LORD OF THE RINGS - TOLKIEN ESTATE SUES MOVIE BOSSES

The estate of author J.R.R. TOLKIEN is suing the movie bosses behind the LORD OF THE RINGS films for non-payment of royalties. The Tolkiens claim New Line Cinema executives owe them a large cut of the trilogy's gross profits. The Tolkien Trust charity and publishing house HarperCollins joined forces to file the lawsuit against New Line Cinema in Los Angeles on Monday (11Feb08). The plaintiffs claim New Line was required to pay over seven per cent of gross receipts from the films to Tolkien's estate. The lawsuit estimates the three films have made $6 billion at the international box office.