PRE 14A: Preliminary proxy statement not related to a contested matter or merger/acquisition

Use these links to rapidly review the document
TABLE OF CONTENTS

Table of Contents

UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549

SCHEDULE 14A

Proxy Statement Pursuant to Section 14(a) of
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (Amendment No.          )

Table of Contents

DEAR STOCKHOLDERS:

              We cordially invite you to attend the Annual Meeting of Stockholders of AMC Entertainment Holdings, Inc., which will be held on May 4, 2021 at 2:00 p.m. (Central Time) at the AMC Theatre Support Center, located at One AMC Way, 11500 Ash Street, Leawood, Kansas 66211, for the following purposes:

1.

To approve an amendment to our Third Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation to increase the total number of shares of Class A Common Stock (par value $0.01 per share) the Company shall have the authority to issue by 500,000,000 shares to a total of 1,024,173,073 shares of Class A Common Stock ("Proposal 1").



2.

To elect to our Board of Directors the following nominees for terms expiring at the 2024 Annual Meeting: Mr. Philip Lader, Mr. Gary F. Locke, and Mr. Adam J. Sussman ("Proposal 2").



3.

To ratify the appointment of Ernst & Young LLP as our independent registered public accounting firm for 2021 ("Proposal 3").



4.

To conduct a non-binding advisory vote to approve the compensation of named executive officers ("Proposal 4").



5.

To approve an amendment to our 2013 Equity Incentive Plan (the "EIP) to (i) increase the total number of shares subject to the EIP to 35,000,000 shares of Class A Common Stock, (ii) revise the share replenishment provision and (iii) eliminate the mandatory expiration of the EIP ("Proposal 5").



6.

To approve the adjournment of the Annual Meeting to a later date or dates, if necessary or appropriate, to solicit additional proxies if there are insufficient votes to adopt the proposals ("Proposal 6").

              These items of business (collectively, the "Proposals") are more fully described in the Proxy Statement accompanying this notice.

              Our Board has fixed the close of business on March 11, 2021 as the record date for determining the stockholders entitled to notice of and to vote at the Annual Meeting of Stockholders or at any adjournment or postponement thereof. A list of these stockholders will be available at the time and place of the meeting and, during the ten days prior to the meeting, at the office of the Secretary of AMC Entertainment Holdings, Inc. at One AMC Way, 11500 Ash Street, Leawood, Kansas 66211.

              Only stockholders and persons holding proxies from stockholders may attend the meeting. If your shares are registered in your name, you should bring your proxy card and a proper form of identification such as your driver's license to the meeting. If your shares are held in the name of a broker, trust, bank or other nominee, you will need to bring a proxy or letter from that broker, trust, bank or other nominee that confirms you are the beneficial owner of those shares and a proper form of identification.

              Although we currently intend to hold the Annual Meeting in person, due to concerns related to the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, we may impose additional procedures or limitations on meeting attendees or may decide to hold the Annual Meeting in a different location or solely by means of remote communication (i.e., a virtual-only meeting). We plan to announce any such updates regarding the Annual Meeting by issuing a press release and filing the press release as definitive additional soliciting material with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"). We encourage you to regularly check these resources prior to the Annual Meeting if you plan to attend.

Table of Contents

              Important Notice Regarding the Availability of Proxy Materials for Stockholder Meeting to be held on May 4, 2021. Pursuant to rules promulgated by the SEC, we have elected to provide access to our proxy materials by notifying you of the availability of our proxy materials on the Internet. Instead of mailing paper copies of our proxy materials, we sent stockholders the Important Notice Regarding the Availability of Proxy Materials for the Stockholder Meeting to be held on May 4, 2021, with instructions for accessing the proxy materials and voting via the Internet (the "Notice"). In accordance with the SEC notice and access rule, the Notice allows us to provide our stockholders with the information they need to vote through various means, while reducing the costs and environmental impact of printing and delivering proxy materials. The Notice is not a proxy and cannot be used to authorize a proxy to vote your shares. The Notice, which was mailed on or around March 19, 2021 also provides information on how stockholders may obtain paper copies of our proxy materials if they so choose. If you receive a Notice this year, you will not receive paper copies of the Proxy Materials unless you request the materials by following the instructions on the Notice. The Proxy Statement and our 2020 Annual Report may be accessed at www.proxyvote.com and investor.amctheatres.com. As discussed in the Proxy Statement, certain stockholders were sent a full set of printed proxy materials or an email with instructions on how access the proxy materials electronically, based on their previously indicated delivery preferences.

              Whether or not you plan to attend the Annual Meeting in person and regardless of the number of shares you may own, we urge you to vote your shares over the Internet, as provided in the Notice and the Proxy Statement. If you already received or if you request proxy materials by mail, you may vote over the Internet or sign, date and mail the proxy card you receive in the envelope provided or vote via the toll-free telephone number set forth on the proxy card. Please also indicate when voting your shares over the Internet or via the toll-free number or on your proxy card whether you plan to attend the Annual Meeting. You may revoke your proxy and vote your shares in person in accordance with the procedures described in the Proxy Statement.

              If you have any questions regarding the accompanying proxy statement or how to vote your shares, you may contact D.F. King & Co., Inc., our proxy solicitor, toll-free at (800) 249-7120 or collect at (212) 269-5550 or email at AMC@dfking.com.

ALL STOCKHOLDERS ARE EXTENDED A CORDIAL INVITATION
TO ATTEND THE ANNUAL MEETING OF STOCKHOLDERS

		By Order of the Board of Directors,
One AMC Way
11500 Ash Street, Leawood, KS 66211		Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary
March 19, 2021

Table of Contents

​	​	​	​	​
​	​	​	​	​ i

Table of Contents

​	​	​	​	​
​ ii	​	​	​	​

Table of Contents

PROXY SUMMARY

              This summary highlights selected information and does not contain all of the information that you should consider in deciding how to vote. You should read the entire proxy statement carefully before voting.

Voting Recommendations

Agenda Item		Board Vote Recommendation
​	​	​	​	​
Proposal 1:				FOR
Amendment of our Third Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation to increase the total number of shares of Class A Common Stock (par value $0.01 per share) the Company shall have the authority to issue by 500,000,000 shares to a total of 1,024,173,073 shares of Class A Common Stock.
Proposal 2:				FOR
Election to our Board of Directors of the following nominees for terms expiring at the 2024 Annual Meeting:		​		each Director Nominee
Mr. Philip Lader, Mr. Gary F. Locke, and Mr. Adam J. Sussman.		​		​
Proposal 3:				FOR
Ratification of the appointment of Ernst & Young LLP as our independent registered public accounting firm for 2021.
Proposal 4:				FOR
Non-binding advisory vote to approve the compensation of named executive officers (the "say-on-pay vote").		​		​
Proposal 5:				FOR
Amendment of the EIP to (i) increase the total number of shares subject to the EIP to 35,000,000 shares of Class A Common Stock, (ii) revise the share replenishment provision, and (iii) eliminate the mandatory expiration of the EIP.
Proposal 6:				FOR
Adjournment of the Annual Meeting to a later date or dates, if necessary or appropriate, to solicit additional proxies if there are insufficient votes to adopt the Proposals.		​		​

​	​	​	​	​
​	​	​	​	​ 1

Table of Contents

              This proxy statement is provided in connection with the solicitation of proxies by the Board of Directors (the "Board") of AMC Entertainment Holdings, Inc., a Delaware corporation ("we," "us," the "Company" or "AMC"), for use at the 2021 Annual Meeting of Stockholders of the Company, to be held on May 4, 2021 at 2:00 p.m. (Central Time), or any adjournment or postponement thereof, at the AMC Theatre Support Center located at One AMC Way, 11500 Ash Street, Leawood, Kansas 66211 (the "Annual Meeting").

              Although we currently intend to hold the Annual Meeting in person, due to concerns related to the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, we may impose additional procedures or limitations on meeting attendees or may decide to hold the Annual Meeting in a different location or solely by means of remote communication (i.e., a virtual-only meeting). We plan to announce any such updates regarding the Annual Meeting by issuing a press release and filing the press release as definitive additional soliciting material with the SEC. We encourage you to regularly check these resources prior to the Annual Meeting if you plan to attend.

Important Notice Regarding the Availability of Proxy Materials
for Stockholder Meeting to be held on May 4, 2021.

              Pursuant to rules promulgated by the SEC, we have elected to provide access to our proxy materials by notifying you of the availability of our proxy materials on the Internet. Instead of mailing paper copies of our proxy materials, we sent stockholders the Important Notice Regarding the Availability of Proxy Materials for the Stockholder Meeting to be held on May 4, 2021, with instructions for accessing the proxy materials and voting via the Internet (the "Notice"). In accordance with the SEC notice and access rule, the Notice allows us to provide our stockholders with the information they need to vote through various means, while reducing the costs and environmental impact of printing and delivering proxy materials. The Notice is not a proxy and cannot be used to authorize a proxy to vote your shares. The Notice, which was mailed on or around March 19, 2021 also provides information on how stockholders may obtain paper copies of our proxy materials if they so choose. If you receive a Notice this year, you will not receive paper copies of the Proxy Materials unless you request the materials by following the instructions on the Notice. The Proxy Statement and our 2020 Annual Report may be accessed at www.proxyvote.com and investor.amctheatres.com. As discussed in the Proxy Statement, certain stockholders were sent a full set of printed proxy materials or an email with instructions on how access the proxy materials electronically, based on their previously indicated delivery preferences.

              This proxy statement and the accompanying proxy are first being made available to stockholders beginning on or about March 19, 2021. The costs of this proxy solicitation will be borne by the Company, which maintains its principal executive offices at One AMC Way, 11500 Ash Street, Leawood, KS 66211.

              If you have any questions regarding the proxy statement, you may contact D.F. King & Co., Inc., our proxy solicitor, toll-free at (800) 249-7120 or collect at (212) 269-5550 or email at AMC@dfking.com.

​	​	​	​	​
​ 2	​	​	​	​

Table of Contents

              The only outstanding voting securities of the Company are its shares of Class A common stock (the "Common Stock"). All of the Company's remaining authorized Class B Common Stock has been forfeited or converted to Common Stock and was retired on February 24, 2021. Only stockholders of record of our Common Stock at the close of business on March 11, 2021 (the "Record Date"), the date selected as the record date by our Board, are entitled to vote at the Annual Meeting. On the record date, there were 450,156,186 shares of Common Stock outstanding. The holders of our Common Stock are entitled to one vote per share.

The Proxy and Voting

              Pursuant to rules promulgated by the SEC, we are making this Proxy Statement and 2020 Annual Report available to stockholders electronically via the Internet. On or around March 19, 2021, we sent our stockholders of record on the Record Date the Notice, which provides information regarding accessing the proxy materials for the Annual Meeting and voting via the Internet. Some stockholders have previously requested to receive either a full set of printed proxy materials or an email with instructions on how access the proxy materials electronically. Stockholders that have not submitted a specific delivery preference were sent the Notice. If you would like to change the way you receive materials in the future, please follow the instructions on the Notice you received. The Proxy Statement and our 2020 Annual Report may be accessed at www.proxyvote.com and investor.amctheatres.com.

              Registered holders are stockholders who hold their shares directly with the Company and have their names and addresses recorded in the Company's share registry, which is maintained by our transfer agent, Computershare. Registered stockholders can vote by proxy in any of the following three ways, each of which is valid under Delaware law. If you are a registered holder and would like to receive a full printed set of proxy materials, please follow the instructions on the Notice.

•

By Internet: Access our Internet voting site at www.proxyvote.com or scan the QR code on the Notice or your proxy card and follow the instructions on the screen prior to 11:59 p.m., Eastern Time, on May 3, 2021.



•

By Telephone: After receiving the full set of printed proxy materials, using a touch-tone telephone, call toll-free at 1-800-690-6903 and follow the voice instructions, prior to 11:59 p.m., Eastern Time, on May 3, 2021.



