COTTER ELLEN M

About COTTER ELLEN M

Ellen M. Cotter is a seasoned executive in the media, entertainment, and real estate sectors, best known for her leadership at Reading International, Inc., a U.S.-listed company in the NYSE/NASDAQ environment. She currently serves as Vice Chair, Chief Executive Officer, and President. Company biographies state that she joined Reading in March 1998, became a member of the Board on March 13, 2013, served as Chair of the Board from August 2014 to December 2020, acted as interim Chief Executive Officer and President from June 12, 2015 to January 8, 2016, and was then appointed permanent CEO and President. ([people.equilar.com](https://people.equilar.com/bio/person/ellen-cotter-reading-international-inc/613311)) Her career at Reading was built on deep operational responsibility. Before becoming chief executive, she spent more than ten years as Chief Operating Officer of the company’s domestic cinema operations, with oversight of acquisition, development, marketing, and day-to-day operations for theaters across the United States. She also spent time in Australia and New Zealand helping develop the company’s cinema and real estate assets in those markets. In addition, she served as Chief Executive Officer of a subsidiary operating a substantial portion of Reading’s cinemas in Hawaii and California. ([people.equilar.com](https://people.equilar.com/bio/person/ellen-cotter-reading-international-inc/613311)) Before joining Reading, Cotter spent four years in private practice as a corporate attorney at White & Case in New York City. She earned her undergraduate degree from Smith College and her Juris Doctor from Georgetown University Law Center. That legal foundation is consistent with a leadership profile shaped by governance, transaction execution, and disciplined oversight. ([people.equilar.com](https://people.equilar.com/bio/person/ellen-cotter-reading-international-inc/613311)) Reading’s own materials recognize her broader contribution to the independent film and exhibition industry. She received the first Gotham Appreciation Award at the 2015 Gotham Independent Film Awards and was inducted into the Show East Hall of Fame the same year. The company also describes her as a valuable liaison to the film industry and notes more than twenty-seven years of experience across its cinema operations in the United States and Australia. In governance terms, her profile reflects long-tenured operational leadership, board-level continuity, and experience spanning both exhibition and related real estate activities. ([people.equilar.com](https://people.equilar.com/bio/person/ellen-cotter-reading-international-inc/613311))