Grindhouse Split in the U.K.

The Weinstein Co. has announced that the Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriquez double feature Grindhouse will be released in the U.K. as two separate movies.

The move follows a similar plan already established for other non-US territories that the film will be shown at. Death Proof from Tarantino will premiere on September 21, with a premiere for Rodriquez’s Planet Terror set to follow sometime after, though no date has yet been set for it.

Because of a weak U.S. performance ($11.60M for its opening weekend, only $23.10M total gross thus far), the Weinstein Co. hopes reducing one of the negatives against it (the long 3hr+ running time) will spur box office receipts:
“Based on U.S. audience’s positive reactions to Quentin Tarantino’s ‘Death Proof’ and Robert Rodriguez’s ‘Planet Terror,’ combined with their resistance to the three-hour running time, we’ve revised our U.K. release plans to allow audiences the chance to see the films separately, like they will be shown in all international territories,” Weinstein said.