•

By Mail: After receiving the full set of printed proxy materials, mark, sign, date, and return the proxy or voting instruction form in the enclosed envelope so it is received before the Annual Meeting.

              Beneficial owners are stockholders who hold their shares through a brokerage account, bank or other record holder. You also may have heard the term "held in street name" when describing stock ownership. When you buy securities through a brokerage firm, most firms will automatically put your securities into "street name." This means your brokerage firm will hold your securities in its name or another nominee and not in your name, but your brokerage firm will keep records showing you as the real or "beneficial owner." Under the rules of the New York Stock Exchange ("NYSE"), member stockbrokers who hold shares of Common Stock in their name for customers are required to obtain directions from their customers on how to vote the shares. NYSE rules permit brokers to vote shares on certain proposals when they have not received any directions. The Staff of the NYSE, prior to the Annual Meeting, informs brokers of those proposals on which they are entitled to vote the undirected shares.

              Under rules of the NYSE, brokers may not vote on "non-routine" proposals unless they have received voting instructions from the beneficial owner, and to the extent that they have not received voting instructions, brokers report such number of shares as "non-votes." Your bank, broker or other nominee may vote your shares in its discretion on "routine" matters. Proposals 2, 4, 5 and 6 are considered "non-routine," which means that brokerage firms may not vote in their discretion regarding these items on behalf of beneficial owners who have not furnished voting instructions. Proposals 1 and 3, however, are considered "routine" items, which means that brokerage firms may vote in their discretion on behalf of beneficial owners who have not furnished voting instructions.

​	​	​	​	​
​	​	​	​	​ 3

Table of Contents

              If you are the beneficial owner of your shares, you should have received a Notice, a full set of printed proxy materials with a voting instruction form, or an email copy of the proxy materials with instructions on how to vote from your broker or other nominee holding your shares. You should follow the instructions in the Notice or voting instruction form provided by your broker or other nominee in order to instruct your broker on how to vote your shares; in most instances you may vote by Internet, telephone or by mail.

              Beneficial stockholders who wish to attend the Annual Meeting must obtain a legal proxy by contacting their account representative at the bank, broker, or other record holder that holds their shares and e-mail a copy (a legible photograph is sufficient) of their legal proxy to our proxy solicitor at AMCattend@dfking.com. If you want to vote in person, you must obtain a legal proxy from your broker, bank or other nominee and bring it to the meeting.

              Proxies provided by telephone or over the Internet or by mailed proxy card by stockholders of record, unless revoked, will be voted at the Annual Meeting as directed by you, or, in the absence of such direction, as the Board recommends for Proposals 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 at the Annual Meeting. A stockholder submitting a proxy by telephone or over the Internet or by mailed proxy card may revoke such proxy at any time before it is used by giving written notice of revocation to the Secretary of the Company, by delivering to the Secretary of the Company a duly executed proxy bearing a later date or by voting in person at the Annual Meeting. Attendance at the Annual Meeting will not, in and of itself, revoke a proxy.

              If you have any questions about how to vote your shares, you may contact our proxy solicitor at:

D.F. King & Co, Inc.
48 Wall Street, 22nd Floor
New York, NY 10005
Call Toll-Free: (800) 249-7120
Banks and Brokers Call: (212) 269-5550
AMC@dfking.com

Other Matters

              As of the date of this proxy statement, we do not know of any other matter to be raised at the meeting. If any matters not described in this proxy statement are properly presented at the Annual Meeting, the proxies will use their own judgment to determine how to vote your shares. If the Annual Meeting is adjourned or postponed, the proxies can vote your shares at the adjournment or postponement as well.

Voting Requirement to Approve each of the Proposals

•

Proposal 1: Amendment of our Third Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation (our "Certificate of Incorporation") requires approval by the holders of a majority of the outstanding shares. Our Board recommends a vote "for" this proposal.



•

Proposal 2: Election of directors requires a plurality of the votes cast, which means that the three nominees for director receiving the highest number of votes FOR election will be elected as directors. Our Board recommends a vote "for" the election of each nominee.



•

Proposal 3: Ratification of the appointment of Ernst & Young LLP as our independent registered public accounting firm requires approval by the holders of a majority of the shares present in person or represented by proxy and entitled to vote with respect to this matter. Our Board recommends a vote "for" this proposal.



•

Proposal 4: Non-binding advisory vote on compensation of named executive officers (the "say-on-pay vote") requires approval by the holders of a majority of the shares present in person or represented by proxy and entitled to vote with respect to this matter. Our Board recommends a vote "for" this proposal. The vote on Proposal 4 is a non-binding advisory vote.

​	​	​	​	​
​ 4	​	​	​	​

Table of Contents

•

Proposal 5: Amendment of the EIP requires approval by the holders of a majority of the shares present in person or represented by proxy and entitled to vote with respect to this matter. Our Board recommends a vote "for" this proposal.



•

Proposal 6: Adjournment of the Annual Meeting to a later date or dates, if necessary or appropriate, to solicit additional proxies if there are insufficient votes to adopt the Proposals requires approval by the holders of a majority of the shares present in person or represented by proxy and entitled to vote with respect to this matter. Our Board recommends a vote "for" this proposal.

How Votes Are Counted

              A quorum is required to transact business at our Annual Meeting. Stockholders of record holding shares of Common Stock constituting a majority of the shares issued and outstanding and entitled to vote at the Annual Meeting shall constitute a quorum. If you have returned valid proxy instructions or attend the meeting in person, your shares will be counted for the purpose of determining whether there is a quorum, even if you abstain from voting on some or all matters introduced at the meeting. As of the close of business on March 3, 2021, the latest practicable date before the filing of this proxy statement, there were 450,156,186 shares of Common Stock issued and outstanding, held by 1,513 holders of record. Thus, the holders of at least 225,078,094 shares of Common Stock must be present in person or represented by proxy at the Annual Meeting to constitute a quorum.

              Abstentions will be treated as shares present and entitled to vote for purposes of any matter requiring the affirmative vote of a majority or other proportion of the shares present and entitled to vote. Accordingly, abstentions will be considered as represented for purposes of determining a quorum. Abstentions with respect to Proposals 1, 3, 4, 5 and 6 will have the same effect as a vote against such proposals. Because a plurality of the votes cast is required for Proposal 2, abstentions and withheld votes will have no effect on such proposal. Broker non-votes will be considered as represented for purposes of determining a quorum, but will not otherwise affect voting results.

              Under rules of the NYSE, brokers may not vote on "non-routine" proposals unless they have received voting instructions from the beneficial owner, and to the extent that they have not received voting instructions, brokers report such number of shares as "non-votes." Your bank, broker or other nominee may vote your shares in its discretion on "routine" matters. Proposals 2, 4, 5 and 6 are considered "non-routine," which means that brokerage firms may not vote in their discretion regarding these items on behalf of beneficial owners who have not furnished voting instructions. Proposals 1 and 3, however, are considered "routine" items, which means that brokerage firms may vote in their discretion on behalf of beneficial owners who have not furnished voting instructions.

              Although Proposal 4 is a non-binding advisory vote, our Board will review the results and will take them into account in making a determination concerning executive compensation.

Proxy Solicitation

              The Company is soliciting proxies for use at the Annual Meeting by means of the proxy materials. When stockholders vote over the internet, by telephone, or when proxies are properly dated, executed and returned, the shares represented by such proxies will be voted at the Annual Meeting in accordance with the instruction of the stockholder. If no specific instructions are given, however, the shares will be voted in accordance with the recommendation of our Board as described above and, if any other matters are properly brought before the Annual Meeting, the shares will be voted in accordance with the proxies' judgment.

              The Company will pay for the Annual Meeting, including the cost of mailing the Notice, paper copies of our proxy materials as requested by stockholders, and any supplemental materials. Directors, officers and employees of the Company may, either in person, by telephone or otherwise, solicit proxies. They have not been specifically engaged for that purpose, however, nor will they be compensated for their efforts. The Company has engaged D.F. King & Co., Inc., to assist in the solicitation of proxies for the Annual Meeting. We will bear the entire cost of proxy solicitation, including the preparation, assembly, printing, mailing and distribution of the proxy materials. AMC will pay D.F. King & Co., Inc., a fee of $20,000. AMC will also reimburse D.F. King & Co., Inc., for reasonable out-of-pocket costs and other agreed-upon expenses and will

​	​	​	​	​
​	​	​	​	​ 5

Table of Contents

indemnify D.F. King & Co., Inc., and its affiliates against certain claims, liabilities, losses, damages and expenses. In addition, we will reimburse brokerage firms and other persons representing beneficial owners of our shares for their reasonable expenses in forwarding the Notice, paper copies of our proxy materials as requested by beneficial owners, and other soliciting materials to the beneficial owners.

              If you receive more than one set of printed materials, your shares may be registered in more than one name and/or are registered in different accounts. Please follow the voting instructions on each set of printed materials to ensure that all of your shares are voted.

INTERNET AVAILABILITY OF PROXY MATERIALS

The Proxy Statement and Annual Report are available at www.proxyvote.com and investor.amctheatres.com.

              If you choose to access the proxy materials and/or vote over the Internet, you are responsible for any Internet access charges you may incur.

​	​	​	​	​
​ 6	​	​	​	​

Table of Contents

              Our business and affairs are managed by our Board, which currently consists of the following ten members: Adam M. Aron, Howard W. "Hawk" Koch, Philip Lader, Gary F. Locke, Kathleen M. Pawlus, Anthony J. Saich, Adam J. Sussman, Lee E. Wittlinger, Maojun (John) Zeng, and Lin (Lincoln) Zhang. Mr. Zhang serves as our non-executive Chairperson. Mr. Aron is our Chief Executive Officer ("CEO").

              In July 2020, the stockholders of the Company approved an amendment to our Certificate of Incorporation to declassify our board of directors and have each director elected for a one-year term at each subsequent annual meeting. In December 2020, in connection with discussions with Wanda America Entertainment, Inc., an affiliate of Dalian Wanda Group Co., Ltd, and the holder at the time of approximately 58.8% of the voting power of the Company's outstanding capital stock entitled to vote (the "Majority Stockholder" or "Wanda") regarding the important need for the Company to raise additional capital pursuant to one or more equity offerings, including debt for equity exchanges, and the importance of accessing the equity markets quickly, the Company requested that the Majority Stockholder support such offerings and waive certain rights to have a portion of its shares included in the Company's registration statement for such offerings (known as piggyback registration rights). The Company and the Majority Stockholder discussed the fact that a significant equity raise likely would ultimately result in the mandatory conversion of the Majority Stockholder's Class B common stock to Class A common stock and thus result in the loss of the Majority Stockholder's majority voting control over the Company. The Majority Stockholder agreed that it would support such offerings and waive its registration rights in connection therewith, but requested that the Company classify the Board. As discussed in the Company's definitive Schedule 14C filed with the SEC on December 31, 2020, in order to reclassify the Board, the Board approved by unanimous vote (i) an amendment to the Certificate of Incorporation (which the Majority Stockholder also approved by written consent), and (ii) an amendment to the Company's Bylaws. Pursuant to such amendment, the current members of the Board were placed in three classes as described below. This amendment was effective on January 25, 2021.

              Accordingly, pursuant to our Certificate of Incorporation, our Board is currently divided into three classes. The members of each class serve for a staggered, three-year term. Upon the expiration of the term of a class of directors, directors in that class will be elected for three-year terms at the annual meeting of stockholders in the year in which their term expires. The classes are composed as follows:

•

Mr. Lader, Mr. Locke, and Mr. Sussman are Class I directors, whose terms will expire at the 2021 annual meeting of stockholders;



•

Mr. Aron, Mr. Koch, Ms. Pawlus and Dr. Saich are Class II directors, whose terms will expire at the 2022 annual meeting of stockholders; and



•

Mr. Wittlinger, Mr. Zeng, and Mr. Zhang are Class III directors, whose terms will expire at the 2023 annual meeting of stockholders.

