Entertainment
More Trouble For 'Grace Of Monaco'
More trouble has arisen for Grace of Monaco aka that Nicole Kidman movie that has been almost getting released forever. Harvey Weinstein is considering dropping Grace of Monaco from distribution by the Weinstein Company. The film is set to open the Cannes Film Festival on May 14. The Weinstein Co. has the rights to U.S. distribution of the film meaning that if they drop Grace, it will lose its major distributor only two weeks before the start of the festival.
According to Variety, "Weinstein is still unsatisfied with the version of the film that the Cannes jury selected to open the festival." This is no doubt the result of ongoing disagreements between Weinstein and the film's director Olivier Dahan. Reportedly, Weinstein would like more of the movie devoted to Grace Kelly's time in Hollywood and more context for Monaco's political situation. Dahan, on the other hand, has made it clear that his version of the film is complete.
These differing opinions have caused problems for the movie in the past. The film was original set to be released in November 2013. This was changed to March 2014 before being taken off the release calendar altogether so that it could premiere at Cannes. Dahan said around the time of the first premiere date change, "It’s right to struggle, but when you confront an American distributor like Weinstein, not to name names, there is not much you can do. There are two versions of the film for now: mine and his … which I find catastrophic."
Dahan makes a good point. Having Weinstein back your film in the U.S. is huge, so it's a tough situation to work with from his point of view. Do you give in or keep your vision? It sounds like Dahan went with the latter option and now faces the prospect of Weinstein dropping the film or two versions being released.
Because of a France's droit d’auteur, Dahan, who is French, is "legally entitled to the final cut" of his film. Grace of Monaco's producers are reportedly open to a Weinstein-approved version being released in the U.S. with Dahan's version going forward in other markets. This situation added to the released being pushed back not once, but twice and the uninspiring trailer is not a good sign for success.
The Weinstein Company's decision is expected to be made later this week.
