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Paramount averts delay to ‘Transformers’ opening in China

Issues over sponsorship agreement with Chinese investment company resolved

A 21-foot tall model of the Transformers character Optimus Prime is displayed on the red carpet before the world premiere of Transformers: Age of Extinction in Hong Kong
A 21-foot tall model of the Transformers character Optimus Prime is displayed on the red carpet before the world premiere of Transformers: Age of Extinction in Hong Kong
Mon Jun 23 2014 - 13:02

Paramount Pictures reached an agreement with a Chinese investment company that had threatened to delay the June 27th release of its film Transformers: Age of Extinction in China.

Paramount and Beijing Pangu Investment resolved the issues that led to a misunderstanding, Rob Moore, vice chairman at the Los Angeles-based studio, said in Beijing today, without providing details.

"Working with Pangu was fantastic and I want to put all this misunderstanding aside," Michael Bay, director of the fourth movie in the Transformers series, said at the briefing. Beijing Pangu, owner of Pangu Plaza, last week accused Paramount of failing to live up to a sponsorship accord and asked China's film regulator to delay or block the movie, which is scheduled for worldwide release this week.

The film, which features Mark Wahlberg, is predicted to rank among the biggest- grossing of the year with US ticket revenue projected at $265 million by BoxOffice.com. “

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We've moved on," said Norman Sung, general manager of Pangu Hotel. "We are looking forward to Transformers becoming a big hit in the China market." Paramount's parent Viacom, controlled by billionaire Sumner Redstone, fell 1.4 per cent to $85.76 in New York on June 20th. Bloomberg