The Creator Economy’s Most Powerful Reps of 2026
In 2026, the creator economy is not a niche corner of the internet. It is the engine driving pop culture, politics, fashion, sports and even the future of Hollywood. Creators like Hasan Piker are influencing national elections. Markiplier is redefining independent film with a self-funded sci-fi movie that turned into a global phenomenon. Hailey Bieber is selling out jeans at the Gap so quickly that it became a cultural event. But behind every viral moment, every blockbuster deal and every brand partnership that breaks the internet, there is a team of representatives working around the clock.
The most powerful reps in the creator economy are the ones who turn internet fame into lasting business empires. They negotiate the contracts, shape the strategies and open the doors that make it possible for a YouTuber to become a film star, a podcaster to build a media company and a TikTok dancer to launch a beauty brand. The following dealmakers have spent the past year moving massive amounts of money and reshaping the entertainment landscape from behind the scenes.
The Agency Powerhouses
At UTA, the team of Ali Berman, Raina Penchansky, Oren Rosenbaum and Hilary Williams continues to dominate the intersection of digital talent and mainstream media. Through UTA Creators and Digital Brand Architects, they represent a staggering roster that includes Markiplier, Kareem Rahma, Colin and Samir and Olandria Carthen. This year, they helped populate Netflix’s new video podcast slate with shows like The Rotten Files With Stephanie Soo, brokered the attention-grabbing MrBeast–James Patterson novel collaboration, expanded Emma Chamberlain’s Chamberlain Coffee empire with a new Abbot Kinney location and placed Alix Earle in the Netflix series Earle Meets World. Every one of those moves represents millions of dollars in new revenue and a deeper marriage between digital fame and traditional entertainment.
WME is equally formidable. Ben Davis and Jad Dayeh co-head the digital department and have spent the year making history. Davis closed a reported $100 million first-of-its-kind pact for Jay Shetty and his On Purpose podcast, giving Netflix and Spotify joint exclusive rights. That deal set a new benchmark for podcast economics. At the same time, Dayeh and Davis helped reality stars Paige DeSorbo and Hannah Berner secure major brand partnerships, including Berner’s multiyear ambassadorship with Lululemon. They are proving that reality television personalities can be built into sustainable, high-value commercial brands.
CAA remains one of the biggest forces in the space. The quartet of Arleta Fowler, Andrew Graham, Brent Weinstein and Sophie Wiener has signed some of the most recognizable creators on the planet, including Rhett + Link, Valkyrae, Stokes Twins, Deestroying, Rebecca Zamolo, Nara Smith, Jack Goldburg, Reckless Ben and Reece Feldman. Perhaps their most ambitious move came in June, when CAA and Integrated Media Co. launched Compound Creative Holdings, a $250 million venture designed to acquire and grow creator-economy companies. That kind of institutional investment signals how far the industry has come.
Gersh’s digital division, led by Keith Bielory, Melissa DeMarco and Jade Sherman, has also pushed creators deeper into mainstream entertainment. They helped reality stars Ariana Madix, Whitney Leavitt and Mark Ballas land record-breaking runs in Broadway’s Chicago, proving that social media fame can translate to the stage. They also helped Doctor Mike, the online health expert, surpass 30 million followers and guided Eli Rallo to a New York Times best-selling book deal. Select, meanwhile, continues to bridge Hollywood and the creator world. Lisa Filipelli, Brittany Maxwell and Caroline Nardilla delivered new seasons of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives and its franchise expansion TSLOMW: Orange County, both starring Select clients. They also launched Select Sports, bringing a creator-economy mindset to athlete representation and landing Super Bowl campaigns for Meta x Oakley glasses and Toyota with athletes Sky Brown and Oksana Masters.
Boutique Firms and Management Companies
Beyond the big agencies, boutique firms are making outsized moves. Sixteenth has grown rapidly under Payton Booker, Skye Petrie and Alexis Ramos. Ramos built the company’s sports division from nothing, now representing top names in the NFL, WNBA and track and field. Petrie brought a massive U.K. roster to the company, helping British creators like Maddie Borge reach global audiences. Booker secured major partnerships, including a $90,000 brand campaign for Charles Brockman III.
Palette, founded by Daniel Daks and Josh DeAngelis during the 2020 TikTok boom, has become a powerhouse in comedy, lifestyle and infotainment. Their client Carlos Eduardo Espina launched a Creator Cup that twice sold out MLS’ Houston Dynamo stadium, while Roblox star Lana Rae drove more than $20 million in retail sales from her consumer product line in just five months. Underscore Talent is another firm with serious momentum. Mallory Llewellyn placed four of her clients on Netflix’s Calabasas Confidential and serves as a consulting producer on the show. Kyle Stevens helped Kareem Rahma turn SubwayTakes into an Emmy-nominated series and launched his second show, Keep the Meter Running. Dylan Flinn has become the go-to manager for top AI creators, landing one of the first celebrity likeness deals with HiggsfieldAI and securing a studio development deal for AI content creator Chloe vs History.
The Team has also expanded aggressively. Marcela Woessner inked gymnast and Instagram star Livvy Dunne’s partnership with Miller Lite and turned an embarrassing viral moment into a partnership with deodorant brand Secret. The firm acquired Provisions, a leading golf creator agency founded by Joe Gilliland and Josh Morgan. Together, they developed the Creator Classic, a tournament featuring 12 of YouTube’s top golf creators, and built Your Golf Tour, a YouTube series starring the sport’s biggest creators and pros.
