Robert A. Darwell

Entertainment, media and technology transactions

Darwell works mainly behind the scenes, but the deals he structures for big-name clients tend to grab headlines. When cable giant Comcast Corp. announced it was acquiring entertainment conglomerate NBC Universal in a proposed $30-billion transaction, Darwell already had been busy doing diligence on entertainment-related properties for NBC. If regulators sign off on the deal, it will be by far the largest media acquisition in recent years. In another news-generating transaction, Darwell represented the Walt Disney Co. in its sale of the Miramax film library to a group of investors. The sale, which is set to close by the end of this year, was a two-fold coup for Disney: The $660 million sale of Miramax, which is made up of mainly art-house films, allowed the studio to focus more on big-budget franchises that spawn sequels, properties in multiple media and merchandise. But the deal also fetched far more for Disney than many expected, a feat accomplished at a time when falling DVD sales have eroded the value of all film libraries.