Hollywood’s Relativity files for bankruptcy with $681M owing

Relativity remains firmly committed to its film and television businesses.

But Variety said around a dozen more projects were now up in the air, including The Bronze, which opened this year’s Sundance Film Festival; and horrors Before I Wake and The Disappointments Room.

In at least one case, Relativity reached a deal with a producer to give back the rights to a film.

The fates of a string of new movies are up in the air after a Hollywood studio filed for bankruptcy protection. Corin Hardy is attached to direct from a script by Jesse Wigutow and Alex Tse, but if Relativity still plans on starting production in just a few months, they’ll certainly have to find a new star, not to mention a supporting cast.

Variety reported that the company would also “move forward” with a remake of 1994 film The Crow. “We’re trying to figure out what’s going to happen and when over the course of the next couple of weeks”.

The company also made MTV show Catfish, and said it would press ahead with a number of worldwide versions of the show as well as a sequel called Truce.

Relativity Media LLC was created in 2004 by Ryan Kavanaugh and has 9 separate divisions including Relativity Music, Relativity Digital, and Madvine. “With over $350 million in outstanding matured secured debt and unable to finalize any further financing, the Debtors determined it was in their best interests to file for bankruptcy protection”.

Some of the company’s more well-known releases like “Immortals” and the Nicholas Sparks drama “Safe Haven” are outnumbered by box-office misfires. To this end, Relativity has entered into an agreement with RM Bidder LLC, an entity formed and owned by certain of the Company’s prepetition lenders, which will be filed with the Court later today. The auction process is expected to conclude with a sale closing in early October 2015.

A quick sale would be ideal for the company, said bankruptcy law experts.

Still, the company took chances and it employed lots of people, many of whom are already out of work.

The company also said in a statement that it has received a commitment from its lenders to provide $45 million to help fund the company’s operations while it is in bankruptcy.

The firm is in search of additional loans to pay for the advertising of flicks that it plans to launch.