PolyGram Filmed Entertainment
British-American film studio and film production company From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
PolyGram Filmed Entertainment (formerly known as Filmworks, Casablanca Record & Filmworks, PolyGram Films and PolyGram Pictures or simply PFE) was a film production company founded in 1975 as an American film studio, which became a European competitor to Hollywood within two decades, but was eventually sold to Seagram in 1998 and was folded into Universal Pictures a year later. Among its most successful and well known films were The Deep (1977), Midnight Express (1978), An American Werewolf in London (1981), Flashdance (1983), Batman (1989), Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994), Trainspotting (1996), Dead Man Walking (1995), The Big Lebowski (1998), Fargo (1996), The Usual Suspects (1995), The Game (1997), Candyman (1992) and Notting Hill (1999).
PolyGram Filmed Entertainment logo, used from 1997 until 1999 | |
| Formerly |
|
|---|---|
| Company type | Subsidiary |
| Predecessor | Casablanca Filmworks |
| Founded | 1975 |
| Founder | Peter Guber |
| Defunct | 1999 |
| Fate | Acquired by Seagram and folded into Universal Pictures; most of the pre-April 1996 library sold to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Some of its North American distribution assets sold to USA Networks ITC library sold to Carlton Communications |
| Successors | Studio: Universal Pictures USA Films Focus Features PolyGram Entertainment Library: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer[a] (pre-April 1996 films with exceptions) Universal Pictures (post-March 1996 films with exceptions and some pre-April 1996 films) ITV Studios (ITC Entertainment library with exceptions) |
| Parent |
|
| Divisions | PolyGram Films PolyGram Film Distribution PolyGram Television PolyGram Video PolyGram Visual Programming |
| Subsidiaries | Gramercy Pictures Working Title Films Propaganda Films Interscope Communications ITC Entertainment |
Overview
Summarize
Perspective
| 1912 | Universal Pictures is founded |
|---|---|
| 1926 | NBC is founded |
| 1928 | Walter Lantz Productions is established |
| 1943 | MCA Inc. establishes Revue Studios (later Universal Television) |
| 1953 | NBC begins first compatible color broadcasts, preceding other networks by nine years |
| 1963 | American Cable Systems is founded |
| 1964 | Universal Studios Hollywood opens |
| 1967 | NBC broadcasts the first Super Bowl |
| 1968 | American Cable Systems rebrands to Comcast |
| 1972 | Comcast began trading on the National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations (NASDAQ) |
| 1975 | Filmworks is founded |
| 1976 | Filmworks becomes Casablanca Record & Filmworks |
| 1980 | PolyGram renames Casablanca Record & Filmworks to PolyGram Pictures MCA Videocassette‚ Inc. (later Universal Pictures Home Entertainment) is established |
| 1983 | PolyGram Pictures closes |
| 1984 | Walter Lantz Productions' assets are sold to Universal Telemundo is founded |
| 1986 | General Electric re-purchases its former subsidiary RCA for $6.4 billion, including NBC and a stake in A&E |
| 1987 | PolyGram Movies is founded |
| 1989 | NBC relaunches Tempo Television as CNBC |
| 1990 | Universal Studios Florida opens Law & Order premieres on NBC PolyGram Movies is renamed PolyGram Filmed Entertainment Sky Television and British Satellite Broadcasting merge to form British Sky Broadcasting Universal Cartoon Studios (later Universal Animation Studios) is established |
| 1993 | Homicide: Life on the Street premieres on NBC Universal releases Jurassic Park |
