Global Road Entertainment
Tom Ortenberg left Open Road Films and it was purchased by Tang Media Partners in August 2017.[13] Rob Friedman joined Tang Media Partners in August 2017 as chairman and CEO of TMP Entertainment to oversee Open Road, IM Global and IM Global TV.[14] Open Road Films merged with IM Global and formed Global Road Entertainment on October 30, 2017, with Friedman assuming the Global Road chairman and CEO posts.[15]
In 2017, the company announced plans to have a slate of approximately 15 films per year by 2020.[16][17] At the European Film Market in February 2018, Global Road announced that it anticipated spending $1billion on film and television productions over the next three years,[18] with production budgets projected to be in the $20million to $100million range.[18] In 2018, the company made an agreement with Blumhouse Productions to co-develop and co-finance low budget Chinese language genre films.[19]
Global Road's 2018 film distribution slate includes the teen drama Midnight Sun, starring Bella Thorne and Patrick Schwarzenegger;[20] family comedy Show Dogs, starring Will Arnett;[20] science fiction thriller The Silence, which it acquired for US distribution;[21] the action-thriller Hotel Artemis, starring Jodie Foster and Sterling K. Brown;[22] science fiction family adventure A.X.L.;[23] and animated family adventure-comedy Playmobil: Uncharted.[23]
Upcoming Global Road productions include Serenity, a neo-noir thriller starring Anne Hathaway, Matthew McConaughey, Diane Lane and directed by Steven Knight;[17] Richard Says Goodbye aka The Professor, a comedy-drama starring Johnny Depp and directed by Wayne Roberts;[17] the science-fiction romance Zoe, starring Ewan McGregor;[17][24] and Mortal, directed by André Øvredal.[17] The company's film I Think We're Alone Now, starring Peter Dinklage, Elle Fanning and Paul Giamatti, premiered at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival.[25]
Global Road's television arm develops scripted and non-scripted programming for both U.S. and global markets. Shows being developed include Cat's Cradle, a limited series based on the novel by Kurt Vonnegut, being written and executive produced by Noah Hawley for FX; Kilroy County, a dark comedy from Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor being developed for Showtime; Jenji Kohan's Lifetime drama American Princess;[26] Muscle Shoals, a drama in development at ABC with Johnny Depp as executive producer;[27][28] the eight-part crime drama Cold Courage, based on the novels by Pekka Hiltunen;[29] Fried Chicken and Latkes, an adaptation of Rain Pryor's one-woman comedy show;[30] Jett, a crime drama starring and executive produced by Carla Gugino
In January 2018, Global Road signed a development deal with Reginald Hudlin and Byron Phillips through their company New Nation Networks, under which Hudlin and Phillips would develop and produce original content for Global Road.[34] Later that month, the company signed a first-look television deal with Adam Shankman and Jennifer Gibgot's production company Offspring Entertainment;[28] projects announced under this deal include Wolfgang, based on the life of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and an untitled comedy from husband-and-wife actor-producers Carlos and Alexa PenaVega.[28] Around the same time, Global Road also announced co-development deals with French production company Newen and the Ukrainian Film.UA Group.[32]
Financing issues
Global Road's film unit was taken over by its primary lenders, Bank of America and East West Bank, in August 2018 as Donald Tang had not raised enough funds for Global Road. Lenders did have Global Road release A.X.L. while stopping the release of City of Lies, slated for September 7, 2018.[35][36] With A.X.L. not doing well at the box office, the company was forced to lay off employees without severance, a requirement of the lenders. The company was also looking to sell a number of its upcoming films, Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank, City of Lies, The Silence, Duck Duck Goose, Arctic Justice and Playmobil The Movie; it was also "backing out of" development for The Secret Garden.[35] The company was also sued along with TV rights distributor Miramax by lender Bank Leumi over loans for City of Lies.[37]
