WWE Studios
File:WWEStudiosLogo.png | |
Formerly called
|
WWE Films |
---|---|
Subsidiary | |
Industry | Motion pictures |
Founded | 2002 |
Headquarters | Los Angeles, California USA |
Area served
|
Worldwide |
Key people
|
Michael Luisi (President) Bradley Buchanan (SVP, Business Affairs) |
Parent | WWE |
Subsidiaries | WWE Studios Originals, Inc. WWE Studios Finance Corp. WWE Films Development, Inc.[1] |
Website | WWE Studios |
WWE Studios, Inc.; commonly known as WWE Studios (formerly known as WWE Films) is a Los Angeles-based subsidiary of WWE which was created in 2002 as to develop and produce feature film properties for its wrestlers and personnel. WWE Studios movies frequently mix well-known actors and actresses in lead roles with WWE wrestlers, and teams with existing production and distribution companies to deliver the product at a cheaper cost for both parties.
Contents
History
Before the formation of WWE Studios, the WWF had produced the 1989 film No Holds Barred featuring Hulk Hogan under the Shane Distribution Company banner, a precursor to today's company. The film was given a DVD release in 2012.[2]
WWE Studios was formed in 2002 as WWE Films,[3] and was seen as "a natural extension of the entertainment business" that they already featured in the weekly Raw and SmackDown television programmes.[4] Joel Simon was named as President of the WWE Films and Jed Blaugrund as Vice President.[3][5] The name was changed to WWE Studios in 2008.[6][7]
WWE announced the first three film projects in January 2005; The Condemned, starring Steve Austin, The Marine, starring John Cena, and Goodnight, later retitled as See No Evil, starring Kane.[8][9]
In February 2009, WWE Studios announced the first film which would not feature a WWE wrestler as the lead, with That's What I Am starring Ed Harris as a schoolteacher accused of fondling kids.[10] In December 2009, it was announced that Patricia Clarkson and Danny Glover would star in the WWE Studios and Samuel Goldwyn Films co-production of Legendary along with WWE wrestler John Cena.[11][12] Around the same time, the film announced production had been completed another co-production with Samuel Goldwyn Films, the comedy Knucklehead, which starred WWE wrestler Big Show.[13][14] Further projects were announced in 2010 with WWE wrestlers in lead roles, with The Chaperone starring Triple H,[15][16] which was released in February 2011,[17] and Bending the Rules starring Edge,[18][19] which was released in March 2012.[20][21] These initial releases were largely unsuccessful financially.[22]
In February 2012, WWE Studios agreed a new three-film deal with 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment to produce, finance and market three straight-to-DVD titles,[23] including The Marine 3: Homefront starring The Miz, having previously worked with 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment on the previous films in the franchise, The Marine and The Marine 2. The deal also included the release of 12 Rounds 2: Reloaded starring Randy Orton, having together previously released 12 Rounds starring John Cena.[24]
In April 2012, WWE Studios partnered with Warner Bros. Entertainment France and producer Thomas Langmann to distribute French film Les Reines Du Ring in the United States and Canada,[25][26] as well as the rights to remake the film, which was announced in 2014.[27][28]
WWE Studios also produced No One Lives with Pathe Pictures, starring Luke Evans and WWE wrestler Brodus Clay, and acquired the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival cult hit The Day, starring Shawn Ashmore and Dominic Monaghan. WWE Studios has also acquired Interrogation, a suspense thriller by Adam Rodin.[29] WWE Studios then secured the rights to Bermuda, a found footage horror spec script by Bobby Lee Darby and Nathan Brookes, set in the Bermuda Triangle.[30] WWE Studios further announced a partnership with producer Edward R. Pressman and Jason Blum's Blum-Hanson-Allen films to develop Cruisin' for a Brusin', an action comedy to be written and directed by Adam Bhala Lough.[31] WWE Studios and Warner Bros. co-produced a Scooby-Doo animated feature that found Scooby and the gang solving a mystery at WrestleMania, which also starred an ensemble of WWE Superstars. The movie released on March 25, 2014.[32] On May 29, 2013, it was announced that WWE studios and Warner Bros would again team up to co-produce a Flintstones animated movie to be released in early 2015.[33]
WWE Studios most successful film to date is the 2013 release The Call, starring Halle Berry and Abigail Breslin, which made close to $70 million at the box office,[34] despite a comparatively small budget of just $13m.[35][36] The film opened at the US box office at #2 with 17 million in its first weekend.[34] It was further reported that WWE was looking at a potential sequel following the success of The Call.[37]