| 1994 | DreamWorks Animation is founded New York Undercover premieres on Fox |
| 1995 | Seagram acquires Universal through its acquisition of MCA NBC and Microsoft replace America's Talking with MSNBC |
| 1998 | Seagram acquires PolyGram Filmed Entertainment Barry Diller purchases Universal's domestic television assets Universal Television is renamed Studios USA Television |
| 1999 | PolyGram Filmed Entertainment is folded into Universal Pictures Universal Studios Florida expands to become Universal Orlando Resort Law & Order: Special Victims Unit premieres on NBC |
| 2000 | Seagram is sold to Vivendi and merged with StudioCanal to become Vivendi Universal Entertainment |
| 2001 | Grand opening of Universal Studios Japan Law & Order: Criminal Intent premieres on NBC Vivendi purchases Studios USA |
| 2002 | NBC acquires Telemundo and Bravo Studios USA assets are folded into Universal Focus Features is formed Comcast acquires AT&T Broadband for $44.5 billion |
| 2004 | GE and Vivendi merge NBC and Universal into NBCUniversal |
| 2005 | The Office premieres on NBC Comcast sets up a joint-venture with PBS, Sesame Workshop & HIT Entertainment to form PBS Kids Sprout Comcast & Time Warner Cable jointly acquire Adelphia Cable assets for $17.6 billion |
| 2007 | Illumination is founded |
| 2010 | Universal releases Illumination's first film Despicable Me |
| 2011 | Vivendi divested in NBCU; Comcast buys 51% of NBCU from GE, turning it into a limited liability company NBCUniversal Archives is founded |
| 2012 | Universal celebrates its 100th anniversary NBCUniversal divests its A&E Networks minority stake |
| 2013 | Comcast buys GE's remaining 49% of NBCU Comcast/NBCU assumes full ownership of Sprout |
| 2014 | Comcast attempts to acquire Time Warner Cable for $45.2 billion NBCUniversal reaches a new long-term deal with WWE |
| 2016 | NBCU acquires DreamWorks Animation |
| 2017 | Sprout relaunches as Universal Kids |
| 2018 | Comcast acquires Sky from 21st Century Fox |
| 2019 | NBCU acquires Cineo Lighting |
| 2020 | NBCU launches Peacock |
| 2025 | NBCUniversal annouces the closure of Universal Kids |
In 1975, Peter Guber formed its own production company FilmWorks, then in 1976, it became Casablanca Record & FilmWorks after a merger with Casablanca Records, which PolyGram got a 50% by 1977, and by 1980, PolyGram took the other 50% stake in the company and renamed the film unit as PolyGram Pictures.
During the late 1980s and early 1990s, PolyGram continued to invest in a diversified film unit with the purchases of individual production companies. In 1995, PolyGram purchased ITC Entertainment for $156 million.
In May 1998, PolyGram was sold to Seagram, which, at the time, owned both Universal Pictures and Universal Music Group (UMG), for $10 billion. Seagram however, was only interested in PolyGram's music division and immediately sold off some of PolyGram's Film/TV assets: The pre-March 1996 PFE library (including the Epic library) was sold to MGM for $250 million, the ITC Entertainment library was sold to Carlton Communications for £91 million, and PolyGram's US distribution operation was sold to USA Network.
After many of its assets were sold, the remains of PolyGram's film division were folded into Universal Pictures. When the newly formed entertainment division of Seagram faced financial difficulties, it was sold to Vivendi, and MCA became known as Universal Studios, as Seagram ceased to exist.
Vivendi remained the majority owner of the UMG until 2021, when it sold most of its stake. MGM owns the rights to most of the pre-April 1996 library, and the remaining post-March 1996 film and television library is owned by NBCUniversal.
