MRC Coins Next for District 9 Helmer
Media Rights Capital has committed to the next film by “District 9” writer/director Neill Blomkamp.
The untitled science fiction pic will begin production by mid-2010. Bill Block will produce.
Block, the CEO of QED, was first to commit funding to “District 9” before Sony’s Worldwide Acquisitions Group acquired the film based on a Blomkamp-created graphic novel. “District 9” became a breakout summer hit for Sony in the South African-born filmmaker's feature debut.
MRC’s CEO Modi Wiczyk and MRC Films president Tory Metzger committed to the new project on the basis of Blomkamp’s pitch.
MRC is giving Blomkamp creative freedom and a production commitment that isn’t contingent on domestic distribution. The director and Block will get an ownership stake in the finished product.
Blomkamp will immediately start writing and preparing the visual effects. The film will be modest by sci-fi standards, but it will certainly cost more than “District 9,” the under-$30 million budget film that grossed more than $184 million worldwide.
MRC will engage distributors around the time the picture goes into production.
Blomkamp made “District 9” under the guidance of Peter Jackson, who previously godfathered the director’s effort to make his feature debut on “Halo,” before the Microsoft vidgame adaptation was unplugged by Universal and Fox over budget concerns. Blomkamp said he harbors no bitterness over that slight, and sparked to an MRC scenario that guaranteed he’d be able to transfer his vision to the screen.
“MRC is letting me make the film I want to make and that is by far the most important thing here,” Blomkamp said. “The film will hopefully be commercial, but it is very much a singular film, that comes directly from me. `District 9’ was a bit different. I was learning the process then, under Peter Jackson’s wing. He had control, but was awesome enough to let me make the film I wanted to. Bill’s producing this with MRC, so the difference is Pete’s involvement.
“Pete was kind about pushing me for `Halo,’ which was a huge opportunity and huge risk. It was neither of our fault that the film collapsed. Creatively, I don’t operate from a place of revenge, so when I got into `District 9,’ `Halo’ was long gone from my mind. From Pete having such faith in me, to getting to know the people at Sony through the process of `District 9,’ I couldn’t be happier with the way things worked out.”
Blomkamp said he’s not intimidated, being given so much creative freedom in his sophomore outing—with no Jackson this time around.
“I’m not particularly interested in massive budget films, or creating huge spectacles that some young directors might be attracted to,” he said. “Hopefully, this will be a bit unique, very much a reflection of me. It is absolutely another science fiction film, quite different from `District 9,’ but some of the blending of genres and the tone might be within the same realm.”
Wiczyk said that MRC has been interested in Blomkamp since his calling card was his visually distinctive commercials.
“Neill is ferociously independent, an auteur, and a self-generator, all qualities that make him right for MRC,” Wiczyk said. “He set a high bar, with a film so fresh and original, with political, philosophical and allegorical themes that define the best of the science fiction genre. Some of the most brilliant filmmakers have worked in sci-fi, and Neill made his film with less money than most of them.”
Blomkamp will certainly make a “District 9” sequel with Sony—will the bureaucrat-turned-alien return to human form and reunite with his pretty wife?--but the MRC project will be Blomkamp’s next directing assignment.
For MRC, the deal helps build the next slate already underway with the Matt Damon-starrer "The Adjustment Bureau" and the M. Night Shyamalan-produced "Devil." Since the summer, MRC has seen the release of most of its first slate, with Sacha Baron Cohen’s “Bruno,” Ricky Gervais’s “The Invention of Lying,” Robert Rodriguez’s “Shorts” and the about to open Richard Kelly-directed “The Box.” Wiczyk said he’s on track to meet the goal of four to seven films per year.
None of those early films was a blockbuster—the much-hyped “Bruno” did not have the legs of Baron Cohen’s “Borat”—and that has some questioning how the MRC formula is working in a climate where studios are severely tightening purse strings. Wiczyk predicts MRC will flourish in hard times.
“When you buy an MRC movie, the price is the price,” he said. “You won’t get rolled for an over-budget film; that is our problem. In this climate, certainty is at a premium. And go find me a Matt Damon film with action and suspense that is cheaper than `The Adjustment Bureau,’ or a genre thriller from M. Night Shyamalan at the price we will deliver. We feel great about the way things are going. One of the things we look for is repeat business both with talent and distributors. We’ve got two more films at Universal with `The Adjustment Bureau’ and `Devil,’ and Ricky Gervais and Robert Rodriguez are now involved in TV projects with us.”
And the verdict on “Bruno?”
“It was profitable,” Wiczyk said. “It grossed $155 million worldwide. That is another measurement. Either a film is profitable or it isn’t, and this was.”
Blomkamp is repped by WME.
The untitled science fiction pic will begin production by mid-2010. Bill Block will produce.
