Beverly Hills Ninja 2

[GeneChing]

Hasselhoff.

'Ninja 2' to shoot in South Korea
'Beverly Hills' sequel to be distributed by Sony
By HAN SUNHEE

"Beverly Hills Ninja 2," a sequel to the 1997 action comedy, will lense in South Korea starting next month, making it the first mainstream Hollywood pic to do so.

Local company ATM Motionwide said production will begin Oct. 6 on Jeju island before shifting to two lots at the Busan Film Studio.

Sony Pictures Entertainment holds North American distribution rights.

In January, the company announced that it exchanged a memorandum of understanding concerning international DVD distribution with Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisition Group.

Produced by Motion Picture Corp. of America and helmed by Dennis Dugan, the original "Ninja" was handled by Sony units TriStar Pictures and Columbia TriStar Films in multiple territories.

Mitch Klebanoff, a writer and co-producer of the original film, has scripted and will helm the sequel. Story involves an orphaned boy who wants to be a ninja but becomes involved in a crime in Hollywood while looking for his real parents.

David Hasselhoff, Lucas Grabeel ("High School Musical") and Taiwanese model-turned-actress Lin Chiling ("Red Cliff") are set to star in the sequel.

ATM prexy Han Jung-ho will exec produce, and Kim Hyun-sung will produce.

"ATM Motionwide will provide $7 million and preside over the entire production process," Yoo Youn-soo, a unit production manager of ATM Motionwide, told Daily Variety.

Company says some 70% of the pic will shoot in South Korea, with 30% in the U.S. Klebanoff is skedded to visit the Busan Film Commission on Saturday to finalize the schedule.

Pic is skedded to wrap its Korean shoot on Nov. 20 and continue Stateside until the end of December. Sony is eyeing a May release date in U.S. and June in South Korea. Distribs for Korea and other international territories have not yet been secured.

Companies will hold a press conference with Klebanoff and stars in attendance on Oct. 4, during the Pusan Festival.

[Vash]

Speaking of the Hoff, has anyone seen that new Knight Rider show?

Go to www.hulu.com to check it out.









































It should be used as a form of execution.

[GeneChing]

New 'Beverly Hills Ninja 2' Lawsuit Is a Legal Sequel (Exclusive)
The unfinished sequel to the 1997 Chris Farley comedy kicks off more contractual breach claims.
12:48 PM PST 3/8/2012 by Eriq Gardner

Last year, Mitchell Klebanoff, who co-wrote the original and was tapped to direct the follow-up, won a lawsuit against Korean investors who bought rights to the franchise from Sony. An arbitrator in the dispute determined that the investors hadn't properly terminated him as a director and awarded him nearly $262,000.

Now comes a new lawsuit from Jay So, who says he was contracted by Klebanoff and the Koreans to act as a producer on the film but was stiffed on his own compensation during the development of Ninja 2.

According to So's complaint filed on Wednesday in Los Angeles Superior Court, he graduated from the American Film Institute, was the recipient of a prestigious scholarship, won a best picture award at AFI and produced a suspense thriller entitled Dead in the Water.

In 2007, he says he was introduced to Klebanoff and was hired as producer for an up-front fee of $100,000, a credit, and backend participation in Ninja 2.

Afterwards, So claims that he commenced substantial pre-production efforts and activities, including sourcing potential investors. He says that he was the one who lined up Jungho Han, the Korean who agreed to provide 100 percent of the financing for the project. He adds that he set up the production entitity, "Beverly Hills Ninja 2, LLC," contacted and worked with visual effects and bonding companies to obtain estimates for the film, met with Sony, negotiated waivers with the guilds to start casting, and so forth.

Then, in May 2008, he says that Klebanoff and Han made a deal with each other without his knowledge to change the name of the production entity to "BHN2, LLC" and replace him with Han.

As a result, So inquired about his $100,000. He then had a meeting Han, who allegedly told him that $200,000 had been obtained for the project, and that the money would be going to Klebanoff and Han. So was purportedly refused his fee.

Since that time, So has been going after his money. He says that he sent a formal demand letter in December 2008 for his producer fees. The timing of these details could be of importance as this lawsuit goes forward, as there figures to be some question whether the statute of limitations has passed on So's claims.

Meanwhile, around the time that So was karate-chopped out of the picture, the film experienced some money issues, according to details that were revealed in the earlier Klebanoff lawsuit. The film stopped production in LA, before resuming in Vancouver. Some of the film was shot, but it was never completed because Klebanoff and Han argued over things like whether the film's lead actress should appear nude in the film.

Eventually, Klebanoff was fired, leading to his claims for compensation. Now, So is following up with his own breach of contract and misrepresentation allegations. Represented by Jessica Trotter, So is demanding both compensatory and punitive damages.

E-mail: eriqgardner@yahoo.com
Twitter: @eriqgardner

I actually never saw BHN. Should I? I was never that into Farley's humor.

[Li Kao]

Originally Posted by GeneChing

I actually never saw BHN. Should I? I was never that into Farley's humor.

I liked it but I was a fan of Farley's humor. I think it's a movie that appeals mostly to SNL fans, and if you're a martial arts movie buff, that's a bonus. But despite Robin Shou's appearances, the actual martial arts are pretty weak sauce. If you go into it not expecting to be blown away but just catch a few laughs, you won' t be let down.