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Simon still wanted to stay, and noticed Janet winking at him, so he changed the subject tactfully.After breakfast, Simon was driven to the company by Janet even though it was the weekend. He would continue to work on weekends as long as he had nothing special to do on weekdays.

As soon as he arrived at the headquarters of Daenerys Films, Simon received a call from ICM. Julia Roberts agreed to his five-film contract request yesterday.

Then came the "When Harry Met Sally" thing.

Yesterday, the film was screened in 33 theaters in major cities in North America. Just as Simon hung up the phone with ICM, Amy Pascal knocked on the door with a document and walked in with a happy face.

"Simon, this is the media feedback on the first day of "When Harry Met Sally" just sent by Disney. The media's comprehensive score reached 9 points," Amy said, shaking her head, and said: " It's a pity that this is the Easter schedule, and many film critics feel that this film will not be too popular with young people."

"As long as the publicity method is appropriate, the audience can always be attracted to the cinema. Moreover, the proportion of young audiences in the summer file is also very large, and the competition is more intense. It is impossible for us to push the schedule until the end of the year. In comparison, I am I think the Easter schedule is more suitable for this movie."

As Simon said, he opened the document handed over by Amy, and the first thing that appeared in front of him were some media evaluation summaries.

"A very smart rom-com, with a cast of identifiable characters who feel a shadow of themselves without knowing it." --Chicago Tribune.

"A must-see movie this Easter." - The Hollywood Reporter

"I prefer the freshness and humor of When Harry Met Sally to the little intellectual slyness of Woody Allen." --Los Angeles Times

"Meg Ryan's performance is memorable, and the strong chemistry between the leading actors and actresses makes up for all the film's shortcomings." - "Variety"

"Witty and heartwarming, When Harry Met Sally is destined to be a masterpiece of the rom-com genre." - San Francisco Chronicle

"..."

"..."

Browsing the transcript of media reviews on the document, Simon's thoughts didn't stop, and he said, "Amy, you just said that young people might not be interested in this movie?"

"Yeah, look at the back, Disney counted the age distribution of the moviegoers yesterday, and the proportion of audiences under the age of 25 was only 32%. In the Easter schedule, if it is a movie specifically for young audiences, this ratio is usually Both will be above 50%. Also, the R rating of this movie will keep a large part of the teenage audience out of the theater."

"When Harry Met Sally" has a lot of sex-related topics, and the heroine also performed a "sex scene" in a restaurant that made people blush. It was finally rated R, and the audience under 17 needs an adult Accompanied to watch.

Speaking of which, during the rating stage of "When Harry Met Sally", the rating committee of the American Film Association stated that as long as Daenerys Pictures deleted the scene of Meg Ryan in the restaurant, they would not make any other comments on the film. With minor adjustments to the details, the film could get a PG 13 rating, but neither the main creators of the film nor Simon and Amy expressed their refusal without hesitation.Everyone agrees that the scene of Meg Ryan in the restaurant will definitely be the crowning touch of the film.

Simon continued to flip through the documents in his hand, thought for a moment, and said, "Amy, do you know the story about going to Africa to sell shoes?"

Amy shook her head suspiciously.

Simon couldn't remember exactly where the story came from, so he briefly explained it to Amy, and then said: "The situation we are facing now is the same as that salesman. The main force of watching movies during Easter is the group of teenagers who coincide with the spring break .Many young people are not interested in "When Harry Met Sally", which just means that we still have a lot of market potential to tap. Think about it, young people may not like this kind of adult love and marriage. The subject matter of the movie that they are thinking about, but I believe that they will definitely be very interested in some other elements in this movie."

After thinking for a while, Amy blurted out: "Sex."

"Yes, there is no sex scene in When Harry Met Sally. However, Meg Ryan's performance in the restaurant is more suggestive. The next two weeks, continue the normal marketing process , what we have to do is to use the media to hype up this scene as a topic. Teenage audiences are the most curious group and also the group most interested in sex. As long as we make this topic hot, we will definitely be able to lure them into the cinema."

By releasing controversial plots in advance to trigger discussions and gain attention, Simon can easily find a large number of cases from memory.While this was an era before the internet, the concept of media hype would work in any era.You know, there are thousands of newspapers in North America. Through a wide range of paper media platforms, as long as they operate properly, it is still easy to hype up a certain topic.

After listening to Simon's words, Amy sorted out her thoughts, and said quickly: "Simon, I'm calling Disney to arrange an impromptu meeting now, do you want to go there together?"

Simon shook his head and said, "I'll go to Fox later. Goldberg has been wanting to discuss the sequels of "Butterfly Effect" and "Death Comes" with me recently, and I just happen to be free today."

After completing the first "Death Comes", the copyright of this film also belongs to Fox, especially "The Butterfly Effect".Simon also considered the sequel at the beginning, but it was already very rare to get the sharing terms of the first part of "Death Coming" from Fox, and Daenerys Pictures had no way to ask for more.

However, although the follow-up of these two series will not have much connection with Simon, it is impossible for him to completely let go.A little bit of advice for Fox on the sequel, in addition to a dispensable remuneration, is actually more of an investment in favor.

After discussing some details, Simon and Amy started to get busy.

Although Catherine claimed to be rushing back to New York at breakfast, and Simon came home from get off work, the woman still did not leave.It was a week after Janet's birthday that Simon sent the two women together on a private plane to New York.

on the other hand.

After several meetings and discussions, Disney also followed Simon's suggestion and began to adjust its distribution strategy.

