News > Warner Brothers Absorbs New Line

Written by David Morgan

New Line Cinema, as it has come to be known, is no more. Warner Brothers has absorbed it, and will continue to use it as a small genre arm for comedies, horror films, and "urban films," the supposedly PC term for movies that appeal to African Americans. The vast majority of the 600-person staff will be laid off, though no numbers have been specifically mentioned. One thing is for sure, Bob Shaye, who founded the company forty years ago, will not be remaining.

Variety has a great description of the company's history, an obituary if you will, that's worth reading. It touches on the beginning of the company before getting into the small films that gave New Line some prominence, to the heyday of the company when Lord of the Rings made them billions and billions of dollars, to the lawsuits that followed.

The good news is that Warner Brothers will probably still release all of the films that New Line had been producing. In fact, this weekend's Semi-Pro will mark the last of the non-WB-distributed New Line films. Yes, New Line brought us The Lord of the Rings, Austin Powers, Friday the 13th, A Nightmare on Elm Street, Rush Hour, The Mask, Boogie Nights, but I'll always remember those spinning film strips (I originally thought they were ladders) from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Feel free to express your grief below.