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9 Feb 2010

Hedge Fund Pacificor Wins Terminator Franchise Rights

HedgeCo News - Halcyon Holdings has accepted a deal from hedge fund Pacificor yesterday after a five-hour auction, according to a report by IndieMoviesOnline.com.

The Terminator rights were sold for $29.5 million, following a legal battle in which Halcyon Holding was forced to file for bankruptcy, the case was started by the hedge fund which won the bidding wars, Pacificor.

Lionsgate and Sony were strong bidders, but lost to the frenetic will of the hedge fund, which has an interesting backstory in the case.

For the full story of hedge fund Pacificor vs. Halcyon, we turn to MTV News, which reports:

"When Halcyon purchased the "Terminator" rights in 2007, Pacificor lent them some amount of money to cover the $30 million price tag. Pacificor also pushed the former rights-holder into bankruptcy and was the target of a $30 million filed by Halcyon which included allegations of extortion, bribery and fraud." MTV reports.

"The word is that the hedge fund's winning bid comes with a tantalizing string attached to it for Halcyon: in addition to the $5 million they'll receive for future "Terminator" movies and any royalties from the third and fourth movies, they are also officially off the hook on debts to Pacificor and other creditors, pending the approval of a bankruptcy court." MTV said.

"Have Pacificor got a good deal? Have Terminator fans got a good deal? Are there any Terminator fans left out there after Salvation?" Paul Martin, writer for IndieMoviesOnline.com asked, "Personally, this writer thinks those hedge fund whizzes at Pacificor could have saved themselves a few quid and just come up with their own, completely original, relentless, robotic movie monster. Something like... the Exterminator. Or the Killinator. Or the Deadenator."