On February 11, 2017, Universal Music Group established a film and television division and named it PolyGram Entertainment, thus fully resurrecting the "PolyGram" name in the process.[1]
History
Summarize
Perspective
FilmWorks, Casablanca Record & FilmWorks and PolyGram Pictures
In 1975, Peter Guber quit Columbia Pictures to start out FilmWorks with a producing deal. A year later, during the production of The Deep, it was merged with Casablanca Records to form Casablanca Record & FilmWorks.[2] The company would enjoy success with The Deep and Midnight Express. The music company PolyGram (owned by Dutch-based Philips and Germany's Siemens) bought out its share of Casablanca Record & FilmWorks in 1977. Two years later, in 1979, Casablanca Record & Filmworks left Columbia Pictures to join Universal Pictures, and gave Casablanca Record & Filmworks creative control over the pictures.[3] A year later, PolyGram took on its stake of the company and it was renamed to PolyGram Pictures in 1980.[4] PolyGram reserved the finances and Guber would run as CEO. Guber would form a partnership with Barbra Streisand's hairdresser Jon Peters, who co-produced his client's A Star Is Born remake. Peters would produce PolyGram's films, and eventually become a stockholder with Guber.[5] He had intended to work with Boardwalk Records, but he was forced to join PolyGram Pictures instead.[6][3]
The first film under the Universal/PolyGram alliance was King of the Mountain (1981), which was a box-office flop. More money-losers followed. Ancillary markets such as home video and pay television were not yet established, and broadcast television networks were paying less for licenses to films. PolyGram's European investors were not happy; they had lost about $80 million on its film division. Not long after, Siemens parted with Philips. Guber and Peters left PolyGram Pictures in 1982, taking their plans for a new Batman movie with them, along with a few other projects. The duo eventually found a home at Warner Bros. A part of their exit proceedings, PolyGram would still own 7.5% of profits from some of its projects, including the 1989 Batman film.[5] Also in 1980, PolyGram launched a syndicated television division, PolyGram Television, to be headed by former Columbia Pictures Television syndication executive Norman Horowitz,[7] both the film and TV units eventually closed down by 1983 after a string of first-run syndication strip flops.[8]
PolyGram Filmed Entertainment
In the early 1980s, PolyGram Video was launched. PolyGram Video, headed by Michael Kuhn and David Hockman, was created to distribute concert films and feature films acquired from third-parties, as well as long-form music videos and stand-up comedy videos from the likes of Roy Chubby Brown, Jethro and Bernard Manning; in 1986, a joint venture with Heron Communications, Channel 5 Video began operation.[9] Channel 5 Video later began to obtain the rights to titles from Heron's US children's arm, Hi-Tops Video.[10] Kuhn and Hockman were able to parlay PolyGram Video's success into financing feature films. The first film produced by PolyGram's new film division was P.I. Private Investigations in 1987.[11] During the late 1980s and early 1990s, PolyGram continued to invest in a diversified film unit with the purchases of individual production companies.[12] In 1989, PolyGram launched Manifesto Film Sales to handle the licensing of films outside North America.[13] In 1991, PolyGram's Michael Kuhn became the head of PolyGram Filmed Entertainment,[12] with US$200 million pumped in with the intention of developing a European film studio that could produce and distribute films internationally on a scale to match the major Hollywood studios.
Following the style of its music business, the company produced films through a number of creatively semi-autonomous 'labels', such as Working Title Films in the United Kingdom and Propaganda Films and Interscope Communications in the United States; it also built up its own network of distribution companies.[14][15]
Film production within PolyGram differed from traditional Hollywood studios, in that power to make ('green light') a film was not centralised in the hands of a small number of executives, but instead was decided by negotiations between producers, management and marketing. Kuhn claimed that "movies sort of green lit themselves."
In 1993, PolyGram purchased Vision Video Ltd (which was previously the video arm of Virgin Group) from General Electric Capital for $5.6 million.[16]
PolyGram also built up a sizable film and television library that could be profitable. In 1995, the company purchased ITC Entertainment for $156 million.[17] Through this purchase, PolyGram acquired 350 feature films, several thousand hours of television programming, and gained further access into the television market.[12] That same year, PolyGram Filmed Entertainment acquired a 75% majority stake in British home video distributor Abbey Home Entertainment. In 1997, PFE agreed to purchase the Epic film library, which included a thousand feature films from a variety of companies, from Crédit Lyonnais for $225 million.[18] PolyGram also attempted purchasing MGM[19] and The Samuel Goldwyn Company's library,[20] but to no avail. In July 1998, PolyGram was in talks to sell their stake in Abbey Home Entertainment back to Ian and Anne Miles, letting AHE trade independently again. On December 7, 1997, PolyGram and Warner Bros. reached a deal to co-finance films produced by Castle Rock Entertainment.[21]
