Kristoffer Polaha needs every fan he can find to buy a ticket to “Mimics,” his directorial debut premiering in theaters on February 13, 2026. Laughing about his quirky marketing strategy, the beloved Hallmark star told EntertainmentNow that he hopes his supporters will buy a ticket even if they can’t get to a theater for its premiere weekend.
“We’re going to make this the biggest little independent film in the world,” Polaha beamed, noting that “Mimics” will premiere at approximately 400 U.S. theaters, and the movie’s success will depend, in part, on how many tickets are sold on opening weekend.
Kristoffer Polaha Explains Why Ticket Sales for ‘Mimics’ Matter So Much
“Mimics” has been a passion project for Polaha for the last two years, filmed in his hometown of Reno, Nevada, in 2025. With a star-studded cast that includes Kevin Lawson, Stephen Tobolowsky, Jesse Hutch, Arianne Zucker, and “SNL” alum Chris Parnell, Polaha is hoping their small-budget film can make big waves.
The “Missing the Boat” star told EntertainmentNow that major movie distributors have massive budgets for most new films, with which they can “buy three weekends on 4000 screens” right off the bat. They then get consumers interested in buying tickets through expensive marketing campaigns, including commercials, PR campaigns, and brand partnerships, Polaha said. However, his team doesn’t have the luxury of premiering in every city or buying Super Bowl ads to spread the word.
“But the beautiful thing about the cinematic marketplace,” Polaha explained, “is if we perform well on Friday the 13th weekend, we then ‘hold’ and we can open up a second weekend, more theaters. And then if we perform well again, we can get to the third week. So as long as people keep showing up and buying tickets, we’ll be in theaters.”
Eventually, Polaha envisions “a whole second life” for “Mimics” by making it available via video-on-demand, potentially partnering with a streaming service, and printing DVDs. But much of that “depends on how well we do cinematically,” Polaha said, noting that outlets like Netflix or Amazon start paying attention if a movie does well in theaters.
Kristoffer Polaha Says ‘Mimics’ Has a Deep Underlying Message
Polaha, who’s also been busy filming the new series “American Hostage” with Jon Hamm and Giovanni Ribisi, told EntertainmentNow that he’s dreamed of being a director since he was a teenager, but the right project, people, and timing didn’t converge until his friend Marc Oakley came up with the script for “Mimics.”
According to the synopsis, Polaha plays “down-on-his-luck impressionist” Sam Reinhold, who “makes a pact with Fergus — a wicked, strings-attached puppet — that holds the promise to propel Sam to stardom, unleashing a nightmare that threatens the safety of those he holds dear.”
Although “Mimics” is categorized as a “horror-romance” in movie listings, Polaha said he prefers to call it a “fright-light, romantic comedy.”
“It is a spooky little love story that will have you laughing one minute, looking over your shoulder the next, as if you were at a campfire and someone’s telling you a ghost story. That feeling of like, ‘Is there something behind me?’ Like, it’s spooky, but it’s not gory. ‘Horror’ is a harsh word.”
“It’s a goofy little romp of a movie I made,” Polaha smiled. “I wanted it to purely be entertaining, but there’s also a sweet message to it. It’s also got a little moral core.”
Details on theaters and showtimes for “Mimics” during its opening weekend can be found here.
