Lauren Miller Rogen’s comedy Babies has turned its Toronto International Film Festival premiere into a significant international sales result, with AGC International reporting deals across major theatrical markets and additional rights sales to platforms and distributors in several territories.
Starring Anna Kendrick and Seth Rogen, the film premiered in the Gala Presentations section, while Roadside Attractions and Vertical had already secured its U.S. rights ahead of the festival.
The latest sales cover the United Kingdom and Ireland through Entertainment Film, Latin America, Spain and Portugal through Sun, Germany through Capelight, Australia and New Zealand through Transmission, and Scandinavia through Scanbox. AGC International said its worldwide sales and distribution team, led by Diane Ferrandez and Nat McCormick, had also licensed rights in Canada to Amazon and in India to Lionsgate, alongside agreements covering the Middle East, Israel, Turkey, former Yugoslavia, Ukraine and airlines.
The breadth of the deals is notable because they arrived around the film’s festival launch, giving Babies distribution partners across a wide range of established markets. AGC International said the film was close to selling out, with discussions continuing for France and other outstanding territories. That makes the comedy’s sales campaign a useful example of how festival exposure can quickly translate into multiple international distribution agreements.
The release pattern is also varied by territory. Theatrical buyers have taken rights in several major markets, while Amazon’s Canadian agreement and Lionsgate’s Indian deal demonstrate that streaming can provide a different route to audiences. Rather than following one worldwide release model, Babies is being positioned according to the distribution structure of each market. That approach allows individual territories to determine whether theatrical exhibition or streaming is the more suitable path.
The U.S. commitment provides another important part of the film’s sales story. Roadside Attractions and Vertical acquired the domestic rights on August 25, before TIFF opened, and announced plans for a theatrical release in 2027. The early deal meant the film entered its world premiere with its U.S. distribution already established, while AGC International continued selling international rights.
Babies is the second feature from Lauren Miller Rogen, who wrote, directed and produced the film. Anna Kendrick and Seth Rogen play Annie and Aaron, a married couple who have been together for years without deciding whether they want children. Their uncertainty becomes harder to avoid when a divorced friend and her young daughter move into their home. The ensemble includes Issa Rae, Dan Stevens, Kate Berlant, Zach Cherry, Ed Helms, Ashley Park, Sharon Stone and David Strathairn.
The film was co-financed and produced by Monarch Media and AGC Studios with Lylas Pictures. Lauren Miller Rogen and Jen W. Ray produced alongside Steve Barnett and Stuart Ford. AGC International’s Diane Ferrandez said the film played strongly in Toronto, with audiences laughing and becoming emotionally invested, while Nat McCormick described the project as close to selling out internationally.
The result is notable for a comedy built around a relationship question rather than a franchise property. Its international response suggests that recognizable stars, a clear premise and a festival presentation can create buyer interest before a film reaches theatres, even as distributors increasingly tailor release plans to audiences.
That combination of established stars, a festival platform and a wide distribution campaign gives Babies a particularly clear international profile. Its sales also show how contemporary independent films can build theatrical and streaming routes simultaneously, rather than depending on a single release pattern.
For Babies, the Toronto premiere has therefore become more than a festival introduction. It has opened a broad commercial path for the film, with major international territories already attached, streaming partners secured in key markets and a U.S. theatrical release planned for 2027. The next stage will be turning that network of buyers into audiences across markets.