PFE's film distribution arm was based in the United Kingdom, and invested heavily in British film making — some credit it with reviving the British film industry in the 1990s. Despite a successful production history, new Philips CEO Cor Boonstra began to draw back Philips' media operations, excepting their stake in PolyGram, in 1997.[22] At the time, Philips was seen as a bloated conglomerate riddled with problems; Boonstra initially denied that PolyGram would be sold.[23] However, by early 1998, Boonstra's attitude had shifted and various bidders began to make themselves known, as Philips began to pursue a manufacturing-only business model.[24] At the same time, PolyGram had been suffering from their own internal issues, chiefly a series of loss-making films and a lack of major pop music hits.[25] In hindsight, analysts have also pointed to another reason for Boonstra's sale of the assets, namely Philips manufacturing blank CDs, as music piracy subsequently impacted the music industry hugely in the years afterwards.[26]
Philips ultimately decided to sell PolyGram to the beverage conglomerate Seagram in 1998 (Seagram had chosen PolyGram over EMI because of PolyGram's better management);[27][28] only interested in PolyGram's music operations, Seagram, which at the time controlled Universal Pictures, looked forward to divesting in PFE. After being dissatisfied with offers to buy the studio (including a joint venture between Canal+ and Artisan Entertainment), Seagram opted to sell off individual assets and folded whatever remained into Universal.[29] In October 1998, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) paid $235–250 million to acquire 1,300 films released before March 31, 1996, from PolyGram, however, the deal did not include the ITC library, which in 1999, was sold to Carlton Communications (now known as ITV Studios) for $150 million.[30][31][32] Some of PFE's North American distribution assets, including PolyGram Video's US & Canada operations were sold to USA Networks.[33]
Universal would inherit the remaining titles, which included a third of the pre-April 1996 films, one-third of the post-April 1996 films, as well as PolyGram Television's library, and PolyGram Video's international operations.
Universal would then set up their own international arm from the ashes of PFE's international division on February 9, 1999 that included theatrical and video distribution; pulling out of CIC Video and nearly pulling out of United International Pictures.[34][35]
After the box office failure of Mickey Blue Eyes, a title inherited from PolyGram that ended up becoming one of the few titles that were self-distributed by Universal internationally until 2007, all the theatrical assets of Universal Pictures International were folded into United International Pictures, which continued to exist until 2007.[36]
PolyGram Video took over the distribution of Manga Entertainment's titles in Australia and New Zealand in late 1996 after Siren Entertainment's license to the Manga Video catalog expired, but PolyGram lost the license to the Manga Video catalog in 1998 after Madman Entertainment took over the licenses. This was due to Manga Entertainment being moved from Island Records to Palm Pictures.
Relaunch as PolyGram Entertainment
Production companies
- Working Title Films (UK), acquired by PFE in 1991.
- Propaganda Films (US), acquired by PFE in 1991.
- Interscope Communications (US), 51% acquired by PFE in 1992, remaining acquired in 1994.[15]
- Gramercy Pictures (US), launched by PFE and Universal in 1992.
- ITC Entertainment (UK), acquired by PFE in 1995.
- A&M Films (theatrical film division of A&M Records)
- Island Pictures (theatrical film division of Island Records), acquired December 1994, closed 1997.[37]
- Cinéa (France)
- Meteor Film Productions (Netherlands), acquired by PFE in 1994.[38]
- PolyGram Video
- 4 Front Video
- Spectrum Video
- Abbey Home Entertainment (UK), 75% majority stake acquired by PFE in 1995. Sold back to original owners in 1998.
- Channel 5 Video (initially a joint venture label with Heron Communications)[9]
- Vision Video Ltd
- Astrion Plc
- PolyGram Television
- PolyGram Visual Programming
US distribution
In 1992, PolyGram partnered with Universal Pictures to create a joint venture called Gramercy Pictures. Gramercy primarily distributed PolyGram films in the United States, and it doubled as a specialty label for Universal. In 1993, the company also had another distribution deal with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to fund and distribute its films.[39] In January 1996, PolyGram bought out Universal's 50% stake[40] and in 1997, PolyGram Films was founded to release PFE's mainstream titles in the United States, while Gramercy became a low-budget/art-house sublabel.[41][42] PolyGram Films' first release was The Game.[42][40] When PolyGram was acquired by Universal in 1999, the company merged Gramercy with October Films, which included its subsidiary Rogue Pictures[43] to create USA Films, which eventually became Focus Features. Gramercy was revived in 2015 as a label of Focus Features,[44] but shut down and went dormant the next year.
