"Congratulations, Ronald, your movie has been number one on the charts for two consecutive weeks..."
Shirley Lansing looked at Ronald with a smile on her face in the Paramount office.
"Same joy...", Ronald also smiled. Being able to knock down Jurassic Park, which has been at the top of the domestic box office for three weeks, is indeed a very convincing result. Whether it is for himself or
Shirley Lansing's level of control over Paramount.
Of course, if you include overseas distribution and the sale of derivatives, Jurassic Park still stands out among the rest, and all Hollywood movies will pale in comparison to it.
During the domestic distribution tour, the creators participated in the promotion in one state, and each time a huge dinosaur skeleton and various movie props were put on display near the theater where the main marketing event was held.
This allowed the sales of dinosaur toys in the derivatives to immediately stimulate the profits of many movie theaters. In countless southern, midwestern, and central states, many old-fashioned, single-screen movie theaters on the verge of being eliminated were saved.
In the overseas market, it is even more popular. Ronald participated in the Royal Premiere in London. After that, the main creator also participated in screening events in Scotland, Wales and other places, and incidentally helped a theater in Wales called Lyric.
Bankruptcy.
At the same time, the response of audiences from various countries to the epoch-making special effects brought by Jurassic Park far exceeded that of North America. In Japan, during the two days of the first weekend of screening, it easily received 237 hits from 237 screens.
It grossed $8.4 million at the box office.
In Brazil, 171 screens grossed US$1.7 million. In Britain, 443 screens grossed £4.875 million (US$7.4 million), also beating the Rhone.
Germany's "The Last Love" is a box office record for many Hollywood movies in the UK.
In Hong Kong, Kung Fu movies that have been very well-received in recent years have been defeated in one fell swoop. Whether it is Jackie Chan-style Kung Fu comedy or Tsui Hark-style freehand Kung Fu, the box office is only half of last year. Children and adults,
Like audiences in other parts of the world, they were attracted by the real dinosaurs.
In short, when you go to a place, you break the box office record of that place. The number of moviegoers and audience praise are unprecedented phenomena. In the past ten years, the names of those Hollywood movies that have been well received in various countries,
All were quickly replaced by Jurassic Park.
Next, there are only a few markets in continental Europe such as Germany, China, and China that have yet to be tested. Because of the government's protection of the domestic market, these places have not joined the world's first staunch alliance like other America's staunch allies.
It will be released simultaneously, but the release date is still being negotiated. It is estimated that we will have to wait until the end of the year or next year to fully watch it.
Of course, Shirley Lansing can only look envious. Such international distribution capabilities and a director like Spielberg who is accepted by mainstream audiences around the world are both rare.
This also made her look at Ronald in front of her and she had to continue to win over him.
"I recently heard some rumors. People from Warner Bros. are spreading some rumors, saying that the box office potential of Forrest Gump was consumed by Rain Man two years ago. The essence of these two movies is to tell the story.
A tender and mentally retarded story..."
"Hehehehe, the same script, in the hands of different directors, has different presentations. Besides, you also have Tom Hanks..." Ronald didn't care about this rumor at all. The loser himself didn't
I just can't see the key points in this script that really attract the audience.
This generation of viewers has an all-out reactionary stance towards the hippies who dominated Hollywood in the 1970s. Drug abuse and sexual openness were in vogue, and following the deaths of many celebrities, it was an unpleasant prospect.
Outdated fashion.
What's more, Rain Man, whose IQ is below the average level of ordinary people, and Forrest Gump are fundamentally two different people. Rain Man actually has a very high IQ in some aspects, but he appears to be mentally retarded because he is particularly partial to science. And Forrest Gump is completely different.
They are slightly lower than ordinary people, and their learning ability and understanding of the world are even further behind than ordinary people.
The difficulty of the two performances is also different. It is impossible to achieve good results just by relying on Dustin Hoffman's method of imitating autistic patients and bringing in his own painful memories. Luo
Nader had seen from his dream Tom Hanks's ability to perform Forrest Gump with ease and appropriate dimensions. This was not a level of acting skill.
