Archive Site: Are You a Lord of the Rings Fan?
Boycott New Line Cinema
A boycott is an active means of voicing an opinion, and I think, in this case, not an act of bitterness.
HobbitLoveR*M-e
4/24/2008: New Line is now a shell of its former self. I have mixed feelings about that, but given the sheer hubris of some of its upper management over its last three years, it wasn't a surprise.
However, it's not completely dead. It was announced that Guillermo del Toro will direct two Hobbit movies for New Line and MGM, with production done by Weta in New Zealand. Peter Jackson and Fran Walsh will produce. If you saw Pan's Labyrinth, you'll know why this is an excellent idea.
12/18/2007: I'm calling off the boycott effective today because it's been announced that Peter Jackson will produce two Hobbit movies for MGM!. Thanks to everyone for their interest in this boycott and for being one of 3,176 people around the world who signed this petition.
Boycott information now available in:
MGM, current owners of the right to distribute a movie version of The Hobbit has expressed a willingness to try to work with Peter Jackson on the project.
New Line, the company that produced The Lord of the Rings, is currently trying to thwart this, due to an unresolved legal suit between itself and Jackson over LOTR profits.
Something must happen to get New Line and Jackson to talk about the suit, which has been hanging over future Tolkien-related productions since 2005. Jackson has said he'd like to see an audit, just to ensure that the profits were properly passed along.
The only way to get New Line to budge is to boycott future New Line productions until they sit down and hash things out with Peter Jackson.
12/1/2007: Maybe this site can be archived soon, if this MarketSaw rumor is to be believed. Two Hobbit movies in 3D sounds way, way cool, and I hope it's not just a big pipe dream. However, I can't find this story at a news source that I'm familiar with, so I have to classify this as just a rumor. And Ain't It Cool News, a pop culture site with good connections to Jackson, is now denying the rumor.
11/21/2007: Today is the first anniversary of the founding of the Boycott New Line Web site and petition drive.
As I've said before, I was hoping I could let the domain lapse. Due to the lack of any recent movement on
the whole Jackson/Hobbit/New Line problem, I renewed the domain for another year today. *sigh* And I was so
hoping to see The Golden Compass in the theater, and rent Hairspray and Little Children! If you haven't signed the petition yet, please consider doing so now. We're up to 3,161 signatures.
10/5/2007: While I'm not quite ready to call off the boycott, it looks like New Line and Peter Jackson are talking again. At least, I won't rush off
and renew the domain prematurely! Maybe this site will be an archive site soon.
Recent Articles on the Jackson/New Line Situation
- 10/5/07: Entertainment Weekly's Cover Story on New Line, Peter Jackson and The Hobbit
- 9/21/07: Round One to Jackson in LOTR Profits Fight
- 8/11/07: Jackson/New Line Talking Again??? I sure hope so!
- 7/10/07 What a difference six months can bring: Film Big Lays It On the New Line. Hey, maybe that means I can finally see Little Children!
- 1/11/07 New Line Co-Chair Bob Shaye Says "Peter Jackson Will Never Work for Me Again". What better reason to boycott New Line? Clearly, at least one New Line exec has lost rationality. Perhaps if we force New Line to lose money by boycotting their products, they might finally feel compelled to see reason.
- 1/11/07 SyFyPortal - Peter Jackson Says New Line Is Getting Personal --- one error in this article - this boycott is not "alleged" - this is an actual New Line boycott
- 1/10/07 Ain't It Cool News - Wingnut and Jackson Respond
- 1/10/07 SyFyPortal - Peter Jackson Banned from New Line Work
- 12/2/06 The Boston Globe ran a great editorial on the New Line debacle.
On 11/27/06, I mailed a letter, a copy of the petition, and a copy of the first 2,373 signatures to Robert K. Shaye and Michael Lynne at New LIne Cinema. People from around the world have been signing the petition.
After years of being very supportive of New Line and writing polite letters to New Line about this issue, movie fans have been completely ignored. Help New Line to see that, like the Ents, movie fans should not be riled!
11/23/06: Thanks to the BBC for mentioning this site! As of this morning, the site had attracted over 3,600 visitors (not bad for a site that's 50 hours old) and the petition had over 1,000 signatures, with signers from over 30 countries.
What Else to Do?
- Write to New Line Cinema to express your displeasure. Their "Contact Us" page is up at http://www.newline.com/contactus.shtml
- Write to Mark Ordesky, one of the LOTR producers, and the one who apparently told Peter Jackson that his services will not be needed for The Hobbit.
- The One Ring.Net has a whole page of contact information.
- Most of the same information is at Let the Hobbit Happen
What else shouldn't you do?
- Beyond boycotting New Line, don't be threatening or abusive to anyone at New Line.
- Beyond sending reasonable letters to the parties concerned, don't mailbomb or engage in other malicious Web behavior.
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