Dutch producer John De Mol is resurrecting the legendary British horror studio Hammer Film Prods. Mol's private equity company Cyrte Investments has bought the rights to the approximately 300 Hammer library titles for $50 million. Former Liberty Global execs Simon Oakes and Marc Schipper have been hired to run the new Hammer Studios.
"Hammer is a great British media brand that has lain dormant but lived on in people's imaginations. It is more intelligent and character-driven than traditional American 'goreography' and we intend to capitalize on this and make it a global brand," Oakes said.
L.A.-based Spitfire Pictures' Guy East and Nigel Sinclair have joined the Hammer board. They plan to produce two to three horror or thriller films per year for Hammer.
The new Hammer films will also engage in TV productions.
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