Ebert & Roeper ditch Disney and "AT THE MOVIES"
It is a sad day indeed, it feels like the end of a legacy. The end of an institution. AND WAS IT ALL BECAUSE OF THE DAMN THUMBS? Both film critics Richard Roeper and Roger Ebert have left At the Movies, a show where each week they gave their "thumbs up" and "thumbs down" to what Hollywood had to offer, most interestingly when they had duelling opinions and would bicker back and forth - though neither would ever back down.
It was like two kids in a playground, especially in the earlier Siskel & Ebert days - though of course with witty put downs and clever and usually a spot on analysis of film. The show was a massive part of cinema history, tackling the last 3 decades of film and storing it in a time capsule which you can see on the site but now it's going to changed forever. Roger Ebert, who co-created the show with the late Gene Siskel in 1975 on the PBS program and had never missed a show for three decades until his illness in 2006 had this statement up on his site a few hours ago.."After 33 years on the air, 23 of them with Disney, the studio has decided to take the program named "Siskel & Ebert" and then "Ebert & Roeper" in a new direction. I will no longer be associated with it. The show was a wonderful experience. It was a great loss to me when surgery in July 2006 made it impossible for me to appear on the air any longer. Although I remained active behind the scenes, I feel that Richard Roeper and several co-hosts, notably Michael Phillips and A.O. Scott, have excelled at carrying on the tradition Gene Siskel and I began in 1975 with "Sneak Previews" on PBS. Gene and I felt the formula was simplicity itself: Two film critics, sitting across the aisle from each other in a movie balcony, debating the new films of the week. We developed an entirely new concept for TV. Few shows have been on the air so long and remained so popular. We made television history, and established the trademarked catch-phrase "Two thumbs up." The trademark still belongs to me and Marlene Iglitzen, Gene's widow, and the thumbs will return. We are discussing possibilities, and plan to continue the show's tradition.More surprisingly (as I think many people believe we have seen the last of Roger Ebert reviewing movies on television anyway) his co-host and protege Ricard Roeper leaves after eight years where he never missed a show. He replaced the late Gene Siskel, a great friend of Ebert who died in 1999 who was a little uncomfortable and shy with his movie opinions when he first started out but gradually grew more confident as the year's went on and really grew into a watchable commentator on movies and popular culture. He had to spearhead the show for three years and did a very admirable job keeping the show alive through the many guest critics and some reviewers who should never have been on camera. Roeper in a statement...
Eight years ago this summer, it was my privilege to join Roger Ebert as the new co-host of Ebert & Roeper, the sequel to the iconic movie-review franchise created by Roger and the late Gene Siskel. Over the last two seasons, as Roger has bravely coped with his medical issues, Ive continued the show with a number of guest co-hosts, from celebrities such as Jay Leno, Harold Ramis and John Mellencamp, to critics such as A.O. Scott of the New York Times and Michael Phillips of the Chicago Tribune. Its never been the same without Roger, but Im proud of the work weve done, and Im grateful to all the co-hosts who stepped in and to the viewers that stayed loyal to the show. Several months ago, Disney offered to extend my contract, which expires at the conclusion of the 2007-08 season. I opted to wait. Much transpired after that behind the scenes, but an agreement was never reached, and we are all moving on. My last episode of At the Movies will air the weekend of Aug. 16th-17th. I wish Disney the best of luck with their new show, whatever form it may take. In the meantime, it is my intention to proceed elsewhere with my ninth year as the co-host of a movie review show that honors the standards established by Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert more than 30 years ago. I will be free to share the details on that program in the near future.Wow, look at that last statement. Sure sounds like Roeper was pissed at Disney, no doubt this all stems from the thumbs up and thumbs down none issue which became such a big mess of snarky politics. At first when I started reading the statement I thought he just wanted to move on, maybe into polictics of which I know he is a keen follower or something else in media, but it seems he wants to continue being an on air critic with the same kind of format as the current show. It sure sounds like Ebert & Roeper will be back in some fashion. For which t.v. studio and in what format - who knows? Will Ebert make it back on screen or will he be just behind the scenes? A big F U to Disney this feels like. Can you really see the show fronted by A.O. Scott and that absolutely pretentious and often smarmy Michael Phillips really becoming a hit show? At the end of the day, the talent and interesting voice will survive no matter where there home - but Disney will all the resources and the cash have nothing without their talent.