Denial Is A River In Century City
STATEMENT FROM METRO-GOLDWYN-MAYER STUDIOS INC.
LOS ANGELES, CA August 25, 2008— Contrary to recent media reports, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (MGM) is not for sale. There is no “asking price” for the company. MGM’s existing financing arrangements are sufficient to meet its needs. Goldman, Sachs has been retained to explore enhancements to MGM’s long-term capital structure. All of the MGM shareholders, including Providence Equity Partners, TPG, Sony Corp. Of America and Comcast Corp, are pleased with the Company’s current momentum and are committed to the future growth of the studio.
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And can we all just say now… “Bull.”
MGM was on sale before Ron Grover got a call from a friend, before Mary Parent was hired, before they dumped Sony, before Harry Sloan came on board, when Kirkorian owned it, before Kirkorian owned it, when Kirkorian owned it, before Kirkorian owned it, when Kirkorian owned it, and before Kirkorian owned it.
MGM has been a library with an attached pseudo-studio since they sold the lot where Sony now is, decades ago.
I still think that Team DreamWorks is more likely to end up with controlling interest by this time next year than anyone else. The “price tag” being thrown around is likely what Harry Sloan dreams of… but the unreality of the number is instantly apparent.
There is no future for a studio making 6 films a year at studio prices. DreamWorks learned this. MGM has learned that lesson a dozen times.
So, MGM wants you to think that they aren
Whoa, what’s all this about NBC Universal and Paramount Viacom B? What happened to Viacom A?
Of course they’re for sale…they’re probably facing bankruptcy. Other than genre horror flicks (1408, The Mist and Halloween) the MGM reboot has been a catastrophe.
Wide releases failing to reach 10 million? Check (Who’s Your Caddy) Wide releases failing to reach 5 million? Double check (Blood and Chocolate, The Ex, Feast of Love, Charlie Bartlett)
Poorly reviewed, largely ignored Oscar bait? Yup (Coppying Beethoven, Factory Girl, Bobby, Miss Potter, Music WIthin, Home of the Brave, Henry Poole is Here)
Name projects that never found a distributor and were dumped to DVD? YOu betcha (Virgin Territory, Bordertown, Pathology, The Flock, Wedding Daze, The Poughkeepsie Tapes, perhaps Fanboys and SCanners?)
MGM has had one film crack $26 million in the last year. (1408) Their struggles make the Weinsteins look tame.
Now they have the indignity of splitting rights to Bond 22 with Sony, and are looking at “How to Lose Friends and Alienate People” as their top fall movie with “The Pink Panther 2” as their box office savior.
They’re praying for someone to buy.
Are not many of those above-named movies Weinstein co-productions? I know Halloween, Factory Girl, and Bobby certainly were, and they were trying hard to launch Scanners and a new Hellraiser.
Henry Poole Is Here is an Overture Films release, and Pathology received a brief theatrical release this past spring.
Just a little fact-checking:
HALLOWEEN, THE MIST, 1408, WHO’S YOUR CADDY?, THE EX, BOBBY, FACTORY GIRL, MISS POTTER, THE FLOCK, BORDERTOWN and VIRGIN TERRITORY – all Weinstein titles that were distributed theatrically by MGM (as the Weinsteins don’t have a distribution arm). Similarly, VICKY CRISTINA BARCELONA and THE LONG SHOTS fall into the same category. All Weinstein problems, not MGM’s.
Everything on MGM’s release slate since 2006 but LIONS FOR LAMBS has been an in-the-can acquisition (primarily from Sidney Kimmel or Lakeshore Entertainmant). PATHOLOGY had a limited and spectacularly unsuccessful theatrical release in April, and THE POUGHKEEPSIE TAPES may still get one. HENRY POOLE IS HERE is a Lakeshore title distributed by Overture, with MGM to be found nowhere in sight.
Would the recent Pink Panther movie been more, less, or equally successful had the lead gone to Chris Tucker? Because THAT almost-moment was certainly a defining one for me, as it pertains to MGM.
Yes, that’s because other than occasionally MGM is 90% a distribution studio now…my bad on Henry Poole and a couple though. Whoops =( That’s what I get for flying off the cuff.
And yes, Pathology had a “blonde Ambition”-esque run in a handful of theatres. But that’s like saying Idiocracy had a theatrical run.
Still, if your primary task is distribution, you aren’t going to help yourself distributing the above titles, aka MGM is tied to the Weinsteins’ when it comes to woes.
(Lions for Lambs was actually not MGM but was United Artists I believe)
Anyway here are the films produced AND distributed by MGM in the last year: Feast of Love, Rescue Dawn, Charlie Bartlett, Stargate: The Ark of Truth, The Poughkeepsie Tapes and another Stargate direct-to-vid. And they’ve handled distribution for the previously named films excepting Henry Poole.
Either way they’re flailing in the water.
Okay, so here’s my next stupid question: Are MGM and UA not the same company, or at least joined at the hips, lungs, and forehead?
Actually, Ethan, only the Stargates, which were still in TV production, were actually MGM productions.
The company has had very little structure to speak of since pushing away from Sony and it has been an endless disaster of the production entities making these films both fighting with and fighting against those at the studio who have been in “distribution and marketing.” In most of the cases, the distribution dollars have been from the outside money as well.
The only reason MGM has had releases is because of the Showtime deal, which paid a lot more than any deal that any of the half dozen production companies (including The Weinsteins) could get on their own. That’s over now.
Even Lions for Lambs was from a fund that Harry Sloan does not control.
As for the Bond and Pink Panther franchises, neither was from Harry Sloan Land. Pink Panther was reconsdiered and saved by Sony. And while the arrangement could cost MGM some money that will instead go to Sony this time out, that money is not the difference maker.
What you are seeing a start-up in the pants of a big studio. Throw out the last couple of years. They are truly irrelevant.
Jeff – Though the “ownership” has become increasingly tenuous since the Wagner/Cruise relaunch (and re-financing), UA is still an MGM Company.
Ethan – The Weinsteins payed MGM a distribution fee for the theatrical releases (prints, shipping, contracts, etc.) so the success or failure of any of those titles meant nothing to MGM. As for CHARLIE BARTLETT, FEAST OF LOVE and the like, Home Video rights (often only domestic) were written into the theatrcial distribution deals, to give the brand an ongoing pipeline of new DVD releases.
Oddly enough, STARGATE:THE ARK OF TRUTH and CONTINUUM are two of the most profitable DVD titles MGM has ever released.
And as far as QUANTUM OF SOLACE and THE PINK PANTHER 2 are concerned, MGM had wrested worldwide home video rights to both titles, while Sony gets to spend tens of millions promoting the theatrical relases.
That’s right, David, these ‘press releases’ are so ridiculous, they are akin to Third World Junta propaganda.
They had one release on Paula Wagner.
Then one on some PR Director who was fired or left.
Then one on Tom Cruise.
It’s all spin bullshit.
Like Poland said they really need to make contacts in local papers and leak shit out. These releases aint working – of course they wanna spin everything is fine, they have money, management is intact, hits are incoming etc – it aint working.
Thanks for the clarifications