AMC Networks Taps NBA’s Grizzlies to Replace Longtime Counsel

AMC Networks Inc. has recruited Salvatore Romanello to be its general counsel, reuniting him with the Dolan family after a stint with the Memphis Grizzlies.

He succeeds AMC’s veteran legal chief James “Jamie” Gallagher, who is retiring.

Romanello joined AMC—the entertainment content producer known for award-winning television series such as The Walking Dead, Mad Men, Breaking Bad, and Better Call Saul—this month after two years as general counsel for the National Basketball Association’s Grizzlies. AMC Networks is not related to AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc., the movie theater chain and meme stock.

AMC, Gallagher, and Romanello didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment about the change. Romanello’s new employer and executive role is listed on the New York-based company’s website and in recent securities filings, as well as his LinkedIn profile and New York state bar registration.

Romanello, a former litigation partner at Weil, Gotshal & Manges, joined the Grizzlies in January 2023 after spending roughly five years as general counsel for 605 LLC, an audience and data analytics company founded by Kristin Dolan. AMC appointed Dolan—the wife of the company’s executive chairman, cable industry mogul James Dolan—its new CEO last year.

AMC parted ways with its former CEO Christina Spade and shed about 20% of its US employees amid a corporate restructuring as part of a pivot to streaming entertainment. The holding company owns its eponymous cable channel and others like BBC America, IFC, and Sundance TV, which cater to an art house, independent, and foreign film audience.

Gallagher is retiring as of Jan. 2, 2025. He joined AMC predecessor Rainbow Media as legal chief in 2008, three years before it rebranded and went public after being spun off from the James Dolan-led Cablevision Systems Corp. Gallagher, who started his career at Kelley Drye & Warren, previously led the legal teams at the Home Shopping Network Inc. and Tommy Hilfiger Corp.

Gallagher earned more than $4.4 million in total compensation from AMC in 2023, according to the company’s most recent proxy statement. Bloomberg data shows that Gallagher owns more than $16 million in AMC stock.