"I know, I understand, I think so too. But, do you want to change the way to make this movie?"
Shirley Lansing is actually a person who doesn’t have much insight into film shooting. But her greatest strength is here. She knows how to rely on knowledgeable people to reduce her own risks.
Originally, the expected production investment for this movie was US$50 million. If it could be reduced to less than US$40 million, then the movie would be much more likely to be profitable.
After all, this Forrest Gump movie is not the kind of high-concept movie that targets teenage audiences, the movie's largest audience. It requires a very good marketing plan to mobilize adult audiences who usually don't go to the cinema.
Looking back on the history of their growth through their eyes.
However, this kind of marketing is not always successful. From the perspective of a production company CEO, the best way to increase profitability is to reduce some production budgets. Then even if the audience is not fully mobilized, the possibility of profitability will be reduced.
It is relatively high.
"This won't work, Shirley. We agreed at the beginning that you would fully support it. If you don't want this movie, I can take him away and try his luck with Columbia and TriStar Pictures."
Of course, Ronald is not polite. He is not a director who spends money randomly. The fifty million US dollars is already the result of careful calculation everywhere. Ronald has a deep understanding of the input-output ratio. There are many places in this movie.
You can't save money on the filming, you have to spend money on a few key scenes. In addition, the special effects of various historical figures meeting Forrest Gump also need to be slowly polished by the stunt team. These places cannot be saved.
Money.
"That's not what I meant, Ronald. You know, I am the CEO of Paramount. Among my evaluation indicators, the most important thing is that every important production must make money. But making a Jurassic Park movie is as profitable as
A movie that has been translated is not something that anyone can control, do you understand?"
Shirley Lansing immediately reassured Ronald that if the first plan failed, he would have to go to plan B. For a female CEO, gaining a foothold in this industry does not require you to be the most profitable producer like Universal's Sheinberg.
The CEO of the film company.
As long as Paramount can ensure that every project makes money, she can firmly hold on to this position. After all, big investments come with big risks. As long as she makes money, she can be better than those who gamble big in other studios.
Sex, male CEOs who spend big bucks on every project are much better.
This is the rule of women's business that she is proud of. I do not require the profit margin of each movie to be leading, but the overall profit ratio of all the movies must be the best. As long as they have this rule in hand, those high-ranking boards of directors will
And Wall Street analysts will not let go of this female CEO who can make steady money in Hollywood.
Ronald's heart moved, and he understood Shirley Lansing's unspoken thoughts. Paramount didn't want to invest too much real money. If Ronald and Tom Hanks, two big earners, could convert the salary
Investing in a pair of movies will allow her to reduce her investment by US$8 million.
As for how she made less money after the movie became a hit at the box office? Not to mention that the possibility of this happening is not very high. The domestic box office of Rain Man back then was only about 170 million. Even if Ronald broke Warner Bros.
All other companies have achieved similar results, and as major investors, their losses have not been much.
But if the box office of the movie is not satisfactory, then Paramount can reduce the profit and loss line for producing and distributing the movie from 120 million to about 80 million. The probability of success will rise sharply.
"Tom Hanks's star is rising rapidly. If you want him to accept it, you must give more conditions..."
Ronald thought about it and realized that it didn't matter to him. Hanks' box office of four million dollars at that time was a key point for such a mature acting actor. If he didn't get the salary he claimed for this movie, then
Future splices will also be affected.
"We will use the same tone in our promotions. He is a quasi-A-list star." Shirley Lansing was overjoyed. This meant that Ronald himself accepted this share arrangement.
"It's not enough. We also need some sharing arrangements for box office and video revenue. You know, in Hollywood nowadays, stars want to enjoy the kind of contracts like Schwarzenegger and Jack Nicholson."
Ronald's meaning is also very obvious, you have to increase the price. Nicholson's "Batman" and Schwarzenegger's "Rat and Dragons" both got a direct share of the box office for similar reasons.
, and some profit sharing clauses of the video. As a result, he received tens of millions of money that far exceeded that of a first-class star.
