Madeleine McCann: Not A Film, A Book And The McCanns Making Money
MADDYWATCH - Anorak’s at-a-glance guide to press coverage of Madeleine McCann
DAILY EXPRESS front page: “Madeleine’s parents planning Hollywood blockbuster movie”
“Kate and Gerry sparked outrage after it was revealed they have held negotiations with leading producers over the movie rights. The couple – who are prime suspects in the case – are also considering book and TV deals in a package worth an estimated £10million”
A book? Like the Daily Express book? That sick..?
Kate McCann: Michelle Pfeiffer
Gerry McCann: James Caan
Madeleine McCann: Macaulay Culkin
And what of this £10million, and the money earned from any film? “The windfall would help finance the search for Madeleine after concerns were raised that a special fund set up by the family was in crisis”
Page 5: The Find Madeleine fund is down to its last £400,000. More money is needed. So why the “outrage”?
Says the McCanns’ spokesman Clarence Mitchell: “We need money to search for Madeleine and that is the most important thing. Nothing has been decided yet. A film would be made on a percentage basis, with part of the profits going to the fund. None of the money would go to Kate and Gerry. They are not trying in any way to profit out of her name’’
And how many films ever make a profit? It would be a film, perhaps, like that about 15-year-old Amy Smart, abducted in the US and found eight months later. “Several movies were made about her while she was missing including The Amy Smart Story”
The “WORLD’S GREATEST NEWSPAPER” does not say if the Amy Smart story made any money. But it does trawl the web and see blog comments like:
“Angry” Pamela Blears, from Oldham, posts: “From the day little Madeleine disappeared I have felt sympathy and compassion for the McCanns but this beggers belief. How can they think about making a film out of the tragedy when the poor child hasn’t even been found yet? How low can you get?”
The Daily Express costs “ONLY 40p”
“McCANNS FEAR CHARGES SOON” – “A source close to the family” tells us: “Kate and Gerry insist they are innocent but they fear they will be charged. Naturally Kate and Gerry are concerned that if this line of inquiry continues to its natural conclusion, charges are always a possibility and they know that’s entirely wrong”
He added: “The Portuguese police seem to be blinkered in their approach and it feels like they want to find the McCanns guilty regardless.”
DAILY STAR front page: “MADDIE: THE £10M MOVIE – Skint parent to sell film rights”
Skint? The Find Madeleine Fund is dwindling, down to its last “£200,000”. But Gerry McCann is going back to work. He is, as the tabloids never tire to telling us, “a heart consultant”. She is a “GP”
Says the Star: “The couple – who are prime suspects – are in negotiations with the world’s biggest talent and entertainment agency IMG”
IMG – International Management Group– has produced the films Touching the Void, Assault on Waco, Seconds from Disaster, I Shouldn’t be Alive and Kevin and Perry Go Large. Naomi Campbell is on the books
Any film would be an “observational documentary following the on-going search for Madeleine,” says IMG
Pages 4 and5: “Thousands blast ‘sick’ plan”
A poll: “WOULD YOU GO AND WATCH MADDIE: THE MOVIE?” Yes? No? Or I’ve already seen tonight With Trevor McDonald, thanks?
“Ester out in crisis” – TV presenter Esther McVey has resigned her post as a director of the Find Madeleine fund
DAILY MAIL front page: “MADDIE’S PARENTS PLAN £2M FILM DEAL”
“Kate and Gerry McCann could make £2million from a film deal over the story of their daughter’s disappearance, it has been claimed”
Not £10m? Such are the perils of showbiz?
Says the paper: “So far the McCanns, both 39, have turned down offers from big-name chat shows and television dramas as they were anxious to avoid being seen as celebrities”
But we watching the parents. So why not make profit, if it will help?
