(2004) Tags: New Line
BENDER-SPINK INC. v. FILMENGINE ENTERTAINMENT LLC ET AL
In or about 2003, Benderspink and FilmEngine produced the motion picture The Butterfly Effect starring Ashton Kutcher. Defendants agreed to pay Benderspink fifty percent (50%) of all ‘Net Profits’ derived from the exploitation of the Picture and all ancillary, subsidiary and derivative rights therein on a worldwide basis.
For years, Defendants repeatedly assured Benderspink that The Butterfly Effect was still in the red, and therefore no payment was due or owing to Benderspink. In or about 2012, Benderspink learned from a third party that Defendants had completed an audit of the movie’s distributor and received a substantial payment from the domestic distributor that put The Butterfly Effect in the black.
After learning of the Audit Settlement Payment, Benderspink contacted Defendants and requested a profit participation report and payment of all monies owed to it. For more than one year, Defendants stonewalled Benderspink’s numerous requests for a participation report.
Finally, in or about January 2014, FilmEngine provided Benderspink its first participation statement for The Butterfly Effect. The Participation Statement consisted of a one-page top sheet that indicated the movie was not profitable. The Participation Statement contained absolutely no backup material or supporting documents that explained how the film could still be in the red.
Benderspink requested that Defendants provide it the books and records necessary to perform an accounting. These requests have been ignored by Defendants.
Judgment: Plaintiff dismissed the complaint after a SETTLEMENT was reached.