Hollywood Popular Artists

Jul 5th 2012, 18:00

Were you outraged at the news that a "Raging Bull" sequel is in the works that has nothing to do with Martin Scorsese or Robert De Niro? Well you weren't alone, and now MGM—the parent company to United Artists, which distributed the original flick—is taking action.

Deadline has learned that MGM has filed a complaint today against Jake LaMotta, the real-life Raging Bull, and the producers of "Raging Bull 2." Among other claims, the studio says that LaMotta had no right to sell the sequel to RB II Productions (the production company producing this film) because he originally gave United Artists the rights to any "owner-written sequel," which includes this movie.

Basically, MGM wants to immediately stop production on this indie and make sure it never gets any semblance of release. The seven page complaint says that the fact that "Raging Bull 2" is being marketed as a sequel to "Raging Bull" is "plainly intended to create confusion in the marketplace and to trade off the value" of the original 1980 movie, which will "irreparably tarnish the value of the Picture and MGM's rights therein."

Well, we can't fight with that. The first photos to emerge from the "Raging Bull 2" set looked terrible, and it was clear that this movie would have none of the qualities that we love about the original. Heck, even the way the story is planned to be told sounds awful, with leading man William Forsythe promising that this new version will have "a lot more heart."

"Raging Bull 2" will act as both a sequel and a prequel to the story told in "Raging Bull." The chronology begins with Mojean Aria playing Jake LaMotta as a young man, and then the story will shift to Forsythe taking over the role.

Are you glad that "Raging Bull 2" might not get made? Tell us in the comments section below or on Twitter!

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