X-Men Origins: Wolverine Series of Movies

[knowles2]

it a pretty good film, even without all of the special effects.

Thanks to the bloke/women who leaked it.

[daniel9]

"The courts have handed down significant criminal sentences for such acts" the studio noted.

Both the FBI and the Motion Picture Association of America are "actively investigating" the crime.

The film is not due for release until 29 April in the UK and 1 May in the US.

Fox called the leaked movie a "stolen, incomplete and early version".

Viewers reported that green screens and wires attached to actors were still visible.

One user wrote on film website aintitcool.com: "The CGI is missing and the movie looks horrible without it. Even if you see the workprint you're still going to have to go see it in the theatre to fully experience the full movie with CGI effects fully intact."

Fox confirmed the film "was without many effects and had missing scenes and temporary sound and music."

A statement from the studio said that once the film was discovered online they "immediately contacted the appropriate legal authorities and had it removed".

The studio added that because their content is forensically marked they should be able to trace the person who uploaded it.

A brief caption at the beginning of the film reads 'Rising Sun Pictures' and is dated 2 March, 2009.

According to its website, Rising Sun Pictures is an Australian visual effects company that worked on the film and is currently working on production of Terminator Salvation.

However, there is no evidence to suggest the company was involved in the leak.
The film features many special effects, not all of which are in the leaked copy

The Federation Against Copyright Theft said a leak of this kind was extremely unusual as pre-release security had been tightened in recent years.

Access to a whole film is severely restricted, with post production workers being given small portions of the movie to work on and measures put in place to stop it being copied on to disc.

Spokesperson Eddy Leviten explained: "No-one working on a film in any capacity wants to see their hard work released through illegal means - piracy is not a fun thing."


Although several reviews of the incomplete film have appeared online, Fox was quick to praise the reaction of web users to the leak.

"We are encouraged by the support of fansites condemning piracy and this illegal posting and pointing out that such theft undermines the enormous efforts of the filmmakers and actors and, above all, hurts fans of the film" the studio said.

In 2007 director Eli Roth blamed an online leak of his horror film Hostel: Part II for reducing box office returns.

In an interview with MTV he claimed: "You could buy Hostel: Part II for a quarter in Mexico City. As a result, in a lot of countries where the piracy was bad, they just didn't even release it."

The leak came as a new campaign against film piracy launched in UK cinemas.

In a change from recent years, the adverts move away from the message that piracy is theft.

Audiences will instead see a trailer, fronted by Dr Who actor Noel Clarke, thanking them for paying to come and watch a film.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7978379.stm

[daniel9]

The FBI have already raided the datacenter of NN Fibernet and confiscated multiple HD's / servers in conjunction with this leak

[Gregorius]

The FBI have already raided the datacenter of NN Fibernet and confiscated multiple HD's / servers in conjunction with this leak

Like that'll help. It already hit the major outlets and due to the Streisand effect it'll be spread faster than a wildfire in a very dry area. Besides, those servers were probably cracked and rooted to be used as bouncers and distro hubs.

Also, why on Earth is the FBI investigating something as unimportant as a film leak? Shouldn't they be investigating those lovely people on Wall Street?

A statement from the studio said that once the film was discovered online they "immediately contacted the appropriate legal authorities and had it removed".

Bull****. Once it's out there it's nigh impossible to remove it.

Anyway, short summary of what probably happened for the interested: It's kinda like with The Ark of Truth, an unfinished internal version of the film was stolen/leaked from the special effects studio.

[the fifth man]

I wasn't surprised at all when I heard this earlier today.

[daniel9]

Fox News Corp like all major Hollywood studios takes the crime of piracy very seriously. Nor will the Fox parent company tolerate it if its employees don't. Especially after a stolen, early and unfinished work print of 20th Century Fox's big summer blockbuster X-Men Origins: Wolverine was put onto the Internet illegally this week in a major scandal that the FBI is now investigating. So there was universal shock on Friday when long-time "Fox 411" freelance columnist Roger Friedman wrote what I'm told his bosses felt was a blatant promotion of piracy on his Fox News web outlet. Besides writing a review from watching the purloined print of Wolverine, Friedman posted, “I did find the whole top 10 [movies in theaters], plus TV shows, commercials, videos, everything, all streaming away. It took really less than seconds to start playing it all right onto my computer. I could have downloaded all of it but really, who has the time or the room? Later tonight I may finally catch up with Paul Rudd in I Love You, Man. It’s so much easier than going out in the rain!” I'm told that Fox News' actions were swift and severe. First, Roger Ailes, who overseas Fox News, deleted the offending post after he was contacted by 20th Century Fox about it. And then Ailes fired Friedman as a freelance Fox News entertainment writer. I hear the move was done with the full support of News Corp. "He promoted piracy. He basically suggested that viewing a stolen film is OK, which is absolutely intolerable. So we fired him," a source told me Saturday. "Fox News acted promptly on all fronts."

Friedman has written his gossip column, "Fox 411", for FoxNews.com for more than a decade and peppers it with celebrity items, industry news, and off-the-cuff movie reviews. He has long been a controversial writer who quite frequently angers the publicity machine surrounding actors, directors, producers, studios, celebrities, movies and TV. Occasionally he has scoops, especially about the music biz. Still, how could he not have known that his writings Friday would hit a nerve with his employers. After Friedman's column on FoxNews.com appeared, both News Corp and Fox condemned it as "promoting a pirated version of Wolverine".

