#18: Building Angel, Disrupting Hollywood, and Surviving $60M Disney Lawsuit

In this episode, Neal Harmon, CEO and co-founder of Angel, reveals how he went from a dairy farm in Idaho to building one of the fastest-growing entertainment companies in the world. Angel is behind global hits like Sound of Freedom, The Chosen, and Dry Bar Comedy — all chosen and funded by audiences, not executives.

Neal shares the painful story of surviving a Disney lawsuit, why The Chosen split was harder than Disney, and how resilience, faith, and community helped Angel scale against all odds. He explains the secrets to viral storytelling, why constant testing wins, and how community-driven content is rewriting the rules of media.

This is a story of resilience, disruption, and purpose, a blueprint for every builder, leader, and creator who wants to build something that lasts.

Follow Neal Harmon - X (Twitter): https://x.com/nealsharmon
Follow Derek - X (Twitter): https://twitter.com/derekjandersen

Timestamps:
0:00 - Intro: from Idaho farm to Hollywood disruptor
2:30 - Why Angel gives audiences the power to greenlight stories
6:00 - Building hits like Sound of Freedom, The Chosen, and Dry Bar Comedy
10:00 - Lessons from AuraBrush, Squatty Potty, and viral ads
15:00 - Surviving Disney's $62M lawsuit and crowdfunding $11M in 5 days
21:00 - Why lawsuits can build resilience, not break it
26:00 - The pain of The Chosen split and lessons learned
33:00 - Angel Guild and the future of audience-driven entertainment
38:00 - Preparing for AMGX: scaling with community investors
44:00 - Family, faith, and raising 10 kids while building a company
50:00 - What makes Angel Studios different from Hollywood
55:00 - Neal's advice: why failure isn't real until you quit
1:00:00 - Final reflections: leadership, humility, and legacy

Follow Divot:
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Divotpod
X (Twitter): https://twitter.com/divotdotorg
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/divotpod
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@divotpod
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/divotdotorg

Hashtags:
#DivotPodcast #Entrepreneurship #Leadership #Resilience #AngelStudios #SoundOfFreedom #TheChosen #DryBarComedy #DisruptHollywood #BusinessStrategy #StartupStories #CommunityBuilding #FaithInBusiness