“Disgraced banker Nick Leeson earned a reported £450,000 when he sold the rights to his autobiography, Rogue Trader. Offers to Austrian kidnap victim Natascha Kampusch were said to have topped £1million”
And: “But Gerry McCann was quick to deny the story”
COMMENT: “Maddie the movie: One step too far – Ever since their daughter Madeleine disappeared, Kate and Gerry McCann have ridden a wave of public sympathy. True, there are some (including the Portuguese police) who have aired deeply hurtful suspicions about the couple since that terrible evening in May. But the overwhelming public mood - particularly among parents of young children - has been one of compassion. Today, however, the McCanns risk losing much of that goodwill. Incredibly, it emerges that they are discussing a possible multi-million pound deal to turn Madeleine’s disappearance into a film. To be blunt, isn’t this pushing the boundaries of taste too far?”
But it is already the subject of a media circus. So why not a DVD – we’ve had the T-shirt, the song, the billboards and the trailers..?
ALISON PEARSON writes in her column: “What CAN Kate and Gerry be thinking? Critics who have never forgiven Gerry and Kate for leaving their kids alone in their holiday apartment will be confirmed in their view that the couple have truly terrible judgment. They will be accused of bad taste; of lacking respect for Madeleine’s memory. Kate will be charged with wanting to swan down the red carpet, even though in this case it is sorrow, not vanity, that has reduced her to a Hollywood Size Zero”
How did it become a story about Kate McCann’s looks?
DAILY MIRROR front page: “Maddy THE Movie”
The McCanns also met with ITV about making a documentary. Maddy A Movie…
THE SUN front page: “Maddie hunt ‘to be film’”
Page 9: “ They pary that movie will help find Maddie”
Gerry McCann is a “cardiac specialist”. The McCanns are “doctors”
“IS THIS THE RIGHT DECISION?”
“YES,” says Lorraine Kelly, GMTV presenter.
“NO,” says the Sun’s Jon ‘Guanty’ Gaunt - “I guess the title of the McCann’s proposed film has to be Home Alone”. Or not…
THE GUARDIAN: “McCanns deny reports of Madeleine film”
Writes Gerry McCann on his blog: “We can categorically deny that we are considering a movie about Madeleine’s disappearance. This is simply untrue. We are approached by a huge number of media outlets regarding a myriad of projects, only a tiny proportion of which we agree to. Each proposal is considered on whether it is likely to have a positive effect, either directly or indirectly, on the search for Madeleine”
ON the Guardian website: “Madeleine’s parents consider film - The parents of Madeleine McCann are considering giving the go-ahead to a film about their missing daughter following an approach by a major entertainment firm”
THE TIMES page 3: “Parents may turn Madeleine McCann story into a Hollywood movie”
“On-screen child horror stories:
A Cry In The Dark
Gone Baby Gone
Honour Thy Father And Mother: the True story of the Menendez Brothers
Menenedez: A Killing in Beverly Hills, 1994
The Amityville Horror series
Everybody’s Baby: The Rescue of Jessica McClure”
Says Clarence Mitchell: The media are making money out of the situation themselves and we feel it is only fair and right that some aspect of that should come to the fund to help find Madeleine”
DAILY TELGRAPH: “McCanns in talks to make a film about AMdldine’s disappearance”
“Do you think a Madeleine film should be made”
Well, we;’ve had the sop opera, and who wants to watch EastEnders: The Movie?
THE SCOTSMAN: “McCanns eye Madeleine film”
BOSTON HERALD: “Missing Madeleine story could become feature film”
The speculation, media hype and sensation so far
Posted: 9th, January 2008 | In: Madeleine McCann Comments (1,585) | Follow the Comments on our RSS feed: RSS 2.0 | TrackBack | Permalink
Comments
January 9th, 2008 at 5:39 pm
Sledgehammer
Am too a Rangers fan - I’ve had Ally McCoist on my wall since I was 5.
I’ll forgive you for being a anti-Irish sectarian creep because you’re old.
January 9th, 2008 at 5:38 pm
Anyone see “pinky” today ptretending the mcmarters aren’t considering a film deal?
