The line between making advertisements and making the things advertisements run alongside has always been somewhat porous on Madison Avenue, but Dentsu is now testing just how permeable it can become.

The Japanese agency network, which operates one of the world's largest advertising holding companies, has signed on as a producer and global agency of record for "The Angry Birds Movie 3," the latest sequel in the animated franchise based on the mobile game that became inescapable around 2010. The film is scheduled for release in December 2026.

Cathy Boxall, Dentsu's global head of entertainment, described the arrangement as offering clients "the opportunity to be a part of this global sensation, connecting culture to commerce." (What, you were expecting her to say it offers clients the opportunity to be part of a modest regional curiosity?)

The move reflects a shift in how Hollywood production gets financed and marketed. Paul Kang, who oversees alternative investments for Dentsu, noted that the studio landscape has contracted considerably, with more independent producers approaching agencies for marketing assistance than was the case five or ten years ago.

According to a report by Business Insider, the film investment has already drawn interest from potential entertainment clients, and the network views it as a door-opener for consulting and advertising assignments. Dentsu has indicated it plans to back additional television and film projects across various genres and budget levels.

The arrangement is not entirely without precedent — agencies have occasionally taken equity positions in entertainment properties or traded services for back-end participation — but a holding company taking on a formal producer role represents a more ambitious entanglement.

Whether the flightless birds of the title prove capable of carrying Dentsu's Hollywood aspirations remains, for now, a question best answered in late 2026.

Original story published in campaignlive.com: "Dentsu ventures into Hollywood with 'The Angry Birds 3' | Campaign US"