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The English Patient producer Saul Zaentz has filed a big money lawsuit against Disney and Miramax.

Zaentz is suing the studios for $20 million (£12m) in profits from the 1996 Academy Award-winning film, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Miramax and its former owner Disney have been accused of hiding revenue, abusing expenses and engaging in self-dealing following the release of the hit drama.

The lawsuit outlines a conspiracy to “keep the picture in a paper loss position so that no matter how much money The English Patient earned, Miramax and Disney would reap all of the profits”.

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The Lion King 3D saw off increased competition at the US box office this weekend.

The Disney reissue of the family classic held onto its top spot for a second weekend running with $22.1m, only slightly below last Sunday’s $29.3m.

In second place, Brad Pitt‘s baseball drama Moneyball opened to $20.6m, followed by family adventure Dolphin Tale which had $20.3m in third.

Taylor Lautner‘s Abduction grossed $11.2m, while fellow new release Killer Elite rounded off the top five with $9.5m.

This week’s US box office top ten in full (studio estimates):
1. (1) The Lion King 3D – $22.1 million
2. (-) Moneyball – $20.6 million
3. (-) Dolphin Tale – $20.3 million
4. (-) Abduction- $11.2 million
5. (-) Killer Elite – $9.5 million
6. (2) Contagion – $8.6 million
7. (3) Drive – $5.8 million
8. (4) The Help – $4.4 million
9. (5) Straw Dogs – $2.1 million
10. (6) I Don’t Know How She Does It – $2.05 million

Disney‘s 3D reissue of family classic The Lion King topped the US box office this weekend with almost $30m.

The feature animation took $29.3m in its opening weekend, pushing last week’s box-office topper Contagion into second place with $14.5m.

Nicolas Winding Refn’s critically-acclaimed action-thriller Drive, starring Ryan Gosling, opened to $11m, followed by Emma Stone-led comedy-drama The Help with $6.4m.

A remake of Straw Dogs, starring James Marsden and Kate Bosworth, rounds out the top five films of the weekend with $5m.

This week’s US box office top ten in full (studio estimates):
1. (-) The Lion King 3D – $29,300,000
2. (1) Contagion – $14,500,000
3. (-) Drive – $11,000,000
4. (2) The Help – $6,400,000
5. (-) Straw Dogs – $5,000,000
6. (-) I Don’t Know How She Does It – $4,500,000
7. (4) The Debt – $2,945,000
8. (3) Warrior – $2,770,000
9. (7) Rise of the Planet of the Apes – $2,625,000
10. (9) Colombiana – $2,300,000

PlayStation Vita will be region-free, Sony Computer Entertainment has confirmed.

Shuhei Yoshida, president of Worldwide Studios, broke the news when responding to a fan question on his personal Twitter page.

Vita is scheduled for release in Japan in December, priced at $390 (£247) for the 3G model or $325 (£205) for wi-fi only. Customers in other territories will be able to import the device and encounter no software compatibility issues.

Sony announced the full list of games in development for the platform at Tokyo Game Show 2011, and revealed that it will feature an external battery pack to extend its standard three to five hour usage.

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William Friedkin has hit out at the amount of comic book adaptations coming out of Hollywood.

The Exorcist director called for the development of original movies geared towards an adult audience, AFP reports.

Friedkin said: “It’s harder and harder to do [original adult material] in this climate of American film… which is mostly concerned with movies that are comic books and remakes.

“The audiences have changed. They are conditioned by television and television is aimed at the lowest common denominator… their expectations are lower.”

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Steven Soderbergh‘s latest thriller Contagion has topped the US box office in its opening weekend, taking $23.1m.

The film boasts an ensemble cast including Matt Damon, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jude Law and Kate Winslet, as the characters battle to save the world from a dangerous virus.

Tate Tyler’s comedy-drama The Help falls to second place, after three weeks at the top, with $8.7m, followed by Tom Hardy-led fighting drama Warrior with $5.6m.

John Madden’s remake of The Debt, starring Helen Mirren, falls to fourth place with $4.9m, while Colombiana rounds out the top five films of the weekend with $4m.

This week’s US box office top ten in full (studio estimates):
1. (-) Contagion – $23,135,000
2. (1) The Help – $8,691,000
3. (-) Warrior – $5,607,000
4. (2) The Debt – $4,905,000
5. (6) Colombiana – $4,000,000
6. (5) Rise of the Planet of the Apes – $3,875,000
7. (4) Shark Night 3D – $3,533,000
8. (3) Apollo 18 – $2,913,000
9. (7) Our Idiot Brother – $2,761,000
10. (9) Spy Kids: All the Time in the World – $2,500,000

Surprise hit The Help has retained its box office lead for the third weekend in a row, taking $14.2m for Labour Day weekend.

The Emma Stone-led drama passed the $100m mark on Tuesday in terms of domestic sales, making it one of the highest-grossing summer dramas of all time.

John Madden’s remake of R-rated thriller The Debt opened in second place with $9.6m, while sci-fi horror Apollo 18 entered in third with $8.7m.

Underwater horror Shark Night 3D opened in fourth place with takings of $8.6m, while sci-fi reboot Rise of the Planet of the Apes rounds out the top five with $7.8m.

This week’s US box office top ten in full (studio estimates):
1. (1) The Help – $14,200,000
2. (-) The Debt – $9,670,000
3. (-) Apollo 18 – $8,700,000
4. (-) Shark Night 3D – $8,640,000
5. (4) Rise of the Planet of the Apes – $7,800,000
6. (2) Colombiana – $7,400,000
7. (5) Our Idiot Brother – $5,180,000
8. (3) Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark – $4,940,000
9. (6) Spy Kids: All the Time in the World – $4,630,000
10. (7) The Smurfs

Vin Diesel has claimed that work on the new Riddick movie is progressing well.

The Fast Five star posted new concept art on his official Facebook page, along with an update on the film’s progression.

“While I was working on character, the director and his team of artists have been creating the world and style of this picture,” he wrote. “We all know how much I enjoy concept art and storyboards.

“First stop for the Riddick production is Canada, which is where we shot a large part of Chronicles of Riddick.”

Diesel also announced that Universal has given Riddick an R rating, similar to the first Riddick movie Pitch Black.

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