Row K Entertainment's top executives, including president Megan Colligan, are negotiating their departures amid the company's financial difficulties. The parent firm, Media Capital Technologies, is shifting toward more commercial projects. Meanwhile, the Maude Apatow comedy Poetic License seeks a new distributor.
Row K Entertainment, a subsidiary of Media Capital Technologies launched before the Toronto International Film Festival, faces upheaval as its president Megan Colligan, chief revenue officer Mo Rhim, and chief marketing officer Ben Carlson negotiate exits. Sources attribute the moves to Row K's money-strapped position. Head of distribution Steve Garrett remains with the company, while Media Capital Technologies, led by Christopher Woodrow and Raj Singh, seeks to backfill the roles and prioritize commercial titles over arthouse films. Backed by MassMutual, the parent company has co-funded Lionsgate projects like Good Fortune and The Long Walk. The executives have retained attorney Bryan Freedman to handle the situation. Variety first reported the financial issues on Friday evening. A key factor is the poor box office performance of Row K's TIFF acquisition Dead Man’s Wire, directed by Gus Van Sant and starring Bill Skarsgard and Al Pacino. It earned $2.2 million domestically after a $5 million North American acquisition and nearly another $5 million in marketing. The film opened January 9 following a voter screening, but Skarsgard's commitments on Lords of War limited promotion. Woodrow and Singh stated: “Row K’s release of Dead Man’s Wire has provided an important opportunity to evaluate and refine our strategy as a new entrant building in a highly competitive marketplace. Like many early-stage companies, we moved quickly to establish a slate and are now taking a more measured, disciplined approach – prioritizing commercially viable titles, strengthening our internal infrastructure, and aligning our team accordingly.” They added: “As is standard in our industry, certain payments are scheduled in alignment with incoming receivables... Row K is well-capitalized, continues to support its existing projects, and is focused on long-term, sustainable growth with a clear emphasis on commerciality.” Separately, Row K's other TIFF pickup Poetic License—a comedy starring Maude Apatow, Cooper Hoffman, Leslie Mann, Method Man, and Nico Parker with 91% on Rotten Tomatoes—is being shopped after Row K failed to pay the $5.5 million to $7 million acquisition price. Originally set for May 15 to tie into HBO’s Euphoria season three, it shifted to October 16. Upcoming releases include the Cliffhanger reboot on August 28 with Lily James and Pierce Brosnan, directed by Jaume Collet-Serra, and Charlie Harper on September 25 starring Emilia Jones and Nick Robinson. Colligan, a former Paramount marketing head and Imax president, championed the film.