​	​	​	​	​
​	​	​	​	​ 7

Table of Contents

Proposed Amendment

              We are submitting for stockholder approval an amendment to the Certificate of Incorporation to increase the total number of shares of Common Stock (par value $0.01 per share) the Company shall have the authority to issue by 500,000,000 shares to a total of 1,024,173,073 shares of Common Stock (the "Certificate of Amendment"). The text of the Certificate of Amendment is set forth in substantially the form of Appendix A and this description is qualified by the full text of the Certificate of Amendment. If this proposal is approved, the Certificate of Amendment will become effective upon filing with the Secretary of State of Delaware, which is expected to occur promptly following the stockholder vote.

Background and Reason for the Recommendation

              On January 27, 2021, the Board approved a proposal to amend our Certificate of Incorporation to increase the total number of shares of Common Stock the Company shall have the authority to issue by 500,000,000 shares to a total of 1,024,173,073 shares of Common Stock. As of the close of business on March 3, 2021, the latest practicable date before the filing of this proxy statement, there were 450,156,186 shares of our Common Stock issued and outstanding and 10,920,763 shares of Common Stock reserved for issuance under the EIP. Accordingly, 63,096,124 shares (including 3,732,625 treasury shares) of the total number of shares of Common Stock currently authorized remain available for issuance or may be reserved for issuance prior to any amendment to increase the authorized shares of Common Stock.

              As a result of the retirement of our Class B common stock pursuant to a Certificate of Retirement filed with the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware on February 24, 2021, our Certificate of Incorporation currently authorizes the issuance of up to 574,173,073 shares of capital stock, consisting of (i) 524,173,073 shares of Common Stock and (ii) 50,000,000 shares of preferred stock.

              The Board believes it is in the best interest of the Company to increase the number of authorized shares of our capital stock in order to give the Company greater flexibility in considering and planning for future general corporate needs, including, but not limited to, the offer and sale of Common Stock in one or more public offerings or private placements, the grant of Common Stock or warrants, options or other convertible securities in one or more strategic transactions, stock dividends, grants under equity compensation plans, stock splits and other general corporate transactions. The Board believes that additional authorized shares of capital stock will enable the Company to take timely advantage of market conditions and favorable financing and other opportunities that may become available to the Company. The authorized but unissued shares will only be issued at the direction of the Board, and if required by applicable law or regulation of the NYSE, upon separate stockholder approval.

Rights of Additional Authorized Shares

              Any newly authorized shares of Common Stock will be identical to the shares of Common Stock now authorized and outstanding. The Certificate of Amendment will not affect the rights of current holders of Common Stock, none of whom have preemptive or similar rights to acquire the newly authorized shares.

Potential Adverse Effects of the Certificate of Amendment

              Adoption of the Certificate of Amendment will have no immediate dilutive effect on the proportionate voting power or other rights of the Company's existing stockholders. However, any future issuance of additional authorized shares of our Common Stock, at the future direction of the Board (and generally without the requirement of stockholder approval, unless

​	​	​	​	​
​ 8	​	​	​	​

Table of Contents

specifically required by applicable law or NYSE regulation) may, among other things, dilute the earnings per share of Common Stock and the equity and voting rights of those holding Common Stock at the time such additional shares are issued.

              In addition to the general corporate purposes mentioned above, and as further described below, an increase in the number of authorized shares of Common Stock may make it more difficult to, or discourage an attempt to, obtain control of the Company by means of a takeover bid that the Board determines is not in the best interest of the Company and its stockholders. However, the Board does not intend or view the proposed increase in the number of authorized shares of Common Stock as an anti-takeover measure and is not aware of any attempt or plan to obtain control of the Company.

Potential Anti-Takeover Effects

              The Certificate of Amendment could adversely affect the ability of third parties to effect a takeover or a change in control by, for example, permitting issuances that would dilute the ownership of a person seeking to effect a change in the composition of our Board or contemplating a tender offer or other transaction that the Board determines is not in our best interests or in the best interests of our stockholders. The Board's ability to issue substantial amounts of Common Stock (generally without the need for stockholder approval, except as may be required by law or NYSE regulation), upon such terms and conditions as our Board may determine, may, among other things, be used to create voting impediments with respect to a change in control or to dilute the stock ownership of stockholders seeking to obtain control of the Company. The issuance of Common Stock, while providing desirable flexibility in connection with potential financings and other corporate transactions, may have the effect of discouraging, delaying or preventing a change in control of the Company. Our Board, however, does not intend or view the Certificate of Amendment as an anti-takeover measure, nor does it contemplate its use in this manner at any time in the foreseeable future and is not aware of any attempt or plan to obtain control of the Company.

Appraisal Rights

              Pursuant to the Delaware General Corporation Law, stockholders are not entitled to appraisal rights with respect to the Certificate of Amendment.

Effectiveness of the Certificate of Amendment

              If the Certificate of Amendment is adopted, it will become effective upon the filing of the Certificate of Amendment substantially in the form of Appendix A with the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware.

              The Board recommends a vote "FOR" the Certificate of Amendment.

​	​	​	​	​
​	​	​	​	​ 9

Table of Contents

              At the Annual Meeting stockholders will vote to elect three individuals to be elected as Class I directors to hold a three-year term of office from the date of their election until the Company's 2024 annual meeting and until their successors are duly elected and qualified. Under Proposal, No. 2, the three nominees for election as Class I directors are: Mr. Lader, Mr. Locke, and Mr. Sussman.

              The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee and the Board believe that the nominees under Proposal 2 have the requisite qualifications to oversee our business. Set forth below you will find certain information for each of the directors, which we believe evidences the directors' qualifications to serve on the Board.

              The Board recommends a vote "FOR" each of the nominees.

              Each of the biographies of the nominees for election as directors below contains information regarding the person's service as a director, business experience, director positions held currently or at any time during the past five years, and the experience, qualifications, attributes and skills that caused the Board to determine that the person should be nominated for election as a director at the Annual Meeting. The following information is as of March 5, 2021.

Nominees for Election as Class I Directors—Terms Expiring 2024

Mr. Philip Lader

Mr. Philip Lader, 74, has served as a director of the Company since June 2019. Mr. Lader is a Senior Advisor to Morgan Stanley Institutional Securities and Palantir Technologies, as well as a partner emeritus with the law firm of Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP. He is also the former U.S. Ambassador to the Court of St. James's and Chairperson of WPP plc. Mr. Lader served in President Clinton's Cabinet and as Administrator of the US Small Business Administration, White House Deputy Chief of Staff, Assistant to the President, and Deputy Director of the Office of Management & Budget. Previously, he was Executive Vice President of Sir James Goldsmith's US holdings and President of Sea Pines Company, universities in South Carolina and Australia, and Business Executives for National Security. Also, he is currently a trustee and Investment Committee Chairperson of RAND Corporation and several foundations, as well as a member of the boards of several privately-held companies, the investment committees of Morgan Stanley's Global Infrastructure and Real Estate Funds, and the Council on Foreign Relations. He currently or has previously served on the boards of Lloyds of London, Marathon Oil, AES, WPP plc, Songbird (Canary Wharf), Rusal Corporations, the British Museum, American Red Cross, Smithsonian Museum of American History, St. Paul's Cathedral Foundation, Atlantic Council, and several banks and universities. He is partner emeritus in the Nelson Mullins law firm and the founder and co-host of Renaissance Weekends. Mr. Lader's education includes Duke, Michigan, Oxford and Harvard Law School, and he has been awarded honorary doctorates by 14 universities. An Honorary Fellow of Oxford University's Pembroke College and London Business School and Honorary Bencher of Middle Temple (British Inns of Court), he was awarded the Benjamin Franklin Medal by The Royal Society for Arts, Manufactures & Commerce for his contributions to trans-Atlantic relations. Mr. Lader brings vast experience in business, government and law to the Board.

Mr. Gary F. Locke

Mr. Gary F. Locke, 71, has served as a director of the Company since February 2016. Mr. Locke is currently a trade consultant and owner of Locke Global Strategies, LLC since 2014. Mr. Locke has also served as the interim President of Bellevue College since June of 2020. Mr. Locke was the first Chinese American to be elected as a U.S. Governor when the voters of Washington elected him in 1996 and re-elected him in 2000. During his administration, he strengthened economic ties between China and Washington State. Mr. Locke then served as U.S. Commerce Secretary from 2009-2011, where he led the effort to implement President Obama's National Export Initiative to double American exports in five years. He then became America's 10th Ambassador to China, serving from 2011-2014, and during his service he opened markets for made-in-USA goods and services and reduced wait times for visa interviews of Chinese applicants from 100 days to three days. Mr. Locke is a member

​	​	​	​	​
​ 10	​	​	​	​

Table of Contents

of the board of directors of Fortinet, Inc., nLight, Inc., and Port Blakely Tree Farms. He attended Yale University, graduating with a bachelor's degree in political science and received his law degree from Boston University. Mr. Locke brings to the Board a global and valuable business perspective due to his extensive role in politics and experience as an Ambassador to China.

Mr. Adam J. Sussman

Mr. Adam J. Sussman, 49, has served as a director of the Company since May 2019. Mr. Sussman has served as President of Epic Games, Inc. since January 2020. Prior to that, from 2017 until 2020, Mr. Sussman was appointed as Nike, Inc.'s first-ever Chief Digital Officer, was previously head of Nike's Global Strategy and Corporate Development and served as the VP/GM Direct Digital and Geographies. He was responsible for building Nike's portfolio of world-class digital consumer experiences and innovations and transforming retail for the world's leading sports brand. He managed Nike's digital teams globally and Nike's direct-to-consumer GM's across the four key operating geographies of the company. Prior to Nike, Mr. Sussman was Senior Vice President of Global Publishing at Zynga responsible for marketing, sales, growth and digital products. He also served as Senior Vice President of Publishing at Disney, building the global team that managed gaming properties across all media platforms around the world. At Electronic Arts, he was Vice President of Worldwide Publishing, leading the team that established EA Mobile as the #1 publisher on the Apple App store. Mr. Sussman started his career as a creative executive at Hearst Entertainment, a division of the Hearst Corporation. Mr. Sussman holds a BA from Harvard College and an MBA from Harvard University Graduate School of Business Administration. Mr. Sussman brings valuable experience as president of large company and in marketing, information technology and digital platforms to the Board.

Continuing Class II Directors—Terms Expiring 2022

Mr. Adam M. Aron

Mr. Adam M. Aron, 66, has served as Chief Executive Officer, President and a director of the Company since January 2016. From February 2015 to December 2015, Mr. Aron was Chief Executive Officer of Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide, Inc. and served on the board from 2006 to 2015. Since 2006, Mr. Aron has served as Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer of World Leisure Partners, Inc., a personal consultancy for matters related to travel and tourism, high-end real estate development, and professional sports, that he founded. Mr. Aron served as Chief Executive Officer and Co-Owner of the Philadelphia 76ers from 2011 to 2013, and remains an investor. From 2006 to 2015, Mr. Aron served as Senior Operating Partner of Apollo Management L.P., compensation for which ran through March of 2017. Mr. Aron currently serves on the board of directors of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, Ltd. and HBSE, which owns the NHL's New Jersey Devils and the NBA's Philadelphia 76ers. Mr. Aron served on the board of directors of Prestige Cruise Holdings, Inc. from 2007 to 2014. Mr. Aron received a Master's of Business Administration degree with distinction from the Harvard Business School and a Bachelor of Arts degree cum laude from Harvard College. Mr. Aron brings to the Board significant business and executive leadership experience, including valuable insight into consumer services. He has more than 25 years of experience as a Chief Executive Officer, more than 25 years of experience as a corporate director, and more than 35 years of consumer-engagement experience.

