Lionsgate Films (formerly known as Cinépix Film Properties) is an American
film production and film distribution studio, headquartered in
Santa Monica
Santa Monica (; Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 U.S. Census population was 93,076. Santa Monica is a popular resort town, owing to ...
and founded in
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
, and is the flagship division of
Lionsgate Entertainment
Lions Gate Entertainment Corporation, doing business as Lionsgate, is a Canadian-American entertainment company. It was formed by Frank Giustra on July 10, 1997, domiciled in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada and is currently headquartered in ...
. It is the largest and most successful
mini-major film studio in North America. It focuses on foreign and independent films and has distributed various commercially successful film franchises, including ''
The Hunger Games
''The Hunger Games'' is a series of young adult dystopian novels written by American author Suzanne Collins. The first three novels are part of a trilogy following teenage protagonist Katniss Everdeen, and the fourth book is a prequel set 6 ...
'', ''
Rambo
Rambo is a surname with Norwegian (Vestfold) and Swedish origins. It possibly originated with '' ramn'' + '' bo'', meaning "raven's nest". It has variants in French (''Rambeau'', ''Rambaut'', and ''Rimbaud'') and German (''Rambow''). It is now best ...
'', ''
Divergent'', ''
The Punisher
The Punisher (Francis "Frank" Castle, born Castiglione) is an antihero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer Gerry Conway and artists John Romita Sr. and Ross Andru. The Punisher made ...
'', ''
John Wick
''John Wick'' is an American action thriller media franchise created by Derek Kolstad and centering around John Wick, a former hitman who is forced back into the criminal underworld he had abandoned.
The franchise began with the release of '' ...
'', ''
Saw
A saw is a tool consisting of a tough blade, wire, or chain with a hard toothed edge. It is used to cut through material, very often wood, though sometimes metal or stone. The cut is made by placing the toothed edge against the material and mov ...
'', ''
Madea
Mabel "Madea" Earlene Simmons (née Baker/Murphy) is a character created and portrayed by Tyler Perry. She is portrayed as a tough, street-smart elderly African-American woman.
Madea is based on Perry's mother and his aunt. In Perry's own words ...
'', ''
Blair Witch
''Blair Witch'' is an American horror media franchise created by Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sánchez, distributed by Artisan Entertainment (now Lionsgate) and produced by Haxan Films that consists of three feature films and various additional ...
'', ''
Now You See Me'', ''
Hostel
A hostel is a form of low-cost, short-term shared sociable lodging where guests can rent a bed, usually a bunk bed in a dormitory, with shared use of a lounge and sometimes a kitchen. Rooms can be mixed or single-sex and have private or shared b ...
'', ''
The Expendables'', ''
Sinister
Sinister commonly refers to:
* Evil
* Ominous
Sinister may also refer to:
Left side
* Sinister, Latin for the direction " left"
* Sinister, in heraldry, is the bearer's true left side (viewers' right side) of an escutcheon or coat of arms; see ...
'', ''
The Twilight Saga'' and ''
Step Up.''
History
Cinépix
Cinépix was founded by
John Dunning and Andre Link in 1962. Cinépix, based in Montreal, was a Canadian independent motion picture company that released English- and French-language films in Canada and the United States.
Initially a distribution company, Cinépix's first production was the 1969 erotic drama ''
Valérie
Valerie is generally a feminine given name, derived directly from the French ''Valérie'' (a female-only name).
Valéry or Valery is a masculine given name in parts of Europe (particularly in France and Russia), as well as a common surname in Fr ...
'', which earned $1 million at the box office. Cinépix produced early work by
David Cronenberg
David Paul Cronenberg (born March 15, 1943) is a Canadian film director, screenwriter, and actor. He is one of the principal originators of what is commonly known as the body horror genre, with his films exploring visceral bodily transformation ...
(''
Shivers'') and
Ivan Reitman
Ivan Reitman (; October 27, 1946February 12, 2022) was a Czechoslovak-born Canadian filmmaker. He was best known for his comedy work, especially in the 1980s and 1990s. He was the owner of The Montecito Picture Company, founded in 1998.
Film ...
(''
Meatballs''). The company also distributed art-house films including the grunge rock documentary ''Hype'',
Vincent Gallo
Vincent Gallo (born 1961) is an American actor and director. He has had supporting roles in films such as ''Arizona Dream'' (1993), ''The House of the Spirits'' (1993), ''Palookaville'' (1995), and '' The Funeral'' (1996). His lead roles include ...
's ''
Buffalo '66'', and ''
SICK: The Life & Death of Bob Flanagan, Supermasochist''.
