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AMC Entertainment Appoints Two Women to Board of Directors, Significantly Improving Diversity Goals

Greg Morcroft

Published: January 2, 2023 7:53 am

AMC Entertainment (US:AMC), the largest movie theater chain in the world, said Thursday it appointed Denise “Dee” Clark and Keri Putnam to its board of directors, effective Jan. 1, 2023.

The appointments will bring the total number of female directors on the board to three out of nine, up from one out of eight. Clark and Putnam will serve as directors with a term expiring at the company’s 2023 annual meeting of stockholders and will stand for reelection after that.

Clark is a global information technology executive with leadership positions at various companies. She has served as an independent director for United Natural Foods, Inc. for the past ten years. She has previously been on the board of directors for Six Flags Entertainment Corporation and Caesars Entertainment Corporation.

Putnam is a CEO, creative producer, strategic adviser and senior media executive. She launched Putnam Pictures in 2022 to produce film and television from creators with distinct and adventurous vision. Before that, she served as CEO of the Sundance Institute, which runs the Sundance Film Festival, from 2010 to 2021.

Additionally, Lee Wittlinger, a managing director at private investment firm Silver Lake, will resign from his position on the AMC board at the end of the year. Wittlinger has served as a director since 2018, but his departure is in line with the company’s general practice following Silver Lake’s exit from an investment in AMC in January 2021.

AMC has struggled financially due to concerns about its high levels of debt, dilution of its stock, and slow-to-recover film industry. Shares of AMC have fallen more than 85% this year.

The company has implemented several plans to raise capital and pay down its debt, including branded credit cards, a pay freeze for its CEO, and investments in acquisitions and theater upgrades. AMC struggled to maintain momentum in 2022 despite coming back from the brink of bankruptcy in 2021 with the help of millions of retail investors. Analysts warn that moviegoing may not return to pre-pandemic levels until 2024 or 2025, if at all.

AMC’s latest effort to improve its financial situation is an equity deal with Antara Capital, one of its major debt holders, to raise $110 million by selling units to Antara for 66 cents each. The company’s board has also announced plans to hold a special meeting for shareholders to vote on a proposal that includes seeking permission to split AMC’s common shares.

This article originally appeared on Fintel.