Mr. Howard W. "Hawk" Koch

Mr. Howard W. "Hawk" Koch, Jr., 75, has served as a director of the Company since October 2014. Mr. Koch is a veteran movie producer and principal at The Koch Company, the former president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences ("AMPAS"), and Recording Secretary and former President of the Producers Guild of America. Mr. Koch served on the Board of Directors of the Motion Picture & Television Fund from 2005 until 2020. and the National Film Preservation Foundation. Mr. Koch previously served on the Board of Governors of AMPAS from 2004 to 2013 and the Board of Directors of the Producers Guild of America from 1999 to 2020. Mr. Koch has been intimately involved with the making of over 60 major motion pictures, among them such films as "Source Code", "Fracture", "Primal Fear", "Marathon Man," "Chinatown," "Wayne's World," "Peggy Sue Got Married," "The Idolmaker," "Heaven Can Wait," "The Way We Were" and "Rosemary's Baby." Mr. Koch continues to develop and produce movies. Mr. Koch has over 50 years of experience in the motion picture industry and provides our Board with a unique insight into the production of movies that are exhibited on our screens.

​	​	​	​	​
​	​	​	​	​ 11

Table of Contents

Ms. Kathleen M. Pawlus

Ms. Kathleen M. Pawlus, 60, has served as a director of the Company since December 2014. Ms. Pawlus, a retired partner of Ernst and Young, LLP ("EY"), served as the Global Assurance Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer from 2012 to 2014. EY's Assurance practice is the largest of EY's four service lines and includes its Audit Practice, Fraud, Investigation and Dispute Services Practice, Climate Change and Sustainability Services Practice and its Financial Accounting Advisory Services Practice. Prior to this, from 2006 to 2012, Ms. Pawlus served as EY's Americas Vice Chairperson and Chief Financial Officer, Global PBFA Function Leader and US Firm Vice Chairperson and Chief Financial Officer responsible for finance, IT operations, treasury, purchasing and facilities. Ms. Pawlus served on EY's U.S. Executive Board from 2006 to 2012. Ms. Pawlus earned her Bachelor of Science degree from Indiana University and is a Certified Public Accountant. Ms. Pawlus brings to the Board extensive financial, accounting, operational and management experience in various capacities with more than 30 years of experience.

Dr. Anthony J. Saich

Dr. Anthony J. Saich, 67, has served as a director of the Company since August 2012. Since July 2008, Dr. Saich has served as the Director of the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation and Daewoo Professor of International Affairs at Harvard University. In his capacity as Ash Center Director, Dr. Saich also serves as the director of the Rajawali Foundation Institute for Asia and the faculty chairperson of the China Public Policy Program, the Asia Energy Leaders Program and the Leadership Transformation in Indonesia Program. He oversees the School's work in Vietnam as well as Myanmar, and the Ash Center's programs on democratic governance and local government innovation. Dr. Saich also serves as a member of International Bridges to Justice and as the U.S. Secretary-General of the China United States Strategic Philanthropy Network. Dr. Saich sits on the executive committees of the John King Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies and the Asia Center, both at Harvard University, and serves as the Harvard representative of the Kennedy Memorial Trust. Dr. Saich holds a bachelor's degree in politics and geography from the University of Newcastle, United Kingdom, a master's degree in politics with special reference to China from the School of Oriental and African Studies, London University, and has a Ph.D. from the Faculty of Letters, University of Leiden, the Netherlands. Dr. Saich has over 40 years of experience in international affairs and will provide valuable international insights to the Company.

Continuing Class III Directors—Terms Expiring 2023

Mr. Lee E. Wittlinger

Mr. Lee E. Wittlinger, 37, has served as a director of the Company since September 2018. Mr. Wittlinger is a Managing Director of Silver Lake Group, L.L.C. ("Silver Lake"), which he joined in 2007. Mr. Wittlinger currently serves as a director on the boards of GoDaddy Inc. ("GoDaddy"), WPEngine, Inc., and Oak View Group, LLC. Mr. Wittlinger previously served as a director of Vantage Data Centers Management Company, LLC and Cast & Crew Entertainment Services LLC ("Cast & Crew"), and as a member of GoDaddy's and Cast & Crew's audit committees. Prior to Silver Lake, Mr. Wittlinger worked as an investment banker in the Technology, Media and Telecommunications Group at Goldman, Sachs & Co., where he focused on mergers and acquisitions and financing transactions in the technology industry. Mr. Wittlinger graduated summa cum laude from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, where he received a B.S. in Economics, with dual concentrations in Finance and Accounting. Mr. Wittlinger brings extensive financial and banking expertise to the Company. See "Related Party Transactions" for details of Mr. Wittlinger's appointment.

Mr. Maojun (John) Zeng

Mr. Maojun (John) Zeng, 49, has served as a director of the Company since February 2016 and served as Chairperson from March 2018 until December 2019. Mr. Zeng has served as the President of Wanda Film Holding Co., Ltd. (formerly known as Wanda Cinema Line Corporation), a subsidiary of Wanda group, since June 29, 2015, and has served as a member of its Board

​	​	​	​	​
​ 12	​	​	​	​

Table of Contents

of Directors since January 22, 2015. Mr. Zeng has also served as Senior Vice President of Wanda Cultural Industries Group since October 13, 2016, as well as previously held positions of Vice President, Senior Assistant to the President and Assistant to the President. Mr. Zeng has held other positions within the Wanda group and its subsidiaries. Mr. Zeng holds an undergraduate degree and a master's degree in business administration from Renmin University of China. Mr. Zeng has experience serving in an executive leadership role at a major theatrical exhibition company in China and brings to the Board valuable theatrical exhibition knowledge.

Mr. Lin (Lincoln) Zhang

Mr. Lin (Lincoln) Zhang, 48, has served as a director of the Company and Chairperson since December 2019. Mr. Zhang previously served as a director of the Company and Chairperson from August 2012 until March 2018. Mr. Zhang has served as President of Wanda Investment Group since October 2020, was President of Wanda Properties Group from July 2020 until October 2020, and was President of Wanda Cultural Industries Group from December 2012 until July 2020. Mr. Zhang is currently on the board of directors of Wanda Group and was Chairperson of Wanda Film Holding Co., Ltd. from November 2006 until December 2020. Mr. Zhang joined Wanda Group in 2000 and has served in various positions, including General Manager of Wanda Group project companies in Nanjing, Shenyang and Chengdu, and CFO and Vice President of Wanda Group. Mr. Zhang served as the Chairperson of Wanda Sports Group Company Limited from November 2018 until July 2020, a non-executive director of Wanda Hotel Development Co. Ltd since November 2017, the chairperson of World Triathlon Corporation from November 2015 until July 2020, and the chairperson of the board of Infront Holding AG from July 2015 until September 2020. He also served as a non-executive director of Dalian Wanda Commercial from December 2009 to January 2016. Mr. Zhang graduated with a bachelor's degree in accounting from Dongbei University of Finance and Economics and obtained an MBA degree from the Guanghua School of Management at Peking University. Mr. Zhang has significant experience in financial and operational management with large companies, with particular focus on corporate strategy and investment, which makes him well-positioned to serve as a director of the Company.

​	​	​	​	​
​	​	​	​	​ 13

Table of Contents

Corporate Governance Guidelines

              Our Corporate Governance Guidelines and Principles reflect the principles by which the Board operates and sets forth director qualification standards, responsibilities, compensation, evaluation, orientation and continuing education, board committee structure, chief executive officer performance review, management succession planning and other policies for the governance of the Company. A copy of the Corporate Governance Guidelines and Principles is available on our website at www.amctheatres.com under "Investor Relations"—"Governance"—"Governance Documents".

Risk Oversight

              The Board executes its oversight responsibility for risk management directly and through its committees, as follows:

              The Audit Committee has primary oversight responsibility with respect to the Company's annual enterprise risk management analysis, including financial and accounting risks. The Audit Committee discusses with management the Company's significant financial and non-financial risk exposures and the Company's risk assessment and risk management policies. Management provides to the Audit Committee periodic assessments of the Company's risk management processes and systems of internal control. The Chairperson of the Audit Committee reports to the full Board regarding material risks as deemed appropriate.

              The Board's other committees oversee risks associated with their respective areas of responsibility. For example, the Compensation Committee considers the risks associated with our compensation policies and practices, with respect to both executive compensation and compensation generally. The Board is kept abreast of its committees' risk oversight and other activities via reports of the committee chairpersons to the full Board. These reports are presented at every regular Board meeting and include discussions of committee agenda topics, including matters involving risk oversight.

              The Board, together with its committees, considers specific risk topics, including risks associated with our annual operating plan, our capital structure, information systems, privacy, and other cyber security risks. In addition, the Board receives reports from the members of our senior leadership team that include discussions of the risks and exposures involved in their respective areas of responsibility. Further, the Board is informed of developments that could affect our risk profile or other aspects of our business.

Compensation Policies and Practices as They Relate to Risk Management

              The Compensation Committee has reviewed and discussed the concept of risk as it relates to the Company's compensation policies and it does not believe the Company's compensation policies or practices create or encourage the taking of excessive risks that are reasonably likely to have a material adverse effect on the Company. Below are some of the highlights of the Company's compensation programs that mitigate risks associated with compensation:

•

Compensation is comprised of a combination of base salary, annual cash incentive, and long-term equity incentive awards;



•

While annual cash incentives are available for all full-time employees, only senior officers receive equity awards;



•

Equity compensation vesting is multi-year service based and performance based with overlapping performance periods; and



•

Maximum payout for cash and equity incentives is 200% of the value at target.

The Compensation Committee has identified no material risks in the compensation programs for 2020.

​	​	​	​	​
​ 14	​	​	​	​

Table of Contents

Business Conduct and Ethics

              We have a Code of Business Conduct and Ethics that applies to all of our associates, including our principal executive officer, principal financial officer and principal accounting officer, or persons performing similar functions. These standards are designed to deter wrongdoing and to promote honest and ethical conduct. The Code of Business Conduct and Ethics, which addresses the subject areas covered by the SEC's rules, may be obtained free of charge through our website: www.amctheatres.com under "Investor Relations"—"Governance"—"Governance Documents". Any amendment to, or waiver from, any provision of the Code of Business Conduct and Ethics required to be disclosed with respect to any senior executive or financial officer shall be posted on this website.

Board and Committee Information

              The Board held 19 meetings during the year ended December 31, 2020. Each director attended at least 75% of the total combined meetings held by the Board plus the meetings held by the committees of the Board on which such director served, except for Mr. Zeng and Mr. Zhang.

Communications with the Board

              Our stockholders and other interested parties may communicate to our Board, its committees or our non-management directors as a group, by writing to the Secretary of AMC Entertainment Holdings, Inc. at One AMC Way, 11500 Ash Street, Leawood, KS 66211. Stockholders and other interested parties should indicate that their correspondence is intended to be communicated to the Board.

Director Independence

              Until December 23, 2020, we availed ourselves of the "controlled company" exception under the rules of the NYSE, which permits a listed company of which more than 50% of the voting power for election of directors is held by an individual, a group or another company to not comply with certain of the NYSE's governance requirements. As a result of losing "controlled company" status, we will be required to have a majority of independent directors on our Board by no later than December 23, 2021. We currently have five independent directors: Mr. Lader, Ms. Pawlus, Dr. Saich, Mr. Sussman, and Mr. Wittlinger, as determined by our Board in accordance with NYSE rules. The remaining members of the Board, Mr. Aron, Mr. Koch, Mr. Locke, Mr. Zeng, and Mr. Zhang, are not independent under the NYSE rules or within the meaning of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the "Exchange Act").

