Former Disney Executive Named CEO of Film Distributor Fathom

Former Disney Executive Named CEO of Film Distributor Fathom Jason Brenek plans to release more faith-based movies and independent films Fathom Entertainment, the specialty film distributor that re-releases classic movies and TV episodes in cinemas, appointed former Walt Disney Co. and Imax Corp. executive Jason Brenek as chief executive officer. Brenek succeeds Ray Nutt, who is retiring this year after having led the company since 2017. Under Nutt’s tenure, Fathom had its best ever sales year in 2024 with $150 million in revenue thanks to the re-releases of Coraline, The Wizard of Oz and Mean Girls. The company, based in suburban Denver, was founded in 2005 to showcase live events on cinema screens including operas and concerts. It’s co-owned by movie theater chains AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc., Regal Entertainment Group and Cinemark Holdings Inc. At Disney, Brenek was senior vice president for worldwide digital cinema and cinema programming, where he oversaw the release in theaters of concert films and sports games. After more than a decade at that company, Brenek ran Imax’s home entertainment division. In an interview, Brenek said he will build on Fathom’s recent success in releasing episodes from The Chosen series by bringing more faith-based titles to the big screen. He also plans to distribute independent films including an upcoming Jimmy Stewart biopic and Wildwood from the stop-motion animation studio Laika. “I think there's a huge opportunity for bringing films that have been made by traditional filmmakers that want to see their product on the big screen, but for some reason, in the marketplace that we're operating in, are not actually making it through the major studios,” Brenek said. In June, Fathom also released The Amazing Digital Circus: The Last Act, the finale to an animated YouTube show that grossed $26.2 million at the US and Canada box office. That event accelerated a trend of YouTube titles and creators bringing audiences into theaters, including Iron Lung from Mark Fischbach — better known by his username Markiplier — and Curry Barker’s Obsession and Backrooms from Kane Parsons. “One of the things that I'm going to be doing in my first couple of months here is really starting to build stronger relationships with the content community, with the agencies, and really understanding what types of new long-form content exist from the next generation filmmakers,” Brenek said. Read More: The Summer We Went Back to the Movies