Indie Movie Producer Wonderfilm Sued by ‘Hard Matter’ Partner For Breach of Contract

Winston Cho
·3 min read
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Indie production shop The Exchange, also known as BOS Entertainment, is suing Wonderfilm for breach of contract related to their partnership on Harvey Keitel and Tyrese Gibson-starrer Hard Matter, which appears to be stuck in limbo for failure to pay a visual effects vendor.

The lawsuit filed on Tuesday in California federal court arrives in the wake of an investor in the movie — which was allegedly led to believe it was financing a Mel Gibson-led film only for the project to never get finished due to a lack of funds — accusing Wonderfilm of swindling it out of more than $5 million. The Exchange, in turn, is looking to distance itself from the company and Wonderfilm principals Bret Saxon and Jeff Bowler. It claims that it had no part in the alleged scheme and that it was defrauded since Wonderfilm failed to secure insurance for the movie.

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The Exchange seeks an order from the court requiring Wonderfilm to cover its liability if it’s forced to pay damages in connection to the alleged fraud on top of damages and attorney fees to cover the costs of litigation.

Investor Gridiron Productions last month sued Wonderfilm for fraud, claiming Saxon and Bowler changed the terms of contracts to pay themselves exorbitant salaries on top of exaggerating the budget for Hard Matter, with the goal of making it for less and pocketing the difference. The Exchange, which was named in the complaint, was accused of closing “secret business arrangements or dealings” with Bowler by way of his position as head of acquisitions for the company.

In a filing responding to allegations in the complaint, The Exchange denied allegations that Saxon and Bowler are employed by the company and that it helped them defraud or embezzle funds from Gridiron.

The production shop says that its role with respect to Hard Matter was limited to marketing the movie for sale and that it had “no formal relationship” with Wonderfilm, according to the complaint.

Among the allegations from Gridiron was that Wonderfilm tanked the prospects for obtaining distribution for Hard Matter by “secretly taking so much money out of the film,” pointing to vendors refusing to complete sound and visual effects work due to outstanding invoices. VFX company Tunnel Post has refused to turn over the movie until it’s paid $35,000, the lawsuit said.

The Exchange says that it was asked by Wonderfilm to pay Tunnel Post but that Gridiron ultimately instructed the company not to pay the balance.

Bowler told The Hollywood Reporter that the film is “sitting idle” at the end of post-production until the payment is authorized. Lionsgate has offered domestic distribution for $500,000, according to the complaint filed by Gridiron.

The Exchange argues that it doesn’t owe damages to Gridiron because Wonderfilm was the “sole and proximate cause” of the alleged fraud, among several other defenses.

Wonderfilm has produced titles like Nicolas Cage-starrer Primal, Frank Grillo sports drama Lamborghini, White Elephant, starring Bruce Willis and John Malkovich, and Hard Matter, featuring Keitel. Before the company was formed in 2021, Saxon and Bowler were credited as producers on Woody Harrelson-starrer The Grand, animated feature Sky Force and Shirley MacLaine movie Wild Oats, among other titles. Saxon has been named in several other lawsuits for alleged fraud.

A lawyer for Wonderfilm, Saxon and Bowler didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

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