From 1989 to 1994, Cinépix was partners with
Famous Players
Famous Players Limited Partnership, DBA Famous Players, is a Canadian-based subsidiary of Cineplex Entertainment. As an independent company, it existed as a film exhibitor and cable television service provider. Famous Players operated numerous m ...
in C/FP Distribution, which was renamed Cinépix Film Properties (C/FP). In 1994, Cinépix bought Famous Players' stake in the organization.
By 1997, Cinépix had a New York-based U.S. distribution arm and owned 56 percent of
Ciné-Groupe, an
animated film production company.
Lionsgate Films
Lions Gate Entertainment Corporation (LGEC) was formed in 1997 by Frank Giustra, a banker.
LGEC purchased Cinépix and kept its leadership.
Cinépix was renamed Lions Gate Films on January 13, 1998. LGEC also purchased the Vancouver-based
North Shore Studios
North Shore Studios is a film company located in the North Vancouver, British Columbia. Acquired by Bosa Developments in 2006, it was previously part of Lions Gate Entertainment and was then known as Lionsgate Studios.
There are 8 stages tota ...
, which became Lions Gate Studios.
In June 1998, LGE purchased International Movie Group, whose film library included
Jean-Claude Van Damme
Jean-Claude Camille François Van Varenberg (, ; born 18 October 1960), known professionally as Jean-Claude Van Damme (, ), is a Belgian actor, martial artist, filmmaker, and fight choreographer. Born and raised in Brussels, Belgium, at the a ...
's ''
Kickboxer''.
Its first major box office success was ''
American Psycho'' in 2000, which began a trend of producing and distributing films too controversial for the major film studios. Other notable films included ''
Affliction
Affliction or Afflicted may refer to:
Books
* ''Affliction'' (novel), a 2013 Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter novel by Laurell K. Hamilton
* ''Affliction'', a novel by Russell Banks, basis of the 1998 film
Film and TV
* ''Affliction'' (1997 film), ...
'' (1998), ''
Gods and Monsters'' (1998), ''
Dogma
Dogma is a belief or set of beliefs that is accepted by the members of a group without being questioned or doubted. It may be in the form of an official system of principles or doctrines of a religion, such as Roman Catholicism, Judaism, Islam ...
'' (1999),
''O'' (2001), ''
Cube 2: Hypercube'' (2002), ''
Open Water'' (2003), ''
Saw
A saw is a tool consisting of a tough blade, wire, or chain with a hard toothed edge. It is used to cut through material, very often wood, though sometimes metal or stone. The cut is made by placing the toothed edge against the material and mov ...
'' (2004), ''
The Punisher
The Punisher (Francis "Frank" Castle, born Castiglione) is an antihero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer Gerry Conway and artists John Romita Sr. and Ross Andru. The Punisher made ...
'' (2004) and the
Michael Moore documentary ''
Fahrenheit 9/11'' (2004), which had been the studio's highest-grossing film until the release of ''
The Hunger Games
''The Hunger Games'' is a series of young adult dystopian novels written by American author Suzanne Collins. The first three novels are part of a trilogy following teenage protagonist Katniss Everdeen, and the fourth book is a prequel set 6 ...
'' in 2012.
Giustra left the firm in 2000.
That same year,
Jon Feltheimer
Jon Feltheimer (born September 2, 1951) is the Chief Executive Officer of Lions Gate Entertainment and has held that position since 2000. Feltheimer has led Lionsgate to grow into the leading Canadian independent filmed entertainment studio.
Bi ...
became CEO and Michael Burns became vice chairman. They decided to focus on the profits of videos and DVDs and began buying struggling firms that controlled large libraries. The two most notable acquisitions were
Trimark Holdings (650 titles) in 2000
and
Artisan Entertainment
Artisan Entertainment (formerly known as U.S.A. Home Video, International Video Entertainment (IVE) and LIVE Entertainment) was an American film studio and home video company. It was considered one of the largest mini-major film studios until ...
in 2003. The Trimark purchase also included
CinemaNow
CinemaNow was an international over-the-top (OTT) provider of on-demand, Internet streaming media available to viewers in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. The company was founded in 1999 and was headquartered in Los Angeles, Cal ...
, a broadband streaming website, where Lionsgate could feature its own movies.
These two purchases along with others gave Lions Gate a large DVD (and later Blu-Ray) library, which includes ''
Total Recall'', ''
Reservoir Dogs
''Reservoir Dogs'' is a 1992 American crime film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino in his feature-length debut. It stars Harvey Keitel, Tim Roth, Chris Penn, Steve Buscemi, Lawrence Tierney, Michael Madsen, Tarantino, and Edward B ...
