American film industry organization
Dimension Films
is an American inactive independent film and television production and distribution company owned by
Lantern Entertainment
. It was formerly used as
Harvey
and
Bob Weinstein
's label within
Miramax
, which was acquired by
The Walt Disney Company
on June 30, 1993, and it later became a part of
The Weinstein Company
(TWC) from 2005 until 2018. The company produces and releases
independent films
and genre titles, specifically
horror
and
science fiction
films.
The Weinsteins took the Dimension label with them when they separated from Miramax on October 1, 2005, and paired it under their new company,
The Weinstein Company
(TWC). Dimension Films was one of the American "mini-majors", i.e., small to medium independent television and motion picture production studios. However, the firing of Harvey Weinstein following
allegations of sexual harassment and rape against him
, as well as financial troubles that followed, led to the company's decline. The studio eventually declared bankruptcy in February 2018, with independent studio
Lantern Entertainment
acquiring a majority of its film library and assets. The company was shut down on July 16, 2018.
[1]
[2]
All films released by Dimension Films before 2005 (which are shared by Miramax) are currently owned and distributed by
Paramount Pictures
through
Paramount Global
's acquisition of a 49% stake in Miramax that was closed on April 3, 2020.
[3]
History
[
edit
]
1991?1992: Foundation and early releases
[
edit
]
The studio was officially founded in 1992 under its parent company
Miramax Films
by
Bob Weinstein
as a label to distribute
horror films
and other films deemed "disreputable" for release under the Miramax title.
[5]
Prior to 1992, the Weinsteins had released similar titles under a smaller operation called Millimeter Films.
The first release under Dimension's label was the sequel film
Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth
, released theatrically in the United States in 1992,
followed by
Stuart Gordon
's sci-fi thriller
Fortress
,
and the sequel
Children of the Corn II: The Final Sacrifice
, both released the same year.
1993?1999: Disney's acquisition of Miramax
[
edit
]
On June 30, 1993,
The Walt Disney Studios
purchased Miramax, who had been facing financial troubles between 1990 and 1992, prior to their acquisition and release of
The Crying Game
, which earned the company US$60 million.
The success of
The Crying Game
made Miramax attractive to Disney, who officially bought the company in 1993, resulting in Dimension Films becoming a Disney subsidiary.
After the box-office failure of
Mother's Boys
(1994) starring
Jamie Lee Curtis
, Dimension distributed Miramax's
The Crow
(1994), which would garner Dimension its first major commercial success.
In 1995, Dimension acquired the rights to the
Halloween
film series
, releasing the sixth installment
Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers
in September that year.
The release of
From Dusk till Dawn
(1996) would mark the beginning of a working relationship with director
Robert Rodriguez
as well as a lucrative franchise, with several
sequels
to follow.
Dimension would gain greater exposure with its distribution of
Wes Craven
's
Scream
, released on December 20, 1996,
which became a major box office hit, grossing $173 million worldwide.
[15]
The company also produced and distributed its sequel,
Scream 2
, released the following year, which grossed a comparable $172 million.
[17]
The company continued its trend of releasing horror and science fiction films, specifically films aimed at teenagers and young adult audiences, with the releases of
Phantoms
(1998) and the
Halloween
sequel
Halloween H20: 20 Years Later
(1998), the latter of which garnered the company another commercial success.
The company released its second film with director Robert Rodriguez, the teen sci-fi film
The Faculty
, on Christmas Day 1998.
In 1999, Dimension distributed
David Cronenberg
's
eXistenZ
and Scream-writer
Kevin Williamson
's directorial debut
Teaching Mrs. Tingle
.
2000?2004: Post-millennium releases
[
edit
]
Dimension's first post-millennium release was the direct-to-video
From Dusk Till Dawn 3: The Hangman's Daughter
. Next was
Scream 3
(2000), which was theatrically released like its predecessors.
[21]
In July 2000, the company released the
slasher
parody
film
Scary Movie
, which grossed a record-breaking $278 million for the company and marked the beginning of another popular
film series
.
2001 saw the release of the Robert Rodriguez-directed
Spy Kids
, which was the company's first major
children's film
. The film would spawn another popular
franchise
for the company.
Beginning in 2000, Dimension began purchasing North American distribution rights to various international productions. Their 2001 release of
The Others
, a Spanish-produced supernatural thriller starring
Nicole Kidman
, was a surprise success for the company.
