Date: 03-03-2008
The shine is off Time Warner's New Line Cinema to some extent, and, after New Line's 40-year history as a stand-alone studio, the parent company has decided that New Line will become a unit of Warner Brothers, a move that will lead to hundreds of jobs being shed. Top New Line executives Bob Shaye and Michael Lynne will not be staying on. Fortunes have faded somewhat for New Line only four years after it reached the pinnacle of the film biz with The Lord of the Rings trilogy. A slew of costly flops and even costlier court cases have precipitated the subsequent downfall. Analysts predict, however, that the consolidation could double New Line's earnings, although they are not expected to reflect the full benefit until 2010. And, although New Line has been struggling, it has three movies lined up for this year, including Peter Jackson's The Hobbit and a big-screen version of Sex and the City, both of which will be handled by New Line itself, at least until further notice from Warner.
