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Simpsons Blocked in India: Trade Roughage, 08/07/06

Under discussion:
Seven Samurai (1954)
Mulan (1998)
The Simpsons Movie (2007)
Rush Hour 3 (2007)

Under discussion:

Seven Samurai (1954)

Mulan (1998)

The Simpsons Movie (2007)

Rush Hour 3 (2007)

Movie theater chains in India refused to screen The Simpsons Movie over the weekend — and, surprisingly, it had nothing to do with outrage over Apu. Warner Brothers India, which is distributing the Fox film in that country, apparently demanded that Indian multiplexes book Simpsons on multiple screens, which would have squeezed out homegrown content. In response, seven leading theater chains declined to run the Fox film at all, and even upped the ante by pulling WB’s latest Harry Potter pic from screens. Facing a projected loss of nearly $100,000 for the weekend, WB workd out a compromise, and Simpsons should open on some Indian screens today.
After staying on in order to see through a number of “very personal projects” including Rush Hour 3 (yes, seriously), long-time New Line marketing exec Russell Schwartz has confirmed that he’s leaving the company.
The Weinstein Company has raised $285 million to launch Asian Film Fund, through which they expect to produce roughly 30 “Asian-themed” theatrical and direct-to-DVD features. Projects already in the pipeline that are expected to receive some of those funds include a live-action version of Mulan, and “a modern-day remake” of Kurosawa’s The Seven Samurai.
Dade Hayes explains why it’s a big deal for Todd Haynes’ I’m Not There to open in New York at both Film Forum AND Lincoln Plaza. Among other reasons: “The Gotham arrangement reps a rare violation of the “clearance” that typically prevents any pic playing at the Film Forum from also unspooling at another Manhattan site. The opportunity for the dual play, plus access to the Film Forum’s membership-driven mailing list of 25,000 avid film buffs, made the release a viable proposition for TWC.”