              Our Board has determined that Dr. Saich, Ms. Pawlus, and Mr. Wittlinger are independent in accordance with NYSE rules and within the meaning of the Exchange Act for purposes of serving on our Audit Committee. As a result of losing "controlled company" status, we are required to have a Compensation Committee and Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee with at least one independent member currently and a majority of independent members by no later than March 23, 2021. Both the Compensation Committee and the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee must be fully independent by no later than December 23, 2021. The Compensation Committee is currently composed of three directors, one of whom is independent. The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee is composed of five directors, three of whom are independent. Committee memberships will be adjusted as necessary prior to the relevant dates.

Board Leadership Structure

              Under our current leadership structure, the roles of Chairperson of the Board and Chief Executive Officer are held by different individuals. Mr. Zhang serves as our non-executive Chairperson of the Board and Mr. Aron serves as our Chief Executive Officer. At this time, our Board believes that this structure is best for the Company as it allows our Chairperson to oversee board matters and assist the Chief Executive Officer with strategic initiatives, while enabling our Chief Executive Officer to develop and implement the strategic direction of the Company. Our Chairperson is not considered independent under the NYSE rules.

​	​	​	​	​
​	​	​	​	​ 15

Table of Contents

Executive Sessions

              Our non-management directors meet in an executive session, without members of management present, no less than once per year in accordance with the NYSE rules. Our Board Chairperson or his designee presides over these executive sessions.

Attendance at Annual Meetings

              We encourage our directors to attend our Annual Meeting of Stockholders, absent unusual circumstances. Eight directors attended the 2020 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, constituting all then-serving directors except Mr. Zeng and Mr. Zhang.

Committees

              Our Board has established three standing committees. The standing committees consist of an Audit Committee, a Compensation Committee, and a Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee. The standing committees are comprised of directors as provided in the table below:

              Each of our standing committees, the Audit Committee, Compensation Committee and Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee, operates under a charter, which is available on our website at www.amctheatres.com under "Investor Relations"—"Governance"—"Governance Documents". The functions performed by each of the standing committees of the Board are briefly described below.

Audit Committee

              Our Audit Committee consists of Ms. Pawlus, Dr. Saich and Mr. Wittlinger. The Board has determined that Ms. Pawlus and Mr. Wittlinger qualify as Audit Committee financial experts as defined in Item 407(d)(5) of Regulation S-K and that each member of our Audit Committee is financially literate as defined in the NYSE rules and is independent within the meaning of Rule 10A-3 of the Exchange Act and the NYSE rules.

              The principal duties and responsibilities of our Audit Committee are as follows:

•

to oversee our financial reporting process and internal control system;



•

to appoint and replace our independent registered public accounting firm from time to time, determine their compensation and other terms of engagement, oversee their work and perform an annual evaluation;

​	​	​	​	​
​ 16	​	​	​	​

Table of Contents

•

to oversee the performance of our internal audit function; and



•

to oversee our compliance with legal, ethical and regulatory matters.

              The Audit Committee has the power to investigate any matter brought to its attention within the scope of its duties. It also has the authority to retain counsel and advisors to fulfill its responsibilities and duties.

Compensation Committee

              Our Compensation Committee consists of Mr. Koch, Mr. Wittlinger and Mr. Zeng. As a result of losing "controlled company" status, we are required to have a Compensation Committee with at least one independent member currently and a majority of independent members by no later than March 23, 2021. The Compensation Committee must be fully independent by no later than December 23, 2021. Mr. Wittlinger is independent in accordance with the NSYE rules. The principal duties and responsibilities of our Compensation Committee are as follows:

•

to provide oversight on the development and implementation of the compensation policies, strategies, plans and programs for our key employees and non-employee directors and disclosure relating to these matters;



•

to review and approve the compensation of our CEO and our other executive officers; and



•

to provide oversight concerning the compensation of our CEO, succession planning, performance of our CEO and compensation related matters.

              The Compensation Committee may delegate to management administration of incentive compensation plans for non-executive officers. The Compensation Committee engaged and retained Aon Hewitt ("Aon"), as an independent executive compensation consultant, to provide advice on 2020 compensation matters. During 2020, Aon provided advice on executive and director compensation programs, executive and director market pay analysis, compensation peer group, CEO pay recommendations and drafting of the Compensation, Discussion and Analysis disclosures contained in the Company's Proxy Statement. The Compensation Committee reviewed the nature of its relationship with Aon and determined that there were no conflicts of interest with respect to Aon's independence.

Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee

              Our Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee consists of Mr. Koch, Mr. Lader, Mr. Locke, Dr. Saich and Mr. Wittlinger. As a result of losing "controlled company" status, we are required to have a Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee with at least one independent member currently and a majority of independent members by no later than March 23, 2021. The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee must be fully independent by no later than December 23, 2021. Each of Mr. Lader, Dr. Saich and Mr. Wittlinger is independent in accordance with the NSYE rules. The principal duties and responsibilities of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee are as follows:

•

to establish criteria for board and committee membership and recommend to our Board proposed nominees for election to the Board and for membership on committees of the Board; and



•

to make recommendations to our Board regarding board governance matters and practices.

              The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee is responsible for reviewing with the Board, on an annual basis, the appropriate criteria that directors are required to fulfill (including experience, qualifications, attributes, skills and other characteristics) in the context of the current make-up of the Board and the needs of the Board given the circumstances of the Company. In identifying and screening director candidates, the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee considers whether the candidates fulfill the criteria for directors approved by the Board, including integrity, objectivity, independence, sound judgment, leadership, courage and diversity of experience (for example, in relation to finance and accounting, strategy, risk, technical expertise, policy-making, etc.).

​	​	​	​	​
​	​	​	​	​ 17

Table of Contents

              The Board has not adopted a formal diversity policy and pursuant to the Company's Corporate Governance Guidelines and Principles, the Board broadly construes diversity to mean diverse background, education, skills, age, expertise with a proven record of accomplishment and the ability to work well with others. The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee does not assign specific weight to any particular factor but in selecting members for open Board positions, the Board takes into account such factors as it deems appropriate, which may include the current composition of the Board, the range of talents, experiences and skills that would best complement those already represented on the Board and the need for financial or other specialized expertise. The Board seeks to achieve a mix of members whose experience and backgrounds are relevant to the Company's strategic priorities and the scope and complexity of the Company's business. Overall, each of our Board members is committed to the growth of the Company for the benefit of the stockholders, contributes new ideas in a productive and congenial manner and regularly attends board meetings.

              The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee considers recommendations for Board candidates submitted by stockholders using substantially the same criteria it applies to recommendations from the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee, directors and members of management. Stockholders may submit recommendations by providing the person's name and appropriate background and biographical information in writing to the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee at: Company Secretary, One AMC Way, 11500 Ash Street, Leawood, Kansas 66211 or by emailing: KConnor@amctheatres.com. Invitations to serve as a nominee are extended by the Board itself via the Chairperson and the Chairperson of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee.

Compensation Committee Interlocks and Insider Participation

              Our Compensation Committee consists of Mr. Koch, Mr. Wittlinger and Mr. Zeng. During the period January 1, 2020 through December 31, 2020, no member of the Compensation Committee had a relationship required to be described under the SEC rules relating to disclosure of related person transactions (other than as described below in "Related Person Transactions" with respect to agreements with Wanda and Silver Lake) and none of our executive officers served on the board of directors or compensation committee of any entity that had one or more of its executive officers serving on the Board or the Compensation Committee of the Company.

​	​	​	​	​
​ 18	​	​	​	​

Table of Contents

              The following section presents information regarding the compensation paid during the year ended December 31, 2020 to members of our Board who were not employees of Wanda or the Company ("non-employee directors"). The other members of our Board do not receive any compensation from the Company. We reimburse all directors for any out-of-pocket expenses incurred by them in connection with their services provided in such capacity.

Non-Employee Director Compensation

              In order to attract and retain qualified non-employee directors, the Company adopted a Non-Employee Director Compensation Plan, effective January 1, 2019, pursuant to which non-employee directors are compensated for their service to the Company. Each non-employee director receives the following annual compensation for services as a Board member:

a)

an annual cash retainer of $150,000;



b)

annual stock award with a value of $70,000. Stock awards are made pursuant to the EIP, are fully vested at the date of grant, and are issued on the same date annual grants are made to senior management. Directors may elect to receive all or a portion of their cash retainer in stock. Stock awards must be retained until the earlier to occur of the third anniversary of the grant date or the director's departure from the Board. Unless otherwise specified by the Board, the number of shares awarded to each non-employee director is determined by dividing the value of the award by the average closing price of the stock for the five trading days prior to the date of the stock award; and



c)

an annual cash retainer for non-employee directors who serve on a committee as follows:

Director Compensation Table

              The following table presents information regarding the compensation of our non-employee directors during the year ended December 31, 2020.

​	​	​	​	​
​	​	​	​	​ 19

Table of Contents

​	​	​	​	​
​ 20	​	​	​	​

Table of Contents

              The following table sets forth certain information regarding beneficial ownership of our Common Stock outstanding as of March 3, 2021, with respect to:

•

each person or group of affiliated persons known by us to own beneficially more than 5% of any class of the outstanding shares of Common Stock, together with their addresses;



•

each of our directors, director nominees and our Named Executive Officers ("NEOs"); and



•

all directors and executive officers as a group.

              The address for each of our directors, director nominees and NEOs is c/o AMC Entertainment Holdings, Inc., One AMC Way, 11500 Ash Street, Leawood, Kansas 66211. Each person has sole voting and dispositive power over shares held by them, except as described below.

​	​	​	​	​
​	​	​	​	​ 21

Table of Contents

              Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act requires our directors and executive officers, and persons who own more than 10% of a registered class of our equity securities, to file with the SEC initial reports of ownership and reports of changes in ownership of our Common Stock and other equity securities. Officers, directors and holders of greater than 10% of our Common Stock are required by regulations of the SEC to furnish us with copies of all Section 16(a) reports they file.

              To our knowledge, based solely upon a review of the copies of such reports filed electronically with the SEC and/or written representations that no other reports were required to be filed during 2020, all filing requirements under Section 16(a) applicable to our officers, directors and 10% stockholders were satisfied timely, except for one late Form 4 for each executive officer with respect to one transaction.

​	​	​	​	​
​ 22	​	​	​	​

Table of Contents

Policies and Procedures with Respect to Related Transactions

              The Board has adopted the AMC Entertainment Holdings, Inc. Policy on Transactions with Related Persons as our policy for the review, approval or ratification of any transaction, arrangement or relationship (or any series of similar transactions, arrangements or relationships) in which the Company (including any of its subsidiaries) was, is, or will be a participant, and one of the Company's executive officers, directors, director nominees, 5% stockholders (or the immediate family or household members of any of the foregoing) or any firm, corporation or other entity in which any of the foregoing persons controls, is employed by, or has a material ownership interest (each, a "Related Person") has a direct or indirect material interest.

              This policy is administered by the Audit Committee. As appropriate for the circumstances, the Audit Committee will review and consider relevant facts and circumstances in determining whether to approve or ratify such transaction. Our policy includes certain factors that the Audit Committee takes into consideration when determining whether to approve a related person transaction as follows:

•

the position within or relationship of the related person with the Company;



•

the materiality of the transaction to the related person and the Company, including the dollar value of the transaction, without regard to profit or loss;



•

the business purpose for and reasonableness of the transaction (including the anticipated profit or loss from the transaction), taken in the context of the alternatives available to the Company for attaining the purposes of the transaction;



•

whether the transaction is comparable to a transaction that could be available on an arms-length basis or is on terms that the Company offers generally to persons who are not related persons;



•

whether the transaction is in the ordinary course of the Company's business and was proposed and considered in the ordinary course of business; and



•

the effect of the transaction on the Company's business and operations, including on the Company's internal control over financial reporting and system of disclosure controls and procedures, and any additional conditions or controls (including reporting and review requirements) that should be applied to such transaction.

