Latest news with #VillageRoadshow
Yahoo
21-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
What Could Happen to ‘The Matrix,' ‘Wonka,' and ‘Mad Max' Franchises Now That They Have New Owners?
On Wednesday, Alcon Media Group won a bid for $417.5 million to acquire the Village Roadshow film library, which includes 108 titles and the rights to some major franchise films, including 'The Matrix,' 'Wonka,' 'Mad Max: Fury Road,' the 'Ocean's' films, the 'Sherlock Holmes' series, 'Joker,' 'Ready Player One,' and more. All those films and others were the product of a reliable and lucrative co-production and co-financing deal Village Roadshow had with Warner Bros. Pictures dating back to 1997, all before Village Roadshow's bankruptcy and an ugly legal fight that continues over the decision to put 'The Matrix Resurrections' onto HBO Max day-and-date with theaters back in 2021. More from IndieWire All 29 Pixar Movies Ranked, from 'Toy Story' to 'Elio' 'Bride Hard' Review: Rebel Wilson and Anna Camp Endure a Shamefully Bad Marriage with Simon West Perhaps inexplicably, Warner Bros. didn't win the rights to that library themselves, putting the studio in the unfortunate position to need to partner with a new company moving forward. So what happens to those franchises now? Alcon is behind several Denis Villeneuve films like 'Blade Runner 2049,' 'Prisoners,' and 'Arrival,' films like 'Insomnia' and 'The Blind Side,' and it also most recently made the 'Garfield' movie for Sony and is working on the 'Blade Runner 2099' series for Amazon. With the addition of the Village Roadshow library, it gives Alcon one of the largest film libraries for an independent film company (Lionsgate excluded), roughly 150 titles. While Alcon isn't today a partner with Warner Bros., it's possible they soon will be. Alcon acquired the Village Roadshow library, derivative rights, and cash flow with their bid. It's still just a 50 percent stake, but a press release announcing the news says the library generates roughly $50 million annually. Not too shabby. So to make any other follow-up or sequel based on one of these films in the library, both Warner Bros. and Alcon now have to agree upon it. Why then did Warner Bros. not pick up the Village Roadshow library itself? A source told IndieWire Alcon is really just getting the participations and the naked copyrights to those Village Roadshow films, and WB still owns the distribution rights to those franchises, so it decided not to pursue acquiring the library. Another source though says WB did make a bid — and was outbid — by Alcon. It stands to reason that WBD, with $37 billion still in debt, can't afford to throw around so much cash, even if it would pay off in the long term. Alcon once upon a time had a rare put deal with Warner Bros., one that produced as many as three films a year for smaller movies like 'Dolphin Tale,' but that was the old Warner Bros., and this is the David Zaslav-run Warner Bros. Discovery. Times have changed, and WBD may still have a say in the matter. Puck noted Thursday that Warner Bros. could contest the derivative rights to the Village Roadshow library, and that a hearing could take place this summer (Warner Bros. had no comment on rumors of a hearing). But if Warner Bros. can't win back the derivative rights in court, you'd imagine it and Alcon would have to come to some sort of deal if they ever wanted to make yet another 'Matrix' or 'Ocean's' film, both of which WB already has projects in the works. Would Warner Bros. ever turn the distribution rights to one of these big franchises over to another studio if the right offer came along and Alcon wanted to force its hand? Who knows. But we'll be surprised if this marriage lasts as long as the Village Roadshow one did. Best of IndieWire Guillermo del Toro's Favorite Movies: 56 Films the Director Wants You to See 'Song of the South': 14 Things to Know About Disney's Most Controversial Movie Nicolas Winding Refn's Favorite Films: 37 Movies the Director Wants You to See
NZ Herald
25-05-2025
- Entertainment
- NZ Herald
Beach dig sends Dunedin families on Gold Coast getaway