Selected films
Summarize
Perspective
Among the films directly produced by PFE were:
1970s
| Release Date | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 17 June 1977 | The Deep | co-production with Columbia Pictures and EMI Films |
| 19 May 1978 | Thank God It's Friday | co-production with Columbia Pictures and Motown Productions |
| 6 October 1978 | Midnight Express | co-production with Columbia Pictures |
| 9 February 1979 | Agatha | co-production with First Artists and Warner Bros. |
1980s
| Release Date | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 29 February 1980 | Foxes | co-production with United Artists |
| 30 May 1980 | The Hollywood Knights | co-production with Columbia Pictures |
| 1 May 1981 | King of the Mountain | co-production with Universal Pictures |
| 17 July 1981 | Endless Love | co-production with Universal Pictures |
| 14 August 1981 | Deadly Blessing | distributed by United Artists |
| 21 August 1981 | An American Werewolf in London | co-production with Universal Pictures |
| 13 November 1981 | The Pursuit of D. B. Cooper | co-production with Universal Pictures |
| 12 March 1982 | Missing | co-production with Universal Pictures |
| 3 October 1982 | Split Image | distributed by Orion Pictures |
| 24 December 1982 | Six Weeks | co-production with Universal Pictures |
| 15 April 1983 | Flashdance | co-production with Paramount Pictures |
| 13 December 1985 | A Chorus Line | co-production with Columbia Pictures and Embassy Pictures |
| Clue | co-production with Paramount Pictures | |
| 5 June 1987 | P.I. Private Investigations | co-production with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer |
| 22 April 1988 | The Blue Iguana | co-production with Paramount Pictures |
| 24 March 1989 | Troop Beverly Hills | co-production with Weintraub Entertainment Group |
| 23 June 1989 | Batman | co-production with Warner Bros. and The Guber-Peters Company |
| 27 October 1989 | Kill Me Again | co-production with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer |
| 8 December 1989 | Fear, Anxiety & Depression | co-production with The Samuel Goldwyn Company |
1990s
| Release Date | Title | Notes | Distributor |
|---|---|---|---|
| 27 July 1990 | Chicago Joe and the Showgirl | co-production with Working Title Films | New Line Cinema |
| 17 August 1990 | Wild at Heart | The Samuel Goldwyn Company | |
| 14 September 1990 | Fools of Fortune | New Line Cinema | |
| 24 May 1991 | Drop Dead Fred | ||
| 21 August 1991 | Barton Fink | international distribution only; produced by Circle Films | 20th Century Fox |
| 15 November 1991 | Driving Me Crazy | Motion Picture Corporation of America | |
| 17 January 1992 | A Gnome Named Gnorm | co-production with Trilogy Entertainment Group and Interscope Communications | Vestron Pictures |
| 27 March 1992 | Ruby | co-production with Propaganda Films | Triumph Films |
| 15 May 1992 | Rubin & Ed[b] | co-production with Working Title Films | IRS Media |
| 19 June 1992 | Batman Returns | studio credit only; produced by Warner Bros. Pictures, DC Comics, Tim Burton Productions and De Novi Pictures | Warner Bros. Pictures |
| 7 August 1992 | London Kills Me | co-production with Working Title Films | Fine Line Features (through New Line Cinema) |
| 4 September 1992 | Bob Roberts | international distribution only; co-production with Working Title Films | Paramount Pictures Miramax Films (theatrical) LIVE Entertainment (home video) |
| 16 October 1992 | Candyman[c] | co-production with Propaganda Films | TriStar Pictures |
| 23 April 1993 | Map of the Human Heart | international distribution only; co-production with Working Title Films | Miramax Films |
| 14 May 1993 | Posse[d] | co-production with Working Title Films | Gramercy Pictures |
| 20 August 1993 | The Ballad of Little Jo | Fine Line Features (through New Line Cinema) | |
| 3 September 1993 | Kalifornia[d] | co-production with Propaganda Films | Gramercy Pictures |
| 1 October 1993 | Malice[d] | U.K. and Irish distribution only; produced by Castle Rock Entertainment, New Line Cinema and Nelvana | Columbia Pictures |
| 8 October 1993 | The Young Americans | co-production with Working Title Films | LIVE Entertainment |
| 5 November 1993 | A Home of Our Own[d] | Gramercy Pictures | |