Related Person Transactions

Management Stockholders Agreement

              On the closing of the merger with Wanda on August 30, 2012 ("Merger"), the Company and Wanda entered into a management stockholders agreement (the "Management Stockholders Agreement") with members of management, including certain of our NEOs. The Management Stockholders Agreement was amended in connection with our initial public offering (the "IPO"), and it continued in effect following the completion of the IPO, although the occurrence of the IPO caused certain provisions of the agreement to cease to be in effect.

              Piggyback Registration Rights.    Subject to specified limitations, all management members have unlimited piggyback registration rights. The Company has agreed to pay all registration expenses relating to these registrations.

              The Management Stockholders Agreement was terminated by mutual agreement of the parties effective September 23, 2020.

​	​	​	​	​
​	​	​	​	​ 23

Table of Contents

Registration Rights Agreement

              In connection with the IPO, we entered into a registration rights agreement with Wanda (the "Registration Rights Agreement"). Pursuant to the Registration Rights Agreement, the Company has agreed to use its best efforts to effect registered offerings upon request from Wanda and to grant incidental or "piggyback" registration rights with respect to any Common Stock held by Wanda (including Common Stock held by Wanda upon conversion of Class B common stock of the Company held by Wanda).

              The obligation to effect any demand for registration by Wanda is subject to certain conditions, including limitations on the number of demand registrations and limitations on the minimum value of securities to be registered. In connection with any registration effected pursuant to the terms of the Registration Rights Agreement, we will be required to pay for all of the fees and expenses incurred in connection with such registration, including registration fees, filing fees and printing fees. However, the underwriting discounts and selling commissions payable in respect of registrable securities included in any registration are to be paid by Wanda. We have also agreed to indemnify the holders of registrable securities against all claims, losses, damages and liabilities with respect to each registration effected pursuant to the Registration Rights Agreement.

Tax Sharing Agreement

              In connection with the IPO, we entered into a tax agreement with a U.S. subsidiary of Wanda. Pursuant to the tax agreement, for any period that we were members of any consolidated or other tax group of which the Wanda subsidiary was the common parent, we will pay the group's tax liabilities attributable to our activities up to the amount that would be payable by us if the Company was the common parent of the consolidated or other tax group and, in addition, we will have the right to control the filing of tax returns, audits and other tax matters of any such consolidated or other tax group.

Wanda Receivables

              As of December 31, 2020, the Company recorded a receivable due from Wanda of $680,388 for reimbursement of general administrative and other expense incurred on behalf of Wanda.

Silver Lake Notes

              On September 14, 2018, the Company entered into an investment agreement (the "Investment Agreement") with Silver Lake Alpine, L.P., an affiliate of Silver Lake, relating to the issuance to Silver Lake (or its designated affiliates) of $600 million principal amount of 2.95% convertible senior unsecured notes due 2024 (the "Notes") for a purchase price equal to 100% of the principal amount, subject to certain adjustments for expense reimbursement. On July 31, 2020, the Investment Agreement was amended and restated along with the indenture governing the Notes to extend the maturity date to May 1, 2026, and to grant the holders a first-priority lien on substantially all of the Company's tangible and intangible assets to secure the Notes.

              Upon conversion by a holder thereof, the Company was to deliver at its election, either cash, shares of the Common Stock or a combination of cash and shares of the Common Stock. The original conversion rate was 52.7704 per $1,000 principal amount of the Notes (which represented an initial conversion price of $20.50 per share minus the $1.55 per share dividend declared by the Board on September 14, 2018). In the event that the conversion price was greater than 120% of the average of the volume-weighted average price of the Common Stock for the period of ten consecutive trading days ending on September 14, 2020 (the "Reset Conversion Price"), the conversion price for the Notes would be adjusted downward to such Reset Conversion Price. However, the conversion price reset provision was subject to a conversion price floor such that the shares issuable upon conversion of all of the Notes would not exceed 30% of the Company's then outstanding fully-diluted share capital. The volume-weighted average price of the Common Stock for the ten consecutive trading days ending on September 14, 2020 was $6.55 and, as a result, the conversion price reset provision was triggered. Effective September 14, 2020, the conversion rate was adjusted to 74.0381 per $1,000 principal amount of the notes (representing an adjusted conversion price of $13.51 after giving effect the conversion price floor). The conversion price reset provision was only applicable at September 14, 2020 and any further adjustments to the conversion price would be due to customary anti-dilution adjustments as set forth in the indenture governing the Notes.

​	​	​	​	​
​ 24	​	​	​	​

Table of Contents

              On January 27, 2021, the holders elected to convert all of the Notes and on January 29, 2021, the Company issued 44,422,860 shares of Common Stock to the holders and cancelled the $600,000,000 first lien indebtedness represented by the Notes.

              The reset provision resulted in certain shares of the Company's Class B common stock held by Wanda and its affiliates becoming subject to forfeiture and cancellation by the Company pursuant to the Stock Repurchase Agreement described below.

Silver Lake Investment Agreement

              Board Representation.    Pursuant to the Investment Agreement, as long as Silver Lake and its affiliates beneficially own at least 25% of the outstanding common stock of the Company (the "Minimum Ownership Threshold") beneficially owned by them immediately following the closing contemplated by the Investment Agreement, assuming the conversion of the Notes on a full physical basis into the Company's Common Stock and subject to certain exclusions, Silver Lake will have the right to nominate a Silver Lake managing director as a director on the Board who will serve on all standing committees of the Board (to the extent permitted pursuant to the independence requirements under applicable laws). In connection with the foregoing, Lee Wittlinger, Managing Director of Silver Lake, was appointed to the Board. Additionally, for so long as Silver Lake has the right to nominate an individual to the Board, Silver Lake will be entitled to appoint a Board observer who will observe Board meetings and receive copies of all Board materials.

              With the conversion of the Notes on January 29, 2021, and Silver Lake's subsequent sale of its Common Stock, Silver Lake no longer satisfies the Minimum Ownership Threshold, so the Board nomination and observer rights have expired and, if requested by the Board, Mr. Wittlinger must tender his resignation.

              Standstill Obligations.    Silver Lake and certain of its affiliates are subject to certain standstill obligations until April 29, 2021 (such period, the "Standstill Period"). During the Standstill Period, Silver Lake and such affiliates will not, among other things and subject to specified exceptions (a) acquire any securities of the Company if, immediately after such acquisition, Silver Lake, together with certain of its affiliates, would beneficially own more than 27.5% of the then outstanding common stock of the Company assuming the conversion of the Notes on a full physical basis into the Company's Common Stock and subject to certain exclusions; (b) participate in any solicitation of proxies; or (c) form, join or participate in any group (as defined in Section 13(d)(3) of the Exchange Act, as amended).

              Participation Rights.    During the period from the second to the third anniversary of closing, Silver Lake had certain rights to purchase a pro rata portion of any equity securities, or instruments convertible into or exchangeable for any equity securities, in certain proposed offerings by the Company (the "Participation Rights"). Silver Lake's Participation Rights did not apply in connection with certain excluded transactions, including any acquisitions, strategic partnerships or commercial arrangements entered into by the Company or any equity compensation plans, or underwritten offerings. The Participation Rights were limited to the percentage of the Company's common stock owned by Silver Lake (assuming conversion of the Notes) as of the offering. As of January 29, 2021, Silver Lake no longer owned any common stock, rendering the Participation Rights inapplicable.

              Registration Rights.    Silver Lake was also entitled to certain registration rights for the Notes and the shares of common stock issuable upon conversion of the Notes, subject to specified limitations. Such registration rights were fulfilled by the Company prior to the conversion of the Notes and sale of the common stock by Silver Lake.

Wanda Repurchase Agreement

              On September 14, 2018, the Company entered into a Stock Repurchase and Cancellation Agreement (the "Stock Repurchase Agreement") with Wanda, pursuant to which the Company repurchased 24,057,143 shares of the Company's Class B common stock held by Wanda at a price of $17.50 per share. Additionally, pursuant to the Stock Repurchase Agreement up to 5,666,000 of the shares of the Company's Class B common stock held by Wanda following such repurchase (the "Forfeiture Shares") were subject to forfeiture and cancellation by the Company upon conversion of the Notes if the reset provision contained in the Indenture was triggered on September 14, 2020. Upon the conversion of the Notes on January 29, 2021, all of the Forfeiture Shares were forfeited and cancelled by the Company.

​	​	​	​	​
​	​	​	​	​ 25

Table of Contents

              The Stock Repurchase Agreement also provided that for so long as Silver Lake was entitled to nominate an individual to the Board, Wanda would not vote or exercise its right to consent in favor of any directors that were not previously approved by the Board and proposed on the Company's slate of directors at any meeting of stockholders of the Company at which any individuals to be elected to the Board were submitted for the consideration and vote of the stockholders of the Company. With the conversion of the Notes on January 29, 2021, and Silver Lake's subsequent sale of its Common Stock, Silver Lake is no longer entitled to nominate an individual to the Board.

Right of First Refusal Agreement

              On September 14, 2018, the Company, Silver Lake and Wanda entered into a Right of First Refusal Agreement (the "ROFR Agreement"), which provided Silver Lake certain rights to purchase shares of the Company's common stock that Wanda proposed to sell during a period of two years from the date of execution of the ROFR Agreement or, if earlier, until such time that Wanda and its affiliates cease to beneficially own at least 50.1% of the total voting power of the Company's voting stock. Under the ROFR Agreement, in the event that Wanda and its affiliates ceased to beneficially own at least 50.1% of the total voting power of the Company's voting stock, then the Company would have the same right of first refusal over sales of the Company's common stock by Wanda as described above until the expiration of the two-year period beginning on the date of execution of the ROFR Agreement. In such event, the Company could exercise such right to purchase shares from Wanda from time to time pursuant to the ROFR Agreement in its sole discretion, subject to approval by the disinterested directors of the Board. If the Company exercised its right to purchase shares from Wanda pursuant to the ROFR Agreement, it would have the obligation under the Investment Agreement to offer to sell to Silver Lake a like number of shares of the Company's Common Stock, at the same per share price at which it purchased the Wanda shares. The rights under the ROFR Agreement expired on September 14, 2020.

​	​	​	​	​
​ 26	​	​	​	​

Table of Contents

              The Audit Committee has selected Ernst & Young, LLP ("EY") as the independent registered public accounting firm to perform the audit of our consolidated financial statements and our internal control over financial reporting for 2021. EY served as our independent registered public accounting firm for 2020.

              The Audit Committee is responsible for overseeing the qualifications, engagement, compensation, independence, and performance of the independent registered public accounting firm retained to audit the Company's consolidated financial statements and its internal control over financial reporting. The Audit Committee requires and, with its chairperson, oversees the selection process for new lead audit engagement and concurring partners every five years. Throughout this process, the Audit Committee and management will provide input to EY about AMC priorities, discuss candidate qualifications and interview potential candidates put forth by the firm. The Audit Committee will also require other key EY partners assigned to our audit to be rotated as required by the PCAOB. To help ensure continuing auditor independence, the Audit Committee will continue to periodically consider whether there should be a regular rotation of the independent auditor.

The 2019 RFP Process

              In 2019, the Audit Committee conducted a comprehensive request for proposal ("RFP") process, which resulted in the Audit Committee selecting EY as the new independent registered public accounting firm for 2020. KPMG LLP ("KPMG") served as the Company's independent registered public accounting firm for the year ended December 31, 2019, having served continuously in that role since 2009. KPMG participated in the RFP process along with several other independent registered public accounting firms.

              On November 14, 2019, following the conclusion of the RFP process and after careful consideration of each firm's qualifications, the Audit Committee approved the engagement of EY as the Company's independent registered public accounting firm for the Company's fiscal year ending December 31, 2020. KPMG was dismissed as the Company's independent registered public accounting firm effective as of February 27, 2020, when the Company filed its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2019 with the SEC.

