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Entertainment
Hugh Scott

32 Famous Actors With Their Own Production Companies (And What Each Is Called)

Brad Pitt in The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford.

The top actors in Hollywood make a lot of money, but anyone will tell you that the real money is in production. That means that many of the biggest stars in the world have formed their own companies to produce both their own films and other projects that interest them. 

Often, these company names and logos appear at the beginning of the movies, along with larger, more recognizable studios like Paramount and Disney. Here is a list of many of the actors with their own production companies, along with the name of the company to look out for. 

(Image credit: Paramount Plus)

Jordan Peele - Monkeypaw Productions

Jordan Peele has become one of the most exciting and interesting directors and producers in recent years. His Monkeypaw Productions has produced or co-produced his own movies, like Get Out, Us, and Nope, as well as other films like Spike Lee's BlacKkKlansman, and Adamma Ebo's Honk For Jesus, Save Your Soul.

(Image credit: NBC)

Tom Hanks - Playtone

Tom Hanks' Playtone has been wildly successful on the big and small screens. With movies starring Hanks like Cast Away, Charlie Wilson's Way, The Polar Express, and Greyhound, as well as films not starring him, like Mamma Mia and its sequel, the company keeps winning. It has also hit it big on TV with shows like Band of Brothers, The Pacific, and John Adams on HBO, and the CNN series about each decade of the last 60 years. 

(Image credit: ABC)

Elizabeth Banks - Brownstone Productions

Elizabeth Banks has been on a hot streak with her company Brownstone Productions. It's most notable for the Pitch Perfect franchise, but the company has also co-produced movies like 2019's Charlie's Angels, and that surprise 2023 hit about a bear that gets into something it should not have in the woods, with scary (and hilarious) results. 

(Image credit: MGM)

Reese Witherspoon - Pacific Standard

When Reese Witherspoon started Pacific Standard in 2012, she did so with the express purpose of highlighting and producing projects with strong female leads, crews, and topics. So far, it's been a huge success with films like Gone Girl and Wild, as well as TV shows like The Morning Show, and Big Little Lies

(Image credit: Columbia Pictures)

Adam Sandler - Happy Madison Productions

Adam Sandler movies are not for everyone, but wow, do they make him a lot of money through his company, Happy Madison. Though the two films it's named after Happy Gilmore and Billy Madison were not his productions, almost everything he's been in since 2000 is, and it continues to make a ton of money for the actor. The company has even dabbled in TV, most notably with The Goldbergs.

(Image credit: The Drew Barrymore Show)

Drew Barrymore - Flower Films

Drew Barrymore's company, Flower Films, has produced or co-produced a ton of movies since she founded it in 1999. With movies like Donnie Darko, 50 First Dates, Fever Pitch, and the Charlie's Angels franchise, it is safe to assume Barrymore has made a pretty penny. Of course, it also produces her daytime talk show, The Drew Barrymore Show

(Image credit: CBS)

Queen Latifah - Flavor Unit Entertainment

Queen Latifah's Flavor Unit Entertainment started out producing movies with moderate budgets that she starred in, like The Cookout and Beauty Shop, but these days, it's been successful on TV with her show, The Equalizer.

(Image credit: Warner Bros.)

George Clooney - Smokehouse Pictures

Smokehouse Pictures is the second company founded by George Clooney after he shut down Section Eight Productions in 2006. Most movies he's starred in or directed since 2008 have been produced under the Smokehouse banner, including Leatherheads, Monuments Men, and The Boys In The Boat, plus other projects like Ocean's 8 and Argo.

(Image credit: Warner Bros.)

Sandra Bullock - Fortus Films

Sandra Bullock may not be acting as much these days, but her production company, Fortus Films, is still humming along. Through the company, Bullock has produced movies like Miss Congeniality and its sequel, Two Weeks Notice, and The Lost City.

(Image credit: TBS)

Courteney Cox - Coquette Productions

Friends star Courteney Cox and her ex-husband David Arquette started Coquette Productions together in 2004. The business relationship continued after the couple split six years later, though they haven't actually produced much in recent years. 