In 2013, WWE Studios and Hyde Park Entertainment announced a deal to work together on the film adaptation of the 1980s television series The Fall Guy. The film will star Dwayne Johnson, who made his name as The Rock in WWE from 1996–2004 before becoming an actor, in his second WWE Studios production, with the first being The Scorpion King.[38][39][40][41] In August 2014, a second collaboration between WWE Studios and Hyde Park was announced, with Ken Jeong, David Hasselhoff and WWE Hall of Famer Hulk Hogan signed to star in a comedy tentatively known as Untitled Celebrity Death Pool.[42][43]
In February 2014, WWE announced the sequel to the 1996 film Jingle All the Way, to star Larry the Cable Guy and WWE wrestler Santino Marella.[44][45]
In May 2014, it was announced that WWE had extended their partnership with Lionsgate Entertainment to release a further six films together,[46][47] with the first two announced as Vendetta, starring The Big Show[48] and 12 Rounds 3: Lockdown starring Dean Ambrose.[49][50] These group of six films have been referred as the Action Six-Pack Series.[51]
In November 2014, WWE announced a new partnership deal with Warner Bros. Home Entertainment.[52] And in the turn of the year, WWE had announced two new partnership deals. In March 2015, they announced a partnership with newly founded Gene Simmons production company Erebus Pictures and[53] in April 2015, WWE Studios teamed with British company Richwater Films to co-produce and co-finance action-thrillers Eliminators and Rampage.[54]
Filmography
Released
Year | Title | US Release Date | Wrestler(s) Featured | Distributor | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2002 | The Scorpion King | April 19, 2002 | The Rock | Universal Pictures | as WWF Entertainment |
2003 | The Rundown | September 26, 2003 | The Rock | Universal Pictures | |
2004 | Walking Tall | April 2, 2004 | The Rock | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer | |
2006 | See No Evil | May 19, 2006 | Kane | Lionsgate | |
2006 | The Marine | October 13, 2006 | John Cena | 20th Century Fox | |
2007 | The Condemned | April 27, 2007 | Steve Austin | Lionsgate | Last theatrical film as WWE Films |
2009 | Behind Enemy Lines: Colombia | January 6, 2009 | Mr. Kennedy | 20th Century Fox | Straight-to-video |
2009 | 12 Rounds | March 27, 2009 | John Cena | 20th Century Fox | First theatrical film as WWE Studios |
2009 | The Marine 2 | December 29, 2009 | Ted DiBiase | 20th Century Fox | Straight-to-video |
2010 | Legendary | September 10, 2010 | John Cena | Samuel Goldwyn Films | |
2010 | Knucklehead | October 22, 2010 | Big Show | Samuel Goldwyn Films | |
2011 | The Chaperone | February 18, 2011 | Triple H | Samuel Goldwyn Films | |
2011 | That's What I Am | April 29, 2011 | Randy Orton | Samuel Goldwyn Films | |
2011 | Inside Out | September 9, 2011 | Triple H | Samuel Goldwyn Films | |
2011 | The Reunion | October 21, 2011 | John Cena | Samuel Goldwyn Films | |
2012 | Bending the Rules | March 9, 2012 | Edge | WWE Studios | |
2012 | The Day | August 29, 2012 | Anchor Bay Films WWE Studios |
Distribution only | |
2012 | Barricade | September 25, 2012 | WWE Studios | ||
2013 | The Marine 3: Homefront | March 5, 2013 | The Miz | 20th Century Fox | Straight-to-video |
2013 | Dead Man Down | March 8, 2013 | Wade Barrett | FilmDistrict | |
2013 | The Call | March 15, 2013 | David Otunga | TriStar Pictures | |
2013 | No One Lives | May 10, 2013 | Brodus Clay | Anchor Bay Films | |
2013 | Queens of the Ring (Les reines du ring) | July 3, 2013 (France) November 11, 2014 (US) |
The Miz2 CM Punk2 Eve Torres2 |
Image Entertainment | Straight-to-video (US) |
2013 | 12 Rounds 2: Reloaded | June 4, 2013 | Randy Orton | 20th Century Fox | Straight-to-video |
2013 | Christmas Bounty | November 26, 2013 | The Miz | Warner Bros. | TV movie |
2014 | Scooby-Doo! WrestleMania Mystery | March 25, 2014 | Various1 | Warner Bros. | Straight-to-video |
2014 | Oculus | April 11, 2014 | Relativity Media | ||
2014 | Road to Paloma | July 11, 2014 | Anchor Bay Entertainment WWE Studios |
Distribution only | |
2014 | Leprechaun: Origins | August 22, 2014 | Hornswoggle | Lionsgate | |
2014 | See No Evil 2 | October 21, 2014 | Kane | Lionsgate | Straight-to-video |
2014 | Jingle All the Way 2 | December 2, 2014 | Santino Marella | 20th Century Fox | Straight-to-video |
2015 | The Flintstones & WWE: Stone Age SmackDown! | March 10, 2015 | Various3 | Warner Bros. | Straight-to-video, animated |
2015 | The Marine 4: Moving Target | April 21, 2015 | The Miz Summer Rae |
20th Century Fox | Straight-to-video |
2015 | Vendetta | June 12, 2015 | Big Show | Lionsgate | 1st installment in the Action Six-Pack series[51] |
2015 | 12 Rounds 3: Lockdown[55] | September 11, 2015 | Dean Ambrose | Lionsgate | 2nd installment in the Action Six-Pack series[51] |
2015 | The Condemned 2 | November 6, 2015 | Randy Orton | Lionsgate | |
2015 | Santa's Little Helper | November 17, 2015 | The Miz Paige |
20th Century Fox | Straight-to-video |
- ^ Voices include: John Cena, Brodus Clay, Michael Cole, Kane, AJ Lee, Santino Marella, The Miz, Triple H and Vince McMahon.
