Lionsgate Re-Ups With Grindstone Entertainment; New Deal Includes Mel Gibson Pic ‘Force Of Nature’, Gerard Butler’s ‘Hair Of The Dog’ & More

Anthony D'Alessandro
·2 min read

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Building on their 12-year partnership, Lionsgate and Grindstone Entertainment Group are entering into a new multiyear agreement.

Grindstone, led by President and CEO Barry Brooker and principal Stan Wertlieb, has delivered a slate of star-driven features, prime for today’s fast-growing multiplatform streaming space. The new agreement includes such movies as the action thriller Force of Nature, starring Mel Gibson, Emile Hirsch and Kate Bosworth, the thriller Rogue, starring Transformers’ Megan Fox, the comedy Guest House, starring Pauly Shore, Aimee Teegarden, Mike Castle and Steve-O, and the thriller Hair of the Dog, starring Olympus Has Fallen’s Gerard Butler. During Grindstone’s run with Lionsgate, and counting their future projects, the label has amassed a 500-title catalog. The Grindstone management team of Brooker and Wertlieb have worked together for over 20 years.

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“This extension continues a longstanding and mutually beneficial relationship for both our companies,” said Lionsgate Worldwide Home Entertainment President Ron Schwartz. “Barry and Stan are the best in the business and have built Grindstone into a home for great talent, exciting properties and a source of consistent profitability. We look forward to expanding our partnership with one of the most innovative and recognizable brands in the multiplatform streaming space.”

“Lionsgate provides an amazing global content platform for our films, and we look forward to extending and expanding our long and successful collaboration with Ron and his world-class team,” said Brooker and Wertlieb. “Our relationships with leading producers, filmmakers and stars continues to drive our ability to distinguish ourselves as innovators in the current streaming environment, and we will continue to pivot to take advantage of the marketplace. We will also continue to pursue a more global approach to our business as we work strategically with top content creators around the world.”

Recent Grindstone successes include the last two installments of the Escape Plan franchise, Escape Plan 2: Hades and Escape Plan 3: The Extractors, starring Sylvester Stallone, Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson and Dave Bautista, and the George Gallo-Francesco Cinquemani thriller The Poison Rose, starring John Travolta, Morgan Freeman, Famke Janssen and Brendan Fraser.

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