LOTR Studio Faces Legal Hurdles over Precious Profits

The Lord of the Rings trilogy made a reported $6 billion worldwide, but the estate of the franchise's creator, J.R.R. Tolkien, claims that they have not gotten their fair cut of the gross profits.Tolkien's estate, a charity known as the Tolkien Trust, along with the books' publisher, HarperCollins, on Monday filed a lawsuit against New Line Cinema, which released the films. The suit claims that the studio was obligated to pay 7.5 percent of gross receipts to the plaintiffs, who are suing for $150 million. Plus, the plaintiffs want the right to put the kibosh on any of New Line's rights to make other films based on Tolkien books, including The Hobbit — for which the studio already has a two-picture prequel in the works. And just when we thought Peter Jackson's squabble with New Line was The Hobbit's only hurdle.... — Anna DimondRelated: • Hobbit Forming: Peter Jackson to Lord Over Prequel

TV GuideNews Feb. 11, 2008 at 11:40 p.m. PT