With the Sundance Movie Pageant only a month away, a possible new movie purchaser is rising available on the market.
Warner Bros. Movement Image Group heads Pamela Abdy and Michael de Luca are launching a brand new label that may specialise in world theatrical releases of “modern” movies, IndieWire has confirmed. The at present untitled division will probably be led by departing Neon Chief Advertising and marketing Officer Christian Parkes, who introduced his plans to go away the indie distributor on December 12.
He’ll be joined by Neon colleagues Jason Walde, who will function Head of Acquisitions & Manufacturing; and Spencer Collantes, who will probably be named VP, Advertising and marketing & Inventive.
Parkes, whose official title on the new enterprise will probably be Chief Content material Officer, is thought for overseeing Neon’s advertising throughout its Greatest Image-winning Oscar campaigns for “Parasite” and “Anora.” Different main releases beneath his management included “Anatomy of a Fall,” “Triangle of Unhappiness,” “Titane,” “Longlegs,” and this yr’s Palme d’Or winner, “It Was Simply an Accident.”
“We firmly imagine within the energy of storytelling and have labored to create a house on the studio for filmmakers who share the excessive requirements of inventive excellence that Warner Bros. has upheld for over a century,” Abdy and De Luca mentioned in a press release. “As the worldwide theatrical market continues to embrace recent concepts and welcome new audiences, we’re excited that Christian will lead our efforts to amplify the voices of daring, audacious, and authentic storytellers. The brand new labelwill fearlessly champion distinctive views from each established and rising expertise, and we’re grateful to David Zaslav and the corporate’s management for his or her ongoing ardour and help in making this label attainable.”
“I’ve spent my life marveling on the Cinema of Warner Bros.; my training got here from Peckinpah, Miller, Friedkin, and Kubrick. To be part of this studio’s future and the transformative change that Pam and Mike are creating is an honor and an exhilarating alternative to collaborate with a few of the world’s greatest filmmakers,” Parkes added.
The announcement comes after a yr of excessive highs and important uncertainty for Warner Bros. The movie division dominated Hollywood in 2025, releasing critically acclaimed blockbusters comparable to “Sinners,” “One Battle After One other,” “Weapons,” and “F1.” The hits turned Abdy and De Luca into the toast of Hollywood regardless of starting the yr with public uncertainty about their job standing after “Joker: Folie a Deux” flopped in 2024.
However these theatrical successes didn’t stop the studio from being put up on the market, and Netflix agreed to amass it after profitable a bidding warfare that additionally included Paramount. If the $82.7 billion greenback deal closes, it’s going to put the Warner Bros. model beneath the management of Netflix, which has been famously averse to theatrical distribution. Many count on the studio’s unique theatrical home windows to considerably shrink, and it stays to be seen how that may affect plans for the brand new theatrically targeted label.
For now, a brand new potential purchaser will probably be welcomed at Sundance. The brand new division will be part of a small group of great touchdown spots for competition breakouts that features A24, MUBI, and Parke’s outdated house, Neon.
Information of the brand new label was first reported by Deadline.
