Josh Richards has entered into a first-look deal with Amazon, Variety has learned exclusively.
Under the terms of the deal, he will act as a brand ambassador for the streamer and will develop custom social media for its content, including the NFL’s “Thursday Night Football.” The pro football league signed an 11-year deal with Amazon in 2021 for the rights to the Thursday night games, with this fall’s season being the first under the deal.
“We are extremely excited to welcome Josh and his incredible team into the Amazon Studios and Prime Video fold,” said Lee Stimmel, head of influencer marketing for Amazon’s Prime Video. “Josh has an amazing track record of creating engaging content that resonates with his millions of fans. We cannot wait to get started building social content formats with Josh that will excite our customers all over the world.”
The deal will also see Richards work to create first-to-market creator marketing campaigns, next seen at VidCon, where he will attend and create custom content around the company’s Creators Lounge, Creators Party, and multi-title activation. Additionally, Richards will create and produce television content for Amazon Studios.
Richards is social media influencer, entrepreneur, musician, writer, actor, and host. He has amassed over 41 million followers across his social media channels to date. He is the CEO and co-founder of CrossCheck Studios, which last year brought Chris Sawtelle on to run the day-to-day business as president and co-founder.
“As the media landscape continues to evolve, we’re excited for this new collaboration between CrossCheck Studios and Prime Video,” Richards and Sawtelle said. “Collectively we will continue to push the boundaries surrounding the creator economy and content creation.”
In addition to his work with CrossCheck Studios, Richards’ other ventures include the venture fund Animal Capital, co-founding the talent collective Sway House, and formerly co-founding TikTok management and production company TalentX. His song, “Still Softish,” garnered over 100 million streams in 2020.
“Josh is the perfect personality and creative to partner with as we launch ‘Thursday Night Football on Prime Video,’” said Nick Pepper, head of studio creative content for Amazon Studios. “And we look forward to all of the creative ingenuity ahead with both Josh and CrossCheck Studios.”
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