And according to the trend of Spielberg's "Jurassic Park", the contract he signed with Universal Sheinberg will probably guarantee him hundreds of millions of dollars.
These things, if you want to reduce risks, you have to pay a price, right? Although Ronald feels that he cannot compete with Spielberg in global box office, he also wants to make a good profit.
"No problem..." Shirley Lansing agreed immediately, and also said what Ronald didn't say, giving Ronald a more preferential share of the terms, allowing him to become a movie star like Tom Hanks
shareholders.
"Oh, this number is very generous..." Ronald looked at the draft of the contract that the other party brought out and found it interesting.
"As a producer, the most important thing is to share everything with the artist who can give the best results. I figured it out long before I took office." Shirley Lansing looked very good, and Ronald was full of confidence in himself.
, so that you don’t have to promote this idea. As for whether you make money or lose money in the end, whether you get more fixed remuneration or share, it has nothing to do with you.
Anyway, it's your choice... I guess no matter how good it is, it can't be better than Rain Man, which was co-starred by the double actor Dustin Hoffman and the most box-office-making Tom Cruise.
……Bar?
"But you still have to do one thing for me, and that is to convince Tom Hanks..." Shirley Lansing said the last thing.
"Of course, he will agree..." Ronald took the contract and went to Hanks to discuss it.
…
"Ronald, that's not fair to Tom."
Who would have thought that when he arrived at Tom Hanks' house, before his manager could say anything, his wife Rita Wilson jumped out to express her dissatisfaction.
"Why is it unfair?" Ronald asked her to finish her sentence.
"What Tom needs now is recognition from awards or recognition from the market for remuneration. You know, he has made no progress in both places now. Awards are a difficult thing to grasp, but the remuneration, the four million he got
Dollars for uncertain dividends?
I know that Jack Nicholson and Schwarzenegger both earn a lot, but more people earn nothing..."
Rita Wilson didn't say it clearly. In fact, she was a little dissatisfied that Ronald was already a rich man. Although she didn't know how much money he had, the mansion he built after snatching Stallone's land was now larger than
The most core and most valuable residence in Foley Park.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! Ronald can withstand the same risk, but her and Hanks' ability to resist risks is much different. If nothing else, they are still
If you can't afford a house of this level, you need a loan.
"In this way, I can personally guarantee that if your dividends do not meet the original salary standard, I will make up for you by four million. If it exceeds, you will get it according to the dividends. I have made an agreement with Ms. Shirley Lansing
, she will keep the same tone, Tom is getting the salary of a first-line male star."
Ronald thought for a while, and if he wanted to mobilize Tom Hanks' ability and let him reproduce the explosive acting skills in "Philadelphia Story" he had just filmed in Forrest Gump, he would need to increase his motivation.
This not only avoids family conflicts, but also gives Hanks great motivation. You know, the protagonist in Philadelphia Story, Tom Hanks, can also have many appearances, makeup, and the weak voice of a dying patient
to mobilize the audience.
But for a mentally retarded character like Forrest Gump, not to mention that there are no places to draw on, and the emotional expression of normal people is also restricted here. He really needs to unleash his inspiration and potential.
Give a perfect performance.
"Ronald, I don't know what to say. I like this script very much, let's have a big fight." Tom Hanks was also a little moved. Ronald obviously believed that he was the number one person in Forrest Gump.
select.
After officially taking over the project, he rejected John Travolta, who was originally contacted by Minahan Golan, regardless of his feelings. This made the other party quite frustrated. Although the reason used had nothing to do with acting, but that Travolta was too beautiful.
.
But this excuse is not taken seriously in the industry, because Ronald's previous comment on the casting of Rain Man, saying that it would be better to let Tom Cruise play Rain Man, has already gained a certain degree of recognition among actors in the industry.
Idiot, why should one be beautiful and the other not?
"Hahaha, that's great, let's start preparations. Next, you will audition with many actresses..."
Ronald glanced at Rita Wilson, who had no expression at all. She was still immersed in the joy of having a guarantee of four million.