| 7 January 1994 | The Air Up There | co-production with Hollywood Pictures and Interscope Communications | Buena Vista Pictures Distribution |
| 4 February 1994 | Romeo Is Bleeding[d] | co-production with Working Title Films Most 1994–95 PolyGram films currently owned by MGM unless mentioned otherwise |
Gramercy Pictures |
| 9 March 1994 | Four Weddings and a Funeral[d] | co-production with Working Title Films and Channel Four Films | |
| 11 March 1994 | The Hudsucker Proxy | international distribution only; co-production with Warner Bros. Pictures, Working Title Films and Silver Pictures | Warner Bros. Pictures |
| 8 April 1994 | Holy Matrimony | international distribution only; co-production with Hollywood Pictures and Interscope Communications | Buena Vista Pictures Distribution |
| Red Rock West[c] | co-production with Propaganda Films | Roxie Releasing (theatrical) Columbia TriStar Home Video (home video) | |
| 15 April 1994 | Backbeat[c] | Gramercy Pictures | |
| 6 May 1994 | Dream Lover[d] | co-production with Propaganda Films | |
| 18 May 1994 | Final Combination[d] | co-production with Propaganda Films | Rank Film Distributors |
| 15 July 1994 | A Pig's Tale[c] | co-production with Propaganda Films | PolyGram Filmed Entertainment |
| 10 August 1994 | The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert[d] | Gramercy Pictures | |
| 23 September 1994 | Terminal Velocity | co-production with Hollywood Pictures and Interscope Communications | Buena Vista Pictures Distribution |
| 28 September 1994 | Jason's Lyric[d] | co-production with Propaganda Films | Gramercy Pictures |
| 16 December 1994 | Nell[e] | international distribution outside Latin America only | 20th Century Fox |
| 20 January 1995 | S.F.W.[d] | co-production with Propaganda Films | Gramercy Pictures |
| 10 February 1995 | Shallow Grave[f] | North America and select international distribution only; produced by Channel Four Films | |
| 24 February 1995 | Before the Rain[c] | ||
| 3 March 1995 | Roommates | co-production with Hollywood Pictures and Interscope Communications | Buena Vista Pictures Distribution |
| 17 March 1995 | Candyman: Farewell to the Flesh[d] | co-production with Propaganda Films | Gramercy Pictures |
| 21 April 1995 | The Basketball Diaries[g] | co-production with Island Pictures | New Line Cinema |
| 3 May 1995 | Panther[d] | co-production with Working Title Films | Gramercy Pictures |
| 5 May 1995 | French Kiss[e] | international distribution only; co-production with Working Title Films | 20th Century Fox |
| 16 June 1995 | Batman Forever | studio credit only; produced by Warner Bros. Pictures, DC Comics and Tim Burton Productions | Warner Bros. Pictures |
| 30 June 1995 | Innocent Lies[d] | Gramercy Pictures | |
| 28 July 1995 | Operation Dumbo Drop | co-production with Walt Disney Pictures and Interscope Communications | Buena Vista Pictures Distribution |
| 16 August 1995 | The Usual Suspects[d] | North American, U.K., Irish, French and Benelux distribution only; co-production with Spelling Films International, Blue Parrot Productions and Bad Hat Harry Films | Gramercy Pictures (North America) Columbia TriStar Film Distributors International (Germany) |
| 8 September 1995 | The Tie That Binds[e] | international distribution only; co-production with Hollywood Pictures and Interscope Communications | Buena Vista Pictures Distribution |
| 15 September 1995 | Coldblooded[c] | co-production with Motion Picture Corporation of America and Propaganda Films | IRS Media |
| 22 September 1995 | Canadian Bacon[d] | co-production with Propaganda Films | Gramercy Pictures |
| 29 September 1995 | Moonlight and Valentino[d] | co-production with Working Title Films | |
| 3 November 1995 | Home for the Holidays | international theatrical and worldwide home media distribution only; co-production with Egg Pictures | Paramount Pictures |
| 10 November 1995 | Carrington[d] | Gramercy Pictures | |
| 1 December 1995 | Two Much[e] | international distribution only; co-production with Touchstone Pictures and Interscope Communications | Buena Vista Pictures Distribution |
| 28 December 1995 | 12 Monkeys | U.K. and Irish distribution only; produced by Atlas Entertainment and Classico | Universal Pictures |
| 29 December 1995 | Dead Man Walking[d] | co-production with Working Title Films | Gramercy Pictures |
