WingNut Films

WingNut Films Productions Ltd is a New Zealand production company based in Wellington, with other offices in Hollywood, United States, London, United Kingdom, and Melbourne, Australia; notably for producing and collaborating predominantly with filmmaker Peter Jackson, especially on The Lord of the Rings. WingNut Films also has produced at Pinewood Studios in England. Its US subsidiary is WingNut Films, Inc.

WingNut Films Productions Ltd.

Company type	Public
Industry	Motion picture
Founded	14 February 1987; 38 years ago (14 February 1987) (as an independent film company) 17 March 2003; 22 years ago (17 March 2003) (as an incorporated company)[1]
Founders	Peter Jackson Michael Stephens
Headquarters	Wellington , New Zealand
Key people	Michael Stephens Peter Jackson Fran Walsh
Products	The Hobbit The Lord of the Rings
Subsidiaries	Wingnut Interactive (2006–2013) Wingnut AR (2017–present)

History

WingNut Films has been involved in nearly all of Peter Jackson's work. The company is known for being involved in Jackson's The Lord of the Rings film series, based on the classic fantasy novel of the same name by English author J. R. R. Tolkien. The third film in the series received eleven Academy Awards including Best Picture and Best Director. The company also became involved in The Hobbit after director Guillermo del Toro left the project.

Filmography

• Bad Taste (1987)^[2]
• Meet the Feebles (1989)
• Braindead (1992)
• Valley of the Stereos (1992)
• Heavenly Creatures (1994)
• Forgotten Silver (1995)
• Jack Brown Genius (1996)
• The Frighteners (1996)
• The Lord of the Rings (2001–2003)
• King Kong (2005)
• District 9 (2009)
• The Lovely Bones (2009)
• The Adventures of Tintin (2011)
• West of Memphis (2012)
• The Hobbit (2012–2014)
• Mortal Engines (2018)
• They Shall Not Grow Old (2018)^[3]
• The Beatles: Get Back (2021)
• The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim (2024)
• The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum (2027)^[4]

Braindead lawsuit

Jackson's 1992 comedy horror film Braindead was subject to a lawsuit: in Bradley v WingNut Films Ltd [1993] 1 NZLR 415, it was alleged that Braindead had infringed the privacy of the plaintiffs by containing pictures of the plaintiff's family tombstone. After reviewing the New Zealand judicial authorities on privacy, Gallen J stated: "the present situation in New Zealand ... is that there are three strong statements in the High Court in favour of the existence of such a tort in this country and an acceptance by the Court of Appeal that the concept is at least arguable." This case became one of a series of cases which contributed to the introduction of tort invasions of privacy in New Zealand.^[5]

See also

• List of film production companies
• List of television production companies