Iconic film studio Miramax sold to Qatar's beIN

Reeled in: Miramax was responsible for hits including Pulp Ficton, starring Uma Thurman

Buena Vista International Inc

3 March 2016

Miramax, the iconic film studio behind Hollywood classics including Pulp Fiction, Kill Bill and The English Patient, has been sold to Doha-based beIN Media Group.

The deal, for an undisclosed sum, marks beIN’s transition from a sports TV brand to a general entertainment company.

Miramax was founded by brothers Harvey and Bob Weinstein in 1979 and named after their parents.

Its heyday was in the 1990s, when it defined the independent film scene and had a string of crossover hits.

It was sold to Disney in 1993 although the brothers remained with the company until 2005, but left to set up the Weinstein Company when Disney refused to distribute Michael Moore’s anti-George Bush film Farenheit 9/11.

Miramax still owns the titles to more than 700 films, including 68 Oscar winners. The company’s releases in 2016 will include Bridget Jones’s Baby and Bad Santa 2.

BeIN is run by Qatari executive Nasser Al-Khelaifi, who said he expected to use Miramax and its assets to expand in entertainment and content production.

Disney sold the film studio to a consortium of investors led by Colony Capital and including the Qatar Investment Authority in 2010 for $660 million (£472 million).

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