I do not envy the work that Variety online editor Anne Thompson and her researchers did on this story about the complicated split-up of Dreamworks SKG and Paramount’s production slate.
I am, however, going to be a dick and cherry pick the pertinent details out of it out for you:
Tintin: This is the one whose future is the most uncertain. After Universal backed out of a financing deal, Paramount offered to fully finance it, but without Spielberg’s usually large back end deals. Dreamworks started shopping it around, they lost a lead actor, and now no one knows where it’s going to go.
Here’s a hint from me: You just signed with Reliance for around $1.2 billion. Surely another $100 million isn’t going to break their coffers?
Up in the Air: The Jason Reitman directed comedy about a career transitions consultant (think the two consultant schmucks from Office Space) whose only two goals in life are to accumulate 1 million frequent flyer miles and get hired by an inscrutable company called MythTech will be released as a Paramount film. IMDB has George Clooney attached, but no mention as to what his role.
The Lovely Bones: Surprisingly, after spending $65 million to acquire it, Dreamworks doesn’t want to release this Peter Jackson-directed film after all, and this one will go to Paramount, too. It’s based on a best-selling, Oprah Winfrey-approved novel about a girl who was raped and murdered and sees how it’s affected her family from the beyond—like the TV series “Dead Like Me,” but less funny?
Cowboys and Aliens: This is one of the 17 that Steven Spielberg is taking with him and Paramount has an option to co-finance. It’s based on a graphic novel from Platinum Studios which is about an alien spaceship that crash-lands in the 1800s and the cowboys and Native Americans who have to fight it off.
The Rivals: This one is in Paramount’s hands, with an option for Spielberg to co-finance. Nicole Kidman (as classic actress Sarah Bernhardt!) and Marion Cotillard have been attached, or so Variety says.
UPDATE: (10/15 12:08 AM) According to her Anne-ness below in the comments, “The Lovely Bones was always going to be distributed by Paramount; when DreamWorks went to Par, the studio distributed their movies…now Universal will do the honors. Eleven DreamWorks movies in various stages of post-production will be distributed by Paramount, and there will be more co-financed movies released by the studio going forward, not to mention ones that were developed and left behind by DreamWorks that Paramount could decide to make.”
Check out the rest of the Dreamworks/Universal details here.
Jeremy says:
…GOD DAMMIT. ;_;
Graehaus says:
That is rotten, I so want a Tintin movie.
DJ Tulleken says:
It’s been a long-term ambition of mine to direct the Tintin movie (as in, years before it was announced). Things are going my way again.
Hopefully this means not-right-for-the-role ‘Love, Actually’ kid is no longer the titular character?
Trisha Lynn says:
@DJ Tulleken: According to the Variety article, they indeed lost Thomas Sangster who would have been Tintin and yes, had been in Love, Actually.
anne thompson says:
The Lovely Bones was always going to be distributed by Paramount; when DreamWorks went to Par, the studio distributed their movies…now Universal will do the honors. Eleven DreamWorks movies in various stages of post-production will be distributed by Paramount, and there will be more co-financed movies released by the studio going forward, not to mention ones that were developed and left behind by DreamWorks that Paramount could decide to make.