Earlier this week, Village Roadshow filed a lawsuit against Warner Bros. over The Matrix Resurrections‘ streaming release on HBO Max, but there are more claims against the studio than the dispute about the Matrix film’s release. According to The Playlist, production studio Village Roadshow also alleges that Warner Bros. is attempting to make an Edge of Tomorrow television series without the involvement of the original studio.
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The claim is one of two in the lawsuit that alleges that Warner Bros. is trying to “deprive Village Roadshow of its continuing rights” regarding derivative. The lawsuit specifically notes the film Wonka as well as an Edge of Tomorrow television series as examples.
“WB has also been devising various schemes to deprive Village Roadshow of its continuing rights to co-own and co-invest in the Derivative Works from the films it co-owns,” the lawsuit states. “Recently, after acknowledging—in writing—that its tellingly named upcoming film, Wonka, was a prequel to Village Roadshow’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, WB did an about-face, claiming the prequel was not a prequel and the original picture, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, was not one in which Village Roadshow had unqualified Derivative Rights. WB’s tortured excuses do not hold up to even the lightest scrutiny.”
The lawsuit also gets into the claim about Edge of Tomorrow.
“More recently, WB made the decision to go forward with a television series based on Edge of Tomorrow, another Village Roadshow film,” the lawsuit states. “But it insisted that Village Roadshow relinquish its co-finance and co-ownership rights voluntarily. When Village Roadshow refused, WB said the quiet part out loud: it will not allow Village Roadshow to benefit from any of its Derivative Rights going forward despite the over $4.5 billion it has paid WB to make and distribute 91 films. In other words, if Village Roadshow won’t give up its rights, WB will make sure they are worth nothing.”
Edge of Tomorrow is a film that fans have been hoping for follow-up to since it opened in theaters in 2014 and film’s director, Doug Liman, and stars, Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt, have all expressed interest in returning as well. However, last year, Blunt expressed some concern that the cost of a movie would be too high. Now, with the property being brought into a lawsuit, it is possible that the likelihood of a follow-up is even less.
What do you think about Village Roadshow’s claims? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section.
