Gramercy Pictures

Gramercy Pictures
Company type	Joint venture (initially)
Industry	Film production and distribution
Founded	May 20, 1992; 34 years ago in United States
Defunct	April 29, 2016
Fate	Merged into USA Films in 1999; revived in 2015 and discontinued in 2016
Successor	USA Films (1999), Focus Features (label revival)
Headquarters	Los Angeles County, United States
Area served	United States and Canada
Key people	Barry Diller (acquirer)
Products	Films (action, horror, science fiction, art-house)
Parent	PolyGram Filmed Entertainment (initially), Universal Pictures, Focus Features (revival)

Gramercy Pictures was a U.S.-based film production brand established on May 20, 1992, as a collaborative effort between PolyGram Filmed Entertainment and Universal Pictures. It handled the distribution of PolyGram's movies within the United States and Canada, while also functioning as Universal's specialty art-house label. Following the acquisition of PolyGram by Seagram, Barry Diller acquired Gramercy alongside Interscope Communications and October Films, consolidating them into USA Films in 1999. On May 20, 2015, Focus Features reintroduced Gramercy as a label dedicated to action, horror, and science fiction genres; however, it was discontinued again after the April 29, 2016 release of the Ratchet & Clank movie adaptation, aligning with Focus Features' decision to move away from genre-specific films.

Formation

Gramercy Pictures debuted on May 20, 1992, as a partnership between PolyGram Filmed Entertainment and Universal Pictures. Its inaugural film was the western Posse (1993). On January 11, 1996, PolyGram acquired Universal’s half-interest, gaining complete ownership of Gramercy. The label achieved commercial success with titles such as Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994), Fargo (1996), and Bean (1997). Several films from the 1990s including The Big Lebowski, Dazed and Confused, Clay Pigeons, and Mallrats have since attained cult status. Particularly notable is The Usual Suspects (1995), which earned two Academy Awards for Best Original Screenplay and Best Supporting Actor.

After Seagram took over PolyGram in 1998, control of Gramercy reverted to Universal. In 1999, Seagram sold most PolyGram film rights dated before March 31, 1996, to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Subsequently, Gramercy along with specialty units Interscope Communications and October Films were acquired by Barry Diller’s USA Networks and amalgamated into USA Films. Following Vivendi Universal’s acquisition of USA Networks, USA Films merged with Universal's art-house division Universal Focus to create Focus Features in 2002.

Revival and subsequent discontinuation

On May 20, 2015, Focus Features reinstated the Gramercy label to focus on action, horror, and science fiction movies, starting with Insidious: Chapter 3 released on June 5, 2015. The brand was retired once more after the commercial underperformance of Ratchet & Clank (2016) and Focus Features’ strategic decision to reduce emphasis on genre films.

Filmography

Distribution rights for Gramercy's films are held by Focus Features and Universal Pictures, except where otherwise indicated.

