SANTA MONICA, Calif.,
May 5, 2012 /PRNewswire/
-- Lionsgate (NYSE: LGF), a leading diversified global
entertainment company, announced today that THE HUNGER GAMES, which
has already grossed nearly $620
million at the worldwide box office, has been approved for
release in China in the first half
of June.
(Logo:
http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110919/LA70620LOGO)
The film will be released nationwide in China with both dubbed and subtitled prints by
The China Film Group in conjunction with Lionsgate's promotional
partner, Talent International. THE HUNGER GAMES will be one
of the first Hollywood studio
films to be released in China
under the new blockbuster revenue sharing agreement announced in
February that allows Western distributors to collect up to 25% of a
film's receipts in China.
"THE HUNGER GAMES juggernaut continues to gain momentum around
the world, and we're thrilled that we can now share the exciting
first installment of THE HUNGER GAMES franchise with Chinese
moviegoers in June," said Lionsgate Motion Picture Group Co-Chairs
Patrick Wachsberger and Rob
Friedman. "China is
already one of the leading territories at the international box
office, and the launch of THE HUNGER GAMES in this key market is
another sign of the franchise's continuing emergence as a truly
global phenomenon."
THE HUNGER GAMES has already grossed more than $380 million at the North American box office
where it ranks 13th among the highest-grossing films of all
time. It has grossed nearly $620
million worldwide with upcoming launches in China and Japan.
"We view China as an
increasingly important market for our content in Asia," said Wendy
Reeds, Executive Vice President of Content Sales &
Distribution for Celestial Tiger Entertainment (CTE), Lionsgate's
venture with Saban Capital Group and Astro's Celestial Pictures in
Asia. "The Chinese box office grew by more than 30% last year
to over $2 billion, and THE HUNGER
GAMES' approval for nationwide release in China is a major step in translating the
enormous commercial potential of this huge market into
reality."
About THE HUNGER GAMES
Every year in the ruins of what was once North America, the evil Capitol of the nation
of Panem forces each of its twelve districts to send a teenage boy
and girl to compete in the Hunger Games. A twisted punishment
for a past uprising and an ongoing government intimidation tactic,
The Hunger Games are a nationally televised event in which
"Tributes" must fight with one another until one survivor
remains.
Pitted against highly-trained Tributes who have prepared for
these Games their entire lives, Katniss is forced to rely upon her
sharp instincts as well as the mentorship of drunken former victor
Haymitch Abernathy. If she's ever to return home to District
12, Katniss must make impossible choices in the arena that weigh
survival against humanity and life against love.
THE HUNGER GAMES is directed by Gary
Ross, and produced by Nina
Jacobson's Color Force in tandem with producer Jon Kilik. Suzanne
Collins' best-selling novel, the first in a trilogy
published by Scholastic that has over 36.5 million copies in print
in the United States alone, has
developed a massive global following.
About Lionsgate
Lionsgate is a leading global entertainment company with a
strong and diversified presence in motion picture production and
distribution, television programming and syndication, home
entertainment, family entertainment, digital distribution, new
channel platforms and international distribution and sales. The
Company has built a strong television presence in production of
primetime cable and broadcast network series, distribution and
syndication of programming and an array of channel assets.
Lionsgate currently has 15 shows on more than 10 networks spanning
its primetime production, distribution and syndication businesses,
including such critically-acclaimed hits as the multiple Emmy
Award-winning "Mad Men," "Weeds" and "Nurse Jackie," along with the
powerful drama "Boss" and the syndication successes "Tyler Perry's House of Payne," its spinoff "Meet
the Browns," "The Wendy Williams Show" and "Are We There Yet?"
Its feature film business has been fueled by such recent
successes as the blockbuster first installment of "The Hunger
Games" franchise, which has already grossed more than
$600 million at the worldwide box
office, "The Expendables," "The Lincoln Lawyer," "Cabin
In The Woods," "Tyler Perry's
Madea's Big Happy Family" and "Margin Call." With the January 2012 acquisition of Summit Entertainment,
the Company now has the two leading young adult franchises - the
blockbuster "Twilight Saga," which has grossed more than
$2.5 billion at the worldwide box
office, and "The Hunger Games." Recent Summit hits include "Red,"
"Letters to Juliet," "Knowing," the "Step Up" franchise and the
Academy Award-winning Best Picture, "The Hurt Locker."
Lionsgate's home entertainment business is an industry leader in
box office-to-DVD and box office-to-VOD revenue conversion rate.
Lionsgate handles a prestigious and prolific library of
approximately 13,000 motion picture and television titles that is
an important source of recurring revenue and serves as the
foundation for the growth of the Company's core businesses. The
Lionsgate and Summit brands remain synonymous with original,
daring, quality entertainment in markets around the world.
For further information, please contact:
Peter D. Wilkes
310-255-3726
pwilkes@lionsgate.com
SOURCE Lionsgate