Free Video Rentals of ``Thirteen'' for the Screen Actors Guild; Unprecedented Deal Brokered...

Entertainment Editors

HOLLYWOOD, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 28, 2004

Fox Searchlight Pictures and Blockbuster Inc. have struck a rare alliance to offer free video rentals of THIRTEEN to the 91,000 members of the Screen Actors Guild nationwide. A free rental coupon will be

sent this week to each of the guild's members and is redeemable for one free video or DVD rental at all participating Blockbuster stores. The coupon distribution, which coincides with the film's January 27 home entertainment release date, was created following the guild's nominations of THIRTEEN headliners Holly Hunter (Best Supporting Actress) and Evan Rachel Wood (Best Actress).

"We are excited to play a role in helping the guild's members see for themselves the terrific performances given by Holly and Evan in THIRTEEN," said Curt Andrews, senior vice president and film category manager for Blockbuster. "And with a Blockbuster store less than ten minutes' drive from 64 percent of the U.S. population, SAG members should have no trouble finding their local store or this great movie."

Nominees for the SAG Awards are chosen by a randomly selected committee that represents a portion of the overall membership. The final awards are voted on by the guild's entire membership of 91,000 throughout the country. In the case of THIRTEEN, where the film opened earlier in the year and has since been screened only in major cities, there are few opportunities for SAG's voting members to view the film if they did not see it during the time of release.

Said Fox Searchlight Pictures President of Marketing Nancy Utley, "The nominating committee of the Screen Actors Guild has honored the riveting performances of Holly Hunter and Evan Rachel Wood with nominations. With the help of Blockbuster we're doing our best to make sure SAG's overall membership doesn't miss the chance to find out why."

In addition to their SAG nominations, Holly Hunter and Evan Rachel Wood both received Golden Globe and Critics Choice nominations for their performances. THIRTEEN has been named to 39 top 10 lists, has received three Independent Spirit Award nominations, the National Board of Review's Special Mention for Excellence in Filmmaking and Director Catherine Hardwicke was awarded the prestigious Director's Award from the 2003 Sundance Film Festival.

THIRTEEN is an unflinching view into the world of a young teen trying to fit in with a fast group of seventh graders in Los Angeles. Co-written by Director Catherine Hardwicke and the then-13-year-old Nikki Reed, upon whose experiences the film is inspired, THIRTEEN chronicles the life of thirteen-year-old Tracy (Evan Rachel Wood). After falling under the intoxicating influence of Evie (Nikki Reed), the most popular girl in school, Tracy finds herself entangled in a fast-paced world that spins her sedentary life and emotions wildly out of control. Her mother, Mel (Holly Hunter), frantically tries to understand her daughter's radical transformation. Each time she reaches for her, she learns the extent to which she's fallen just beyond her grasp.

Blockbuster Inc. (NYSE:BBI) is a publicly traded subsidiary of Viacom Inc. (NYSE:VIA) (NYSE:VIA.B) and a leading global provider of in-home movies and game entertainment with more than 8,700 stores throughout the Americas, Europe, Asia and Australia. The company may be accessed worldwide at blockbuster.com. Viacom is a leading global media company with preeminent positions in broadcast and cable television, radio, outdoor advertising and online.

Fox Searchlight is a filmmaker-oriented company that focuses on distinctive films helmed by world class auteurs and exciting newcomers. It has its own marketing and distribution operations, and its films are distributed internationally by Twentieth Century Fox. Fox Searchlight Pictures is a unit of Fox Filmed Entertainment, a unit of Fox Entertainment Group.