              KPMG's audit reports on the Company's consolidated financial statements as of and for the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018 did not contain any adverse opinion or disclaimer of opinion, nor were they qualified or modified as to uncertainty, audit scope, or accounting principles, except as follows:

              KPMG's report on the consolidated financial statements of the Company as of and for the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018, contained separate paragraphs stating that as discussed in Notes 1 and 2 (for the year ended December 31, 2019) and Note 1 (for the year ended December 31, 2018) to the consolidated financial statements, the Company has changed its method of accounting for the recognition of revenue and certain costs as of January 1, 2018 due to the adoption of ASC 606, Revenue from Contracts with Customers and as discussed in Notes 1 and 3 to the consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2019, the Company has changed its method of accounting for leases as of January 1, 2019 due to the adoption of ASC Topic 842, Leases.

              During the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018, and the subsequent interim period through February 27, 2020, there were: (i) no disagreements within the meaning of Item 304(a)(1)(iv) of Regulation S-K between the Company and KPMG on any matters of accounting principles or practices, financial statement disclosure, or auditing scope or procedure, which disagreements, if not resolved to KPMG's satisfaction, would have caused KPMG to make reference to the subject matter of the disagreements in connection with its reports on the Company's consolidated financial statements for such years; and (ii) no "reportable events" within the meaning of Item 304(a)(1)(v) of Regulation S-K.

​	​	​	​	​
​	​	​	​	​ 27

Table of Contents

              During the fiscal years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018 and the subsequent interim period through February 27, 2020, neither the Company nor anyone on its behalf has consulted with EY regarding: (i) the application of accounting principles to a specific transaction, either completed or proposed, or the type of audit opinion that might be rendered on the Company's financial statements, and neither a written report nor oral advice was provided to the Company that EY concluded was an important factor considered by the Company in reaching a decision as to any accounting, auditing, or financial reporting issue; (ii) any matter that was the subject of a disagreement within the meaning of Item 304(a)(1)(iv) of Regulation S-K and the related instructions; or (iii) any reportable event within the meaning of Item 304(a)(1)(v) of Regulation S-K.

              The Company filed a Form 8-K with the SEC disclosing this change in its independent registered public accounting firm on November 20, 2019.

              We are asking our stockholders to ratify the selection of EY as our independent registered public accounting firm for 2021. Even if the selection is ratified, the Audit Committee in its discretion may select a different independent registered public accounting firm at any time during the year if it determines that a change would be in the best interests of the Company and our stockholders. If the stockholders fail to ratify the selection of this firm, the Audit Committee may appoint another independent registered public accounting firm or may decide to maintain its appointment of EY.

              Representatives from EY are expected to attend the 2021 Annual Meeting. They will have an opportunity to make a statement if they desire to do so and will be available to respond to appropriate stockholder questions.

              The Board recommends a vote "FOR" ratification of the selection of EY as our independent registered public accounting firm for 2021.

​	​	​	​	​
​ 28	​	​	​	​

Table of Contents

              Our Audit Committee reviews our financial reporting process on behalf of our Board. In fulfilling its responsibilities, the Audit Committee has reviewed and discussed the audited financial statements contained in the 2020 Annual Report on Form 10-K with our management and our independent registered public accounting firm for 2020, EY. Our management is responsible for the financial statements and the reporting process, including the system of internal controls. EY is responsible for expressing an opinion on the conformity of those audited financial statements with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles and expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the Company's internal control over financial reporting.

              The Audit Committee has discussed with EY the matters requiring discussion by Statement on Auditing Standard No. 1301, Communication with Audit Committees (as amended), and all other matters required to be discussed with the auditors. In addition, the Audit Committee has received the written disclosures and the letters from EY required by applicable requirements of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board regarding the independent auditor's communications with the Audit Committee concerning independence, and has discussed with the independent auditors their independence. The Audit Committee has concluded that the independent auditors currently meet applicable independence standards.

              Based on the reviews and discussions to which we refer above, the Audit Committee recommended to our Board (and our Board has approved) that the audited financial statements be included in our 2020 Annual Report on Form 10-K, for filing with the SEC.

              Audit Committee of the Board of Directors

Kathleen M. Pawlus (Chairperson)
Anthony J. Saich
Lee E. Wittlinger

​	​	​	​	​
​	​	​	​	​ 29

Table of Contents

              The following table shows the fees that the Company was billed for the audit and other services provided by EY for the year ended December 31, 2020, and KPMG for the year ended December 31, 2019. The Audit Committee has considered whether the provision of such services is compatible with maintaining the independence of KPMG and EY and determined they were compatible. The Audit Committee has the sole right to engage and terminate the Company's independent registered public accounting firm, to pre-approve their performance of audit services and permitted non-audit services, and to approve all audit and non-audit fees.

Audit Committee Pre-Approval Policy

              The Audit Committee has adopted policies and procedures for the pre-approval of audit services and permitted non-audit services to be performed by our independent registered public accounting firm in order to assure that the provision of such services does not impair the independent registered public accounting firm's independence. The policies provide general pre-approval for certain types of services, as well as approved costs for those services. The term of any general pre-approval is twelve months from the date of pre-approval unless the Audit Committee specifies otherwise. Any costs or services that are not given general pre-approval require specific pre-approval by the Audit Committee. The policy directs that, if management must make a judgment as to whether a proposed service is a pre-approved service, management should seek approval of the Audit Committee before such service is performed.

              Requests to provide services that require specific approval by the Audit Committee must be submitted to the Audit Committee (or the chairperson of the Audit Committee as provided below) by both the independent auditor and management, and must include a joint statement as to whether, in their view, the request or application is consistent with the SEC's rules on auditor independence. Under the Audit Committee's pre-approval policy, the chairperson of the Audit Committee has the authority to address any requests made for pre-approval of services between Audit Committee meetings, and the chairperson must report any pre-approval decisions made between Audit Committee meetings to the Audit Committee at its next scheduled meeting. The policy prohibits the Audit Committee from delegating its responsibility to pre-approve any permitted services to management.

              The Audit Committee pre-approved all services provided by EY for 2020.

​	​	​	​	​
​ 30	​	​	​	​

Table of Contents

              The Compensation Committee has reviewed and discussed with management the disclosures contained in the following section entitled "Compensation Discussion and Analysis." Based on this review and discussion, the Compensation Committee recommended to the Board that the section entitled "Compensation Discussion and Analysis" be included in this Proxy Statement for the 2021 Annual Meeting.

              Members of the Compensation Committee:

Lee E. Wittlinger, Chairperson
Howard W. "Hawk" Koch, Jr.
John Zeng

​	​	​	​	​
​	​	​	​	​ 31

Table of Contents

              The following Compensation Discussion & Analysis ("CD&A") describes the philosophy, objectives and structure of our fiscal year 2020 executive compensation program. This CD&A is intended to be read in conjunction with the tables below, which provide further detail and historical compensation information for our NEOs as identified below.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

2020 Business Review; Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic

              While 2020 had an impressive start with strong January and February box office performance, the COVID-19 pandemic presented the Company with the greatest obstacle in its 100 year history. The COVID-19 pandemic and the public health response to it had a catastrophic impact on the Company's business and made previously established short and long-term performance targets extraneous to our core objective—the Company's survival.

              With initial reports of COVID-19 infections in late February 2020, the Company began contingency planning for potential impacts on its business. On March 4, 2020 our theatres in Italy were ordered closed with additional restrictions following in other jurisdictions. On March 17, 2020, we temporarily suspended all theatre operations in our U.S. markets and International markets in compliance with local, state, and federal governmental restrictions and recommendations on social gatherings to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and as a precaution to help ensure the health and safety of our guests and theatre staff. We resumed limited operations in the International markets in early June 2020 and limited operations in the U.S. markets in late August 2020. A COVID-19 resurgence during the fourth quarter of 2020 resulted in additional local, state, and federal governmental restrictions and many previously reopened theatres in International markets temporarily suspended operations again. During periods in which theatres were not operating, the Company generated essentially no revenue while continuing to incur significant fixed costs.

              Even as some theatres were allowed to reopen, our business operated at a substantial reduction when compared to pre-pandemic periods due to (i) limited new film product resulting from release postponements and shifts to home video platforms, (ii) continued closures in some of our largest markets, including New York and Los Angeles, (iii) capacity and operating restrictions at open theatres imposed by local governments, and (iv) consumer concerns over returning to public venues. When compared to fourth quarter of 2019, attendance at our theatres was down 92.3% in the U.S. and 89.2% internationally in the fourth quarter of 2020.

              While availability of COVID-19 vaccines and a robust new film release calendar for later in 2021 are reasons for optimism, the Company continues to experience dramatic impacts from the pandemic. As of March 5, 2021, 527 out of 589 U.S. theatres and 78 out of 356 international theatres were operating with limited new film releases and capacity restrictions.

​	​	​	​	​
​ 32	​	​	​	​

Table of Contents

              In response to the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on the business, the Company's management took a number of extraordinary actions to preserve value for the Company's stockholders, including:

•

Suspended non-essential operating expenditures, including marketing & promotional and travel and entertainment expenses; and where possible, utilities, and reduced essential operating expenditures to minimum levels necessary while theatres were operating for limited hours or were closed;



•

Maintained and secured theatre assets during the suspension of operations to preserve the ability to quickly initiate operations and generate revenue when permitted while eliminating or deferring non-essential capital and maintenance expenditures to minimum levels necessary;



•

Developed a comprehensive AMC Safe & Clean program to prepare for and allow resumption of operations at the Company's theatres while minimizing risk to the health and safety of our guests and employees;



•

Preserved relationships with a large employee base during prolonged furloughs to allow for sufficient staffing resources to efficiently recommence operations;



•

Collaborated with hundreds of landlords, vendors and other business partners to manage, defer, and/or abate rent and operating expenses;



•

Negotiated a first-of-its-kind deal with a major studio to share in premium video-on-demand revenue for films released with a shortened exclusive theatrical window;



•

Introduced an active cash management process;



•

Monitored, applied for and obtained governmental assistance where available;



•

Secured nearly $1.3 billion in new debt financing in multiple transactions between April 2020 and February 2021;



•

Executed several "at-the-market" equity offerings between September 2020 and January 2021 generating approximately $870 million in gross proceeds;



•

Reduced the principal amount of outstanding debt by approximately $1.25 billion through debt exchange offers and conversion of debt to equity; and



•

Arranged the sale of non-core assets, including theatres located in Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia.

Compensation Decisions

              Our compensation program is grounded in a pay-for-performance philosophy and designed with equity as a significant component of compensation. Performance goals in both our short- and long-term incentive plans are set at challenging levels, with the ultimate goal that the achievement of operating, financial and other goals will drive long-term, sustainable stockholder value growth. In addition, a key goal of executive compensation is to attract, retain, motivate and reward talented executives. However, the severe and continuing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic dramatically impacted the Company's financial performance and the price of the Company's Common Stock for reasons unrelated to the performance by our management and employees in managing the Company's business and preserving stockholder value during the pandemic. While our response to the COVID-19 pandemic warranted uncommon actions with respect to compensation programs, our underlying philosophy has not been permanently altered or abandoned.

              As outlined above, in the view of the Compensation Committee, management successfully undertook major initiatives to reduce and control costs, restructure a substantial portion of the Company's debt, structure more favorable arrangements with studios and landlords, reopen theatres safely, promote attendance and keep the business ready for a return to normalcy. These initiatives, in the view of the Compensation Committee, were essential to preserving the

​	​	​	​	​
​	​	​	​	​ 33

Table of Contents

Company's business and stockholder value at a critical time for the Company. Consequently, at a time when the Company needed to retain and incentivize management and employees, key aspects of the Company's previously-established incentive plans provided little value and would not work as intended, which the Compensation Committee believed was inconsistent with the aims of the Company's compensation philosophy.