News Corp issued this statement: “Roger Friedman’s views in no way reflect the views of News Corporation. We, along with 20th Century Fox Film Corporation, have been a consistent leader in the fight against piracy and have zero tolerance for any action that encourages and promotes piracy. Once we learned of Roger Friedman’s post we asked Fox News to remove it, which they did immediately.”

And Fox said, "We’ve just been made aware that Roger Friedman, a freelance columnist who writes Fox 411 on Foxnews.com – an entirely separate company from 20th Century Fox -- watched on the internet and reviewed a stolen and unfinished version of X-Men Orgins: Wolverine. This behavior is reprehensible and we condemn this act categorically -- whether the review is good or bad."

http://www.deadlinehollywooddaily.co...raging-piracy/

[Alois Fisher]

thanks for the info!

[Madwelshboy]

Hugh Jackman 'heartbroken' at Wolverine leak

Hugh Jackman, who plays the title character in X-Men Origins: Wolverine, told reporters in Sydney on Wednesday that he was "heartbroken" the movie was leaked on the Internet a month before its official release, the Reuters news service reported.

Speaking at the start of a world tour to promote Wolverine, Jackman unveiled 20 minutes of footage on Cockatoo Island in the middle of Sydney Harbour, where some of the film was shot.


"Jumped from chopper, arrived to work via flying fox and [apologized] to AUS [Australian] media for Opera House slip up," Jackman wrote on the social networking service Twitter.

The Sydney-born actor was referring to a message, or tweet, sent out on his new Twitter account on Monday in which he mistakenly called the Sydney Opera House the Opera Center.

Jackman, who not only stars in the movie but also produced it via his company Seed Productions, said he was upset for everyone involved in the movie that an unfinished version was posted online last week almost a month before its launch.

"It's a serious crime and there's no doubt it's very disappointing—I was heartbroken by it," Jackman told a news conference widely reported by the Australian media. "Obviously people are seeing an unfinished film. It's like a Ferrari without a paint job."

Jackman added: "The FBI are onto it, and they're taking it very, very seriously."

http://scifiwire.com/2009/04/hugh-ja...eartbroken.php

[Madwelshboy]

NEW stills from X-Men Origins: Wolverine!
New stills featuring Wolverine, Sabertooth, Deadpool and Gambit!

http://www.comicbookmovie.com/fansit...4/news/?a=6959

[Madwelshboy]

New poster revealed for X-Men Origins: Wolverine

http://scifiwire.com/2009/04/new-pos...aled-for-x.php

[the fifth man]

I can't wait to see the finished version of this film. I have no real desire to see the leaked, unfinished version.

[Tinah]

Mmm... this looks nice! Wolverine was my favourite character ( though I had a soft spot for Xavier and Magneto, such incredible actors! ) from the movies, and I always wondered about his past and the hints that were dropped about it. Hugh Jackman is gorgeous! And, being a LOTR fan, seeing Dom in the movie too will be a bonus! Looking forward to this!

In a way I can understand fans being so curious and desperate for the movie that there would be interest in a "leaked" version, but aside from the illegal aspect, I think it shows a lack of respect for the creators. They worked very hard on this for a long time, and they want to present the result of that work when they feel it's ready, in the form they choose. There will be a finished movie, available to the public for a decent price, very soon.

I was going to start watching SG-1 all over again this weekend... but now I'm tempted to watch X-men instead..!

[Madwelshboy]

X-Men Origins: Wolverine TV Spot # 8,9 & 10

http://www.comicbookmovie.com/fansit...S/news/?a=6990

[Madwelshboy]

3 New X-Men Origins: Wolverine Clips

The three clips are included in the BBC's segment on Hugh Jackman's promo stunt at Cockatoo Island in Sydney Harbour on Wednesday.

http://www.comicbookmovie.com/fansit...S/news/?a=6991

[Madwelshboy]

5 New X Men Origins: Wolverine Character Spots

http://www.comicbookmovie.com/fansit...s/news/?a=7008

[Madwelshboy]

Report: Wolverine leak doesn't hurt, might be helping

The illegal leak of a workprint of X-Men Origins: Wolverine two weeks ago has apparently done little to dampen interest in the movie, according to Entertainment Weekly: A tracking report containing consumer research statistics shows a high "want to see" rating for the film, which is said to be the number-one choice for young men and guys aged 31 and older.

http://scifiwire.com/2009/04/report-...e-leak-doe.php

[Artha O'neill]

New X-Men Origins: Wolverine Game Trailer!

http://www.superherohype.com/news/x-mennews.php?id=8243

enjoy.

[Klenotka]

Go Hughey! He obviously takes promotion very seriously. Five countries in seven days. I think he will sleep a week after the premiere

[Madwelshboy]

Last Wolverine Poster and Pics

Some of the final promotional bits from Fox to promote X-Men Origins: Wolverine...

http://www.comicbookmovie.com/x-men_...e/news/?a=7055

[Madwelshboy]

Wolverine Movie Extended Synopsis

Probably realizing that pretty much everybody has watched the pirated movie anyway, 20th Century Fox has released the extended synopsis of X-Men Origins: Wolverine -- which pretty much outlines the entire movie. Enjoy.

http://www.comicbookmovie.com/x-men_...e/news/?a=7054