The surprise success of shark movie “47 Meters Down” may be the best thing that ever happened to Byron Allen — or, the worst. His Entertainment Studios bought the title moments before Dimension Films shipped the inventory for its DVD premiere, and — with the help of some $30 million in P&A — it made $43 million at the box office this summer.
Now, Allen has spent the last month on a spending spree. Most recently, it’s “Hostiles,” Scott Cooper’s $50 million-budgeted Western starring Christian Bale that premiered at Toronto. The purchase price is unknown, but he’s reportedly committed to an Oscar-qualifying December release and about $15 million in P&A. That’s in addition to “Chappaquiddick,” another Toronto-Oscar title ($4 million acquisition, $16 million P&A) and Keanu Reeves’ sci-fi thriller “Replicas,” which cost $4 million for North America and is not an Oscar title, but comes with the promise of a wide release.
For the struggling indie film market,...
Now, Allen has spent the last month on a spending spree. Most recently, it’s “Hostiles,” Scott Cooper’s $50 million-budgeted Western starring Christian Bale that premiered at Toronto. The purchase price is unknown, but he’s reportedly committed to an Oscar-qualifying December release and about $15 million in P&A. That’s in addition to “Chappaquiddick,” another Toronto-Oscar title ($4 million acquisition, $16 million P&A) and Keanu Reeves’ sci-fi thriller “Replicas,” which cost $4 million for North America and is not an Oscar title, but comes with the promise of a wide release.
For the struggling indie film market,...
- 10/3/2017
- by Dana Harris
- Indiewire
Summer is rarely the kindest season for indie film, but this year one title stood out: “47 Meters Down,” released by Byron Allen’s Entertainment Studios. The Mandy Moore shark movie, which the distributor rescued from Dimension Films moments before it went direct to DVD, has earned over $42 million in its domestic release. It’s impressive — but Allen scoffed at the idea of becoming the new king of independents.
“I’m not chasing independence, I’m chasing Walt Disney,” he said. “I’m looking for a large piece of that box-office pie, not a tiny piece of that box-office pie.”
Allen, who began as a stand-up comedian, has the ambition to be a modern-day Walt Disney — or, he could be a 21st-century Don Quixote. As founder, chairman, and CEO of Entertainment Studios, Allen makes over $100 million annually syndicating and selling ad time on low-budget shows like “Comics Unleashed” and “We the People With Gloria Allred,...
“I’m not chasing independence, I’m chasing Walt Disney,” he said. “I’m looking for a large piece of that box-office pie, not a tiny piece of that box-office pie.”
Allen, who began as a stand-up comedian, has the ambition to be a modern-day Walt Disney — or, he could be a 21st-century Don Quixote. As founder, chairman, and CEO of Entertainment Studios, Allen makes over $100 million annually syndicating and selling ad time on low-budget shows like “Comics Unleashed” and “We the People With Gloria Allred,...
- 7/27/2017
- by Michael Nordine and Dana Harris
- Indiewire
Byron Allen had some choice words for President Barack Obama. Allen, host of Comics Unleashed and Entertainers With Byron Allen, lashed out at the president to TMZ, saying Obama should be doing more to help black people. [readmore:797794] "Black people have fallen further behind under President Obama," said Allen, who also criticized Obama for having referred to the looters and arsonists in last month's Baltimore riots as "thugs." "President Obama is, at this point, a white president in blackface," Allen said. "Black America would have done much better with a white president." [readmore:753223] Allen, founder of
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- 5/24/2015
- by Ryan Gajewski
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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