Studio Moves Forward With ‘Ali’ Project

Columbia Pictures has put its expensive Muhammad Ali movie project back in the ring after the film’s star, director and producer agreed late Thursday night to pay for any budget overages on the $105-million production, according to studio officials.

The agreement followed concessions made by actor Will Smith, director Michael Mann and producer Jon Peters, including reducing their upfront fees, adjusting their foreign profit participation and cutting pages and locations from “Ali’s” script.

Sony Corp.-owned Columbia confirmed Friday that the movie is going forward and will start production in early January.

For the last week, the star and filmmakers have fought to keep their movie about the legendary boxing champ alive after the management of the studio decided the movie posed too great a financial risk. Sony scrapped the high-priority project, concluding that Mann could not deliver a finished movie for the agreed-upon cost of $105 million.

Friday, the studio also said it had reached an agreement to sell the movie’s international rights to Initial Entertainment Group. Studio sources said Initial will finance about 65% of the production’s cost.

Knowing how risky it is to make an expensive biography movie, Columbia had been holding serious discussions with Initial for weeks, but that deal could not be solidified until production was certain.

Many in Hollywood questioned whether Columbia’s threat to pull the plug on the project was anything more than a ploy to force Mann’s hand.

“Ali” will include locations in Africa, where the boxing great knocked out George Foreman in 1974.

None of the studio executives or principals involved in the movie would comment. But Columbia said in a statement: “We are pleased that we could successfully work with all involved--Will Smith, Michael Mann, Jon Peters and our foreign partner IEG--to reach an understanding that will allow a great actor and a talented director to team up and tell the story of one of the best-known men in the world.”