# Briarcliff Entertainment

Briarcliff Entertainment is an independent American film production and distribution company founded by former Open Road Films CEO Tom Ortenberg. Launched in 2018, the studio debuted with Michael Moore's documentary Fahrenheit 11/9 as their first film. They went on to distribute mainly action films in the ensuing several years, including Honest Thief and Blacklight with Liam Neeson, and Copshop with Gerard Butler.
In addition to Fahrenheit 11/9, the company has released other high-profile political documentaries, including the critically acclaimed The Dissident, about the assassination of Jamal Khashoggi, and Gabby Giffords Won't Back Down.
During the summer of 2024, it was reported that Briarcliff was close to a deal to release the controversial Donald Trump biopic The Apprentice after it initially languished without a distributor following its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, and a deal was later confirmed with an October 11 release date set.
A few months later it was announced they would acquire Magazine Dreams, the Sundance hit that was dropped by Searchlight Pictures following the controversy surrounding its star Jonathan Majors.

## History

Briarcliff was founded as an independent theatrical film studio in late 2018 by veteran executive Tom Ortenberg, who was the founding CEO of Open Road Films and formerly the President of Theatrical Films at Lionsgate, where he was the company's first employee in Los Angeles. Their first films were 2018's Fahrenheit 11/9 and 2019's Don't Let Go, a collaboration with Blumhouse Productions.
In 2020, it was announced that Briarcliff would partner with a recently re-launched Open Road to acquire and release films jointly. The partnership distributed films like Kandahar with Gerard Butler and Studio 666, a 2022 horror-comedy made by and starring Dave Grohl and the Foo Fighters.
The company has been noted for their frequent collaboration with Liam Neeson on action films, including Marlowe, Memory, Blacklight and Honest Thief, all released between 2020 and 2023. Also in 2023 they distributed the inspirational baseball film The Hill starring Dennis Quaid, which grossed $7.6 million at the domestic box office.
In 2024, it was reported that they would release The Apprentice, the controversial Donald Trump biopic starring Sebastian Stan and Jeremy Strong that played the Cannes Film Festival and was sent a cease and desist by the former president's legal team. Despite the Trump campaign's attempts to block a sale, it was slated for a release on October 11 shortly before the 2024 United States presidential election.
Due to the legal threats, Briarcliff was the only distribution company to make a serious offer for the film, with Ortenberg slamming the "cowardice" of the rest of the industry. In October of that year, Bloomberg reported that the studio was looking to raise between $25–50 million for a minority stake in the company.
Also in 2024, it was announced that they would release Magazine Dreams, which was dropped by Searchlight Pictures following the controversy surrounding star Jonathan Majors despite strong reviews out of Sundance, in early 2025. The same year the company also acquired South by Southwest Audience Award winner My Dead Friend Zoe, starring Morgan Freeman and Ed Harris and executive produced by Travis Kelce, for release in 2025.

## Filmography
### Released

| Release date | Title | Co-production with | Notes |
| September 21, 2018 | Fahrenheit 11/9 | Midwestern Films | First film distributed by Briarcliff |
| May 3, 2019 | El Chicano | WarParty Films and WarChest Productions | |
| August 30, 2019 | Don't Let Go | Blumhouse Productions | co-distributed with OTL Releasing and BH Tilt |
| August 18, 2020 | Emperor | Sobini Films and Hudlin Entertainment | |
| October 16, 2020 | Honest Thief | The Solution Entertainment Group, Zero Gravity Management, Samuel Marshall Films, and Ingenious Media | co-distributed with Open Road Films |
| December 25, 2020 | The Dissident | Orwell Productions and Human Rights Foundation | |
| April 30, 2021 | Separation | RainMaker Films and Yale Productions | co-distributed with Open Road Films |
| September 17, 2021 | Copshop | Sculptor Media, Zero Gravity Management, G-BASE Film Production, Raven Capital Management, and WarParty Films | U.S. distribution with Open Road Films only |
| February 11, 2022 | Blacklight | Zero Gravity Management, Footloose Productions, The Solution Entertainment Group, Sina Studios, Fourstar Films, Elevate Production Finance, Film Victoria, Lightstream Pictures Australia, and Screen Australia | U.S. distribution only |
| February 25, 2022 | Studio 666 | Roswell Films and Therapy Studios | |
| April 29, 2022 | Memory | Black Bear Pictures, Welle Entertainment, and Saville Productions | U.S. distribution with Open Road Films only |
| May 20, 2022 | Good Mourning | Cedar Park Studios and Raven Capital Management | co-distributed with Open Road Films |
| July 15, 2022 | Gabby Giffords Won't Back Down | CNN Films, Time Studios, Storyville Films, and Lisa Espramer Entertainment | |
| February 15, 2023 | Marlowe | Parallel Films, Hills Productions, and Davis Films | U.S. distribution only |
| April 14, 2023 | Sweetwater | Sunset Pictures and Reserve Entertainment | |
| August 25, 2023 | The Hill | Vitamin A Films, Rescue Dog Productions, Piney Pictures | |
| October 13, 2023 | The Lost Weekend: A Love Story | | |
| March 15, 2024 | Dogman | Luc Besson Production, EuropaCorp, and TF1 Films Production | U.S. distribution only |
| May 10, 2024 | Not Another Church Movie | JMC Media and Monty the Dog Productions | |
| October 11, 2024 | The Apprentice | Scythia Films, Profile Pictures, Tailored Films, Rich Spirit, AQuest Films, Head Gear Films, Metrol Technology, AC Films Inc., and Wild7 Films | U.S. distribution only |
| December 6, 2024 | Werewolves | Burke Management, Monty the Dog Productions, and Solution Entertainment Group |
| January 31, 2025 | Valiant One | Factory Underground and Monarch Media | |
| February 7, 2025 | When I'm Ready | 19th Hole Productions and Film Bridge International | Co-distributed with Quiver Distribution |

### Upcoming

| Release date | Title | Co-production with | Notes |
| February 28, 2025 | My Dead Friend Zoe | Legion M and Radiant Media Studios | |
| March 21, 2025 | Magazine Dreams | Los Angeles Media Fund and Tall Street Productions | |
| April 18, 2025 | Sneaks | Lengi Studios, Cinema Gypsy Productions, and House of Cool | First animated film to be released by Briarcliff |
| May 9, 2025 | Verona's Romeo and Juliet | Hero Entertainment, and Rainmaker Films | |
| TBA | 10 Lives | GFM Animation, Align, Caramel Films, and L'Atelier Animation | U.S. distribution only |
| TBA | Sovereign | All Night Diner | |