1990s

Release date	Title	Notes	Budget	Gross
May 14, 1993	Posse	distributed only; produced by PolyGram Filmed Entertainment and Working Title Films	$10 million	$18.3 million
August 20, 1993	King of the Hill	co-produced with Wildwood Enterprises and Bona Fide Productions	$8 million	$1.2 million
September 3, 1993	Kalifornia	distribution only; production by PolyGram Filmed Entertainment and Propaganda Films	$8.5 million	$2.4 million
September 24, 1993	Dazed and Confused	distributed only; produced by Alphaville and Detour Filmproduction	$6.9 million	$8 million
November 5, 1993	A Home of Our Own	distribution only; produced by PolyGram Filmed Entertainment	$12 million	$1.7 million
December 3, 1993	A Dangerous Woman	North American distribution only; co-production with Amblin Entertainment and Island World	—	$1.5 million
February 4, 1994	Romeo Is Bleeding	distributed only; produced by PolyGram Filmed Entertainment and Working Title Films	$10 million	$3.3 million
February 25, 1994	Savage Nights	North American distribution only; produced by Banfilm, La Sept Cinéma and Société Nouvelle de Cinématographie	—	$662,341
March 9, 1994	Four Weddings and a Funeral	distributed only; produced by PolyGram Filmed Entertainment and Working Title Films	$4.4 million	$245.7 million
April 15, 1994	Backbeat	distribution only; produced by PolyGram Filmed Entertainment	—	$2.4 million
July 29, 1994	Foreign Student	U.S. distribution only	—
August 10, 1994	The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert	distributed only; produced by PolyGram Filmed Entertainment	$2 million	$29.7 million
September 9, 1994	A Good Man in Africa	North American, U.K., and Irish distribution only; produced by Polar Entertainment, Capitol Films, Southern Sun	$20 million	$2.3 million
September 28, 1994	Jason's Lyric	distributed only; produced by PolyGram Filmed Entertainment and Propaganda Films	$7 million	$20.9 million
October 28, 1994	Drop Squad	co-produced with 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks	—	$735,000
November 4, 1994	Double Dragon	U.S. distribution only; produced by Imperial Entertainment	$7.8 million	$2.3 million
February 10, 1995	Shallow Grave	North American distribution only; production by Film4 Productions, Channel Four International and Figment Films	$2.5 million	$19.8 million
March 17, 1995	Candyman: Farewell to the Flesh	distributed only; produced by PolyGram Filmed Entertainment and Propaganda Films	—	$13.9 million
April 19, 1995	New Jersey Drive	co-produced with 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks	$5 million	$3.6 million
August 16, 1995	The Usual Suspects	distributed only; produced by PolyGram Filmed Entertainment	$6 million	$34.4 million
November 10, 1995	Carrington	distributed only; produced by PolyGram Filmed Entertainment	—	$3.2 million
December 29, 1995	Dead Man Walking	distributed only; produced by PolyGram Filmed Entertainment and Working Title Films	$11 million	$83.1 million
March 8, 1996	Fargo	distributed only; production by PolyGram Filmed Entertainment and Working Title Films. Selected for inclusion in the National Film Registry.	$7 million	$60.6 million
May 10, 1996	Cold Comfort Farm	North American distribution exclusively; produced by BBC Films and Thames International	—	$5.7 million
August 30, 1996	The Trigger Effect	co-produced with Amblin Entertainment	$8 million	$3.6 million
October 4, 1996	Bound	North American theatrical distribution exclusively; produced by Dino De Laurentiis Company and Spelling Films	$6 million	$3.8 million
January 29, 1997	Gridlock'd	distributed only; production by PolyGram Filmed Entertainment, Interscope Communications	$5 million	$5.6 million
May 9, 1997	Twin Town	distributed only; produced by PolyGram Filmed Entertainment	$3.3 million	$128 thousand
August 6, 1997	Def Jam's How to Be a Player	distributed only; produced by PolyGram Filmed Entertainment	$12 million	$14 million
November 7, 1997	Bean	distributed only; co-produced with Working Title Films and Tiger Aspect Films	$18 million	$251.2 million
March 6, 1998	The Big Lebowski	distributed only; co-produced alongside Working Title Films Added to the National Film Registry in 2014		$15 million	$46.1 million

2000s

Release date	Title	Details	Budget	Box office
February 18, 2000	Pitch Black	Released by USA Films; production handled by PolyGram Filmed Entertainment and Interscope Communications	$23 million	$53.2 million
March 24, 2000	Waking the Dead	Distributed through USA Films; produced by PolyGram Filmed Entertainment alongside Egg Pictures	$8.5 million	$327,418
April 14, 2000	Where the Money Is	Distribution by USA Films; acquired and co-produced by PolyGram Filmed Entertainment, with involvement from Intermedia Films, Pacifica Film Distribution, and Scott Free Productions	$28 million	$7.2 million
August 4, 2000	Mad About Mambo	Distributed via USA Films; a collaborative production with Phoenix Pictures	–	$65,283
September 8, 2000	Nurse Betty	Released by USA Films; jointly produced alongside Pacifica Film Distribution, Propaganda Films, and Ab'Strakt Pictures	$25 million	$29.4 million

2010s

Release date	Title	Details	Budget	Box office
June 5, 2015	Insidious: Chapter 3	Distributed theatrically in the U.S. only; production credits to Stage 6 Films, Entertainment One, and Blumhouse Productions	$10 million	$113 million
July 10, 2015	Self/less	Studio credited; produced by Endgame Entertainment; distribution managed by Focus Features	$26 million	$30.5 million
August 21, 2015	Sinister 2	U.S.-only distribution; produced by Entertainment One, Blumhouse Productions, and IM Global	$10 million	$52.9 million
January 8, 2016	The Forest	North American theatrical release exclusively; production by AI Film and Lava Bear Films	–	$37.6 million
March 4, 2016	London Has Fallen	U.S. distribution only; produced in collaboration between G-BASE and Millennium Films	$60 million	$191.1 million
April 29, 2016	Ratchet & Clank	Distributed solely in North America with Focus Features; production involved Cinema Management Group, Blockade Entertainment, PlayStation Originals, and Rainmaker Entertainment; this was Gramercy's final film release before ceasing operations and their only animated feature	$20 million	$12.9 million

References