Ryan Kavanaugh (Image: Forbes.com)
Update 6:01 PM PT: The Bronze, as mentioned below, had been under a deal with Relativity Media, in which Sony terminated that deal just days before the Chapter 11 filing. Sony had retained the international distribution rights for the film when Relativity purchased the film at the Sundance Film Festival this past January for $3Mil to for domestic distribution rights. However, after the termination letter was sent, the distribution of The Bronze has remained a mystery. Sony has been holding some meetings to reassess it’s options relative to distribution of the film, including what options are available for other distributors for the US market. While it is very likely it will see a distribution deal made, given the high interest in the film at Sundance, it is very unlikely it will be released in the previously planned October 16 date. There will need to be time for a new P&A once a distribution deal is inked.
See also Melissa Rauch’s ‘The Bronze’ Future Release Uncertain with Relativity Media Near Bankruptcy
The Bronze was not the only film that reverted back to it’s backer. Jane Got your Gun starring Natalie Portman did as well, and the film Out of This World was bought by STX Entertainment just before the bankruptcy filing.
The Bronze and Jane Got Your Gun aren’t the only films in limbo at the moment. Some films were in pre-production, such as the thriller-action Hunter Killer, starring Billy-Bob Thornton and Common, as well as the low-budget horror film Before I Wake which both may draw some interest, both slated for September releases. Screenplay writer, Mark Klein has spent the last four months researching internationally, as well as domestically, a poignant World War II love-story at the time of the Holocaust, exhausting his paycheck, to develop The Lost Wife for Relativity, which now is also in limbo. Stay tuned…we will try to update as we learn more.
Update 12:51 PM PT: We just learned that Kavanaugh and the Board of Directors for Relativity Media have agreed that Kavanaugh should be supervised by the bankruptcy court and that the company he founded will have the bulk of it put up for sale, namely the Film and TV units. Relativity Sports, Relativity EuropaCorp Distribution and Relativity Education will remain part of the company and not be sold off.
RM Bidder will take control of the bulk of the assets, which will then be auctioned, supervised by Blackstone Group and FTI Consulting, a financial services firm that has been overseeing for weeks now Relativity’s troubled finances.
Kavanaugh reacted with this statement, “Relativity continues to pursue its mission as a next-generation global media company, and we remain firmly committed to our film and television businesses. The actions we are announcing today will protect our valuable franchise and allow us to emerge as a stronger, more focused company.”
The company considered a number of options but finally came to the conclusion that the only way they could achieve their financial and strategic objectives was to go through a court-supervised reorganization.
Original Story:
Relativity Media filed for Chapter 11 with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in New York on Thursday, disgruntling many investors and creditors.
Ryan Kavanaugh, Relativity’s 11-year founder and CEO, had claimed clever financing and data analysis could unlock the secret to Box Office success previously. Now with his filing, Kavanaugh hopes to find new partners or lenders to help cover the more than $300 Mil debt the company has, and to preserve his role as CEO.
Relativity Media still plans to release the comedy Masterminds, the Halle Berry thriller Kidnap and to continue production on its remake of The Crow which is to begin shooting in the Fall.
Likely to be sold to other investors are the horror film, Before I Wake, and the thriller The Disappointments Room. Sony had already sent a letter of termination with it’s deal with Relativity Media over it’s purchase last January during Sundance Film Festival of the raunchy dark comedy, The Bronze, starring Melissa Rauch. It is still unclear the fate of the film’s distribution at this time, but stay tuned, we hope to update you when we learn more.
The Chapter 11 filing is not the only filing Relativity has planned. It also plans to file for a Debtor-in-possession financing (D.I.P.loan), in order to continue operations while under the Chapter 11 protection. Likewise it is actively pursuing negotiations with other sources of funding in order to continue with distribution plans for Masterminds and Kidnap.
Friday will be the day for the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in New York hearing for Relativity Media.