Indie movie circuit Alamo Drafthouse Cinema has sold Mondo to Funko, the pop culture lifestyle brand.
Terms of the deal by the indie movie circuit were not disclosed, but the agreement hands Funko the creator of pop culture collectibles like vinyl records, posters, soundtracks, toys, apparel, books and games. The Alamo Drafthouse subsidiary Mondo was founded in 2001 by Rob Jones and Tim League.
“Over the past few months, we searched exhaustively to find a perfect partner who saw what was unique and special about Mondo and was in a position to meaningfully invest in Mondo, nurture the team, and further its reach and vision,” said League in a statement, adding: “Funko is exactly that unicorn. The team that made Mondo amazing is staying together, making the transition to Funko, and will continue their same work with the same creative vision.”
Alamo, which emerged from Chapter 11 in June, has continued to retool its business in the hope more movies will come from the major studios as the pandemic eases, even as the traditional theatrical window shortens. As part of that restructuring, Alamo sold its Drafthouse Films label to digital distributor Giant Pictures.
“Mondo’s devoted fan base and high-end pop culture collectibles make it the perfect complement to Funko’s current portfolio of brands. By leveraging our international distribution and licensing network, we feel well-positioned to expedite the growth of the Mondo brand,” Mondo CEO Andrew Perlmutter said in a statement on Monday.
The deal for Mondo arrives just a month after former Disney CEO Bob Iger joined a consortium led by Peter Chernin’s The Chernin Group to invest $263 million in Funko to fuel its expansion.
