New Twist in Miramax Studio Sale: Rob Lowe May Want In

Disney's (DIS) attempt to sell its financially troubled production company Miramax seems to get more interesting by the day. Now, a new unlikely suitor has made it into the mix: actor Rob Lowe.

According to the New York Post, Lowe has ties to Colony Capital, a private equity firm specializing in buying up assets from debt-ridden types, such as Michael Jackson's Neverland Ranch and the back catalog of photographer Annie Liebovitz.

Colony in turn hitched its post to a bid organized by financier David Bergstein and construction magnate Ron Tutor. Together they are mounting a bid somewhere between $600-$700 million dollars for Miramax and its impressive back catalog of more than 600 films, including Pulp Fiction, Good Will Hunting and Chicago.

That estimated figure is a lot higher than what other potential buyers believe the company is worth, and more than the amount reportedly offered by Miramax's founders, Bob and Harvey Weinstein, who sold to Disney in 1993 for $80 million and now desperately want the company back under their power. Their bid, backed by billionaire Ron Burkle, evidently ran closer to the $550 million mark.

But Disney may be leery of selling Miramax back to the Weinsteins in light of the troubles the brothers have had in the last few years with their own company, The Weinstein Company. Just last year it looked like TWC was on life support, and it took a timely bit of cash infusion that wiped out all its debt to grant it another life. And with the a potential Colony Capital deal looking to be completed within a week's time, the Weinstein's lucky streak may hit a real snag.