- ^ Cameos only.
- ^ Voices include: John Cena, Nikki Bella, Brie Bella, The Undertaker, CM Punk, Vince McMahon, Rey Mysterio, Daniel Bryan and Mark Henry.
Upcoming
Year | Title | US Release Date | Wrestler(s) Featured | Distributor | Notes | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2016 | Incarnate | Mark Henry | Universal Pictures | |||
2016 | Term Life | Chris Jericho | Universal Pictures | |||
2016 | 6:42[56] | Dolph Ziggler Kane |
Lionsgate | |||
2016 | Interrogation[57] | Edge Lana |
Lionsgate | 3rd installment in the Action Six-Pack series[58] | ||
2016 | Scooby-Doo! WrestleMania Mystery 2[59] | Various | Warner Bros. | Straight-to-video, animated | ||
2016 | WWE Meets Jetsons[60][61] | Various | Warner Bros. | Straight-to-video, animated | ||
2016 | Killing Hasselhoff[62] | Hulk Hogan | Production possibly on hiatus due to Hogan being fired from the company. | |||
2016 | The Resurrection of Gavin Stone[63] | Shawn Michaels | WWE Studios | |||
2016 | Eliminators[54] | Bad News Barrett | Richwater Films | |||
TBC | The Fall Guy [64] | The Rock | DreamWorks | |||
TBC | Brother's Blood [65] | R-Truth | CodeBlack Films | |||
TBC | Rampage[54] | Richwater Films | ||||
TBC | Temple[53] | Erebus Pictures | ||||
TBC | Long Shot[66] | WWE Studios | ||||
TBC | Untitled Gorgeous George film [67] | WWE Studios |
Box office performance
Film | Release date | Box office revenue | Box office ranking | Reference | ||
Domestic | Foreign | Worldwide | United States | |||
See No Evil | May 19, 2006 | $15,032,800 | $3,388,168 | $18,420,968 | #6 | [68] |
The Marine | October 13, 2006 | $18,844,784 | $3,320,824 | $22,165,608 | #6 | [69] |
The Condemned | April 27, 2007 | $7,371,706 | $1,263,477 | $8,635,183 | #9 | [70] |
12 Rounds | March 27, 2009 | $12,234,694 | $5,045,632 | $17,280,326 | #7 | [71] |
Legendary | September 10, 2010 | $200,393 | – | – | #38 | [72] |
Knucklehead | October 22, 2010 | $1,000 | $7,927 | $8,927 | – | [73] |
The Chaperone | February 18, 2011 | $14,400 | $29,395 | $43,795 | – | [74] |
That's What I Am | April 29, 2011 | $6,400 | – | – | – | [75] |
The Day | August 29, 2012 | $20,984 | – | – | #71 | [76] |
Dead Man Down | March 8, 2013 | $10,895,295 | $7,179,244 | $18,074,539 | #4 | [77] |
The Call | March 15, 2013 | $51,872,378 | $16,700,000 | $68,572,378 | #2 | [34] |
No One Lives | May 10, 2013 | $74,918 | – | – | #39 | [78] |
Oculus | April 11, 2014 | $27,695,246 | $16,335,000 | $44,030,246 | #3 | [79] |
References
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- ↑ 34.0 34.1 34.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 51.0 51.1 51.2 WWE Studios and Lionsgate to repartner on 'Action Six-Pack'
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 53.0 53.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 54.0 54.1 54.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ WWE’s Dean Ambrose to Star in Action Movie ‘Lockdown’ (EXCLUSIVE)
- ↑ Kane & Dolph Ziggler to star in '6:42' from WWE Studios and Lionsgate
- ↑ http://www.cagesideseats.com/wwe/2015/3/3/8143711/lana-wwe-movie-interrogation-edge/
- ↑ [1]
- ↑ http://hiddenremote.com/2014/09/15/wwe-news-wwe-announces-next-animated-venture/
- ↑ http://wrestlingnews.co/wwe-meets-the-jetsons-for-a-new-animated-film/
- ↑ http://animationguildblog.blogspot.com/2015/08/the-animated-productions-among-us.html
- ↑ Ken Jeong to Star in WWE Studios Comedy with Hulk Hogan, David Hasselhoff
- ↑ WWE Studios Buys Brett Dalton’s ‘Resurrection of Gavin Stone’
- ↑ Dwayne Johnson Eyes ‘Fall Guy’ Film Produced by WWE Studios, Hyde Park
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ WWE Studios to adapt Kevin Laue basketball documentary into feature film
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- ↑
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