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Univision Announces Partnership With Robert Rodriguez’s El Rey Network; ‘Dusk Till Dawn’ TV Series Planned

By DOMINIC PATTEN | Tuesday May 14, 2013 @ 8:38am PDTTags: Big Deals TV, Robert Rodriguez, Univision, Upfront

Looks like Univision saved something extra for their upfront presentation today in NY. Promising “fun, fast-paced entertainment” Univision Networks president Cesar Conde announced that the company has a new partnership with El Rey Network, the upcoming English-language cable network from filmmaker Robert Rodriguez and John Fogelman and Cristina Patwa’s FactoryMade. El Rey is set to launch at the end of the year via Comcast. Univision will be responsible for the back-office operations, sales and distribution of the network. “The El Rey Network is going to be the home of kick-ass entertainment,” said Rodriguez today onstage. The filmmaker said that the first shows from El Rey will be a TV version of his and Quentin Tarantino’s Dusk Till Dawn movie and an as yet unnamed action series developed by Fringe and Star Trek Into Darkness producers Alex Kurtzman and Robert Orci’s K/O Paper Products.

Related: Univision Announces ‘Breaking Bad’ & ‘Gossip Girl’ Adaptations

The network today also announced Va Por Ti, a new singing competition series for Sunday nights. Additionally, Conde said Univision will be showing the award show Premios TyNovelas that will cover Hispanic programming in both Mexico and the U.S. The show will air the same day in the States and Mexico. READ MORE »

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Robert Rodriguez’s El Rey Network Inks Six-Series Deal With Georgeville Television

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Thursday February 28, 2013 @ 12:48pm PSTTags: Comcast, El Rey, Georgeville Television, Robert Rodriguez
Nellie Andreeva

EXCLUSIVE: El Rey, the upcoming Comcast cable network from filmmaker Robert Rodriguez and John Fogelman and Cristina Patwa’s FactoryMade, is looking to make a splash with original scripted series. I have learned that Tres Pistoleros Studios, Rodriguez and FactoryMade’s production company, has signed a mega three-year deal with Reliance’s Georgeville Television that could be worth a quarter of a billion dollars. Under the pact, Georgeville, the independent TV studio formed by Marc Rosen and Motion Picture Capital’s Leon Clarance and Deepak Nayar, will produce a minimum of six 13-episode series for the new network at budgets rumored to be at least $3 million an episode. (UPDATE 14:45 PM: The El Rey-Georgeville TV deal has now been officially announced. You can read the press release under the story.)

With the deal, El Rey hints at its future identity as a scripted player when it launches in January 2014. That is also a direction Oprah Winfrey recently took with her upstart OWN, signing a multi-series pact with Tyler Perry for scripted fare. El Rey is one of three minority-owned new channels Comcast committed to while seeking federal approval for its acquisition of NBC Universal. Of the other two, Magic Johnson’s Aspire, targeting black families, launched last summer, with Sean Combs’ music-oriented Revolt set to unspool in July. The English-language El Rey is targeting the U.S.’ growing Latino audience whose importance is on the rise. Just this month, Spanish-language broadcaster Univision posted its first No.4 in-season sweep finish among adults 18-49, topping NBC. Read More »

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Robert Rodriguez Sued For $11M For Allegedly Bullying Apple Co-Founder Steve Wozniak & Seeking To Stifle Indie Film

By DOMINIC PATTEN | Tuesday January 29, 2013 @ 3:56pm PSTTags: Danny Trejo, Danny Trejo's Vengeance, Robert Rodriguez

Robert Rodriguez was sued today for at least $11 million by an independent producer who claims the Machete Kills director used “threats and intimidation” to damage the film Danny Trejo’s Vengeance and a new Steve Wozniak-endorsed app related to the movie. “Rodriguez feared that the promotion of another film starring Danny Trejo would diminish the Machete Kills brand and would threaten box office numbers and thus set in motion a plan to diminish ITN’s reputation and stifle the success of the film and the App Game,” says the five-count complaint (read it here) from ITN Flix. The company is seeking $11 million in damages plus more to be determined by a jury trial. In a filing in federal court Tuesday in Utah, ITN’s lawyers claim that Rodriguez and Trejo’s longtime talent agent Gloria Hinojosa of Amsel, Eisenstadt & Frazier “bullied, threatened and intimidated all people involved with Film and the App Game to damage sales and sever business relationships.”