'', ''
Terminator 2: Judgment Day'', ''
Young Guns'', ''
Dirty Dancing
''Dirty Dancing'' is a 1987 American romantic drama dance film written by Eleanor Bergstein, produced by Linda Gottlieb, and directed by Emile Ardolino. Starring Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey, it tells the story of Frances "Baby" Houseman ...
'' and ''
Apocalypse Now
''Apocalypse Now'' is a 1979 American epic war film produced and directed by Francis Ford Coppola. The screenplay, co-written by Coppola, John Milius and Michael Herr, is loosely based on the 1899 novella '' Heart of Darkness'' by Joseph ...
'', in some cases via output deals with
StudioCanal
StudioCanal S.A.S. (formerly known as Le Studio Canal+, Canal Plus, Canal+ Distribution, Canal+ D.A., Canal+ Production, and Canal+ Image and also known as StudioCanal International) is a French film production and distribution company that owns ...
,
American Zoetrope
American Zoetrope (also known as Omni Zoetrope from 1977 to 1980 and Zoetrope Studios from 1980 until 1990) is a privately run American film production company, centered in San Francisco, California and founded by Francis Ford Coppola and Georg ...
, and
Miramax
Miramax, LLC, also known as Miramax Films, is an American film and television production and distribution company founded on December 19, 1979, by brothers Harvey and Bob Weinstein, and based in Los Angeles, California.
It was initially a leadi ...
(most of them the result of prior licensing deals with Lions Gate's home video predecessor Artisan).
Lions Gate occasionally co-produces films with major studios. For example, Lions Gate teamed with Miramax Films for the 2004 sequel ''
Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights'' and with
Paramount Pictures for 2002's ''
Narc'' and 2004's ''
The Prince & Me
''The Prince & Me'' is a 2004 American romantic comedy film directed by Martha Coolidge, and starring Julia Stiles, Luke Mably and Ben Miller, with Miranda Richardson, James Fox and Alberta Watson. The film focuses on Paige Morgan, a pre-med col ...
'' which was given a studio credit. Lions Gate was also a silent partner in
20th Century Fox
20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Dis ...
's 2004 sci-fi film ''
The Day After Tomorrow
''The Day After Tomorrow'' is a 2004 American science fiction disaster film directed, co-produced, and co-written by Roland Emmerich. Based on the 1999 book '' The Coming Global Superstorm'' by Art Bell and Whitley Strieber, the film stars De ...
''. Also in 2004, Lions Gate joined forces with
United Artists
United Artists Corporation (UA), currently doing business as United Artists Digital Studios, is an American digital production company. Founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, and Douglas Fairbanks, the studi ...
in producing ''
Hotel Rwanda
''Hotel Rwanda'' is a 2004 drama film directed by Terry George. It was adapted from a screenplay co-written by George and Keir Pearson, and stars Don Cheadle and Sophie Okonedo as hotelier Paul Rusesabagina and his wife Tatiana. Based on the ...
''.
On August 1, 2005, Lions Gate Entertainment Corp acquired the entire library of Modern Entertainment. On October 17, 2005, Lionsgate acquired
Redbus Film Distribution
Lionsgate UK (formerly Redbus Film Distribution, and briefly known as Helkon SK between 2001 and 2003) is the British subsidiary of the Canadian-American film company, Lionsgate.
Founded in 1997 by Simon Franks and Zygi Kamasa, the company ha ...
for $35 million and became Lionsgate UK on February 23, 2006. Following this,
Zygi Kamasa
Zygi Jon Kamasa (born 12 November 1969) is a Swedish-British entertainment studio executive and film executive producer.
As Group CEO of MARV, partnering with director and producer Matthew Vaughn, Kamasa oversees the expansion of the Kingsman ...
, who co-founded Redbus with Simon Franks, became CEO of Lionsgate UK and Europe.
In 2007, Joe Drake became Lionsgate's co-COO and motion picture group president.
Lionsgate cut back its annual production by four in February 2009.
The Lionsgate film ''
The Hunger Games
''The Hunger Games'' is a series of young adult dystopian novels written by American author Suzanne Collins. The first three novels are part of a trilogy following teenage protagonist Katniss Everdeen, and the fourth book is a prequel set 6 ...
