![]() ![]() He begins to write down his pimping style raps, his flow, in a little notebook while Nola is turning tricks. While playing the keys, DJay gets an inspiration to write rap music. A bum trades him a Casio keyboard for some weed, and DJay takes it home. DJay feels that he has hit rock bottom, and he needs a change in his life. The utility company is about to shut off their utilities, if they don't pay the bill. Even with two girls working and DJay selling dirt-weed on the side, it is hard for them to make ends meet. If Singleton convinces a judge and/or jury that his interpretation of the contract is correct, the studio will argue that he’s only entitled to about $400,000 in director and producer fees for the two unproduced films.DJay (Terrence Howard) is a streetwise hustler and Memphis pimp with a stable of 3 girls, Shug (Taraji Henson) who is pregnant and not working, Lexus (Paula Jai Parker) who works in a strip club, and Nola (Taryn Manning) who works out of DJay's old beat-up car in a back alley. Paramount intends to dispute that Singleton is entitled to anything close to this amount. ![]() Singleton wants a jury to award him the additional $1 million he could have gotten from New Line, his producer and director fees, plus what he believes is the significant value of having two “puts” and more film credits to his name. The studio, represented by litigator Richard Kendall, hopes the key piece of evidence will be written notes from Barnes purporting to show Singleton’s side knew about the expectation of a deadline.Įven if the case proceeds only on the issue of whether Paramount breached a contract, Singer says, “We believe our damage claims will be worth several millions of dollars.” If the tentative order is adopted, a trial will be limited to Singleton’s claims that Paramount has breached contract and breached an implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing.Īmong the witnesses that Singleton intends to call for trial testimony are his transactional lawyers Stephen Barnes and Lawrence Kopeikin his former agents Jeremy Barber, Richard Klubeck and Jeremy Zimmer at UTA his current agent Philip Raskind at WME and Tracy Morgan’s agent Kevin Volchok.Īmong the current and former Paramount/MTV execs who Singleton wants on the witness stand are Grey, Freston, Daniel Ferleger and Jeffrey Freedman in the business and legal affairs dept., Paramount outside counsel Robert Wyman, Lee Rosenthal, Rob Moore, Carmen Desiderio, John Lesher, Nick Meyer, Rob Friedman (now at Lionsgate) and others.ĭuring the first phase of trial, Paramount will attempt to get a judge to interpret the contract and the understanding between the studio and Singleton. (The judge has also indicated she will dismiss Singleton’s unjust enrichment claim.) On Thursday, Singleton lawyer Marty Singer will attempt to change the judge’s mind by arguing that it is standard practice in the entertainment industry to expressly address rescission in a contract if that’s what the parties intended. Paramount argues this bars Singleton from attempting to unwind the Hustle and Flow deal. The judge is leaning towards accepting Paramount’s view that a waiver in the contract expressly limited Singleton’s right to pursue any equitable remedies, including an injunction, as relief for any dispute over the contract. STORY: Paramount Asks Judge to Toss John Singleton’s Fraud Claim in ‘Hustle and Flow’ Lawsuit And in advance of a hearing on Thursday, Hogue also has issued a tentative ruling throwing out Singelton’s rescission claim. On the road to trial, Los Angeles Superior Court judge Amy Hogue tossed Singelton’s fraud claim because the director hadn’t made sufficient allegations to support the notion that when the 2005 contract was put together, Paramount intended to trick or deceive him. ![]() Singleton says there weren’t any contractual obligations that the work be completed by that date, and that Paramount really just wanted out. According to Paramount, Singleton had an obligation to deliver two pictures by a Jan. The parties disagree why these movies didn’t happen. One of those films was going to be a concert film featuring Tracy Morgan and directed by Spike Lee. Ultimately, the two additional features didn’t work out. Singleton says he took the lower amount for the Craig Brewer-directed film because Paramount promised to “put” two additional features as long as their budgets didn’t exceed $3.5 million each and his producing fee wasn’t higher than 7.5 percent. Singleton and his Crunk Pictures allege that in 2005, Hustle and Flow was a hot commodity, and that he passed on a $10 million advance offered by New Line to accept a $9 million deal with Paramount. ![]() However, in the lead-up to this trial, Paramount has scored some victories and may be on the verge of significantly limiting a lawsuit that originally sought $20 million in damages. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |