WME, owned by Endeavor, has just made a major move in the literary world by acquiring the Ross Yoon Agency. This Washington, D.C.-based firm specializes in memoir, biography, history, popular science, business, and psychology, and represents a wide range of clients including Pulitzer Prize-winning journalists and authors, business and non-profit leaders, top doctors and scientists, academics, politicians, and media personalities. As part of the acquisition, Ross Yoon’s President Gail Ross and Principal Howard Yoon will join WME as partners, bringing their impressive client base with them.
This move is a significant boost to WME’s book business, adding a wealth of talent to their already impressive roster of literary and commercial non-fiction authors. It also gives the agency a presence in Washington, further expanding their reach.
WME Co-Chairmen Christian Muirhead and Richard Weitz expressed their excitement about the acquisition, saying, “This acquisition is a natural evolution of WME’s long history of representing best-selling authors and helping bring their visions to life across platforms. We are proud that after so many hugely successful independent years Gail and Howard chose WME as their partner in this next phase of growth.”
Jay Mandel, partner and head of WME’s book department, praised Ross Yoon’s principals, calling them “the gold standard of nonfiction representation.” He added that the agency is “the perfect complement to our book business, with a brilliant client base that will be supercharged by all WME has to offer.”
For Ross and Yoon, the deal represents “a compelling opportunity to help our clients build their careers in books and beyond.” WME’s book department has been a key pillar for the agency for over 30 years, with more than 50 New York Times bestsellers in 2022 alone and nearly 1,000 publishing deals closed around the world. This acquisition is sure to further solidify their position as a major player in the literary world.