Block, the CEO of QED, was first to commit funding to “District 9” before Sony’s Worldwide Acquisitions Group acquired the film based on a Blomkamp-created graphic novel. “District 9” became a breakout summer hit for Sony in the South African-born filmmaker's feature debut.
MRC’s CEO Modi Wiczyk and MRC Films president Tory Metzger committed to the new project on the basis of Blomkamp’s pitch.
MRC is giving Blomkamp creative freedom and a production commitment that isn’t contingent on domestic distribution. The director and Block will get an ownership stake in the finished product.
Blomkamp will immediately start writing and preparing the visual effects. The film will be modest by sci-fi standards, but it will certainly cost more than “District 9,” the under-$30 million budget film that grossed more than $184 million worldwide.
MRC will engage distributors around the time the picture goes into production.
Blomkamp made “District 9” under the guidance of Peter Jackson, who previously godfathered the director’s effort to make his feature debut on “Halo,” before the Microsoft vidgame adaptation was unplugged by Universal and Fox over budget concerns. Blomkamp said he harbors no bitterness over that slight, and sparked to an MRC scenario that guaranteed he’d be able to transfer his vision to the screen.
“MRC is letting me make the film I want to make and that is by far the most important thing here,” Blomkamp said. “The film will hopefully be commercial, but it is very much a singular film, that comes directly from me. `District 9’ was a bit different. I was learning the process then, under Peter Jackson’s wing. He had control, but was awesome enough to let me make the film I wanted to. Bill’s producing this with MRC, so the difference is Pete’s involvement.
“Pete was kind about pushing me for `Halo,’ which was a huge opportunity and huge risk. It was neither of our fault that the film collapsed. Creatively, I don’t operate from a place of revenge, so when I got into `District 9,’ `Halo’ was long gone from my mind. From Pete having such faith in me, to getting to know the people at Sony through the process of `District 9,’ I couldn’t be happier with the way things worked out.”
Blomkamp said he’s not intimidated, being given so much creative freedom in his sophomore outing—with no Jackson this time around.
“I’m not particularly interested in massive budget films, or creating huge spectacles that some young directors might be attracted to,” he said. “Hopefully, this will be a bit unique, very much a reflection of me. It is absolutely another science fiction film, quite different from `District 9,’ but some of the blending of genres and the tone might be within the same realm.”
Wiczyk said that MRC has been interested in Blomkamp since his calling card was his visually distinctive commercials.
“Neill is ferociously independent, an auteur, and a self-generator, all qualities that make him right for MRC,” Wiczyk said. “He set a high bar, with a film so fresh and original, with political, philosophical and allegorical themes that define the best of the science fiction genre. Some of the most brilliant filmmakers have worked in sci-fi, and Neill made his film with less money than most of them.”
Blomkamp will certainly make a “District 9” sequel with Sony—will the bureaucrat-turned-alien return to human form and reunite with his pretty wife?--but the MRC project will be Blomkamp’s next directing assignment.
For MRC, the deal helps build the next slate already underway with the Matt Damon-starrer "The Adjustment Bureau" and the M. Night Shyamalan-produced "Devil." Since the summer, MRC has seen the release of most of its first slate, with Sacha Baron Cohen’s “Bruno,” Ricky Gervais’s “The Invention of Lying,” Robert Rodriguez’s “Shorts” and the about to open Richard Kelly-directed “The Box.” Wiczyk said he’s on track to meet the goal of four to seven films per year.
None of those early films was a blockbuster—the much-hyped “Bruno” did not have the legs of Baron Cohen’s “Borat”—and that has some questioning how the MRC formula is working in a climate where studios are severely tightening purse strings. Wiczyk predicts MRC will flourish in hard times.
“When you buy an MRC movie, the price is the price,” he said. “You won’t get rolled for an over-budget film; that is our problem. In this climate, certainty is at a premium. And go find me a Matt Damon film with action and suspense that is cheaper than `The Adjustment Bureau,’ or a genre thriller from M. Night Shyamalan at the price we will deliver. We feel great about the way things are going. One of the things we look for is repeat business both with talent and distributors. We’ve got two more films at Universal with `The Adjustment Bureau’ and `Devil,’ and Ricky Gervais and Robert Rodriguez are now involved in TV projects with us.”
And the verdict on “Bruno?”
“It was profitable,” Wiczyk said. “It grossed $155 million worldwide. That is another measurement. Either a film is profitable or it isn’t, and this was.”
Blomkamp is repped by WME.
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thanks for the spoiler asshole
Posted by: nik | 10/23/2009 at 09:54 AM
yes, i agree with the commenter above ^^^
who had the bright idea to put the ending in this report? there are some people who haven't seen the movie yet, wow.
Posted by: cheriaxe | 10/23/2009 at 11:55 AM
How can you bitch about the spoiler? You already knew this was an article about the sequel. Of course it was going to reference the first movie. Go watch the first one before you become all interested in the sequel.
Posted by: JoshuaThomas | 10/24/2009 at 09:54 AM