The campaign was a collaboration between Dunedin Airport, The Hits Dunedin, and Australia's Village Roadshow Theme Parks. Cheered on by family and friends, contestants grabbed golden spades – awarded to listeners over the past three weeks – and dug into the sand in search of the coveted golden tokens. Two of those tokens secured their finders a family trip to the Gold Coast, which will soon be just a 3.5-hour direct flight from Dunedin. Alongside the two grand-prize family trips, other participants received annual passes to theme parks across the Tasman. The Wharerimu family – Reon, Jody, and their sons Roman, Grayson, and Foxton – were among the first to unearth the top prize. Reon said winning the trip was 'awesome' and especially meaningful after their previous attempt at a family holiday overseas was abandoned due to Covid. 'We had a trip booked and then obviously it got cancelled, so it'll be good to get over there,' he said. The prize marks the family's first overseas holiday together. Winning one of the top prizes 'felt amazing', Reon said. 'We even jumped in and helped a few other families at the end there just to try and help them win a box. So yeah, stoked.' The King family won the other top prize. Nikita King said she was thrilled to be heading back to the Gold Coast with her daughters Dakota and Roxanna, aged 13 and 2, and son Haley, 18, for their first holiday in eight years. 'We'd go back all the time if we could afford it,' she said. The family were looking forward to the warm weather and spending time at the theme parks. 'Just getting away for a bit.' Megan Crawford, general manager of business development at Dunedin Airport, said the airport was thrilled to welcome back direct international flights. 'We are absolutely stoked to have Jetstar flying direct from Dunedin to the Gold Coast starting on June 24,' she said. 'We're really pleased to be working with The Hits on this wonderful campaign that's getting families out digging for the opportunity to fly direct to the Gold Coast and experience all the amazing things Village Roadshow has to offer.'
Daily Mail
22-05-2025
- Daily Mail
Movie World cleared of wrongdoing after child severely injured on ride
Movie World has been cleared of any wrongdoing after a 12-year-old boy suffered severe head injuries while riding the carousel. Work Health Safety Queensland (WHSQ) accused Movie World's operator, Village Roadshow Theme Parks, of failing in its duty of care after the April 2022 incident. Southport Magistrates Court heard the boy was on the Looney Tunes Carousel ride and was standing on the back of the Wile E. Coyote character, instead of sitting on it. The boy's head then went into an open hole in the ride's ceiling - where the poles move up and down as the carousel turns. His head was then pinned between the edge of the opening and the machinery which operates the movement of the poles. WHSQ told the court the boy suffered an 'ear-to-ear de-scalping injury' and several fractures. Witnesses told Daily Mail Australia at the time that they heard a loud bang before the boy fell off the ride with his hair pulled to one side, his scalp showing and blood pouring down his face. However, WHSQ has withdrawn its prosecution of Village Roadshow Theme Parks after just three days of evidence at the judge-only trial. WHSQ Barrister Clare O'Connor told the court an independent safety report given to the theme park eight months prior to the incident identified risks in the carousel ride. The report explained there was a risk of crush injury due to the ceiling openings and recommended the theme park install rigid plastic brushes on the apertures. 'Such brushes are considered best practice and are in use at carousels at Sea World and Dream World,' Ms O'Connor said. The report also found the ride complied with safety requirements and was in 'excellent operational condition'. Ms O'Connor told the court the theme park was considering installing the plastic brushes but the failure to do so had exposed riders to risk of injury and death. However, Village Roadshow Barrister Saul Holt argued the boy's behaviour and subsequent injuries were 'not reasonably foreseeable'. 'This 12-year-old boy was described by one witness as surfing the character when his head, either deliberately or inadvertently, entered the hole in the ceiling of the ride,' Mr Holt said. 'The steps the prosecution say were absent … would not have prevented this from happening.' Mr Holt said the ride was immediately shut down and was examined by engineers before it re-opened several months later. The court also heard from theme park ride safety consultant David Randall, the author of the independent review. Mr Randall explained the recommendation for plastic brushes was not a requirement for the carousel to operate. Rather, the brushes, if installed, were meant to serve as a tactile deterrent rather than using a physical barrier. He added the boy's head could still have gone through the plastic bushes and into the machinery. Even with his decades of experience, Mr Randall told the court he did not identify a person standing on a carousel character as a foreseeable risk. Movie World attraction attendant Ruby Piakura, who had operated the carousel for six months, also told the court she had never seen a rider stand on a character before the incident. On the third day of trial, Ms O'Connor asked to withdraw the case, explaining the prosecution did not have further evidence to offer the court. An application will now be made for WHSQ to pay Village Roadshow Theme Park's legal fees.
