Thompson on Hollywood

Area 51 Lands Stateside Distributor

A lot of Hollywood observers couldn't figure out why writer-director Oren Peli's Area 51 couldn't score a U.S. deal.

By Anne Thompson
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November 30, 2009 5:43 AM
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Epix Launches October 30

When I first heard that three studios--Lionsgate, MGM and Paramount--were bypassing pay-TV deals in favor of a new online streaming venture, I thought the new distribution order was at hand. While the other studios were still hung up on the old ancillary paradigm, this gang was skipping windows and jumping into the future.

By Anne Thompson
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October 30, 2009 12:45 PM
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Paranormal Activity is User Generated Content!

In this fourth installment from frequent guest blogger Chris Dorr, he tries to make sense of what Paramount's innovative viral campaign for Paranormal Activity really means going forward:

By Chris Dorr
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October 29, 2009 1:26 AM
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Paramount Wants Chris Pine for Jack Ryan

Last summer, as producer Lorenzo Di Bonaventura was waiting to read the new Untitled Tom Clancy Project from writer Hossein Amini, he told me that the Jack Ryan role could go older, or younger. Well, now that the studio is in deep negotiations with Star Trek star Chris Pine, they're obviously going younger. It makes sense. If the studio has an in-house star (lined up to do the Star Trek sequel), they might as well hang onto him by offering him another juicy franchise role. It amazes me that in the franchise era, it has taken the studio this long to ramp this one up.

By Anne Thompson
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October 19, 2009 11:18 AM
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With Paranormal Activity, Paramount Sets New Marketing Model

From the start, Paramount online marketing executive Amy Powell knew that she could sell micro-budget horror thriller Paranormal Activity on the Internet.

By Anne Thompson
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October 15, 2009 8:48 AM
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Toronto: Winners, Losers, Oscar Contenders

There was plenty to see in Toronto. Here's how the films shook out for me.

By Anne Thompson
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September 20, 2009 3:20 AM
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Toronto Wrap: Indie Bloodbath

If industry-watchers didn't see it coming, they figured it out at this year's Toronto Film Festival.

By Anne Thompson
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September 19, 2009 9:09 AM
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17 Comments

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Paranormal Activity Gets Release

Israeli emigre Oren Peli's microbudget haunted house film Paranormal Activity is one scary movie. Thanks to producer Jason Blum, Paramount picked up the $11,000 movie after some re-cutting and has set a September 25 release. Paranormal Activity scared the bejeezus out of the crowds at last weekend's Telluride Film Festival. (It's five-review ranking on Rotten Tomatoes is 100% fresh.)

By Anne Thompson
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September 8, 2009 12:08 PM
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Telluride Watch: Up in the Air Will Fly

Folks lined up for two hours on a rainy Telluride Saturday to get into Up in the Air. Hundreds were turned away. Writer-director Jason Reitman (and obsessive airline mile collector) played the crowd like a pro, hoping that the movie would live up to their expectations. He didn't need to worry. The director, who debuted Juno here two years ago at the same theater, delivers a winner. Loosely based on Walter Kirn's novel, Reitman's updated movie, which he started working on six years ago, has become, with the economic downturn, far more timely. It's a witty, charming and moving exploration of a world we all recognize.

By Anne Thompson
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September 6, 2009 4:25 AM
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Paramount Pushes Shutter Island to February

In a startling reveal of how dire studio financials have become in this recession, Paramount made a swift and surgical move to trim its year-end budget. Marketing meetings took place last week for Martin Scorsese's Shutter Island, based on the Dennis Lehane novel and starring Leonardo DiCaprio. Running a little over two hours, the period mystery looks thrilling and commercial as hell. But the studio looked at the cold hard millions the release would require --even in October, with a possible costly Academy campaign down the line--and pushed the picture back to February 19.