Tolkien Estate, Publisher Sue New Line Over ‘Lord of the Rings’
Variety reports that publisher HarperCollins and the British charity that oversees the estate of Lord of the Rings author J.R.R. Tolkien have filed a lawsuit against New Line Cinema, the studio responsible for the "Lord of the Rings" film trilogy.
The suit was filed today in Los Angeles Superior Court and alledges that New Line Cinema neglected to provide either plaintiff with contractually obligated "gross profit participation" payment for the phenomenally successful films. The claim seeks $150 million from New Line, as well as a variety of other damages, including the right to terminate New Line’s license to the Tolkien properties.
If the studio loses the Tolkien license, it could end fans’ hopes for a Guillermo del Toro-helmed film based on The Hobbit, a widely speculated possibility.
Wow, this series did literally billions at the box office and the DVD market was just pure profit. It is astounding to me think that they wouldn't have paid up — I'll bet they find a way to blame it on illegal downloads ;)
I'll bet you're right.When producer Mike Uslan sued Warner Bros. over his share of Batman (I) movie profits, Warners told the judge the movie was still in the red. Looking at the nine-digit movie receipts and all that merchandising and licensing, the judge asked Warner's lawyer (and I paraphrase) "If you're losing money on Batman, why are you in the movie business?"Warners won the suit anyway. I think Mike had the last laugh, as he controls all movie and television rights so they had to deal with him for sequels and animated movies and such.
That 'didn't make any money' BS is such a lame arguement.