Winchester closes tentpole co-fi deal

Winchester Capital has closed a more than $100 million deal to co-finance three tentpoles, including Sony's "The Smurfs" and "Men in Black 3" and "The Adventures of Tintin," which the studio is co-financing with distributor Paramount. Variety first reported June 2 that Winchester was in talks to finance those three titles through its Hemisphere fund. The funding is an "ultimates" deal, whereby Winchester is betting on the long-haul performance of the movies across all platforms. In such a structure, the amount of Winchester's investment will depend on the pics' early box office perfs -- if all goes well, funding could reach $150 million. Winchester launched its Hemisphere fund last year to co-finance several blockbusters, including as much as $400 million for up to 10 pics over four years at various studios. Thursday's deal came under a tight deadline, as "Smurfs" opens today. Contact Rachel Abrams at Rachel.Abrams@variety.com