UK Release Date For ‘The Tree Of Life’ Leads To Legal Entanglement
By Russ Fischer/April 1, 2011 11:00 am EST
Jeff Wells chimes in with a statement from Summit,
And Anne Thompson says that, despite Summit’s insistence that Icon holds no rights, Icon bought rights to the movie for a “high minimum guarantee, and was trying to get out of releasing the film.” In other words, Icon has to pay financier Bill Pohlad a lot of money no matter how well the film does, and the company is just now realizing that a multi-generational Terrence Malick film about family, man’s place in the world and the universe in general might not be the most commercial prospect. Did Icon just see “Brad Pitt & Sean Penn” on the cast sheet and sign up with no further thought?
“The information regarding the May 4th UK release [of The Tree of Life] is incorrect. Icon Film Distribution Ltd. does not have the right to distribute The Tree of Life in the UK, as it is in default of its agreement. The matter is pending before an arbitration tribunal in Los Angeles.”
All this is pretty ‘inside baseball,’ but it is good to be reminded once in a while that the simple business of getting a movie out to audiences is never really simple. And if Summit really does manage to slap down Icon, what will be done about releasing the film in the UK and possibly Australia and New Zealand?
