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 in America 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 Hollywood's "cowardice". 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.
In 2025, it was reported that Briarcliff had acquired the rights to Good Luck, Have Fun, Don't Die, the first film in a decade from Pirates of the Caribbean director Gore Verbinski.https://www.thewrap.com/gore-verbinski-good-luck-have-fun-dont-die-release-date-briarcliff-entertainment/ They released it theatrically on February 13, 2026, and it became the company's highest-grossing opening ever after bringing in $4.15 million in its opening weekend. https://deadline.com/2026/02/box-office-wuthering-heights-crime-101-goat-1236718755/ It was also the highest-grossing opening weekend for any English-language narrative film released by any company on fewer than 1,700 screens in over three years, since Warner Bros.' release of Magic Mike's Last Dance in 2023.https://screenrant.com/good-luck-have-fun-dont-die-vod-streaming-success-march-2026/
For the marketing campaign on Good Luck, Have Fun, Don't Die, Briarcliff was nominated for five and won two awards at the 2026 Golden Trailer Awards, winning for Best Comedy Poster and Best Independent Trailer.https://variety.com/2026/film/news/golden-trailer-awards-project-hail-mary-1236761839/
Filmography Release dateTitleCo-production withNotes September 21, 2018Fahrenheit 11/9 Midwestern Films First film distributed by Briarcliff May 3, 2019El Chicano WarParty Films and WarChest Productions August 30, 2019Don't Let GoBlumhouse Productionsco-distributed with OTL Releasing and BH Tilt August 18, 2020EmperorSobini Films and Hudlin Entertainment October 16, 2020Honest ThiefThe Solution Entertainment Group, Zero Gravity Management, Samuel Marshall Films, and Ingenious Mediaco-distributed with Open Road Films December 25, 2020The DissidentOrwell Productions and Human Rights Foundation April 30, 2021SeparationRainMaker Films and Yale Productionsco-distributed with Open Road Films September 17, 2021CopshopSculptor Media, Zero Gravity Management, G-BASE Film Production, Raven Capital Management, and WarParty FilmsAmerican distribution with Open Road Films only February 11, 2022BlacklightZero Gravity Management, Footloose Productions, The Solution Entertainment Group, Sina Studios, Fourstar Films, Elevate Production Finance, Film Victoria, Lightstream Pictures Australia, and Screen AustraliaAmerican distribution only February 25, 2022Studio 666Roswell Films and Therapy Studios April 29, 2022MemoryBlack Bear Pictures, Welle Entertainment, and Saville ProductionsAmerican distribution with Open Road Films only May 20, 2022Good MourningCedar Park Studios and Raven Capital Managementco-distributed with Open Road Films July 15, 2022Gabby Giffords Won't Back DownCNN Films, Time Studios, Storyville Films, and Lisa Espramer Entertainment February 15, 2023MarloweParallel Films, Hills Productions, and Davis FilmsAmerican distribution only April 13, 2023The Lost Weekend: A Love Story April 14, 2023SweetwaterSunset Pictures and Reserve Entertainment August 25, 2023The HillVitamin A Films, Rescue Dog Productions, Piney Pictures March 15, 2024DogmanLuc Besson Production, EuropaCorp, and TF1 Films ProductionAmerican distribution only May 10, 2024Not Another Church MovieJMC Media and Monty the Dog Productions October 11, 2024The ApprenticeScythia Films, Profile Pictures, Tailored Films, Rich Spirit, AQuest Films, Head Gear Films, Metrol Technology, AC Films Inc., and Wild7 FilmsAmerican distribution only December 6, 2024WerewolvesBurke Management, Monty the Dog Productions, and Solution Entertainment Group January 31, 2025Valiant OneFactory Underground and Monarch Media February 7, 2025When I'm Ready19th Hole Productions and Film Bridge InternationalCo-distributed with Quiver Distribution February 28, 2025My Dead Friend ZoeRadiant Media Studios and Legion MMarch 21, 2025Magazine DreamsLos Angeles Media Fund and Tall Street ProductionsApril 18, 2025SneaksLengi Studios, Cinema Gypsy Productions, and House of CoolAmerican distribution onlyMay 9, 2025Juliet & RomeoHero Entertainment, and Rainmaker Films July 11, 2025SovereignAll Night DinerOctober 29, 2025Stitch HeadAniventure, GFM Animation, Rabbits Black November 28, 2025The Thing With FeathersFilm4, Sunnymarch, Lobo FilmsAmerican distribution only February 13, 2026 Good Luck, Have Fun, Don't Die3 Arts Entertainment, Blind Wink Productions, Constantin FilmSeptember 11, 2026The FixAstral Future, Latigo Films, Dreamtime FilmsCo-distributed with Inaugural Entertainment
Upcoming Release dateTitleCo-production withNotes October 2, 2026Nickels American distribution onlyOctober 16, 2026Trust Me, I'm a DoctorAmerican distribution only October 30, 2026Christmas at the Kringles In production November 20, 2026Ash and CrayonsAmerican distribution only January 29, 2027 Drag
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