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DuPont Faces ‘Dark Waters’ as Oscar-Bait Film Nears Release

DuPont Faces ‘Dark Waters’ as Oscar-Bait Film Nears Release

(Bloomberg) -- Shares in DuPont de Nemours Inc. could see some volatility as an Oscar-bait film about a community’s exposure to deadly DuPont chemicals is set to be released on November 22.

Starring Mark Ruffalo and Anne Hathaway, “Dark Waters” is likely to create “additional headline risk” by bringing mainstream attention to DuPont and Chemour Co.’s already-settled litigation concerning perfluorooctanoic acid in West Virginia, Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Christopher Perrella said.

DuPont Faces ‘Dark Waters’ as Oscar-Bait Film Nears Release

Chemical companies have been making PFAS for decades, but the issue has become more prominent over the past few years with more knowledge about the substances’ prevalence and potential danger.

Chemours Co. was spun off from DuPont in 2015, taking with it DuPont’s performance chemicals business and its PFAS liabilities. Since then, Chemours has sued its former parent seeking substantial relief relating to a spinoff transaction and has told investors that it plays a “minor” role in PFAS contamination.

The release of the movie will likely make it difficult for the companies to put its lawsuits over the chemicals behind them. It could face similar scrutiny as PG&E Corp. after the film Erin Brockovich, which was nominated for five Oscars and starred Julia Roberts.

Shares in DuPont have risen 8.7% since the company beat third quarter earnings released on Oct. 31. But as Fermium Research director Frank Mitsch said: “The real ghoulish date will be Nov. 22nd, when the film ‘Dark Waters’ is released.”

To contact the reporter on this story: Aoyon Ashraf in Toronto at aashraf7@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Brad Olesen at bolesen3@bloomberg.net, Jennifer Bissell-Linsk, Richard Richtmyer

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