Fremantle Revenue Slides but Profit Soars as Parent RTL Rides Streaming Surge
Fremantle's revenue fell in the first half of 2026, but the production company behind everything from talent shows to prestige drama made more money from what it earned. The numbers, released by parent company RTL Group on the morning of 11 August, paint a picture of a business cutting costs while waiting for its next big shows to land.
Fremantle posted H1 2026 revenue of €835 million ($963 million), down 7.7% from €905 million in the same period last year, according to Deadline. The drop was not about losing work. RTL blamed timing — productions in Fremantle's drama and film division simply had not hit the revenue line yet. Entertainment and documentaries were broadly stable.
Meanwhile, profit jumped. Fremantle's adjusted EBITA — a measure of operating earnings before some costs — rose to €60 million from €39 million in H1 2025. The profit margin widened from 4.3% to 7.2%. RTL said that puts Fremantle on track to reach a full-year target margin of 9%.
The cost discipline came from changes made after a strategic review. Fremantle stopped fully financing films on its own, though it still co-produces them. That decision followed a tough 2025, when full-year revenue fell 9.4% to €2,043 million from €2,254 million in 2024, according to Bertelsmann.
RTL expects the revenue dip to reverse in the second half of 2026, pointing to upcoming deliveries including Kill Jackie for AMC+ and Baywatch for Fox. The first quarter had already shown signs of recovery, with revenue up 4.2% organically to €372 million, per RTL's Q1 2026 statement.
Fremantle was one of two RTL units driving a significant increase in earnings across the group. RTL Group's overall H1 revenue was nearly flat at €2.9 billion, up 0.1%. But group adjusted EBITA surged to €239 million from €160 million a year earlier.
The bigger story for RTL was streaming. Revenue from services such as RTL+ in Germany and M6+ in France rose 27.2% to €299 million. Paid subscriptions across Germany and France climbed 20.7% to 8.7 million. For the first time, those streaming services turned profitable.
RTL also closed its acquisition of Sky Deutschland on 1 June 2026, after receiving final regulatory approval in April. Sky Deutschland contributed €61 million in adjusted EBITA during the partial period. RTL Group CEO Clément Schwebig, who took the top job in May 2026 succeeding Thomas Rabe, called it a strong first half driven by streaming growth, TV audience gains, and the Sky deal closing.
For the crews, writers' rooms, and production teams on shows like Kill Jackie and Baywatch, the second half of the year is when their work lands on screen — and on the ledger.
