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Pirates chase Bridget Jones

September 03, 2004 13:10 IST
Film pirates have reportedly offered $10 million for a perfect copy of Edge of Reason, part two of the Bridget Jones movie, starring Renee Zellweger, Hugh Grant, Colin Firth and Jim Broadbent, says the BBC.

The movie, expected to be among the season's blockbusters, will be released November 9.

'A blockbuster film of the calibre of Bridget Jones will be targeted extensively by organised crime gangs and we would anticipate considerable interest among film pirates,' the BBC quoted the Federation Against Copyright Theft, or FACT, as saying.

The Rediff Review:  Bridget Jones's Diary 

The movie, which picks up the story four weeks after the first part ended, could take more than $200

million at the box office, the BBC said.

But moves by organized crime syndicates to copy the movie before its release could be hugely lucrative -- and could also be disastrous for the studio, it added.

While unwilling to comment on reports that pirates have offered nearly $10 million for a copy of the movie, the production company Working Title (Four Weddings and a Funeral, Notting Hill, Bridget Jones' Diary) told the BBC that 'We are aware that significant sums of money are being offered for any early material on the movie. Security is something we take very, very seriously. We are looking at all sorts of measures to tackle global piracy.'

Unconfirmed reports said world-renowned risk consultants Kroll had been hired to protect the movie from being copied before its release.

 

rediff Entertainment Bureau