EPIX Acquires U.S. Rights to Documentary Exploring Life of Director John Milius

EPIX, premium entertainment network, announced today the acquisition of U.S. rights to the new documentary Milius which will be screened at the 2013 Telluride Film Festival. The EPIX Original Documentary, which will premiere on EPIX and all platforms including EpixHD.com and on EPIX apps, examines the life story of one of the most influential and controversial film directors in the history of Hollywood, John Milius, and his fall from Hollywood grace despite his legendary work.

Milius' work includes infamous films such as "Apocalypse Now", "Jaws", "Conan The Barbarian", "Dirty Harry" and "Red Dawn" but he ultimately faced dismissal from Hollywood due to his radical beliefs and controversial behavior. He was a mentor to filmmaking greats including George Lucas and Steven Spielberg and had a profoundly positive impact on their career, and yet he began to find it increasingly difficult to get his projects made due to violence and fallout from Red Dawn. The documentary explores whether the persona of "Milius" - the gun slinging, anti-Hollywood conservative - may have completely overshadowed "John", the acclaimed writer and director. Are his best years behind him? Or is his final chapter going to redefine what the world, and the movie industry, thinks of John Frederick Milius?

The film includes in depth interviews with Milius himself and others such as Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Francis Ford Coppola, Harrison Ford, Michael Mann, Robert Zemeckis, Oliver Stone, Bryan Singer, Charlie Sheen, Matthew Weiner and more.

"Milius is the fascinating story about a major character in Hollywood who brought some of the most influential films to light, and yet whose polarizing personality led to his obscurity. It will be a tremendous addition to the EPIX Docs slate and we're pleased to premiere it on all platforms our viewers will want to watch it," said Mark Greenberg, EPIX President and CEO.

"We made a documentary that highlights the trials and tribulations of one of Hollywood's biggest living influencers, whose pipeline of directing work stalled but who remains very much an icon. We are thrilled to work with EPIX to give people a first hand view of Milius' work and the ending to his career which has yet to be written," said Zak Knutson and Joey Figueroa, Directors and Co-Founders of Chop Shop Entertainment.

About EPIX

EPIX is the newest premium entertainment network delivering the latest movie releases, classic library titles, plus original films, comedy, music and sports events on TV, on demand, online and on devices. Launched October 2009 as the first multiplatform premium network with online accessibility for subscribers through EpixHD.com, EPIX pioneered the development and proliferation of TV Everywhere for American consumers. EPIX was the first premium network to launch on Xbox consoles, first on Android tablets and phones, first on Roku players and is available to authenticated subscribers on hundreds of devices including Apple iPads, iPhones, Samsung Smart TVs and Blu-ray players and more. Today EPIX remains the only premium service providing its entire monthly line-up from new Hollywood hits to original programs on all platforms and provides more movies than any other premium network.

EPIX is a joint venture between Viacom Inc. (VIA and VIA.B), its Paramount Pictures unit, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (MGM) and Lionsgate (NYSE: LGF), available to over 30 million homes nationwide through distribution partners including Charter Communications, Cox Communications, DISH Network, Mediacom Communications, NCTC, Suddenlink Communications and Verizon FiOS.

For more information about EPIX, go to www.EpixHD.com. Follow EPIX on Twitter @EpixHD and on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/EPIX.

To post a comment, you must register and login.