He looked a bit flustered and seem a little aggressive to me. Poor chap i do feel for him
January 9th, 2008 at 5:38 pm
851 Cheryl
That wasn’t a case of corpus delecti though was it? Adam didn’t totally disappear.
January 9th, 2008 at 5:37 pm
I have this vision that Garth could turn out to be the most important anti-McCann of all. During the Spanish conquest of South America (sounds of jungle, pan pipes etc)there was a high ranking jesuit priest who played a large role in the destruction of the native culture.( sounds of warfare, cries of death, etc ) This same priest then went on to spend his entire life collecting and studying elements of the people he tried to destroy. I love a happy ending.
January 9th, 2008 at 5:37 pm
864
SteveT Says:
January 9th, 2008 at 5:35 pm
850
Garth
I thought you were there!
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Only just got here mindyou!
January 9th, 2008 at 5:36 pm
As expected and on cue a voice from paranoia park, who mentioned anything about your favourite subject.
January 9th, 2008 at 5:36 pm
861
RedRooster Says:
January 9th, 2008 at 5:34 pm
850
Garth Says:
January 9th, 2008 at 5:29 pm
…………………..
good day garthy old chap, you not invited to the meeting tonight??/
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Bit off really me thinks. Nevermind eh?
January 9th, 2008 at 5:35 pm
842
Stevo Says:
January 9th, 2008 at 5:23 pm
829 Karen Says:
January 9th, 2008 at 5:16 pm
Stevo
It wasn’t nothing for the poor male adult!!!
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True but you know what I meant…bad choice of words on my part. A bit like the Mirror using the word “Snatch” last week eh?
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Hmm……..and who picked up on it? And even worse…….who thought it was absolutely hilarious. Saintly bleedin Julie. Perhaps in her little mind she was laughing at something else? The mind boggles!
January 9th, 2008 at 5:35 pm
859
Totje
No, shrink is psychiatric
January 9th, 2008 at 5:35 pm
850
Garth
I thought you were there!
January 9th, 2008 at 5:35 pm
846 Karen
No problem.
I guess more has been written and more mistakes written about this case than any other in history - especially as the public are involved casting comments via the Internet. I just wonder when it’ll all end and die down (see…another pun).
January 9th, 2008 at 5:34 pm
brandon - goodnight and hope you feel better tomorrow xox
January 9th, 2008 at 5:34 pm
850
Garth Says:
January 9th, 2008 at 5:29 pm
…………………..
good day garthy old chap, you not invited to the meeting tonight??/
January 9th, 2008 at 5:33 pm
852…Batman
They can Confess without going to all the bother of making a Film.
The PJ would be very accommodating.
January 9th, 2008 at 5:32 pm
814
can’t say no,
I meant that american guy with his own tv show. Isn’t he a shrink? I must admit I’ve seldom watched the show….
January 9th, 2008 at 5:32 pm
Sledge - don’t start your sectarian nonsense - there is no place for that - here or elsewhere!!
January 9th, 2008 at 5:32 pm
833
Sledgehammer Says:
January 9th, 2008 at 5:17 pm
…………
hi sledgy could you do us all a great favour and slide down that huge hole that kate and gerry are about to enter…
January 9th, 2008 at 5:31 pm
485 chenier Says:
January 9th, 2008 at 2:09 pm
I can think of at least one person who spammed here so frequently that the M&A had to ask him to stop. I’m sure he would be pleased to see you on his forum…
_________________________________
From Wikipedia:
Spamming is the abuse of electronic messaging systems to indiscriminately send unsolicited bulk messages.
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Who sent unsolicited bulk messages in here? Did I miss that?
January 9th, 2008 at 5:31 pm
Brandon
Are you ill again? Poor thing.
Or is all the squabbling getting to you?
January 9th, 2008 at 5:30 pm
You most definitely are not a Rangers supporter as you claimed Karen,you are far to paranoid so must be of the green variety, no self respecting Ibrox princess would use such gross language it shows a distinct lack of class.
