‘The Blair Witch Project’ Cast Ask Lionsgate For Retroactive Residuals and ‘Meaningful Consultation’ on Future Projects

variety.com:

Adam B. Vary Senior Entertainment Writer Heather Donahue, Joshua Leonard and Michael Williams, stars of the seminal horror film “The Blair Witch Project,” released a public letter to Lionsgate on Saturday asking for more robust compensation for their work on the 1999 blockbuster, as well as “meaningful consultation” on any future “Blair Witch” projects that use their names or likenesses.

The statement comes 10 days after Lionsgate and Blumhouse announced they plan to revive the franchise with a new movie that would provide, in the words of Lionsgate Motion Picture Group chair Adam Fogelson, “new vision for ‘Blair Witch’ that will reintroduce this horror classic for a new generation.” Lionsgate did not produce or distribute the original 1999 film.

It acquired the property through its 2003 buyout of independent film distributor Artisan Entertainment. The Lionsgate-Blumhouse announcement sparked a strongly worded response via social media from Leonard, who said that no one had contacted him or his costars about the project in advance. “At this point, it’s 25 years of disrespect from the folks who’ve pocketed the lion’s share (pun intended) of the profits from OUR work, and that feels both icky and classless,” Leonard wrote.

Leonard said that the actors — who shot and improvised the independent movie over roughly a week on a shoestring budget, using their real names for their characters — each made $300,000 from a buyout of their ownership points on the film, which went on to gross $248 million worldwide.