Peter Jackson Banned From New Line Work

Robert Shaye, New Line's head honcho, said as far as he's concerned, the director that made his studio a lot of money with the Lord of the Rings films will never set foot on his lot again, not while he's in charge.

The reason? Shaye is quite unhappy that Jackson had the audacity to sue the studio for what he believes are profits that were held from him in the distribution of the first LOTR film, "The Fellowship of the Ring."

"I do not want to make a movie with somebody who is suing me," Shaye told SciFi Wire. "It will never happen during my watch."

It's the first time someone from New Line has officially commented on Jackson's involvement with "The Hobbit," which Jackson has previously said he won't do while the lawsuit against New Line continues, and the feeling obviously is mutual. Shaye didn't necessarily intend to talk about the Jackson situation, as he was reportedly chatting with SciFi Wire about Shaye's new film, "The Last Mimzy," which marks the first time he's directed a movie since 1990.

"There's a kind of arrogance," Shaye said. "Not that I don't think Peter is a good filmmaker and that he hasn't contributed significantly to filmography and made three very good movies. And I don't even expect him to say 'thank you' for having me make it happen and having New Line make it happen. But to think that I, as a functionary in [a] company that has been around for a long time, but is now owned by a very big conglomerate, would care one bit about trying to cheat the guy ... he's either had very poor counsel or is completely misinformed and myopic to think that I care whether I give him" anything.

Shaye added that Jackson has pocketed some $250 million already from the trilogy, and that the lawsuit came about without Jackson ever even trying to discuss his concerns with the studio first. And now, with Jackson unhappy and the flap between the two parties getting a lot of extra attention, many of the actors from the trilogy are apparently uninterested in helping New Line celebrate its upcoming 40th anniversary.

"I'm incredibly offended," Shaye said. "I don't care about Peter Jackson anymore. He wants to have another $100 million or $50 million, whatever he's suing us for. He doesn't want to sit down and talk about it. He thinks that we owe him something after we've paid him over a quarter of a billion dollars. Cheers, Peter."

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