Blair Witch Project star Joshua Leonard slammed Lionsgate for “25 years of disrespect” after it was announced that a reboot of the iconic 1999 film is in the works.
Leonard, 48, who used his real name in the found footage horror film, slammed Lionsgate. instagram and accused the production company of ignoring his request for a charity screening of the film.
He wrote: ‘GO PUBLIC with this and I would appreciate the amplification!’ with screenshots of the news with images of her and his co-stars.
“So this is MY face on a press release for a movie made by two big studios, I’ve worked for both, I respect them both,” he wrote. ‘The STRANGE thing is that I didn’t know anything about it until a friend sent me a “congratulations” screenshot yesterday.
“My frustration is compounded because I’ve been trying to get @lionsgate to participate for over a month in a BWP benefit screening I’m hosting for @opositivefest to raise money for medically underserved artists, and NO ONE will come back to me.
Blair Witch Project star Joshua Leonard slammed Lionsgate for “25 years of disrespect” after it was announced that a reboot of the iconic 1999 film is in the works.
Leonard said the announcement came after “NO ONE will contact me” at Lionsgate in their attempts to organize a Blair Witch benefit screening for O Positive Fest.
“And yes, I’ve been thinking a lot about this moment, after seeing my BWP collaborators recently and sharing memories… sweet AND fucked up,” Leonard added.
Written and directed by Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sánchez, the film followed three college filmmakers (Leonard, Heather Donahue, and Michael Williams) in the woods of Burkittsville, Maryland, as they investigated the local myth of the titular witch.
When the film was first marketed as a true story about three children who went missing, its viral success led many to believe that Leonard, Donahue, 49, and Williams, 50, had actually died.
Donahue even had to issue a statement to the New York Times that she was still alive after someone marked her as deceased on IMDb, which negatively affected her career.
Leonard went on to claim that after the film’s original distributor, Artisan, boasted of having “the most profitable independent film in history,” they told the cast that they were “actually losing money on marketing expenses… because which WE could end up owing them dollars.”
The Blair Witch Project It earned $248 million worldwide. with a budget of $60,000 after Artisan bought the rights for less than 2 million dollars.
And because they used their real names in the film, Leonard wrote that “the studio claimed copyright” and added, “We had to take them to federal court to get OUR NAMES back.”
Leonard explained that although it was previously reported that they were paid $4 million in the lawsuit, they actually only received $300,000 “and NEVER saw a cent more.”
“After buying a car and paying off his student loans, Mike returned to moving furniture within 12 months of launching, while still appearing on magazine covers,” he added.
Leonard went on to claim that after the film’s original distributor, Artisan, boasted of having “the most profitable independent film of all time,” they told the cast that they were “actually losing money on marketing expenses… so WE could end up owing them $.”
And because they used their real names in the film, Leonard wrote that “the studio claimed the copyright,” adding, “We had to take them to federal court to get OUR NAMES back.”
Leonard explained that although it was previously reported that they were paid $4 million in the lawsuit, they actually only received $300,000 “and NEVER saw a cent more.”
‘There were many factors that made BWP a success: timing, marketing, etc. But there was also the FACT that we weirdos got together, with virtually no resources, AND MADE A MOVIE THAT WORKED! Can we just go on the record and say that the movie itself is a big part of why we’re still talking about it 25 years later?
Leonard continued, “I’m so proud of our little punk-rock movie and I LOVE the fans who keep the flames burning.” But at this point, it’s 25 years of disrespect from the people who have pocketed the lion’s share (pun intended) of the profits from OUR work, and that feels disgusting and classless.’
DailyMail.com has contacted Lionsgate for comment.
Donahue, who changed her name to Rei Hance since making the film, shared the post on her Instagram Story in support.
Williams also shared her story, writing: ‘Y’all wanna see some shit? @thejoshualeonard @reihance love you guys.’
Leonard’s post comes after Blumhouse producer Jason Blum (Paranormal Activity, Halloween Ends, Five Nights at Freddy’s) announced Wednesday at CinemaCon that he is teaming up with Lionsgate for a ‘new generation’ of Blair Witch.
“That’s 25 years of disrespect from the people who have pocketed the lion’s share (pun intended) of the profits from OUR work, and that feels disgusting and classless,” Leonard added.
Following a poorly received sequel to Artisan in 2000, Lionsgate released another sequel in 2016, which garnered mixed reviews.
“I’m a big fan of The Blair Witch Project, which brought the idea of found footage horror to the general public and became a true cultural phenomenon,” he said.
“I don’t think there would have been Paranormal Activity if there hadn’t been a Blair Witch first,” Blum, 55, added. “So this seems like a really special opportunity and I’m excited to see where it leads.”
It was followed by Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2 in 2000, which received negative reviews from critics and grossed a worldwide total of $47.7 million.
In 2016, Blair Witch was released, which follows Heather Donahue’s brother John.
He decides to return to Burkittsville, although this time the film was shot in Canada instead of Maryland, after discovering footage from the original film.