| 29 December 1995 | Mr. Holland's Opus[e] | international distribution only; co-production with Hollywood Pictures and Interscope Communications | Buena Vista Pictures Distribution |
| 9 February 1996 | Loch Ness[d] | co-production with Working Title Films | Gramercy Pictures |
| 23 February 1996 | La Haine[h] | North American distribution only; co-acquisition with Gramercy Pictures and Egg Pictures only; produced by Le Studio Canal+ and Arte France Cinéma Most films released since this point are owned by Universal Pictures[45] | |
| 8 March 1996 | Fargo[d] | co-production with Working Title Films Inducted into the National Film Registry in 2006 | |
| 22 March 1996 | Jack and Sarah[d] | co-production with Granada Productions and Le Studio Canal+ | |
| Land and Freedom | co-production with Working Title Films | ||
| 3 May 1996 | Barb Wire | co-production with Propaganda Films | |
| 10 May 1996 | Boys[e] | international distribution only; co-production with Touchstone Pictures and Interscope Communications | Buena Vista Pictures Distribution |
| 31 May 1996 | Eddie[e] | international distribution only; co-production with Hollywood Pictures and Island Pictures[46] Last film in the pre-April 1996 library owned by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer | |
| The Arrival | studio credit only; produced by LIVE Entertainment, Steelework Films and Interscope Communications | Orion Pictures | |
| 17 July 1996 | Walking and Talking | international distribution only; co-production with Channel Four Films, Zenith Productions, Pandora Film, Mikado Films (France), Electric, TEAM Communications Group and Good Machine | Miramax Films |
| Kazaam | international distribution only; co-production with Touchstone Pictures and Interscope Communications | Buena Vista Pictures Distribution | |
| 19 July 1996 | Trainspotting[i] | distribution in the U.K., Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, France, Spain and the Benelux only; produced by Channel Four Films | Miramax Films |
| 18 October 1996 | Sleepers | international distribution only; co-production with Warner Bros. Pictures and Propaganda Films | Warner Bros. Pictures |
| Jude | Gramercy Pictures | ||
| 25 October 1996 | The Associate | international distribution only; co-production with Hollywood Pictures and Interscope Communications | Buena Vista Pictures Distribution |
| 24 December 1996 | The Portrait of a Lady | co-production with Propaganda Films | Gramercy Pictures |
| 10 January 1997 | The Relic | select international distribution only; produced by Cloud Nine Entertainment and Pacific Western Productions | Paramount Pictures |
| 29 January 1997 | Gridlock'd | co-production with Interscope Communications | Gramercy Pictures |
| 14 February 1997 | When We Were Kings[j] | distribution only | |
| 7 March 1997 | The Eighth Day | co-production with Working Title Films | |
| 11 April 1997 | Keys to Tulsa[k] | co-production with ITC Entertainment | |
| 9 May 1997 | Twin Town | ||
| 20 June 1997 | Batman & Robin | studio credit only; produced by Warner Bros. Pictures and DC Comics | Warner Bros. Pictures |
| 6 August 1997 | Def Jam's How to Be a Player | Gramercy Pictures | |
| 24 August 1997 | Snow White: A Tale of Terror | co-production with Interscope Communications | |
| 12 September 1997 | The Game | co-production with Propaganda Films | PolyGram Films |
| 19 September 1997 | Going All the Way | Gramercy Pictures | |
| 26 September 1997 | A Thousand Acres | international distribution only; co-production with Touchstone Pictures, Beacon Pictures and Propaganda Films | Buena Vista Pictures Distribution |
| 3 October 1997 | The Matchmaker | co-production with Working Title Films | Gramercy Pictures |
| 24 October 1997 | A Life Less Ordinary | distribution in the U.K., Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, France, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Spain and the Benelux only; produced by Figment Films and Channel Four Films | 20th Century Fox |
| 7 November 1997 | Bean | co-production with Working Title Films | Gramercy Pictures |
| 5 December 1997 | The Borrowers | co-production with Working Title Films | PolyGram Films |
| 16 January 1998 | Hard Rain | select international distribution only; produced by Mutual Film Company | Paramount Pictures |
