As President and General Manager of AMC, Charlie Collier oversees every aspect of the AMC brand, spearheading the multiplatform network, which is available on-air, online, on demand and via mobile applications. Collier has led AMC since 2006 as the driving force behind the network’s continued evolution and success.
Under Collier’s leadership, AMC has transformed into one of the most relevant and heralded original programming brands on television while, at the same time, growing AMC’s core as a home to some of the greatest movies of all time. Noting “the network’s banner year” and in calling out only one television network by name, Entertainment Weekly chose the casts of AMC as one of its “2011 Entertainers of the Year.”
AMC’s scripted original programs, beginning with Mad Men and by 2012 including Breaking Bad, The Walking Dead and Hell on Wheels, have garnered critical acclaim and record-breaking ratings, transforming AMC into one of the most-award winning networks in television. AMC reigns as the only cable network ever to win four consecutive Primetime Emmy® Awards for Outstanding Drama Series (Mad Men 2008-2011), and the Golden Globe® Award for Best Television Series – Drama three years in a row (Mad Men 2008-2010). Additionally, AMC received the Peabody Award for television excellence two years in a row, first for Mad Men (2008) and then for Breaking Bad (2009).
AMC’s evolution has been rapid. Mad Men premiered on AMC in 2007 to unprecedented critical acclaim and the momentum continues with the AMC series praised as “TV’s best show” (Rolling Stone) and “…a glorious display of TV storytelling…” (The Associated Press). The next launch under Collier’s watch, Breaking Bad, also received strong critical acclaim, including writer Stephen King heralding it as “the best scripted show on TV.” With Breaking Bad, AMC became the only cable network ever to house the Primetime Emmy® Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series (Bryan Cranston as Walter White) for three consecutive years (2008-2010). The show also earned consecutive Outstanding Drama Series Emmy® nominations alongside Mad Men (2009-2010).
In addition to critical acclaim, the network now boasts basic cable’s most watched drama series ever for Adults 18-34, Adults 18-49 and Adults 25-54: The Walking Dead, an AMC Studios production based on the comic book series written by Robert Kirkman. Collier led the formation of AMC Studios to initially house this wholly-owned AMC production. The Walking Dead debuted on Halloween night 2010 to critical acclaim and a total of 8.1 million viewers and, later, garnered its own Golden Globe® and Emmy® nods. A total of 10.5 million viewers tuned into season two’s premiere night this Halloween season. AMC’s most recent scripted original series Hell on Wheels debuted as the second highest rated series ever on AMC. Recently, the series returned for season two with critical acclaim including Newsday stating, "the old west still feels epically beautiful and perilous.” AMC’s most recent scripted original series Collier also expanded the network’s investment in high-quality original programming with a slate of new unscripted series, including Talking Dead, AMC’s first live after-show hosted by Chris Hardwick, and Comic Book Men, The Pitch and Small Town Security. Under Collier’s leadership, AMC has also strengthened its commitment to commemorating favorite films from every genre and decade with the development of ratings-driving movie franchises including “AMC Story Notes” and AMC’s highly rated “AMC Can’t Get Enough…” weeks as well as signing exclusive deals that make AMC the home of iconic film franchises from The Godfather to Apocalypse Now.
A veteran cable network executive, Collier joined AMC from Court TV (now truTV) with a track record of driving brand, revenue and business growth. At Court TV, he served as executive vice president and general manager of advertising sales where he more than quintupled its revenue from national ad sales, dramatically improved its positioning within the industry, and played a key role in broadening the network’s appeal beyond courtroom programming and into entertainment programming in the investigation genre. During his time with Court TV, Collier’s focus was on the union of content and sales. Through the creation of industry-oriented, ROI-based research programs, he worked with leading industry clients to improve the measurement of audience engagement and advertising effectiveness.
Prior to Court TV, Collier held senior roles at Oxygen Media, A&E Networks and TeleRep.
Collier earned his Master in Business Administration degree from Columbia University and his Bachelor of Arts degree from Bucknell University. He is a Cable Advertising Bureau (CAB) board member. Among other accolades, Collier was honored with the 2009 Vanguard Award for Young Leadership, named to Crain’s 40 Under 40 class of 2009, named one of the 2010 top ten television executives of the year by The Wrap, and has been on the CableFAX 100 list for five consecutive years.
Collier is also involved in civic activities, among them a senior board position at CancerCare, an organization devoted to helping not just cancer patients but also those around them touched by the disease. He is married and has four children.