There’s been some talk of the William Forsythe-starring “Raging Bull II” as of late, only we’d be lying if we said it was due to any sort of anticipation for the film’s release. In fact the conversation has mostly circled around the lawsuit between MGM and famed boxer Jake LaMotta — the subject of the 1980 Martin Scorsese-directed classic “Raging Bull” starring Robert De Niro – due to the fact that LaMotta and producers of the unofficial sequel were looking to crib off of some of the cultural cachet of Scorsese’s original film by making it appear to be a direct sequel.
Well everything seems to be working itself out as MGM has now filed to dismiss its suit against LaMotta and producers of “Raging Bull II” out of court, with the filmmakers conceding to rename the film “The Bronx Bull” and disassociate themselves with the original “Raging Bull” publicly. MGM and Sunset Pictures producer Dahlia Waingort issued the following statement:
“The parties have amicably reached a resolution of their pending litigation, pursuant to which production of a film based upon certain events in the life of Jake LaMotta will proceed under the working title ‘The Bronx Bull.’ That film is not related in any way to the 1980 motion picture entitled ‘Raging Bull,’ and MGM is not associated with the film in any respect. Neither party will have any further statements regarding this matter.”
The low-budget unofficial “Raging Bull” sequel now entitled “The Bronx Bull” – named after LaMotta’s boxing nickname – is now free to tell the story of the boxer’s life along with its cast that boasts talent like Cloris Leachman, Penelope Ann Miller, Joe Mantegna, Paul Sorvino, Ray Wise and Tom Sizemore. We don’t know who exactly will see it, but at least this legal headache is over. [THR]