Motion Pictures
February 2, 2006
Alcon Entertainment To Continue Relationship With Warner Bros. Pictures
(February 2, 2006 - Burbank, CA) – Warner Bros. Pictures and Alcon Entertainment announced today that they have concluded a new financing and distribution agreement that will result in a continuation of their long-term relationship. The announcement was made by Alan Horn, President and COO, Warner Bros., and Broderick Johnson and Andrew Kosove, Co-founders and Co-Presidents of Alcon Entertainment.
As in their original agreement with the Studio, Alcon will develop and fully finance its own feature films for distribution by Warner Bros. Pictures; in addition, the company will also jointly finance some films with the Studio. The new deal will include a minimum of six pictures over the next three years, beginning with "16 Blocks," an action thriller directed by Richard Donner and starring Bruce Willis and Mos Def, and "The Wicker Man," a horror thriller based upon the cult 1970s film of the same name. The remake is being directed by Neil LaBute and stars Nicolas Cage. Alcon acquired distribution rights to both movies from Millennium Films and Emmett/Furla Films, with the participation of Equity Pictures.
Alcon and Warner Bros. Pictures have been in business together for the last eight years, yielding such successful films as "My Dog Skip," "Insomnia," and last year’s "Racing Stripes" and "The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants."
“We’ve had an excellent relationship with Andrew, Broderick and the rest of the Alcon team over the years,” said Horn, “and we’re glad to be extending it into the future with this new agreement. Andrew and Broderick have brought many valuable films to Warner Bros. Pictures and I look forward to continuing to collaborate with them on their slate.”
Responded Johnson and Kosove, “Alan and the entire Warner Bros. team have been loyal partners for Alcon and we are deeply appreciative for their continued support. The fundamental benefit of the new arrangement is that it will allow Alcon to increase the pace of its production and acquisition activities, thereby giving us the opportunity to more effectively grow our business.”
Alcon is also developing a slate of projects which will go into production starting in early 2006. They include the following:
"Brothers in Arms " – based on the book of the same name by Kareem Abdul Jabbar and Anthony Walton, which tells the true story of the 761st tank battalion, the only African-American tank unit to fight for the United States in the European Theater during World War II. The film will be directed by Denzel Washington, who is also expected to play one of the lead roles. John Sayles is currently doing a rewrite of a screenplay by David Chisolm.
"The Whole Pemberton Thing" – a dark romantic comedy written by Mike Samonek. The film will be directed by Ken Kwapis and will star Robin Williams.
"Hong Kong Phooey" – based upon the Hanna-Barbera cartoon of the same name, the film will combine CGI and live action to tell the story of a street-smart dog who turns into a kung fu-fighting, smart-talking superhero.
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