Other international productions purchased by Dimension included two additional horror films by Spanish director
Jaume Balaguero
:
The Nameless
(1999), and
Darkness
(2002).
Darkness
received a North American theatrical release in December 2004 after being shelved for two years, and proved to be a financial success,
[24]
while
The Nameless
was released direct-to-video in 2005. In January 2005, Dimension purchased the American distribution rights to the Australian horror film
Wolf Creek
, which was released in December that year.
[26]
For much of the early 2000s, Dimension produced and distributed numerous sequels to films released under their branch, including several direct-to-video releases for films such as
Children of the Corn: Revelation
(2001),
Hellraiser: Hellseeker
(2002), and
Dracula III: Legacy
(2005). They also distributed several comedies, such as the
Terry Zwigoff
-directed
Bad Santa
(2003),
and
David Zucker
's
My Boss's Daughter
(2003).
2005?present: Separation from Miramax
[
edit
]
In 2005, the Weinstein brothers purchased the rights to Dimension Films from Disney, and the company officially became a subsidiary of
The Weinstein Company
(TWC), established the same year.
[28]
After their separation from Miramax, Dimension would co-produce several titles with
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
(MGM), including the horror remakes
The Amityville Horror
(2005),
[29]
Black Christmas
(2006),
[30]
and
Halloween
(2007),
[31]
as well as the
Stephen King
-based thrillers
1408
and
The Mist
(both 2007).
[32]
In the spring of 2007, Dimension produced and distributed the joint-double feature film
Grindhouse
, directed by Robert Rodriguez and
Quentin Tarantino
. The film was a major box office failure, grossing less than half of its $53 million budget.
[33]
[34]
In 2011,
Scream 4
, the fourth installment in the
Scream
series, was released and proved to be another box office success in the franchise, earning nearly $100 million in box office receipts.
[35]
The company released the sci-fi horror films
Apollo 18
(2011) and
Dark Skies
(2013). In 2013, Dimension acquired the rights to the independent slasher film
All the Boys Love Mandy Lane
, shot in 2006, and gave the film a limited release in the United States in October.
[36]
Dimension partnered with
MTV
for the television series
Scream
, based on the film series.
[37]
On June 24, 2019, it was announced that
Scream
would be moving to
VH1
ahead of the third season, which Dimension did not produce.
[38]
Dimension Films also has involvement with One Ball Pictures, who owns the "Funny Or Die" online series. They released their first episode, "A Lesson with John McEnroe", with Dimension Films.
[39]
In 2015, Dimension Films lost the rights to the
Halloween
franchise.
[40]
In 2018, the company alongside TWC was purchased in a bankruptcy auction by
Lantern Entertainment
. On December 20, 2019, ViacomCBS (now known as
Paramount Global
) announced that they would acquire 49% of Miramax from
beIN Media Group
for at least $375 million, with
Paramount Pictures
gaining exclusive worldwide distribution rights to the Miramax library, including the pre-2005 Dimension films. ViacomCBS and Miramax will also co-produce new content based on titles from the Miramax library. The deal closed on April 3, 2020.
[41]
Home media
[
edit
]
The pre-2005 Dimension films were originally released to home video through
Buena Vista Home Entertainment
and marketed under the brand Dimension Home Video (under the
Hollywood Pictures
label in some places), while Miramax was owned by Disney. After Disney sold Miramax to Filmyard in 2010, they were distributed from 2011 to 2020 on home video through
Lionsgate Home Entertainment
, with
Echo Bridge Home Entertainment
briefly handling some as well. Through ViacomCBS' 49% stake in Miramax,
Paramount Home Entertainment
acquired the home video distribution rights to the pre-2005 Dimension titles.
As of 2015, the post-2005 Dimension Films titles (apart from
The Amityville Horror
as of 2020) are currently released on
DVD
and
Blu-ray
by Lionsgate. Before, they were distributed by
Genius Products
and
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
.
Dimension Extreme
[
edit
]
Beginning in 2008, Dimension introduced the Dimension Extreme label, which released primarily international indie horror and
teen film
/
adult comedy
(i.e., "Extreme Movie") titles on DVD.
[42]
Filmography
[
edit
]
Primary owners and distributors
[
edit
]
Past owners and distributors
[
edit
]
Current owners and distributors
[
edit
]
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
Marotta, Jenna (July 16, 2018).
"The Weinstein Company Is No More: Buyer Lantern Capital Partners Rebrands as Lantern Entertainment"
.
