EXCLUSIVE: Former Fifth Season film head Alexis Garcia has launched CAT5, an action film label that will be backed by his former employers, who are among other investors and partners to be announced at later date. As one of its first projects, CAT5 has signed on to co-finance Black Bear’s Levon’s Trade. The film is in production, with David Ayer-directing the Jason Statham vehicle that was adapted from the Chuck Dixon novel by Sylvester Stallone, with revisions by Ayer. Garcia joins as an executive producer. The film is in production in London and slated for wide theatrical release in the U.S. by Amazon MGM Studios on January 17th, 2025.
Garcia spent seven years with Fifth Season and Graham Taylor and Chris Rice, which he helped build from its 2017 launch as Endeavor Content. Before that he spent a decade at Endeavor/WME under Ari Emanuel and Patrick Whitesell, where he was a stalwart packager and seller of hundreds of films. He intends for CAT5 to be a turnkey financing and production option for filmmakers, leaning in on content with strong commercial appeal. CAT5 will target independently financed and/or produced action films in the $10-75m budget range.
“CAT5 is an opportunity to apply the variety of roles and experiences I’ve amassed throughout my career across these companies to build a focused and consumer facing slate,” Garcia said. “I will forever be appreciative of Ari and Patrick for the initial opportunity at Endeavor Talent Agency and for fueling together with Mark Shapiro the machine that we’ve built at Fifth Season. Graham and Chris have been incredible leaders and friends, and their continued partnership will be invaluable as CAT5 launches with Levon’s Trade, which makes for an incredibly exciting first entry in our film portfolio.”
Said Taylor and Rice: “The last 17+ years have been an absolute blast building a company together with laughter and love. Alexis has one of the most entrepreneurial minds in the business, and we are amped to be backing him in a new film label.”
Garcia joined Endeavor Talent Agency in 2007 after five years as an entertainment lawyer. He became a Partner at WME, then spun out with his group as Endeavor Content in order to begin financing and producing. Overseeing the Film Group, Garcia was instrumental in transitioning the company from a sales agent and broker to a content owner and producer, building and managing an infrastructure with full development, finance, production, and sales capabilities while also representing the division in Endeavor’s divestment transaction with CJ ENM. Among the films he was in the middle of were Michael Bay’s Ambulance, starring Jake Gyllenhaal, for Universal; 80 for Brady, starring Lily Tomlin, Jane Fonda, Rita Moreno, and Sally Field, for Paramount; Dev Patel’s Monkey Man, and independent darlings The Peanut Butter Falcon, and Brawl in Cellblock 99, starring Vince Vaughn, among 40+ other production titles during his tenure running the Film Group.
As an agent, Garcia contributed to financing and sales efforts for hundreds of films, including the Nic Refn-directed Drive, starring Ryan Gosling and Carey Mulligan, Shane Black’s The Nice Guys, starring Gosling and Russell Crowe, and Yorgos Lanthimos’ The Favourite. He also spearheaded the creation of ventures such as foreign sales company Bloom, which was ultimately acquired by Endeavor. During his stint overseeing Endeavor’s China film practice, Garcia advised artists including Robert Rodriguez, the Russo Brothers, Sylvester Stallone, and David Goyer on talent ventures while also forging partnerships with Perfect World, Tencent, and Village Roadshow, leading to co-productions with Jackie Chan and Zhang Yimou among others. Garcia began his career as an entertainment attorney after earning his BA from Vanderbilt University and his JD from UCLA.
Garcia will still serve as Executive Producer on several films in the Fifth Season slate, including the Stephen Chbosky-directed Nonnas, starring Vince Vaughn, Susan Sarandon, and Linda Cardellini; the Andrew DeYoung-directed Friendship, which stars Paul Rudd, Tim Robinson, and Kate Mara; the Nick Rowland-directed She Rides Shotgun, starring Taron Egerton, and the Pete Berg-directed The Beast, which stars Samuel L. Jackson and Joel Kinnaman.
