By Lisa Beilfuss And Erich Schwartzel
AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc., the country's second-largest
movie theater chain, said Tuesday that Chief Executive Gerry Lopez
will resign effective next month.
Mr. Lopez, who took the helm in 2009 after spending time at
Starbucks Corp., is leaving to pursue another opportunity, AMC
said. His departure is effective Aug. 6.
The board has appointed Chief Financial Officer Craig Ramsey as
interim CEO and has formed a search committee to find a permanent
replacement.
Lloyd Hill, audit committee chairman who is leading the CEO
search, said Mr. Lopez took on the role "at a critical point in our
history six years ago when AMC was in need of a strategic refocus."
Mr. Lopez said he plans to bring his "passion for strategic refocus
to another industry."
On a conference call with analysts Tuesday morning, AMC
executives said Mr. Lopez was leaving for a CEO position at a
company "that also needs a strategic turnaround" and is outside of
the cinema industry, said Eric Handler, managing director at MKM
Partners, who was on the call. A person who worked with Mr. Lopez
earlier in his career recruited him to the new job, the executives
said.
"There was no animosity on the call," said Mr. Handler. "There
was no bad blood between Gerry and the board of directors."
AMC, based in Kansas and acquired in 2012 by China's Dalian
Wanda Group, went public in 2013 after having put off initial
public offering plans several times.
Over the past 12 months, shares in the company have soared
45%.
Some of Mr. Lopez's most prominent initiatives at AMC have
prompted changes industry-wide. He instituted a costly renovation
plan to hundreds of theaters that has boosted attendance and given
rise to more dine-in or luxury cinemas nationwide. He has also been
a champion of agreements known in the industry as "clearance" that
allow theaters to show a movie exclusively in certain markets. That
practice has prompted inquiries from the Department of Justice at
AMC and its chief rivals, Regal Entertainment Group and Cinemark
Holdings Inc.
Write to Lisa Beilfuss at lisa.beilfuss@wsj.com
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