Kevin Hart went MIA, changed phone number after – Business News
Kevin Hart vanished from his struggling namesake media company’s workplace for weeks at a time and left anxious staff to navigate layoffs, canceled conferences and mounting financial turmoil with out him, in keeping with a new report.
The comedian-turned-media mogul additionally changed his phone number within the wake of brutal job cuts that worn out almost a quarter of Hartbeat’s workforce, Bloomberg News reported.
News of Hart’s business struggles got here because the film star and standup comedian was roasted by fellow celebs in a broadly watched Netflix particular on Sunday.
Kevin Hart reportedly vanished from Hartbeat’s places of work for weeks — and typically months — after reclaiming the CEO title amid mounting turmoil on the once-$650 million company. Getty Images
The chaos inside Hartbeat reportedly acquired so dangerous that some staffers feared a latest deal Hart struck with Authentic Brands Group — the licensing giant that manages the likenesses of stars together with Marilyn Monroe and Shaquille O’Neal —- signaled the tip for the as soon as high-flying company. Hartbeat was hemorraghing money on the time, in keeping with Bloomberg.
The Post has sought remark from Hart and his company.
The star, who resumed his position as CEO in January 2025 after a sequence of govt departures, had vowed to unveil a strategy to regular the struggling business.
Instead, in keeping with Bloomberg, he largely vanished from day-to-day operations whereas delegating control to longtime lieutenant Jeff Clanagan and CFO Eric Stoneburner.
The company’s operations suffered as workers conferences had been scrapped, development of new films and tv tasks slowed dramatically and podcast initiatives that had been pitched internally by no means acquired off the ground, in keeping with the report.
Hartbeat’s turmoil culminated in waves of layoffs. Days earlier than Thanksgiving, it fired about 20 out of roughly 80 staff, in keeping with Bloomberg.
Hartbeat staff had been hit with layoffs and canceled conferences as Kevin Hart allegedly stepped back from day-to-day operations on the struggling media startup. Getty Images for Hartbeat
The company later cut extra staff tied to podcasting and scripted tv, together with executives concerned with a “Barbershop” TV adaptation for Amazon and a second season of the animated sequence “Lil Kev.”
Following one spherical of layoffs, executives convened a Zoom assembly with staff.
Hart reportedly remained off-camera till it was time for him to talk briefly in regards to the restructuring earlier than ending the assembly with out taking questions.
The comic’s media empire reportedly “started to bleed cash” as Hartbeat weathered layoffs, govt departures and inner chaos. Getty Images for Hartbeat LLC
In the weeks afterward, Hart changed his phone number, in keeping with Bloomberg, which reported that advisers had long inspired him to make himself much less accessible.
The company had as soon as been positioned as the subsequent massive celebrity-backed media empire during Hollywood’s streaming growth.
Hart merged his manufacturing company with digital comedy model Laugh Out Loud in 2022 and offered a 15% stake to non-public equity firm Abry Partners in a deal valuing Hartbeat at roughly $650 million.
The business was constructed round movie and tv manufacturing, short-form digital video and branded promoting.
Hartbeat secured partnerships with Netflix, SiriusXM and Audible whereas additionally working with advertisers together with Lyft, Procter & Gamble and DraftKings.
During the enlargement spree, Hartbeat moved into Oprah Winfrey’s former 40,000-square-foot West Hollywood workplace space, in keeping with Bloomberg.
Kevin Hart reportedly changed his phone number following layoffs at Hartbeat, the place staff feared the company was unraveling. Getty Images for Hartbeat
Hart reportedly outfitted the headquarters with costly paintings and luxurious furnishings, together with works by outstanding African artists and a high-end designer desk in his personal workplace suite.
But because the streaming growth fizzled and media firms slashed spending, Hartbeat’s ambitions started to break down.
The company shuttered its New York workplace whereas executives pushed Hart to scale back the sprawling business, in keeping with Bloomberg.
Instead, tensions inside the company intensified.
Former CEO Thai Randolph departed in late 2023 and was changed by veteran Warner Bros. Discovery govt Jay Levine.
Levine lasted much less than a 12 months earlier than negotiating his exit. Hartbeat’s chief financial officer and chief content material officer quickly adopted him out the door.
Hart’s bold media startup reportedly descended into chaos after Hollywood’s streaming growth cooled and layoffs rocked the company. Getty Images for Netflix
Hart’s separate deal with Authentic Brands earlier this 12 months solely deepened anxiousness inside the company.
According to Bloomberg, the association allowed Hart to progressively buy out Abry Partners and regain control over his identify, image and likeness rights whereas shifting endorsement business away from Hartbeat.
Some Hartbeat staff reportedly interpreted the deal as a signal the comic was distancing himself from the company that bears his identify.
In a message to staff cited by Bloomberg, Hart acknowledged the turmoil.
“I know the past few months have been tough,” Hart wrote in an electronic mail reportedly signed “Kevin AKA Boss Man.”
Still, he sought to project confidence in a latest uproarious interview with comic Ziwe Fumudoh.
“What we do very well at Hartbeat studio that I oversee as chairman and CEO is not just highlight women of color, but we try to remove the stigma,” Hart boasted. “That’s what we do as a business.”