January 9th, 2008 at 5:30 pm
801
Tony Bennett,
Thanks Tony for helping me out. A bit too late I must admit. Chenier got me into a frenzied google search until I found the name….
Now I have to catch up a lot of posts again, I’m afraid.
January 9th, 2008 at 5:30 pm
812 can’t say no says (January 9th, 2008 at 5:07 pm): “795 - Tony Bennett, But, knowing where her daughter is, hiring people to search for her, is a fraud IMO”
REPLY: Absolutely correct. IF the McCanns knew how their daughter died or ‘disappeared’ in Praia da Luz (I put it no higher than that), then one of the most audacious frauds in history has been perpetrated on millions. The thousands who’ve generously poured money into the fund would all have been deceived into making payments.
That would unquestionably be a serious offence under the Theft Act 1968 (’obtaining a pecuniay advantage by deception). It no doubt has a bearing on why Esther McVey and other rats are leaving the sinking ship ‘The Find Madeleine Trust Fund’, launched I think in May by cracking open a bottle of strawberry daiquiri (or maybe the free wine supplied by Mark Warners after Madeleine died).
If it went to court, the court would have the power to order the McCanns to repay every penny that was donated as a result of their (IMO fraudulent) appeal.
I predict other rats scuttling from Team McCann before long
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Mods and Admin
Tony you speak of fraudulent, could you expand in this and say exactly what you mean,and within the confines of the libel laws, thankyou
January 9th, 2008 at 5:30 pm
How do we use bold text please?
Bit confused about how the plot of the film would work.
After the bundleman is shown abducting Madeleine what then?
Would it just show the comotose twins being moved, Kate sitting on the sofa and Gerry running down to see if the church as open? It could not feature any of the outrage/shock/hurt/ludicruousness of the DNA/sniffer dogs/mobile phone stuff - unless it was done as a sort of Hitchcock dream/nightmare sequence.
What about the ending? Would it be like the French Liuetenant’s Woman - giving us two endings. One with the fragrant pair jet setting around the world as ambassadors of perfect child care, and another with them unjustly banged up, rotting in a Portuguese hell-hole a la Midnight Express?!
Surely they wouldn’t just use the making of a film as a way of coming clean and telling the world what REALLY happened!!
January 9th, 2008 at 5:30 pm
545
Ian Says:
January 9th, 2008 at 2:28 pm
530 Cheryl
Fascinating!
You dont think it possible that someone might have studied this expereince and thought…hmmm….mortgage rates going up, wife cracking up, not enough income…irritating daughter (keeps coming in bedroom, is there whilst dining)…
Hmmmm.
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I presume you are speaking of the John Walsh site and all he has done? I think that is beneath even your worst sarcasm, Ian, to allude they may have studied about John’s tragedy and then…
January 9th, 2008 at 5:29 pm
811
SteveT Says:
January 9th, 2008 at 5:06 pm
RedRooster,
Do you know when our friend Garth was last here?
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Dont fret, I’m here! Now wasamatta?
January 9th, 2008 at 5:29 pm
Judge - did he explain all the p*sh he was talking yesterday, if there’s going to be no movie?
January 9th, 2008 at 5:29 pm
844…Judge Dread
Poor Clarrie…having to trawl the Media Highway in order to
try and do a bit of Damage Limition for yesterday’s howler.
No chance Clarrie…you can’t retrieve the unretrievable.
January 9th, 2008 at 5:29 pm
Leeza 832.
Max Clifford isn’t representing him yet officially. He says he won’t until he is released from being an Arguido. (If he is/when he is) But all the work has been done in advance……..
Yes, MC isvery astute, that’s why he’s a multi-millionaire. But his choosing to represent RM is no reflection on Robert Murat, good or bad. Its to do with how much he can earn for RM and then take 15% of!
Just good business.
January 9th, 2008 at 5:25 pm
Stevo
I knew what you meant. But it sounded so harsh….
January 9th, 2008 at 5:25 pm
844
Judge Dread
Now i’m really sick
Bye