              Noting that the Company had seen a significant increase in voluntary resignations by important members of management resulting from financial and operational instability in the movie theatre industry generally, sizable salary reductions and a substantial decrease in the value of stock-related compensation, the Compensation Committee determined that the Company needed to take tangible steps to retain management and key employees to enable the Company to emerge from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Recognizing that retention of the Company's leadership was one of the most critical issues it faced in confronting the ongoing challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Compensation Committee made a number of strategic and extraordinary decisions during 2020. We believe that our exercises of discretion were reasonable and necessary in light of our executive officers' actions in circumventing potentially catastrophic outcomes for stockholders. Each of the decisions outlined below is more fully described in the subsequent sections of this CD&A and the tables below.

Decisions Prior to the Onset of the COVID-19 Pandemic

•

Based on the Company's recent performance and projected industry conditions in 2020, the Compensation Committee did not increase base salaries for our CEO, CFO, or other NEOs for 2020.



•

Recognizing that the net profit threshold included in the performance goals for annual PSU grants since 2016 was no longer an appropriate condition for vesting due to the highly volatile nature of our industry and the fact that the market generally does not measure our performance based upon net profit, in February 2020 the outstanding PSU awards granted in 2018 and 2019 were modified to remove the net profit threshold. The PSUs remained subject to achievement of meaningful three-year Adjusted EBITDA and diluted earnings per share performance targets. Further, the net profit threshold will not be used for any compensation programs going forward.



•

Commencing with the 2020 annual equity incentive grants, in order to better align compensation programs with market measures of company performance, the diluted earnings per share performance metric was replaced with a free cash flow performance metric for a portion of annual PSU grants, with the remainder subject to an Adjusted EBITDA performance goal.



•

In order to provide greater incentives to attain performance within the vesting window, payouts at threshold for both annual cash incentives and long-term equity incentives were increased from 30% to 50% of target. Outstanding equity awards were not affected and continued to vest on the previous scale. Maximum payout achievable did not change.



•

As a long-term incentive to provide significant returns to stockholders and more closely align those incentives with stockholder returns, the Compensation Committee approved a special grant of market price conditioned PSUs (the "2020 SPSUs") awarded to certain senior officers of the Company, including the NEOs. The 2020 SPSUs were intended to vest upon attainment of target stock prices within 10 years of grant. In exchange for the grants, the executives agreed to reductions in their total compensation, including base salary, annual cash bonus opportunity, and annual long-term incentive awards, for a period of three years.

Decisions in Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic

•

Effective April 1, 2020, the base salaries of all officers, including our CEO, CFO and other NEOs were reduced by at least 20%. Salary reductions were subsequently reinstated effective September 3, 2020 in conjunction with the reopening of a substantial number of the Company's theatres. In addition, non-healthcare employee benefits, including 401k matching contributions, were reduced or eliminated for the balance of 2020.

​	​	​	​	​
​ 34	​	​	​	​

Table of Contents

•

Given the impossibility of attainment of the three-year cumulative performance targets due to the COVID-19 pandemic and expected continuing industry volatility, outstanding PSU grants made in 2018, 2019, and 2020 were modified to divide each grant into three equal tranches. The three-year cumulative performance targets were replaced with three separate one-year performance targets, each allocated to a tranche. Grants remained subject to a three-year service requirement and the potential for prorated vesting was eliminated.



•

The performance targets for PSU tranches allocated to the 2020 fiscal year were waived and such tranches were deemed eligible to vest below target at 90% in recognition of management's extraordinary efforts in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. Tranches allocated to other fiscal years remained subject to achievement of substantive performance metrics.



•

Vesting of RSUs and PSUs scheduled for January 2021 was accelerated to December 28, 2020, to allow for certainty with regard to tax rates applicable upon vesting.



•

Stock ownership guidelines applicable to the Company's NEOs were suspended.



•

The 2020 SPSUs were modified to waive the performance targets for tranches I through IV and allow immediate vesting in October 2020. The shares delivered upon such accelerated vesting were made subject to a one-year holding requirement. In addition, the stock price targets for tranches V and VI were lowered from $28 and $32 to $4 and $8, respectively. These actions were taken in response to the anticipated long-term impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Company's stock price and the significant increase in outstanding stock resulting from stock issuances undertaken to stabilize the Company's liquidity. The 2020 SPSU recipients' compensation components were restored to their pre-reduced levels effective October 30, 2020.



•

No payouts were made pursuant to the Company's annual incentive compensation program ("AIP") for 2020.



•

In light of the extreme challenges faced and met by our executive officers in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, special incentive bonuses were approved in October 2020 and February 2021.

How Our Compensation Program Works

              The Compensation Committee regularly reviews best practices in executive compensation and uses the following guidelines to design our compensation programs during ordinary business cycles, with exceptions made only under extraordinary circumstances:

​	​	​	​	​
​	​	​	​	​ 35

Table of Contents

Components of Our Pay

              Our Compensation Committee oversees our executive compensation program, which includes three primary compensation elements: base salary, annual cash incentives, and long-term equity awards. The Compensation Committee has tailored our program to incentivize and reward specific aspects of Company performance that it believes are central to delivering long-term stockholder value.

              The Compensation Committee utilizes the above mentioned compensation elements to promote a performance-based culture that aligns the interests of management and stockholders. To do this, the Compensation Committee chooses an appropriate balance of fixed and variable pay as well as long-term versus short-term incentives and opportunities. In 2020, our target pay mix was as follows, excluding Mr. Ramsey, who retired early in the year, the impact of modifications to outstanding equity awards and special incentive bonuses awarded during the year:

​	​	​	​	​
​ 36	​	​	​	​

Table of Contents

              The realizable pay of our executives has been much lower than the figures in the Summary Compensation Table. For example, our CEO's equity grants over the past three years had an aggregate value, as reported on the Summary Compensation Table, of approximately $26.8 million, including the impact of modifications; due to the decline in share price over that time period and the Company's performance against targets, the realizable value of those grants at target was only $6.6 million as of December 31, 2020. The illustration below shows how our CEO's pay is aligned with our stock price performance, and therefore aligned with the interests of stockholders.

Consideration of Say on Pay Results

              The Board and the Compensation Committee continually evaluate our compensation policies and practices. As part of that process, the Board and the Compensation Committee consider the results of our annual advisory vote on executive compensation, commonly known as the "say-on-pay" vote. At our 2020 Annual Meeting, approximately 96% of the votes were cast in support of the say-on-pay proposal. The Company has considered this voting result, and in light of this strong support, our compensation policies and decisions continue to be focused on financial performance and aligning the interests of executives with the interests of stockholders.

              Further, at our 2020 Annual Meeting, a vote was held on the frequency with which the Company submits executive compensation to an advisory vote of stockholders, commonly known as the "say-when-on-pay" vote. More than 99% of the votes cast favored holding the say-on-pay vote every year and the Board and Compensation Committee plan on continuing to do so.

EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION PHILOSOPHY AND PROGRAM OBJECTIVES

              The goals of the Compensation Committee with respect to executive compensation are:

•

to attract, retain, motivate and reward talented executives;



•

to tie annual compensation incentives to the achievement of specified performance objectives; and



•

to achieve long-term creation of value for our stockholders by aligning the interests of these executives with those of our stockholders.

              To achieve these goals, we endeavor to maintain compensation plans that tie a substantial portion of executives' overall compensation to key strategic, operational and financial goals and other non-financial goals that the Compensation Committee deems important. The Compensation Committee evaluates our compensation programs to ensure they are supportive of these goals and our business strategy and align the interests of our executives with those of our stockholders.

​	​	​	​	​
​	​	​	​	​ 37

Table of Contents

EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION PROGRAM ELEMENTS

              Our executive compensation program primarily consists of a combination of base salary, annual cash incentives, and long-term equity incentives. Our Compensation Committee believes that a combination of these elements offers the best approach to achieving our compensation goals, including attracting and retaining talented and capable executives and motivating our executives and other officers to expend maximum effort to improve the business results and earnings and create long-term, sustainable growth of stockholder value.

Base Salaries

              Base salaries for our NEOs are reviewed from time to time by the Compensation Committee and may be increased pursuant to such review and in accordance with guidelines contained in the various employment agreements in order to realign salaries with market levels after taking into account individual responsibilities, performance and experience. Base salaries for our NEOs are established based on several considerations, including:

•

the scope of their responsibilities



•

current competitive practices of peer group companies



•

individual performance and achievements



•

current compensation



•

recommendations from the CEO for executives (other than the CEO)

              The table below shows the annual base salaries for our NEOs for 2020, compared to 2019:

              In exchange for the 2020 SPSU grants which are described below, the NEOs agreed to certain reductions in their total compensation, including a five percent reduction in their base salary, for a period of three years. With the subsequent modification of the 2020 SPSUs, each NEO's base salary was returned to its pre-reduction level on October 30, 2020. Mr. Goodman was not a NEO in 2019 and did not receive a salary reduction in connection with the 2020 SPSUs because his initial salary was established with consideration given to the 2020 SPSU grants. Mr. Ramsey retired on February 28, 2020 and was not eligible for a salary adjustment for 2020.

              In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, all NEO base salaries were reduced by 20% for the period from April 1, 2020 until September 3, 2020, when a significant portion of the Company's theatres were allowed to recommence operations.

Annual Incentive Program

              The Compensation Committee has the authority to award annual incentive bonuses to our NEOs pursuant to our annual incentive compensation program ("AIP"), which historically have been paid in cash and traditionally have been paid in a single installment in the first quarter of the subsequent year upon certification of performance by the Compensation Committee.

​	​	​	​	​
​ 38	​	​	​	​

Table of Contents

              Under employment agreements with our NEOs, each NEO is eligible for an annual bonus, as it may be determined by the Compensation Committee from time to time. We believe that annual bonuses based on performance serve to align the interests of management and stockholders. Individual bonuses are performance based and, as such, can be highly variable from year to year. The annual incentive bonus opportunities for our NEOs are determined by our Compensation Committee, taking into account the recommendation of our CEO (except with respect to his own bonus).

Payout Opportunities

              Consistent with the prior year, the aggregate bonus for each NEO was set as a percentage of base salary ranging from 65% to 200% and, except for Mr. Aron and Mr. Goodman, was apportioned to a Company component (80%) and an individual component (20%). However, in the case of Mr. Aron and Mr. Goodman, their aggregate bonus is entirely based on Company performance with no individual component.

2020 Performance Goals

              Company Performance:    For 2020, this component was based on attainment of Adjusted EBITDA goals, with payouts ranging from 0% to 200% of target. For purposes of the AIP, Adjusted EBITDA is determined in the same manner as described and defined in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K, but excluding cash distributions from non-consolidated subsidiaries and attributable EBITDA from minority equity investments. For 2020 the Adjusted EBITDA performance levels ranged from a threshold of $577,782,400 (50% payout) to a target of $722,228,000 (100% payout) to a maximum of $866,673,600 (200% payout). Company performance is highly dependent upon the timing and popularity of the films released by distributors in the markets in which we operate leading to the potential for volatility and requiring a significant number of assumptions and projections involved in setting performance targets. The following chart represents the AIP payout scale for the Company component:

              Individual Performance:    The individual component of the bonus is based on achievement of individual key performance objectives and overall individual performance and contribution to our strategic and financial goals. Our Compensation Committee and, except with respect to his own bonus, our CEO, retain certain discretion to decrease or increase individual component bonuses relative to the targets based on qualitative or other subjective factors deemed relevant by the Compensation Committee. The key performance objective setting process was interrupted in 2020 by the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

​	​	​	​	​
​	​	​	​	​ 39

Table of Contents

2020 Payouts

              The following table summarizes the AIP bonus for our NEOs for 2020: