As Warner Bros. continues to find itself the center of controversy with the sudden cancelations ofBatgirlandScoob!: Holiday Hauntas well as the merger of HBO Max and Discovery+ led to theremoval of over 30 animated titles, another sizable shift has hit the media giant. A new report is confirming that Legendary Entertainment, the production company behind the likes ofDuneand the recent Godzilla-Kong Monsterverse, has left its deal with Warner Bros. following the expiration of the deal.
The Anklerwas the first to report the recent expiration of the Warner-Legendary deal withDeadlineconfirming the report. Deadline also states that Legendary is currently shopping itself around to rival studios. Deadline has listed both Paramount and Sony as “names in the mix,” with the latter being the current front-runner. The report also notes that Legendary is walking away from a new deal that was offered by Warner Bros. Reps for Legendary and Warner Bros. declined to comment for Deadline’s report.
This is a massive blow to Warner Bros. and is coming off the ill-fated “Project Popcorn” experiment, which was a 2021 strategy led by former WarnerMedia chiefJason Kilarthat saw them releasing their theatrical films day-and-date on HBO Max in the US. This was an experiment that ended up creating problems between the former partners, as Legendary at one point considered suing Warner over the decisions to move their theatrical releases to the streaming service. Legendary’sGodzilla Vs. KongandDuneended up being the highest-grossing movies worldwide during “Project Popcorn” withDunegoing on to win six Oscars and was nominated for Best Picture.
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This is not the first time that Legendary and WarnerMedia have parted ways as the two were in a partnership from 2005 to 2014. During that time, the partnership led to the creation ofZack Snyder’s 2009 adaptation ofWatchmen,Christopher Nolan’sDark Knighttrilogy, andGuillermo del Toro’sPacific Rim, among others. Legendary partnered in 2014 with Universal Pictures before returning to Warner in 2019, with Legendary moving their filmDetective Pikachuto Warner in 2018, which acted as an early sign of the change. The films that came from this latest partnership include the four Monsterverse films as well asDetective PikachuandDune. A currently untitled sequel toGodzilla vs. Kongiscurrently in the worksand so isDune Part 2set to continue where the previous award-winning film left off.
Stay tuned to Collider for further updates about the Warner-Legendary split and the future of both companies going forward.