'' grossed $68.3 million when it premiered at the U.S. box office on March 23, 2012. At the time, it was the best opening day ever for a non-sequel and the fifth highest of all time. Of that total, $19.7 million was earned via Thursday midnight screenings. In its first weekend, ''The Hunger Games'' grossed $152.5 million, making it Lionsgate's highest-grossing film after just three days.
On January 13, 2012, Lions Gate Entertainment Corp acquired
Summit Entertainment
Summit Entertainment is an American film production and distribution company. It is a label of Lionsgate Films, owned by Lionsgate Entertainment and is headquartered in Santa Monica, California.
History Independent era (1991–2012)
Summit ...
, the studio behind the ''
Twilight
Twilight is light produced by sunlight scattering in the upper atmosphere, when the Sun is below the horizon, which illuminates the lower atmosphere and the Earth's surface. The word twilight can also refer to the periods of time when this i ...
'' and ''Step Up'' series for $412.5 million. On May 3, 2012, Lionsgate Films made an agreement with
CodeBlack Enterprises' CEO Jeff Clanagan to create CodeBlack Films, based at Lionsgate. Drake left in 2012 to found
Good Universe
Good Universe is an American film production company founded by Joe Drake and Nathan Kahane.
History
In Spring 2012, Good Universe was launched as longtime partners Joe Drake and Nathan Kahane transitioned out of Lionsgate, where Drake served as ...
.
[
On January 16, 2013, Lionsgate announced a low-budget film division to be led by John Sacchi. The division would release films under $2.5 million. Sacchi recently looked to acquire such films as Rock Bottom Creek (2012) and other independently made films as well.
On November 22, 2013, Lions Gate released '' The Hunger Games: Catching Fire''. In its opening weekend, the movie grossed $158 million at the US box office, surpassing its predecessor, which generated $150 million in its opening weekend. The film had a budget of $130 million, breaking even soon after its opening, and making it profitable. Critics highly praised the film; it received a Rotten Tomatoes rating of 89% "certified fresh". The third ''Hunger Games'' film, ''Mockingjay- Part 1'', was released in 2014. The final film, ''Mockingjay - Part 2'', was released in 2015.
On April 1, 2015, according to '']Deadline
Deadline(s) or The Deadline(s) may refer to:
* Time limit, a narrow field of time by which an objective must be accomplished
Arts, entertainment, and media Comics
* Deadline (DC Comics), a fictional villain
* ''Deadline'' (magazine), a British ...
'', Lions Gate announced it has created its new label, Lionsgate Premiere. This new label will handle up to 15 releases a year, targeting young audiences at theaters and digital outlets. The new label, part of the company's diversification effort, will incorporate Lionsgate and Summit Entertainment titles and then specialize in "innovative multiplatform and other release strategies" to reach "affinity audiences with branded content and targeted marketing." Marketing and Research SVP Jean McDowell will handle marketing, with distribution to be run by Adam Sorensen, who currently manages Western Sales.
On May 2, 2016, according to ''Deadline Hollywood'', Lions Gate announced it has teaming with eight international companies to launch the GlobalGate Entertainment consortium. GlobalGate will produce and distribute local-language films in markets around the world. Lionsgate said Monday it has partnered with international entertainment executives Paul Presburger, William Pfeiffer and Clifford Werber to launch GlobalGate.
Drake returned in October 2017 as Liongate's film group chairman. The company laid off staff for theatrical marketing and publicity in its New York office, and moved to end its participation as a partner in CodeBlack Films in January 2019. The cut backs were due to the failures of ''Robin Hood
Robin Hood is a legendary heroic outlaw originally depicted in English folklore and subsequently featured in literature and film. According to legend, he was a highly skilled archer and swordsman. In some versions of the legend, he is depic ...
'', and comedy ''The Spy Who Dumped Me
''The Spy Who Dumped Me'' is a 2018 American action spy spoof comedy film directed by Susanna Fogel and co-written by Fogel and David Iserson. The film stars Mila Kunis, Kate McKinnon, Justin Theroux, Sam Heughan, Hasan Minhaj, and Gillian Ander ...
''.[ In June 2019, ]Hulu
Hulu () is an American subscription streaming service majority-owned by The Walt Disney Company, with Comcast's NBCUniversal holding a minority stake. It was launched on October 29, 2007 and it offers a library of films and television serie ...
and FX picked up show rights to Lionsgate films released in 2020 and 2021.
Film library
Film series
Highest-grossing films
References
External links
*
Official UK website
{{Authority control
Film production companies of the United States
Lionsgate subsidiaries
Companies based in Santa Monica, California
Entertainment companies based in California
Entertainment companies established in 1962
1962 establishments in Canada
1962 establishments in Quebec