Hollywood beckons for Knut

2007-12-29 22:08

Berlin - Germany's star polar bear, rescued a year ago after being rejected by his mother, may be heading to Hollywood after a reported multi-million dollar offer from American film producer Ash R Shah.

"We're involved in negotiations," Bernhard Blaskiewitz, director of the Berlin Zoo, told the BZ daily of plans for Knut to star in Shah's latest production.

"We're very happy about the interest expressed by Hollywood. But we don't know yet if we are going to sign the contracts. Certain details must be clarified," Blaskiewitz told the newspaper.

Producer of the 2007 movie Garfield Gets Real, Shah will offer an initial $100 000 down payment for Knut to star in his latest movie, according to a letter sent to the zoo and published by BZ.

The contract would see $5m paid out for Knut's starring performance over two years, which zoo officials say could bankroll expanding the bear's rocky den and general improvements at the major Berlin attraction.

Global fame

The cub celebrated his first birthday earlier this month with a giant fish cake, a birthday party broadcast live on German TV thanks to the media coverage that followed his rescue from his mother's cage by a zoo-keeper a year ago.

While he has since bulked out and lost his cute and cuddly looks, Knut is now a household name, with stuffed likenesses sold around the world and a Vanity Fair magazine cover to his name.

The German government has also used his logo in a campaign to stop global warming.

The Berlin Zoo estimates that its takings were about €10m ($14.7m) higher than usual last year thanks to Knut.

- AFP