Relativity sees gains, faces pains

Relativity's "Immortals" makes $77 million in your area. The departure the other day of John Edwards as Relativity Media's chief operating officer has fueled a completely new round of speculation about financial strain and management worries at Ryan Kavanaugh's company (Daily Variety, 12 ,. 9).But behind all the drama, Relativity will conclude its newbie just like a soup-to-nuts film production-distribution entity having a couple of notable accomplishments, and intends to sit in new details for next season. Relativity ranks No. 3 among indies in domestic B.O. for your year, with $225.4 million and counting. That puts it behind only Summit Entertainment which is "Twilight" juggernaut ($383.9 million), as well as the Weinstein Co. ($283.6 000 0000, fueled by "The King's Speech"), and outpacing such established players as Lionsgate.Relativity appeared to be the sole real indie to own two No. 1 openers this year, with "Limitless" and "Immortals."According to people familiar with Relativity's financials, all the photos the studio oversaw from production through to distribution have either made money or broken even, including "Immortals," its first tentpole, which has made $77 million domestic since opening Stateside on November. 11. Although not really a massive hit, the pic's performance has exceeded Relativity's anticipation and pressed Tarsem Singh's 3d sword-and-sandals epic near the black, sources say.The initial pic Relativity distribbed, "Season in the Witch," bowed noisy . The month of the month of january and assigned out just missing $25 million domestic.B.O. aside, there's without doubt the organization has experienced growing pains inside the 18 several days since it acquired the distribution assets of Liberty Media's Overture Films, the sale that put Relativity on the path to small-major status in enabling it to distribute a unique photos.Edwards' exit marks the fifth high-level professional disappear Relativity formerly year. And there's no secrete inside the biz that Relativity's talks for financing with JP Morgan have began to some halt (Daily Variety, November. 11). Kavanaugh happen to be relationship JP Morgan to switch its primary investor Elliot Management. Elliot, the NY-based hedge fund that aided get Relativity in the groundmostly by backing its co-financing handles Universal, is searching to reduce its ties to Relativity, which feeling is mutual.With funding sources in flux, Relativity has not remarkably been modifying its its plans for 2012. Part of the reason Edwards left, affiliates say, is always that Relativity's scaling-back and Kavanaugh's hands-on style left him lacking the necessary to accomplish. Edwards only agreed to be with Relativity for five several days before he chosen revisit the job he left, as COO of Mark Burnett Prods. "I desired to follow along with my heart, which was in operating with Mark (Burnett)," Edwards told Variety.Relativity was already searching for any new COO, though having its next release being the acquisition "Act of Valor" in February, there's not immense pressure to discover a alternative. Studio affiliates say Kavanaugh is making changes being more fiscally responsible and tailor their corporate must its approaching slate.Relativity has seven releases searching for next season, including inhouse productions "Haywire," "Mirror Mirror," "Raven" and "21 as well as overInch plus purchases, including "Act of Valor," "House within the Finish in the Street" plus an untitled comedy. Contact Rob Sneider at rob.sneider@variety.com