ABC News
21-05-2025
- ABC News
Movie World cleared of wrongdoing after de-scalping injury on carousel
Movie World has been cleared of any wrongdoing in a carousel accident that left a 12-year-old boy with severe head injuries. After two days of evidence at a judge-only trial in the Southport Magistrates Court, Work Health Safety Queensland (WHSQ) withdrew its prosecution of Movie World's operator, Village Roadshow Theme Parks. WHSQ had accused Village Roadshow of failing in its duty of care after the 12-year-old suffered an "ear-to-ear de-scalping injury" and several fractures on the Movie World's Looney Tunes carousel in April 2022. Magistrate Lisa O'Neil was told the boy was standing on the back of the carousel's Wile E. Coyote character, instead of sitting on it, when his head went through an open aperture in the ceiling. The court heard the boy's injuries were caused when his head was pinned between the edge of the aperture and machinery that drives the character up and down on a pole as the carousel turns. Barrister for WHSQ, Clare O'Connor, told the court an independent safety report, provided to the theme park eight months before the accident, had identified the ceiling aperture as presenting a risk of crush injury and recommended rigid plastic brushes be installed on the opening. "Such brushes are considered best practice and are in use at carousels at Sea World and Dream World," Ms O'Connor said. She said the report found the ride was compliant with safety requirements, in "excellent operational condition", and its recommendation to install plastic brushes was being considered by the theme park prior to the incident. By not installing the brushes, Village Roadshow had exposed carousel riders to a risk of injury or death, Ms O'Connor told the court. Village Roadshow's barrister, Saul Holt, told the court the boy's actions on the carousel and his resulting injuries were "not reasonably foreseeable". "This 12-year-old boy was described by one witness as surfing the character when his head, either deliberately or inadvertently, entered the hole in the ceiling of the ride," Mr Holt said. Mr Holt said the carousel was immediately shut down after the incident and underwent a "hardcore engineering solution" before it was re-opened several months later. "Once the risk was reasonably foreseeable, Village Roadshow Theme Parks made it impossible for it to occur," he said. Movie World attraction attendant Ruby Piakura, who was operating the carousel on the day of the incident, told the court she had worked on the ride for more than six months at the time. Ms Piakura said she had never seen a rider stand on a character before that day and had hit the emergency stop as soon as she realised something was wrong. When asked if she had seen a rider stand on a character since, she told the court that while she continued to work at Movie World she had never returned to operate the carousel. "I haven't wanted to go back to working on that ride," she said. Theme park ride safety consultant David Randall wrote the report that recommended plastic brushes be installed on the carousel. He told the court he had made the recommendation as an opportunity for improvement on the ride, not as a requirement for it to operate. He said plastic brushes were a tactile deterrent rather than a physical barrier, meaning even if they were installed on the ride, the boy's head could still have gone through them and into the machinery above. "I recommended the plastic brush be installed so that if a child reaches up into that area, they touch the brushes and pull their hand away," he said. Mr Randall said even with decades of experience in safety management, he did not identify a person standing on a carousel character as a foreseeable risk. "I was extremely surprised after the event, which is unusual for me, as I'd never considered that as an issue," he told the court. On the third day of the trial, Ms O'Connor told Ms O'Neill the prosecution had no further evidence to offer, and asked to withdraw from the case. "I think that is a responsible decision, given the evidence we have heard," Ms O'Neill said before she dismissed the charge against Village Roadshow Theme Parks. The theme park operator will now make an application for WHSQ to pay its legal costs in the case.
Bloomberg
14-05-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Village Roadshow, Warner Bros. to Delay Fight Over ‘Matrix' Debt
The two movie studios behind The Matrix films are putting off fighting over as much as $100 million in unpaid debt related to the movies until after an auction for the film library of bankrupt filmmaker Village Roadshow Entertainment Group. Lawyers for Village Roadshow and its former movie-making partner, Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc., agreed that the auction can move forward before the two sides further dispute debt leftover from the last Matrix film.
