New Zealand authorities have approved tech
billionaire Sean Parker’s purchase of a one-
third stake in film director Peter Jackson’s visual
effects studio.
Parker needed special permission from the
Overseas Investment Office because he isn’t
a New Zealand resident and the Weta Digital
studio is worth more than 100 million New
Zealand dollars ($71 million).
In a decision published on its website this week,
the office said Parker and his business associates
had the relevant experience and were “of good
character.” It said Weta Digital was raising money
to grow its business.
Parker, who co-founded the file-sharing service
Napster and is a former president of Facebook,
said in June there was a huge, unmet demand
for high-quality animated content.
“I have been a Weta superfan for the past two
decades — I recall my sense of wonder when
I first saw the character of Gollum brought
to life, and later the surreal feeling of being
transported to the alternate reality of Pandora,”
Parker said, referring to the work Weta did on
Jackson’s “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy and
James Cameron’s “Avatar.”Image: Jordan Strauss