MOVIES - Nov. 9, 1987

‘Tis the season for exclusive multi-picture production deals, it would appear. Both Sir Richard Attenborough (“Cry Freedom,” “Gandhi”) and the husband-wife team of director James Cameron and producer Gail Anne Hurd (“The Terminator,” “Aliens”) have come to such agreements with Universal (Attenborough, a three-picture deal over five years) and 20th Century Fox (Cameron-Hurd, for two films). No money amounts were disclosed, but Universal chairman Tom Pollock said Friday the first two of Attenborough’s projects would concern American patriot Thomas Paine and British explorer Sir Richard Burton ( not the Welsh actor). Cameron and Hurd, while being coy about their upcoming projects, did announce that they are calling their production company Tech Noir.