(Image credit: Sony Pictures)

Brad Pitt - Plan B Entertainment

Plan B Entertainment was started by Brad Pitt, Jennifer Aniston, and producer Brad Grey in 2001. In 2004, Pitt and Grey bought Aniston out in the midst of her split from Pitt. Since then, the company has gone on to major success, with three of its movies, The Departed, 12 Years a Slave and Moonlight all winning Best Picture Oscars, with seven others receiving nominations for the award. 

(Image credit: NBC)

Sterling K. Brown - Indian Meadows Productions

This Is Us star Sterling K. Brown named his production Indian Meadows Productions after the name of the neighborhood he grew up in outside St. Louis. Though it's just getting started, there are some interesting things on the way as Brown's star continues to shine brightly. 

(Image credit: Warner Bros.)

Margot Robbie - LuckyChap Productions

Margot Robbie may have gotten snubbed at the 2024 Oscars for Barbie, but you can be sure she wasn't snubbed out of money as one of the producers of the hit movie. Robbie's company, LuckyChap Productions, has also produced movies Robbie starred in like I, Tonya and Birds of Prey as well as other projects she didn't star in like Saltburn and Promising Young Woman.

(Image credit: AppleTV+)

Leonardo DiCaprio - Appian Way Productions

Leonardo DiCaprio's Appian Way Productions produced two Oscar-winners with The Aviator (which won five) and The Revenant (which won three, including Best Actor for DiCaprio). Through the company, DiCaprio not only produced feature films, but documentaries, as well. 

(Image credit: Sony Pictures)

Nicole Kidman - Blossom Films

While Nicole Kidman's Blossom Films has dabbled in movies, most notably the 2011 rom-com Monte Carlo with Selena Gomez, it has found its biggest successes on the small screen. With shows like Big Little Lies, The Undoing, Nine Perfect Strangers, and 2024's Expats

(Image credit: 20th Century Fox)

Michael Douglas

Further Films, founded by Michael Douglas, doesn't have the portfolio that others may have on this list, as they seem to have found a niche in thrillers and suspense films like Swimfan, Don't Say a Word, 2017's Flatliners, and the streaming show Ratched.

(Image credit: Netflix)

Natalie Portman - Handsomecharlie Films

Natalie Portman named her company, Handsomecharlie Films, after her beloved dog, and she's put together a nice run of movies. She's produced many of her own projects, like No Strings Attached and Jane Got a Gun, as well as a surprise that she didn't star in, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. 

(Image credit: HBO)

Eddie Murphy - Eddie Murphy Productions

Eddie Murphy started betting on himself early in his career through Eddie Murphy Productions and it has paid off, big time. Starting with Raw in 1987, the company has produced some huge movies for the legendary comedian, including Coming To America, Harlem Nights, Boomarang, The Nutty Professor, and Norbit

(Image credit: MGM)

Barbra Streisand - Barwood Films

Barbra Streisand has produced many of her own projects through her company, Barwood Films. 1976's A Star Is Born, The Prince Of Tides, and Yentl are a few of the examples of her biggest successes. Barwood has also dabbled in TV movies, like the groundbreaking What Makes a Family in 2001, about a lesbian couple having a child together. 

(Image credit: New Line Cinema)

Alec Baldwin - El Dorado Pictures

Alec Baldwin's El Dorado Pictures has been in the news a lot in recent years due to its connection to Rust and the tragic events that occurred on set. Baldwin has produced quite a few of his own projects through the company over the years and even got into the TV game show space with the revival of Match Game, which he also hosted. 

(Image credit: Paramount Pictures)

Tina Fey - Little Stranger

Tina Fey has one of the sharpest wits in Hollywood, so it's no surprise she would use those same brains to produce. From critically acclaimed movies like 2024's Mean Girls to wildly successful TV shows including 30 Rock and The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Fey, and her company Little Stranger, continue to crush it. 

(Image credit: Lionsgate)

Laurence Fishburne - Cinema Gypsy Productions

The biggest success Laurence Fishburne and his company Cinema Gypsy Productions has seen thus far is the sitcom black-ish, but he's also produced some great movies of his own that have flown under the radar, but are worth checking out, in Five Fingers and Akeelah and the Bee.

(Image credit: Orion Pictures)

Jodie Foster - Egg Pictures

It's no surprise that an actor and director like Jodie Foster, who has been in show business for basically all of her life, would be a producer as well. Through her Egg Pictures production company, she produced many of her own projects, starting with Nell in 1994 and Home for the Holidays in 1995. She closed the company in 2002 when she decided that producing wasn't for her. 

