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FOX ENTERTAINMENT ACQUIRES EQUITY STAKE IN CHAIN, FORGING STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP WITH EXPERIENTIAL FOOD PHENOMENON CO-FOUNDED BY B.J. NOVAK
FOX'S STUDIO RAMSAY GLOBAL & CHAIN PARTNER TO CREATE SLATE OF
CULINARY COLLABORATIONS ACROSS IRL EVENTS, DIGITAL STORYTELLING AND
AD SALES & BRAND SPONSORSHIPS
Agreement Also Encompasses FOX IP Integrations and
First-Look Development Deal with Chain Media
Los Angeles, CA - October 23, 2025 - FOX Entertainment has announced its equity stake investment in Chain, the LA-based food phenomenon famous for creating novel, nostalgic dining experiences nationwide, it was announced today by FOX and Chain Founder B.J. Novak.
The new multi-faceted partnership through FOX Entertainment's Studio Ramsay Global - its prolific partnership with iconic chef Gordon Ramsay - brings Chain's wildly popular food pop-ups, fan fest, slate of events, and content creation expertise into the FOX ecosystem. Included in the investment is a first look development deal through Chain Media; ad sales and sponsorships with leading brands; IP integrations through FOX's growing portfolio of Gordon Ramsay series and its Bite entertainment platform; and potential vertical video series through FOX's recently announced stake in Holywater, a global leader in vertical video. The agreement will also help Chain expand its original IP, grow its team and event portfolio, and develop live experiences tied to FOX's unparalleled culinary properties.
"Food continues to define culture - it's how we celebrate, how we remember, how we connect. No one understands how to turn culinary storytelling into cultural obsession like FOX Entertainment and Studio Ramsay Global. We're excited to work together to bring Chain experiences to more people," said B.J. Novak.
"As FOX continues to expand its dominance across the food space, investing in Chain furthers our digital storytelling and content creation strategy with this deep partnership in a winning business model, where viral events advance creative possibilities," said Rob Wade, CEO of FOX Entertainment. "Studio Ramsay Global's far-reaching, growing culinary empire and unmatched digital footprint, together with Chain's remarkable, proven impact, will strengthen, scale and deepen our connection to food fans everywhere."
Chain began as a West Hollywood parking-lot pop-up with a Michelin-starred chef cooking homages to nostalgic chain restaurant classics and quickly became one of the most in-demand tickets in Los Angeles. In its first full year of operation, the company made headlines through collaborations with Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, Jack in the Box, Pepsi, Dunkin', Panda Express, and Diageo, as well as with Paramount Studios for Scream VI and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem. Recent partners include Disney, McDonald's, Pernod-Ricard, Pop-Tarts and Tabasco.
In December 2023, Chain debuted ChainFEST. The world's first chain-food festival featured 10 legacy food brands as headliners, selling 5,000 tickets in 48 hours and attracting talent such as Kim Kardashian, Chris Pratt, and Addison Rae. In 2024, Chain partnered with Medium Rare on ChainFEST and expanded to New York, selling 10,000 tickets across both markets and expanding beyond food to include CashApp, Pepto Bismol, and Volkswagen. ChainFEST will return to Los Angeles for its third year in Fall 2025.
The partnership taps into FOX and Studio Ramsay Global's world-class culinary landscape - home to Next Level Chef, America's most-watched culinary competition, the growing Bite food platform, and iconic franchises like Idiot Sandwich and the new Gordon Ramsay's Secret Service, which is FOX's most-streamed first-year summer series of the past decade and ranks among the top cooking series this summer across broadcast and cable. Ramsay's expansive global fanbase is unmatched, reaching more than 6 billion total viewers and 115 million loyal followers worldwide across all social media platforms.
Previous Chain investor Connect Ventures is re-investing alongside FOX in the financing round. Other prior Chain investors include Marshall Sandman's Animal Capital, Palm Tree Crew, Able Partners and Chrissy Teigen, who also serves as a strategic advisor.
Chain was founded by B.J. Novak, producers and entrepreneurs Jack Davis, Abe Burns, Byron Ashley, Michelin-starred chef Timothy Hollingsworth, and Nicholas Kraft, who serves as Chief Creative Officer.
About Gordon Ramsay & Studio Ramsay Global
Renowned for highly successful and award-winning original programming, Emmy-nominated and BAFTA-winning Gordon Ramsay produces TV shows on both sides of the Atlantic, seen by audiences worldwide in more than 200 territories. He is the only talent on air in the U.S. with eight primetime national network shows. He hosts and executive-produces Next Level Chef, Hell's Kitchen, MasterChef, MasterChef Junior, Gordon Ramsay's Secret Service, Kitchen Nightmares and Gordon Ramsay's Food Stars, as well as the upcoming franchise extension Next Level Baker, all on FOX. In addition, Ramsay is behind No Taste Like Home on National Geographic Channel and Disney+, Knife Edge: Chasing Michelin Stars coming this fall to Apple+ and a new untitled Gordon Ramsay documentary series on Netflix in early 2026.
Studio Ramsay Global is jointly owned by Gordon Ramsay and FOX Entertainment, with offices in London, Los Angeles and Glasgow. Ramsay is an industry leader in developing, producing and distributing culinary and lifestyle programming, including for FOX, Tubi, Apple TV+, Netflix, National Geographic and global markets. Among its shows are Next Level Chef, which became the most-watched cooking series telecast in television history following its post-Super Bowl LVII Season Two premiere, and Gordon Ramsay: Uncharted on National Geographic Channel, which airs in 172 countries and 43 languages worldwide.
Under the Studio Ramsay banner, he has previously launched a range of popular shows in the U.K., including ratings hit and BAFTA-nominated Gordon, Gino and Fred's Road Trip for ITV; Gordon Ramsay's Bank Balance on BBC1; the daytime cooking series Culinary Genius, which premiered on ITV in the U.K. and was syndicated on FOX stations in the U.S.; the ITV series The Savoy and Gordon on Cocaine; and the highly popular children's series Matilda and the Ramsay Bunch, starring Tilly Ramsay, for U.K. children's channel CBBC.
Studio Ramsay Global Digital Division is behind all of Ramsay's original content on his highly successful YouTube Channel, which has made Ramsay the most-subscribed chef on the platform. The 18-34 dominated channel launched the trending interview series Scrambled and is also behind the highly successful Ramsay in 10, which went live during the global COVID-19 pandemic. Studio Ramsay Global Digital oversees and creates content for all behind-the-scenes moments from Studio Ramsay Global linear programming, has produced content for National Geographic and Masterclass, and produces recipe content across Ramsay's +100 million social media reach, including his breakout TikTok account. In 2024, Studio Ramsay Global launched Bite, the new next-gen global food brand and entertainment platform.
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