IndieWire
.
Archived
from the original on July 18, 2018
. Retrieved
July 17,
2018
.
- ^
Kilday, Gregg (July 16, 2018).
"Weinstein Co. Saga Comes to an End as $289 Million Sale to Lantern Closes"
.
The Hollywood Reporter
.
Archived
from the original on July 18, 2018
. Retrieved
July 28,
2018
.
- ^
"
'Scary Movie': Best Easter Debut Ever"
.
CBS News
. Associated Press. April 16, 2006
. Retrieved
February 20,
2011
.
- ^
King, Geoff (2005).
American Independent Cinema
. I.B.Tauris. p. 44.
ISBN
978-1-850-43938-7
.
- ^
"Scream (1996)"
.
Box Office Mojo
. Retrieved
September 29,
2017
.
- ^
"Scream 2 (1997)"
.
Box Office Mojo
. Retrieved
September 13,
2016
.
- ^
Francis, James Jr. (2013).
Remaking Horror: Hollywood's New Reliance on Scares of Old
. McFarland. p. 240.
ISBN
978-0-786-47088-4
.
- ^
"Darkness (2004)"
.
Box Office Mojo
. Retrieved
September 29,
2017
.
- ^
Harvey, Dennis (January 27, 2005).
"Wolf Creek"
.
Variety
. Retrieved
September 30,
2017
.
- ^
Mohr, Ian (September 10, 2006).
"The Weinstein Co. / Dimension Films"
.
Variety
. Retrieved
September 30,
2017
.
- ^
Fleming, Michael (December 16, 2003).
"Amity for MGM and Dimension"
.
Variety
. Retrieved
September 30,
2017
.
- ^
Monaghan, John (December 29, 2006).
"Black Christmas"
.
Chicago Tribune
. Retrieved
September 30,
2017
.
- ^
Gleiberman, Owen (September 5, 2007).
"Halloween"
.
Entertainment Weekly
. Retrieved
September 30,
2017
.
- ^
McClintock, Pamela (September 7, 2007).
"
'1408' is indie sleeper hit of summer"
.
Variety
. Retrieved
September 30,
2017
.
- ^
Gray, Brandon (April 8, 2007).
"
'Grindhouse' Dilapidated Over Easter Weekend"
.
Box Office Mojo
. Retrieved
August 9,
2017
.
- ^
"
'Blades' Stays on Top With $23 Million"
.
Yahoo! Movies
. Yahoo!. April 8, 2007. Archived from
the original
on September 30, 2007.
- ^
"Scream 4 (2011)"
.
Box Office Mojo
. Amazon
. Retrieved
September 29,
2017
.
- ^
Dodes, Rachel (August 22, 2013).
"Why It Took Seven Years to See 'Mandy Lane'
"
.
The Wall Street Journal
.
ISSN
0099-9660
. Retrieved
September 30,
2017
.
- ^
"MTV & Dimension Tap Jamie Travis To Direct 'Scream' Pilot, Set Cast"
.
Deadline
. August 5, 2014
. Retrieved
September 29,
2017
.
- ^
Swift, Andy (June 24, 2019).
"Scream Series (Finally) Returns in July on New Network ? Watch First Trailer"
.
TVLine
. Retrieved
June 24,
2019
.
- ^
"Who We Work With Archives - Page 2 of 5 - One Big Ball Pictures"
. Onebigball.com. Archived from
the original
on November 23, 2015
. Retrieved
December 23,
2015
.
- ^
Sneider, Jeff (December 29, 2015).
"
'Halloween' Franchise Rights Up for Grabs"
.
TheWrap
. Retrieved
March 29,
2019
.
- ^
"ViacomCBS Closes Acquisition of 49 Percent Miramax Stake in $375 Million Deal"
.
The Hollywood Reporter
. April 3, 2020
. Retrieved
April 3,
2020
.
- ^
"Dimension Extreme Preps 18 More Direct-to-Video Pics"
.
ComingSoon
. October 22, 2008
. Retrieved
September 30,
2017
.
Works cited
[
edit
]
- Lazaro-Reboll, Antonio (2014).
Spanish Horror Film
. University of Edinburgh Press.
ISBN
978-0-748-63639-6
.
- Perren, Alisa (2012).
Indie, Inc.: Miramax and the Transformation of Hollywood in the 1990s
. University of Texas Press.
ISBN
978-0-292-74287-1
.
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