(Image credit: (Photo by VALERIE MACON / AFP) (Photo by VALERIE MACON/AFP via Getty Images))

Clint Eastwood - Malpaso Films

Without question, one of the most successful companies on this list is Malpaso Films, founded by Clint Eastwood. It has served as the production company for almost all of the films Eastwood has directed and its history stretches back to the mid-1960s. Many of his classic films, including Unforgiven, The Bridges of Madison County, The Outlaw Josey Wales, Dirty Harry, Escape from Alcatraz, Million Dollar Baby, Sully, and many more have all been produced or co-produced by Malpaso. 

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Halle Berry - 606 Films

Halle Berry's 606 Films has an interesting origin story. Though it was formed as part of her deal to star in Extant, the name has an important meaning. She named it after CA Senate Bill 606, a law intended to protect celebrities' children from the paparazzi.

It was an important issue for Berry, and when the company was formed, her partner, Elaine Goldsmith-Thomas, said, "606 Films is named for the anti-paparazzi bill, Senate Bill 606, which Halle fought so hard for and won, when no one believed it could be achieved. It truly informs the spirit of our company — making dreams possible, one bill at a time."

(Image credit: Disney / Touchstone)

Mel Gibson - Icon Productions

Mel Gibson is not the most universally loved man in Hollywood, to be sure, but he's often bet on himself with his Icon Films, and more times than not, it's worked. Since 1989, he's financed many of his own projects completely through Icon, making movies like Hacksaw Ridge, The Passion of the Christ, and We Were Soldiers, plus co-producing maybe his most iconic movie, Braveheart

(Image credit: Top(Photo by Gisela Schober/Getty Images))

Salma Hayek - Ventanarosa Productions

Ventanarosa Productions, founded by Salma Hayek in 1999 has most often focused on Latin-centric projects, including Hayek's own Frida and the hit TV show, Ugly Betty. Ventanarosa also works throughout Latin America, producing Spanish-language films and TV. 

(Image credit: Sony Pictures)

Will Smith - Overbrook Entertainment

Will Smith grew up in the West Philly neighborhood of Overbrook, which he took for the name of his production company as well, Overbrook Entertainment. Through it, Smith has produced many of his own projects, starting with Ali in 2001. King Richard, for which he infamously won the Oscar for Best Actor in 2022, was also produced by Overbrook. On the small screen, the Netflix hit Cobra Kai is an Overbrook production, as well. 

(Image credit: Paramount Pictures)

Amy Poehler - Paper Kite Productions

Amy Poehler's Paper Kite Production has dabbled in movies, but most of its success has been on TV and streaming. With shows like Russian Doll, and Broad City, you can see that Poehler likes sticking with what she knows, comedy. You might be surprised, though, that the company has also found success with reality TV and even feature length documentaries.

(Image credit: ABC/NBC)

Danny DeVito - Jersey Films

Danny DeVito is obviously proud of his New Jersey roots, naming his production company Jersey Films. He also has to be proud of the output from the company with films like Pulp Fiction and Get Shorty. He's found a lot of success on TV too, with Reno 911! Another of Jersey's films, Erin Brockovich, was nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards in 2001.

(Image credit: Marvel/Disney)

Charlize Theron - Denver And Delilah Productions

Denver and Delilah Productions' first film was Monster, starring the company's founder, Charlize Theron. That seems to have inspired a bit of a theme, as the company has produced other serial killer-related projects, like Netflix's show Mindhunters, and the HBO docuseries Last Call: When a Serial Killer Stalked Queer New York. There are also a few non-serial killer films, like Bombshell, Atomic Blonde, and Murder Mystery.

(Image credit: DreamWorks Pictures)

Will Ferrell - Gary Sanchez Productions

Before Adam McKay and Will Ferrell had their falling out in 2019 and dissolved Gary Sanchez Productions, the company had been wildly successful, releasing some of the funniest movies and shows over the last couple of decades. Step Brothers, Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues, Daddy's Home, Eastbound & Down, and Drunk History are just a few examples. Add to that a little HBO show called Succession, which has won just a few Emmys, and wow, what a success story. 

As this list shows, success as an actor often leads to success in production as well, so actors will continue to open up their own shops, and will continue to crush it, for sure. 

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