New York Post

No Hollywood ending near for Weinstein Co.

- By RICHARD MORGAN and JOSH KOSMAN rmorgan@nypost.com

The Weinstein Co. may soon be turning the page to Chapter 11.

Sources close to the embattled Hollywood studio co-founded by Harvey Weinstein said Thursday that a deeppocket­ed hedge fund will decide early next week whether to throw it a lifeline — or possibly let it file for bankruptcy.

In addition to a $35 million bridge loan that would save the Weinstein Co. from going under, Fortress Investment Group is considerin­g extending a debtor-in-possession loan in a prospectiv­e bankruptcy scenario, a source close to the situation said.

Deadline.com reported Wednesday that Fortress, an investment firm, was on “the 1-yard line” about providing a loan that would keep Weinstein Co. afloat through the rest of the year.

Other sources, however, called that characteri­zation overly optimistic, with one asserting to The Post that a deal wasn’ t even yet within field-goal range.

On Wednesday, the Weinstein Co.’s exclusive talks to sell part or all of its business to Colony Capital, the fund controlled by billionair­e Trump backer Thomas Bar rack, ended without a deal.

Sources note the Weinstein Co. was in bad financial shape well before last month, when co-founder Harvey We instein was accused of sexual harassment and worse by dozens of women.

Those accusation­s played a big role in the breakdown of talks with Colony. Although Harvey W einstein has been booted from the company, his 23 percent stake in the studio could deliver substantia­l profits should it be sold.

“No one is interested in salvaging a company which would benefit Harvey ,” Barrack said on Bloomberg TV.

Aside from bad publicity, any prebankrup­tcy buyer of the Weinstein Co. could face contingent liabilitie­s from lawsuits filed by alleged victims of Weinstein during his 12-year reign.

But the same buyer could avoid all or most of those liabilitie­s, sources said, by waiting until the Weinstein Co. seeks bankruptcy protection.

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from United States