| 23 January 1998 | Spice World | distribution in the U.K., Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, France, Germany, Austria, Spain and the Benelux only; co-production Fragile Films and Icon Entertainment International | Columbia Pictures (through Sony Pictures Releasing) |
| The Gingerbread Man | co-production with Island Pictures and Enchanter Entertainment | PolyGram Films | |
| 18 February 1998 | I Want You | Gramercy Pictures | |
| 26 February 1998 | Dead Letter Office | Southern Star Entertainment | |
| 6 March 1998 | The Big Lebowski | co-production with Working Title Films Inducted into the National Film Registry in 2014 |
Gramercy Pictures |
| 3 April 1998 | No Looking Back | ||
| The Proposition | co-production with Interscope Communications | PolyGram Films | |
| Barney's Great Adventure: The Movie | co-production with Lyrick Studios | ||
| 1 May 1998 | Wilde[l] | U.K. and Irish distribution only; produced by BBC Films, Capitol Films and Pony Canyon | Sony Pictures Classics |
| Go Now | Gramercy Pictures | ||
| 29 May 1998 | The Last Days of Disco | North American, Australian and New Zealand distribution only; produced by Castle Rock Entertainment; international distribution handled by Warner Bros. Pictures[47] | |
| 12 June 1998 | The Land Girls[m] | ||
| 14 August 1998 | Return to Paradise | co-production with Propaganda Films and Tetragram | PolyGram Films |
| 21 August 1998 | Your Friends & Neighbors | Gramercy Pictures | |
| 25 September 1998 | Clay Pigeons[m] | ||
| 2 October 1998 | What Dreams May Come | co-production with Interscope Communications | PolyGram Films |
| 13 November 1998 | Thursday | co-production with Propaganda Films | Legacy Releasing |
| 22 November 1998 | Elizabeth | co-production with Working Title Films and Channel Four Films | Gramercy Pictures |
| 25 November 1998 | Very Bad Things | North American, U.K. and Irish distribution only; co-production with Interscope Communications and Initial Entertainment Group | PolyGram Films |
| 22 January 1999 | The Hi-Lo Country | co-production with Working Title Films | Gramercy Pictures |
| February 1999 | Choke | co-production with Propaganda Films | PolyGram Visual Programming |
| 5 March 1999 | Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels[n] | distribution in North America, the U.K., Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, France, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, the Benelux and Spain only;[48] produced by The Steve Tisch Company, SKA Films and HandMade Films | Gramercy Pictures |
| 1 April 1999 | Millionaire Dogs | co-production with Ostdeutscher Rundfunk Brandenburg, EIV Entertainment Invest GmbH & Company KG, Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen and Benchmark Entertainment | Pop Twist Entertainment |
| 28 May 1999 | Notting Hill | select international distribution only; co-production with Working Title Films | Universal Pictures |
| 9 July 1999 | Arlington Road | select international distribution only; produced by Lakeshore Entertainment | Screen Gems (through Sony Pictures Releasing) |
| 1 October 1999 | Plunkett & Macleane | international distribution only; co-production with Working Title Films | USA Films |
| 10 December 1999 | The Green Mile | as Universal Pictures International; produced by Castle Rock Entertainment and Darkwoods Productions | Warner Bros. Pictures (North America, Latin America and Asia (excluding Japan)) Universal Pictures (International) |
See also
- 100 Films and a Funeral, a documentary film about the rise and fall of PFE.
Notes
- Copyright is owned by Orion Pictures
- Owned by Sony Pictures
- Retained by Universal Pictures
- Owned by MGM
- International rights owned by MGM
- Owned by Film4 Productions
- Owned by Palm Pictures in the U.S. and MGM internationally
- Owned by Le Pacte and StudioCanal, with U.S. distribution rights licensed to The Criterion Collection and Janus Films
- Owned by Film4 Productions, with certain distribution rights currently licensed to Miramax
- Owned by Shout! Studios (via Westchester Films)
- Owned by ITV Studios
- Owned by Altitude
- Select international rights to Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels have since reverted back to Lionsgate
References
Further reading
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