Amazon MGM Studios Distribution, led by Chris Ottinger, head of worldwide distribution for the relatively new division, has started making the studio’s highest profile – and said to be costliest – titles “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” and “Citadel,” available to third parties. These are joined by two upcoming series, the graphic novel based-spy thriller series “Butterfly” and the action series “Countdown,” starring Jensen Ackles (“The Boys”).
The latter two titles will be available 18 months after their season runs, following the traditional window release pattern. “Countdown” drops in late June while “Butterfly” debuts later in the summer. Buyer feedback for these shows was very positive during the company’s LA Screenings presentation, according to Ottinger.
Speaking of the “Lord of the Rings” franchise, Ottinger said: “We would want premium pricing because it’s a premium product. Season 1 of ‘The Rings of Power’was the biggest TV series premiere in the history of Prime Video and Season Two was the most-watched returning season ever on Prime Video at the time. Ultimately, it depends on the partner and where they plan to place it. If someone wants it for Thursday at 8 p.m. — a prime slot — I expect top dollar.”
Since its launch at the LA Screenings in May 2023, the distribution arm of Amazon MGM Studios has brought more than 50 Amazon Original Movies to market and handled sales of such hit franchises as “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” “The Handmaid’s Tale,” “Fargo,” “Vikings,” “James Bond,” “Creed” and “Road House.”
“We brought premium library titles to market to test their performance on Prime Video while they also aired on third-party platforms. One of the goals was to see if they’d benefit from a Netflix-style boost or if they’d end up cannibalizing our own viewership. The effect we saw was neutral to positive for Prime Video,” said Ottinger, an industry vet who spearheaded MGM distribution for more than a decade.
The division has since become a regular participant in the Upfront and LA Screenings cycle, alongside distributors including Warner Bros., NBCUniversal and CBS. Next stop is MIPCOM where the current and upcoming 2026 slate will be presented. It participates in an average of 10 to 12 markets a year.
Talks are soon underway with the usual suspects, led by ITV, BBC, TF1, M6, Mediaset in Spain and Italy as well as RTL, ProSieben and ZDF in Germany. In Latin America, their biggest buyers are Mexico’s Televisa and Globo in Brazil. It’s still business as usual with the pay/TV cable industry despite a more challenged environment.
Prime Video currently reaches more than 200 million subscribers worldwide, second to Netflix’s reported 300 million.
Richard Madden as Mason Kane, Priyanka Chopra Jonas as Nadia Sinh in ‘Citadel’
Courtesy of Prime Video