving as director of scripted series at Netflix UK. Tanya Qureshi recently served as Commissioning Editor for BBC Drama. The sisters will be co-managing directors internationally and bring an extensive network of relationships with creative talent who have worked on acclaimed shows such as “I May Destroy You,” “The Night Manager,” “Adolescence,” and “Too Much.” The two will oversee the new company’s creative day-to-day operations, with a primary focus on television. LuckyChap plans to build an extensive film and television team in the coming months. The UK organization will work alongside LuckyChap’s US team.
“We have always shared a deep love of storytelling, so building something together on LuckyChap is a dream come true,” Mona Qureshi and Tanya Qureshi said in a joint statement. “As sisters, we’ve encouraged each other throughout our respective careers, and now we’ve been able to combine everything we’ve learned to grow our next chapter together, literally and figuratively. The team at LuckyChap has a unique voice and a bold They are passionate champions of ideas, and we are excited to be part of expanding their mission internationally. It’s rare to find a company that leads with such heart and mischief. We can’t wait to join their ranks and continue to build on that spirit.”
Lucky Chap/Media One
Pictured are Mona Qureshi and Tanya Qureshi.
LuckyChap has established itself as a hub for top-notch creative talent. The company’s film portfolio includes award-winning films such as “I, Tonya” and “Promising Young Woman,” and in television, it produced the Emmy-nominated limited series “Maid” and “Siren.” Production recently wrapped on the new drama “Sterling Point,” starring Megan Park, and she has teamed up again with Emerald Fennell, the author of “Saltburn” and “Promising Young Woman,” for her next film “Wuthering Heights.” The company said the films produced by the new venture “reflect Lucky Chap’s distinctive DNA” and “aim to tap into the unique voices working in the UK/Europe.” This move was made in light of the fact that the UK has become a major production base for movies and TV dramas, and the source of popular works such as “Adolescence.”
“Launching LuckyChap in the UK and Europe has been a goal of ours for many years and together with this team we feel we have found the perfect alchemy,” the LuckyChap partners said in a statement. “Combining Media One’s passion for fostering great storytelling and its extensive strategic capabilities with Mona and Tanya Qureshi’s incredibly creative leadership feels intuitively an undeniable way to jumpstart this journey. Every aspect of this international partnership is connected creatively, culturally and operationally. “Mona and Tanya’s rich and storied experience speaks for itself in this industry, and we couldn’t be more excited to work with them and our friends at Media One to build something special.”
Founded ten years ago by Capton, Xavier Niel and Matthieu Pigaasse, Mediawan has established itself as one of Europe’s largest independent studios. Through 80 production labels operating in 14 countries, we produce more than 400 original drama, unscripted, documentary, film and animation titles each year. These include Miraculous Corp., Palomar, Leonine Studios, Chapter 2, and Chi-Fou-Mi.
“We are excited to support the talented team at LuckyChap in this new and pivotal step in their development. At Media One, since our founding, our mission has always been to champion creative excellence and outstanding stories from the best talent from around the world,” Capton said in a statement on behalf of Media One. “This partnership perfectly embodies our ambitions for global growth, particularly through the creation of strategic and innovative collaborations. Under the leadership of the acclaimed duo Mona Qureshi and Tanya Qureshi, we are expanding our presence in the UK, a true bridge between the American and European creative industries. This will open up new opportunities for us to continue to produce premium content and share it with a wide audience. As Europe’s leading studio, we are excited to lend our expertise and know-how to Lucky Chap to support its growth and creativity. ”
The strategic partnership and investment resulted from ongoing conversations between LuckyChap and Mediawan Group. It’s a major coup for Capton, who led the talks with Robbie’s company. The international business is majority owned and controlled by LuckyChap, with Mediawan maintaining a minority stake.
Mona Qureshi started her career as an assistant at BBC Films in the late 90s, then worked as head of development on several titles. She continued to develop and produce with Ruby Films and The Ink Factory. Her credits include FilmFour’s feature film “Brick Lane,” Sony/BBC’s “The Other Boleyn Girl,” the BBC drama “Small Island,” and Suzanne Bier’s Emmy Award-winning 2015 adaptation of John le Carré’s “The Night Manager.” Returning to BBC Drama in 2017 as UK Commissioning Editor, she was responsible for a diverse portfolio of programs including; ‘The Girl’, ‘Les Misérables’, the BAFTA award-winning ‘Sitting in Limbo’, ‘A Suitable Boy’ directed by Mira Nair, ‘This Is Going to Heart’ starring Ben Whishaw, ‘The Responder’ starring Martin Freeman and ‘The English’ directed by Hugo Brick. In 2022, she moved to Netflix UK’s original series team to lead development of partner-led drama. She has watched a wide variety of films including writer/director Scott Frank’s Adolescence, Dept. Q, Lena Dunham’s Too Much, and the films Joy and Steve before making her debut on Netflix.
Tanya Qureshi currently works for the BBC as a commissioning editor for drama, working on a wide range of projects including the recently released Sally Wainwright’s Riot Women and Dennis Kelly’s upcoming Waiting for the Out, as well as comedies Ludwig, Amandaland and the upcoming Can You Keep a Secret? With Dawn French. Prior to this, Tanya Qureshi was Head of Comedy at the BBC for four years, where she ran across department strategy, developed plans and managed budgets. Before joining the BBC, Tanya Qureshi worked at BAFTA Award-winning production company Various Artists, managing a wide range of new and experienced writers and performers, as well as producing series such as John Brown’s Dead Pixels and, most famously, Michaela Coel’s I May Destroy You.
