Sebastian Stan and Julianne Moore attend A24’s World Premiere of Sharper in London on Feb. 7, 2023. Dave Benett/Getty Images for App
On Oct. 3, A24 returns to the spotlight with The Smashing Machinea biopic about mixed martial arts legend Mark Kerr’s rise and fall. Directed by Benny Safdie and starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Emily Blunt, the film already stirred awards chatter at its Venice premiere last week. As the film continues to command attention and possibly sweep award ceremonies soon, A24’s press-shy founders will likely remain in the wings, letting the films and talent speak for themselves—a modus operandi that has long set the studio apart from Hollywood norms.
Founded in 2012, A24 has since grown into a $3.5 billion business spanning filmmaking, podcasts, retail, publishing and even theatre real estate. (Its first renovated off-Broadway venue opened this week.)
The name traces back to co-founder Daniel Katz, who had a flash of inspiration to start a movie studio while driving along Italy’s A24 highway in 2012. “I always had dreams of (starting a company),” Katz told GQ in 2017. “And on some level, honestly, I was afraid to go out on my own and try to make it work.”
The A24 highway in the province of Teramo, Italy. Lorenzo Di Cola/NurphoTo Via Getty Images
The elusive founders
Katz, a numbers man who previously led the investment firm Guggenheim Partners’ film finance arm, teamed up with David Fenkel, the co-founder of Oscilloscope Laboratoriesa New York distributor and film company, and John Hodges, who led production and development at Big Beach, the studio behind Little Miss Sunshine.
Katz and Fenkel still lead A24 today. Katz oversees project green-lighting, talent relations and strategic deals, while Fenkel manages financing and distribution. Hodges has since moved on and now serves as head of film at Jax Media. Beyond the co-founders, A24’s leadership team today also includes longtime executives like Ravi Nandan, who oversees television, and Noah Sacco, the company’s head of film.
Katz and Fenkel rarely give interviews—over the company’s 12-year history, they’ve spoken publicly only a handful of times, and almost never on camera. When they do, it’s usually in long-form settings rather than quick press junkets.
From the outset, the plan was to reject Hollywood convention: no test-screened, committee-driven films, no cookie-cutter campaigns, no assembly-line slop. Instead, A24 emphasized creative freedom, producing acclaimed films like Moonlight, Lady Birdand Uncut Gems. Actor Robert Pattinson once described the studio as “creating a kind of renaissance in filmmaking.”
A24 keeps budgets lean and relies heavily on creative, digital-first promotion. What emerged was the idea of a studio that markets not just movies but vibes. Rather than massive ad blitzes, A24 crafted campaigns that turned each film into an event, closer in spirit to a Supreme drop than a traditional Hollywood rollout.
At SXSW 2015, the studio pulled off one of its cheekiest stunts to promote Ex Machina: festivalgoers swiping on Tinder encountered a profile for Alicia Vikander’s character, which redirected matches to the film’s Instagram page. The prank went viral and remains one of the studio’s cleverest marketing schemes.
In 2021, A24 made headlines again with Zolathe first feature film adapted from a viral Twitter thread—the 148-tweet saga of a stripper’s chaotic road trip. More recently, it winked at its own mystique by stamping the A24 logo on an apartment door in a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment in Spike Lee’s Highest 2 Lowest.
David Fenkel (L) and Daniel Katz (R) rarely give interviews and almost never speak on camera. John Sciulli/Getty Images for at&t/Directv
Beyond the big screen
The A24 logo, designed to evoke Art Deco style and old Hollywood glamor, has become a lifestyle symbol. Its merch line spans T-shirts, incense holders, hot sauce, beach towels and even a $200 replica dollhouse from Hereditary. Just this week, subscribers were pitched a “Smashing Machine Real American Hero Tee,” a recreation of Kerr’s 1999 Pride 7 shirt.
The company has also built a strong television portfolio, co-producing series like HBO’s Euphoria and Netflix’s Beef. It was an early adopter of TikTok, favoring surreal, meme-driven clips over traditional prestige media.
Its publishing arm is equally influential: A24’s screenplay books, packed with behind-the-scenes essays, art and photography, have become collector’s items.
All of this has fueled a run of dominance. In 2023, A24 became the first studio ever to sweep all six major Academy Awards in one night, with Everything Everywhere All at Once and The Whale winning Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress. The studio now has 21 Oscars to its name.
Looking ahead, in addition to The Smashing Machinethe slate includes Noah Baumbach’s TV adaptation of Andrew Ridker’s novel Hope and Alex Garland’s live-action take on the Elden Ring video game.