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In the interest of speed and timeliness, this story is fed directly from the Associated Press newswire and may contain spelling or grammatical errors.
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'Exorcist' screenwriter, director file claim against Warner Bros.
Friday June 20, 2003
LOS ANGELES (AP) The author of ``The Exorcist'' and the
director of the 1973 movie of the same name have filed suit against
Warner Bros., alleging the studio didn't do enough to make them
money.
William Peter Blatty, who wrote the novel and screenplay, and
director William Friedkin, claim Warner Bros. breached its
fiduciary duty by self-dealing the rights for a newer version of
the film. They claim the studio would sell the rights to its sister
cable television networks TNT and TBS for little to no profit.
On Thursday, a Superior Court judge heard arguments but did not
rule on a request by Warner Bros. to dismiss the lawsuit. The
studio claims it has no financial responsibility to both men who
were hired to perform a service and were paid for that service.
``They received a specified percentage of the net profits,''
said Warner Bros. attorney David L. Burg.
Plaintiffs' attorney Lawrence Iser argued that when Warner Bros.
wanted a new version of ``The Exorcist,'' the studio asked Friedkin
and Blatty to return to work. The studio made hundreds of millions
of dollars and made promises of profits to both men it did not
keep, Iser said. Blatty and Friedkin are seeking unspecified
damages.
Superior Court Judge Laurie Zelon did not indicate when she
might make a final ruling. In a tentative ruling prior to
Thursday's hearing, Zelon denied Blatty and Friedkin's claim of
breach of fiduciary duty, however, a July 14 trial is set for the
pair's claims of breach of contract and misrepresented accounting.
(Copyright 2003 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
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