Amidst simultaneous Chapter 11 bankruptcies and dueling counter lawsuits, Regal Cinemas entered into a long-term agreement with National CineMedia, the largest cinema advertising network in the United States.

Regal, the second largest cinema chain in the U.S., was one of NCM’s founding partners 20 years ago, alongside AMC Theatres and Cinemark. Around the time NCM went public in 2007, the company paid its founders over USD $680 million for the exclusive rights to provide advertising services for the next 30 years. After Regal’s owner, Cineworld, filed for bankruptcy in September of 2022, the cinema operator attempted to cancel this standing exhibitor services agreement and went shopping for a new advertising network. Hence all of the legal fireworks.

The new ten-year agreement between the two companies is a result of mediation which was ordered by the United States Bankruptcy Court in an effort to get NCM and Regal to negotiate a settlement. NCM will now run its Noovie preshow program at Regal Cinemas’ over 6,000 screens and 450 theaters, featuring national, regional, and local advertisers.