Night has had another blockbuster year, acquiring IRL marketing firm Experiential Supply Co. John Nelson brokered deals for Twitch star Kai Cenat’s record-breaking Streamer University with partners including Red Bull, Dell and Fortnite. David Huntzinger expanded progressive influencer Hasan Piker’s merch line amid his skyrocketing fame and helped broker YouTubers Sam & Colby’s Netflix partnership. Michael Gordon oversaw the eight-figure sale of true-crime YouTube channel Dr. Insanity to an investment company.
Loaded remains the dominant force in livestreaming. Brandon Freytag and Yoni Ginsberg represent the largest share of Twitch livestreamers by watch time, including TheBurntPeanut, Cinna, Maya Higa and Shroud. They have landed deals with Google, EA, Epic Games and Tencent, and recently negotiated a “Protect the Peanut” campaign with Battlefield that became one of EA’s most successful creator campaigns.
Fixated, led by Derek Howe, acquired Studio71 and built a combined global network of more than 1,000 creators. The company operates a 25,000-person clipper network and generates 3 billion monthly impressions on its owned social pages. Howe also brokered deals for children’s gaming expert Mackenzie Turner with Disney and Nickelodeon and led the launch of her Roblox experience, which amassed 100 million visits in its first 30 days.
Range Media Partners continues to close enormous deals. Eman Redwan oversees 25 executives who have closed more than $100 million in deals over the past year, with clients including Nara Smith. Mariam Rastegar Ross brokered Chris Appleton’s seven-figure deal with hair care brand Schwarzkopf, while Worthy Patterson turned influencer Beca Michie into a top fashion creator, placing her at major fashion shows and closing seven figures worth of deals.
Smooth Media, founded by former Morning Brew executives, has become one of the fastest-growing management firms for knowledge creators. The company has executed major campaigns for Anthropic, Notion, Microsoft, Ramp, Canva and Google. It also partnered with Colin and Samir to build the creator industry publication The Publish Press, and creator Cat Goetze, known online as CatGPT, recently took an equity stake in the company and joined as a strategic adviser.
Made by All launched a studio this year with a mission to turn creators into Hollywood talent and owners of original IP. Leanne Perice works with comedy heavyweights like Adam W, Hannah Stocking and Josh Peck, along with internet-native artists like Devon Rodriguez. She has helped foster partnerships with mainstream stars including Kevin Hart, Tom Holland and Jennifer Lopez.
Odd Projects’ Arjun Das has made a name for himself representing social impact creators. He closed a book deal for storyteller Hunter Prosper and helped him launch a series with Barack Obama’s production company Higher Ground. Das also helped Jesus Morales, a video creator telling Latinx stories around Los Angeles, launch a nonprofit that has already earned six figures in donations.
The Legal Minds Behind the Empire
Behind many of these deals are entertainment lawyers who have become essential power brokers. At Manatt, Christopher Chatham and Ellie Heisler represent Alan Chikin Chow, who has more than 100 million YouTube subscribers. They widened his audience with distribution deals at the Roku Channel and Tubi for Alan’s Universe. Chatham also reps Logan Paul and brokered deals for his Impaulsive podcast and for streamer IShowSpeed, who has 61 million subscribers. Heisler structured Salish Matter’s collaboration with Chipotle, making her the youngest person to launch a digital menu item with the brand.
Yorn Levine’s trio of Ryan Goodell, Todd Rubenstein and Kevin Yorn has been equally busy. Alix Earle evolved from creator to entrepreneur under their guidance, launching her skin care brand Reale Actives and landing the Netflix series Earle Meets World. Yorn advised Hailey Bieber on her Gap collection, while Rubenstein continued to represent Charli D’Amelio. Goodell has chef Nick DiGiovanni, who served as Fox Sports’ official chef for the FIFA World Cup.
Hansen Jacobson’s Adam Kaller, Ryan Pastorek and Lauren Partipilo Schwartz were at the center of one of the biggest creator-economy stories of the year: Markiplier’s Iron Lung. The self-funded $3 million film earned $50 million worldwide after fans flooded theaters to demand screenings. The firm also represents SmartLess, Crooked Media, Smosh, Mythical Entertainment, Emma Chamberlain, Liza Koshy, Lilly Singh and Valkyrae. They sealed Hannah Berner and Paige DeSorbo’s Giggly Squad multiyear deal with SiriusXM and negotiated for Bronwyn Newport to appear on The Traitors.
At Gang Tyre, Annie Lee and Cheryl Snow represent kids creator Ms. Rachel, who gained 10 billion views worldwide. They negotiated her Netflix series, which drew 53.4 million views, and her debut album I’m So Happy. They also represent Whitney Leavitt, whose run in Broadway’s Chicago grossed more than $8 million in its first six weeks.
Weintraub Tobin’s Shaun Gordon and Jessica Marlow have guided Alex Cooper’s Call Her Daddy into a media empire that includes the Unwell Network, film slate, live events and a distribution relationship with SiriusXM. Unwell raised its first outside capital at a reported $500 million pre-money valuation. Marlow represents Claudia and Jackie Oshry, Remi Parsons and Chris Olsen. Loeb & Loeb’s Melanie Howard works with Patrick Mahomes and his wife Brittany on endorsements, and she represented Gap in the Hailey Bieber collab. Jonathan Sauer of Sloane Offer represents Colin and Samir and Ryan Trahan, while Weinstein Senior’s Tara Senior and Todd Weinstein serve as lead counsel for MrBeast, structuring the deals behind Amazon’s Beast Games seasons two and three, each budgeted at more than $100 million.
In the end, these reprave made 2026 the year the creator economy fully came of age. Without them, the internet would still be full of talented people — but it would take a lot longer for the world to know who to call daddy.