As Deadline reported last November, ITN had developed the app Danny Trejo’s Vengeance: Woz With A Coz featuring Apple co-founder Wozniak as a way to promote the movie and create another revenue stream. As well, the company was trying to set up a campaign to promote Danny Trejo’s Vengeance on the marketing coattails of Machete Kills, which Trejo also stars in, by offering an 80-20 split with rival exhibitors of Open Road. Open Road picked up distribution for the Machete sequel in October and plans to release the film September 13, 2013. This is the second Machete Kills lawsuit Rodriguez has to face. In late November, Overnight Productions filed a suit to terminate their agreement with the director to make another movie about the rogue Mexican Federale. It successful, the case would revert all Machete rights back to Oversight and could stop the release of the movie. Read More »

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Eva Green To Star In ‘Sin City: A Dame To Kill For’

By DOMINIC PATTEN | Tuesday January 29, 2013 @ 12:46pm PSTTags: Dimension Films, Eva Green, Robert Rodriguez, Sin City: A Dame To Kill For

Dark Shadows’ star Eva Green has joined the burgeoning cast of  Sin City: A Dame To Kill For. Green will play Ava Lord, the deadly muse from Frank Miller’s graphic novel of the same name … Read More »

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Open Road Sets Date For ‘Machete Kills’

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Tuesday January 15, 2013 @ 12:07pm PSTTags: Danny Trejo, Machete Kills, Open Road Films, Robert Rodriguez

The Robert Rodriguez-directed Machete Kills, the sequel to 2010′s Machete and the second film in a trilogy, will be released September 13, 2013 by Open Road. The distributor acquired the pic in October before … Read More »

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‘Machete’ Producers Sue To Kill Robert Rodriguez’s Sequel

By DOMINIC PATTEN | Tuesday November 20, 2012 @ 6:32pm PSTTags: Big Deals Film, Lawsuit, Machete, Machete Kills, Overnight Productions, Robert Rodriguez

Overnight Productions today said it wants to cut ties with Robert Rodriguez’s Quick Draw Productions over the rights to Machete Kills. If successful, the court action could stop the release of the film – which Open Road acquired for distribution from Quick Draw last month. The complaint filed Tuesday (read it here), the producers of 2010’s Machete are seeking to terminate the April 2012 agreement in which they granted director/producer Rodriguez the rights to make another action movie about the rogue Mexican Federale. The rights would revert back to Rick Schwartz’s Overnight. The plaintiffs are seeking $2 million in damages Read More »

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Open Road Acquires ‘Machete Kills’, The Robert Rodriguez-Danny Trejo Sequel

By MIKE FLEMING JR | Thursday October 18, 2012 @ 3:41pm PDTTags: Danny Trejo, Machete Kills, Open Road, Robert Rodriguez
Mike Fleming

BREAKING: Open Road Films has acquired U.S. distribution rights to Machete Kills, the Robert Rodriguez-directed sequel that brings back Danny Trejo as the blade-savvy former Mexican Federale. Michelle Rodriguez is back, and Sofia Vergara, Amber Heard, Charlie Sheen, Lady Gaga, Antonio Banderas, Jessica Alba, Demian Bichir, Alexa Vega, Vanessa Hudgens, Cuba Gooding Jr, William Sadler, Marko Zaror and Mel Gibson also star. Open Road CEO Tom Ortenberg sealed the deal. Kyle Ward wrote the script based on a story by Marcel Rodriguez and Rodríguez.

This is the second film in what is meant to be a trilogy. Trejo returns as an ex-Federale agent who is recruited by the U.S. president for a mission which would be impossible for any mortal man — he must take down a madman revolutionary and an eccentric billionaire arms dealer who has hatched a plan to spread war and anarchy across the planet. The last film was pure grindhouse, including something I’ve never seen before: Trejo slashed a bad guy in the gut, then unwound his intestines to use them as a rope ladder to crash through a window and land safely on the floor below. That’s a high bar, but here, he has Gibson playing the villain. Read More »

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Charlie Sheen Cast As U.S. President in Robert Rodriguez’s ‘Machete Kills’

By DOMINIC PATTEN | Thursday June 21, 2012 @ 6:20pm PDTTags: Anger Management, Big Deals Film, Charlie Sheen, Machete Kills, Robert Rodriguez

Charlie Sheen announced today that he’s returning to the big screen. The Wall Street star has joined the cast of Robert Rodriguez’s Machete Kills as the President of the United States. While it’s not a big role in … Read More »

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‘Sin City’ Sequel Gets Oct. 4, 2013 Release; Mickey Rourke & Jessica Alba On Board

By DOMINIC PATTEN | Thursday May 17, 2012 @ 12:24pm PDTTags: Cannes Film Festival, Dimension Films, Robert Rodriguez

Sin City Sequel Release DateDimension Films said today that Frank Miller’s Sin City: A Dame To Kill For is coming out October 4, 2013. The recently announced sequel to 2005’s Sin City will be directed by Robert Rodriguez … Read More »

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Mel Gibson To Join ‘Machete Kills’ Mayhem

By MIKE FLEMING JR | Monday April 23, 2012 @ 5:58pm PDTTags: Machete, Mel Gibson, Robert Rodriguez
Mike Fleming

Mel Gibson MacheteEXCLUSIVE: Mel Gibson is now in serious discussions to play a supporting role in Machete Kills, the Robert Rodriguez-directed sequel that will bring Danny Trejo back as the blade-wielding former Federale title character. The film will be … Read More »

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‘Sin City’ Sequel Is A Go For Robert Rodriguez And Frank Miller

By MIKE FLEMING JR | Thursday April 12, 2012 @ 3:00pm PDTTags: Robert Rodriguez
Mike Fleming

This will be welcome news for fans of the stylized and gritty adaptation of Frank Miller’s Sin City that prompted Robert Rodriguez to exit the Directors Guild because the DGA wouldn’t let Miller co-direct the film with Rodriguez. Dimension Films, which released the first, announced that deals have been made … Read More »

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Robert Rodriguez’s Comcast Network Targets Next Generation Of U.S. Latinos

By BRIAN BROOKS | Tuesday February 21, 2012 @ 9:46am PSTTags: Comcast, Factorymade Ventures, John Fogelman, Robert Rodriguez

Robert Rodriguez, P. Diddy, Magic Johnson, Said Schwartz Begin 4 New Minority-Owned Indie Networks With Comcast

Robert Rodriguez, FactoryMade Ventures CEO John Fogelman and Cristina Patwa said they are looking to serve a U.S.-born Latino market they believe is underserved with their El Rey Network. It’s one of four new independent networks Comcast announced today that was selected among more than 100 proposals. As part of the news, the El Rey group announced the formation of Tres Pistoleros, which will develop programming for El Rey, creating content across multiple platforms including reality, scripted and animated series as well as movies, documentaries, music, comedy and sports programming. El Rey will primarily be in English and showcase Hispanic producers, celebrities and public figures. ”What we’re going to offer is not currently out there,” Rodriguez told Deadline. “The majority of the players today are doing a fantastic job serving the first generation [of Latinos in America], and what we want to do is serve their offspring.” The trio said they hope to launch by January 2014. Read More »

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Robert Rodriguez, P. Diddy, Magic Johnson, Said Schwartz Begin 4 New Minority-Owned Indie Networks With Comcast

By NIKKI FINKE, Editor in Chief | Tuesday February 21, 2012 @ 7:11am PSTTags: Comcast, Magic Johnson, Robert Rodriguez

Robert Rodriguez’s Comcast Network Targets Next Generation Of U.S. Latinos

PHILADELPHIA, PA – February 21, 2012 – Comcast Corporation today announced it has selected four new minority-owned independent networks to be broadly distributed on Comcast Cable systems between April

… Read More »

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Robert Rodriguez Wielding ‘Machete Kills’ With AR Films’ Alexander Rodnyansky

By MIKE FLEMING JR | Monday February 6, 2012 @ 5:52pm PSTTags: Alexander Rodnyansky, Danny Trejo, Robert Rodriguez
Mike Fleming

EXCLUSIVE:Robert Rodriguez is teaming with producer Alexander Rodnyansky to hatch a sequel to the 2010 action film Machete. Titled Machete Kills, the film is the second in a planned trilogy with what, for my money, is the best ever trailer … Read More »

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Robert Rodriguez On His ‘Spy Kids’ Stinker

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Wednesday August 17, 2011 @ 10:30pm PDTTags: 4D Aroma-Scope, Robert Rodriguez, Spy Kids 4

Robert Rodriguez took a page from John Waters and used the marketing strategy of billing his fourth installment in the Spy Kids franchise as a “4D” flick by adding scratch-and-sniff scent cards for audiences. It’ll be interesting to see if this add-on “Aroma-Scope” … Read More »

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Spirit Awards Host Joel McHale Joins Seth MacFarlane’s ‘Ted’

By MIKE FLEMING JR | Friday February 25, 2011 @ 9:37am PSTTags: Anna Faris, Jack Black, James Franco, Jessica Alba, Joel McHale, Mark Wahlberg, Mila Kunis, Movie Deals, Movies, Owen Wilson, Robert Rodriguez, Seth MacFarlane, Steve Martin
Mike Fleming

James Franco isn’t the only awards show host this weekend who has bagged a big film role. Joel McHale, who tomorrow hosts the 2011 Film Independent Spirit Awards, is in final negotiations to join Mark Walhberg, Mila Kunis and Seth … Read More »

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Robert Rodriguez Launches Quick Draw

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Monday November 1, 2010 @ 12:07pm PDTTags: Bold Films, Carey Mulligan, Drive, Movie Deals, Movies, OddLot Entertainment, Robert Rodriguez, Ryan Gosling

The company is a partnership between Rodriguez, OddLot Entertainment and Bold Films and will produce and finance action-oriented projects. The partnership is for multiple titles and all films will either be directed … Read More »

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George Clooney’s ‘The American’ Wins Weekend, Robert Rodriguez’s ‘Machete’ #2, Drew Barrymore’s ‘Going The Distance’ #5

By NIKKI FINKE, Editor in Chief | Saturday September 4, 2010 @ 10:31pm PDTTags: Box Office, Danny Trejo, Drew Barrymore, George Clooney, Justin Long, Machete, Robert Rodriguez







SATURDAY PM/SUNDAY AM 3RD UPDATE: Late shows made the difference after a sluggish … Read More »

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Filmmakers Reveal That Hidden ‘Machete’ Message Is Exploitation – Not Immigration

By MIKE FLEMING JR | Friday September 3, 2010 @ 3:07pm PDTTags: Danny Trejo, Machete, Robert Rodriguez, Robert Rodriguez Machete
Mike Fleming

Even though Robert Rodriguez and Danny Trejo launch Machete today amidst an onslaught of press that tries to make the film a lightning rod for debate on immigration, that wasn’t their goal. What they really wanted was to bring back the spirit of exploitation films which seemed to seize on a political issue, only to use it as an excuse to blow shit up and drop in as much nudity and over-the-top violence as they could get away with. Mission accomplished. “This was always about making a what would feel like a good old ’70s exploitation film,” Rodriguez told me. “What they did back in the day was, run out, make an over the top movie that exploited a story in the news so that it felt like it was ripped from the headlines of today, and move faster than studios could. That’s what we did. It was 16 years ago when I met Danny and said I needed to make this movie called Machete, because he looked like this Clint Eastwood type who would not back down from a fight. Immigration is still relevant, nobody has done anything about it, but it’s a smokescreen. The real Machete story underneath was always about an action hero you underestimate, who comes from a violent background, this incorruptible former Federale hiding out as a day laborer.” Read More »

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