Wes Craven's Deadly Blessing (1 Viewer)

[Justin_S]

I have no clue who owns the rights to this film now, but I would love to see it get a special edition DVD release with proper OAR of course. This is one of my favorite Craven films, and it is much better than the overrated Scream. I am sure Craven would provide a commentary. I would really love to see this get released ASAP!!!

 

[Wes Ray]

This was an Embassy title, so I'm sure like The Fog, it is probably the property of MGM now. It would be a good uncut future release them. Count me in!

 

[Mark Edward Heuck]

To paraphrase a similar answer I gave on a question about SPLIT IMAGE, here's a doozy. For this, we'll have to do a small history lesson.
Polygram made their first attempt at the film business in the early '80's, out of the ashes of Casablanca Filmworks. David Puttnam even ran the company a while, I believe. Polygram's biggest three films -- ENDLESS LOVE, PURSUIT OF D.B. COOPER, and AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON -- were theatrically released by Universal. Universal briefly held video rights to them, and then somehow they wound up with Vestron/Live/Artisan. Polygram made other small films -- KING OF THE MOUNTAIN at Universal, SPLIT IMAGE at Filmways/Orion, and yes, DEADLY BLESSING at United Artists. In these cases, the video rights for them went to Embassy Video.
Polygram did not do well this first time out in Hollywood. They folded a TV syndication arm and sold it to the Hearst corporation. As for theatrical and video rights, I have never known if they kept those rights. Meanwhile, after all those licensing deals expired, none of those titles have been rereleased by anyone on tape or DVD. The exception, AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON, has gone back to Universal because (I am speculating) this was a production John Landis and George Folsey produced themselves with some backing from Polygram and Universal, and as such the rights reverted to them, allowing them to sell directly back to Universal.
To finish the answer to the question of who owns DEADLY BLESSING then, all roads lead to MGM. If Polygram did maintain rights to their earlier films, they go to MGM from
their buyout. If Polygram defaulted to the studios who released the films, in this case United Artists, that would mean again that it belongs to MGM. See, the funny and oddly convenient thing about MGM buying both Polygram and Orion's libraries is that many films that had split rights situations (most Hemdale productions were theatrically released by Orion, but the video rights were in Polygram's package) were resolved by default.
So, focus them evil hex rays on MGM for Mr. Craven's DEADLY BLESSING.
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"As I looked back over my life, I realized that I enjoyed nothing--not art, not sex--more than going to the movies." -- Gore Vidal