Times are tough when even an A-list actor who pulls down $40 million paydays can’t make a go of it as a producer
Just four years after launching Wild State, Chris Hemsworth is shuttering his production company, following what has been described by sources familiar with the situation as a fraught few months.
Earlier this month, Wild State staffers received word — first from Hemsworth’s CAA agent Ida Ziniti and attorney Matt Galsor and then from the “Avengers” star himself — that they would be paid through the end of 2026. Wild State’s offices directly across from the Santa Monica Business Park campus, will soon be vacant.
The company’s website has a blank page that says “expired.”
How an outifit with plenty of options — including a potential partnership backed by Saudi money — could dissolve has left even insiders perplexed. Naturally, the finger pointing has begun.
Some blame Wild State co-founder Benjamin Grayson, who allegedly paid himself handsomely but had a very thin development slate to show for it. (We hear he enjoyed a seven-figure salary and received four pay bumps over four years.)
Others blame CAA and Ziniti for wanting Hemsworth to focus on the big acting paydays rather than his low-reward side hustle as a producer. (Can you blame them?)
Sources tell Page Six Hollywood that Ziniti steered Hemsworth away from a partnership offer from Erik Feig’s Arena SNK Studios — a company backed by Saudi leader Mohammed bin Salman’s Misk sovereign wealth fund. (The partnership would have covered Hemsworth-led film and TV development projects as well as an investment in Wild State’s social and non-scripted business.)
An insider dubs Hemsworth’s decision to close up shop “more of a life choice,” and says he is proud of what they’ve accomplished with the company’s projects.
When reached for comment, Grayson said, “Let me go to [Hemsworth’s publicist] Robin Baum, and then I can return your call.” He never did, nor did Baum. CAA declined comment.
Trouble has been brewing at Wild State for some time. Soon after the company’s inception in 2022, Hemsworth and Grayson announced a first-look deal with National Geographic for unscripted projects — a continuation of a relationship that had already yielded a shark doc and the three-season series “Limitless” about the secrets of superagers. (Presumably both are topics of interest to the Fitmaxxing Aussie, but neither scream “big commission.”)
The following year, Wild State entered into a “strategic partnership” with Artists Equity, the company founded by Ben Affleck, Matt Damon and RedBird Capital’s Gerry Cardinale. At the time, Affleck enthused: “We look forward to collaborating with Wild State as we expand our reach in storytelling.”
But the deal expired last year and wasn’t renewed. Not a single notable project — film or TV — emerged from that deal. Sources say there were Artists Equity-Wild State projects that had begun to gain momentum. But every time, Hemsworth had to commit to another movie outside of the deal. While Damon and Affleck remain friends with Hemsworth, a knowledgeable source suggested that Artists Equity learned its lesson and will likely avoid entering into another similar arrangement in the future.
“There’s a little bit of a perspective that Chris only works for the money now. It’s about whoever will pay him the most,” the source adds. (Back in July, we told you that Hemsworth will receive $40 million for the two upcoming “Avengers” films, which were shot back to back.)
Around the time of Amazon’s “Crime 101” release in April, Wild State began shopping for a new deal. After being rebuffed by several major studios, Hemsworth and Grayson opted to go the private equity route.
Sources say they met with a few major players in town including Peter Chernin’s North Road Company. Then, things began looking up. Earlier this year, Wild State secured a $3 million offer from SNK Studios, the film production banner launched in October 2025. But the actor got cold feet. Sources say Hemsworth sat on a term sheet for an overall deal for months as Wild State began to unravel.
At the same time, Hemsworth appeared to be pursuing a side gig far more lucrative than producing: Entrepreneurship and brand integration. Last month, the “Thor” star officially acquired a stake in Archie Rose Distilling Co., Australia’s premier indie craft distillery. Major brands have been looking to hitch their logos to Hemsworth for some time. We hear that he landed an eight-figure commitment for a multi-year branding deal from a prominent Fortune 500 company. It is unclear if that deal will come to fruition.
Either way, Hemsworth the actor is mighty busy and well compensated.
He is currently shooting Netflix’s “Extraction 3.” In fact, the “Extraction” franchise has become massive for Netflix, with the first two outings breaking viewership records and landing spots on the platform’s all-time most popular lists. Hemsworth and Grayson both are credited producers on “Extraction 3.”
But the Wild State banner will soon join the celebrity producer extinction list.