AMC launches Leawood Films to bring indie and mid-budget movies to theaters

AMC Entertainment is creating a distribution arm called Leawood Films to give independent and mid-budget movies a theatrical home. The label will handle marketing and distribution for films that are fully funded by their creators, while promising not to disrupt the exhibition of major studio titles. AMC will seek to place these titles on its own venues and persuade other exhibitors to join the program.

The company set a window of at least 45 days before a film can appear on PVOD and 90 days or more before SVOD, with most subsequent earnings remaining with the filmmakers. Leawood Films has assembled a advisory team that includes former Warner Bros. executive Toby Emmerich, ex-Disney Studios marketing chief Ricky Strauss, and Bleaker Street distributor Kyle Davies, with Craig Jacobson representing the venture. Headquarters will be in Los Angeles and Leawood, Kansas, and the first releases are slated for 2027-2028.