Under the efforts of Disney's publicity department, Meg Ryan's restaurant scene in "When Harry Met Sally" quickly became the focus of many media discussions and even disputes, and attracted more and more people s concern.

In the days that followed, the media popularity of "When Harry Met Sally" continued to rise, and the first week of screenings ended soon.

In the week starting March 3, a total of six new films were released in North American theaters.However, apart from "When Harry Met Sally", the other new films did not cause much waves. Instead, "Good Morning Vietnam", which has entered its 11th week of release, once again won the box office champion of the new week with a box office of 12 million US dollars. , The cumulative box office of the film also exceeded 590 million US dollars.

As for "When Harry Met Sally", the film's first-week box office finally hit $168 million, ranking 11th on the single-week box office list.

On the surface, "When Harry Met Sally" doesn't seem to be so impressive in terms of box office data or list rankings.However, if you count the film's screening scale with only 33 screens, the film's box office data is very amazing.

You know, "Good Morning Vietnam", the box office champion this week, was screened on 1579 screens, and the average box office for a single venue throughout the week was only just over US$3700. In comparison, the average box office for "When Harry Met Sally" But it reached a staggering $51000, which is more than ten times that of "Good Morning Vietnam".

If the first week's box office is not enough to reflect the box office popularity of "When Harry Met Sally", after the second week of its release, after the number of screenings has been increased to 37, the single-house data of this film has not only not declined, but has gained a lot of word of mouth. Under the heated discussion, it rose again.

最终，3月18日到3月24日，《当哈利遇上莎莉》仅以37块银幕的点映规模就再次收获207万美元票房，馆均票房超过56000美元。凭借这 207万美元票房进账，《当哈利遇上莎莉》一跃进入新一周票房排行榜第9名的位置。

Moreover, the screen size of other films next to "When Harry Met Sally" is almost dozens of times that of this film.

In two weeks, just through screenings, the cumulative box office of "When Harry Met Sally" has reached 375 million US dollars, which has even surpassed the total North American box office of many low-cost independent films.

In order to downplay his influence on "When Harry Met Sally" as much as possible, Simon didn't even hang the title of executive producer.As Daenerys Pictures' first non-Simon film, the success of "When Harry Met Sally" is crucial to the entire company.

After "Run Lola", "The Butterfly Effect" and "Death Comes", Simon's talent in movies has been confirmed.

However, Simon alone is obviously not enough to make a film company grow and develop.

Only when "When Harry Met Sally," a film whose director, writer, and producer have nothing to do with Simon, will the outside world recognize the potential of Daenerys Pictures.

Simon's net worth of more than one billion US dollars obtained from the stock index futures market can already guarantee that Daenerys Pictures will not face the dilemma of "When Harry Met Sally" after several twists and turns in terms of film production.However, if Daenerys Films wants to get involved in the distribution field, it must let North American theater operators see that the company can achieve excellent box office even if the film is not created by Simon. This is obviously not something that can be done simply by money. .

just now.

With just over 30 screens in two weeks, it has amassed millions of dollars at the box office, and the success of "When Harry Met Sally" is already predictable.

The success of "When Harry Met Sally" will definitely re-evaluate the box office potential of films such as "Dead Poets Society" and "Steel Magnolia" under Daenerys Films. Distribution of movies will be much easier.

Chapter 156 Is it a loss? (Revised)

In 1988, Easter fell on April 4, and American middle schools and colleges usually gave students a week or two of spring break during that time.Young people are the main moviegoers in the film market, and Easter has naturally become an important time in North America.

On March 3th, the Easter schedule opened, and "When Harry Met Sally", which had been screened for two weeks, officially opened on a large scale with a screening scale of 25 screens.

In addition, Universal Pictures' "Private Genius", Orion Pictures' "Nice Johnny" and Paramount Pictures' "Bellow Mattel" are also released on the same day for Easter audiences.

It's not a coincidence that in several new films, "Private Genius" happens to be Matthew Broderick, who has previously clashed with Simon.Matthew Broderick and Michael Fox, who became famous by relying on "Back to the Future", are the two most popular male stars among young people in this era, which is why Michael Fox's "Road to Prosperity" last year was also set. File Easter.

Compared with the previous two works with mediocre reputation, Matthew Broderick's new film "Genius Soldiers" has been widely recognized by the media.If it weren't for "When Harry Met Sally" turned out, "Genius Soldiers" is destined to become the most popular work this Easter.

Now, through Disney's spare no efforts in publicity and word-of-mouth accumulated two weeks in advance, coupled with the topic hype about Meg Ryan's restaurant scene, "When Harry Met Sally" is no matter the media evaluation or the topic. The popularity far exceeds other works that have just been released this Easter schedule.

What's more, "When Harry Met Sally", a classic film that is still talked about by movie fans decades later, is naturally not "Genius", "Nice Johnny", etc. No tailor-made teen popcorn movie can match.

Therefore, in the first week of the large-scale opening of the film, "When Harry Met Sally" easily won a box office of 1781 million US dollars with a posture of surpassing the dust.

In comparison, the box office of the second-ranked "Soldiers of Genius" fell directly below 1000 million US dollars in the first week. With a scale of 1239 screens, the box office only received 913 million US dollars in the first week. New and old films such as "Many" were left farther behind.

3月25日到3月31日，北美院线总计17部上映电影累计票房为6033万美元，只是《当哈利遇上莎莉》一部电影就强势瓜分了其中29.5%的票房份额，其他16部影片只能分享剩余70.5%。

On April 4, when the new week's data came out, many people still wondered if it was an April Fool's Day joke, even though they had already made some mental preparations at the screening stage of "When Harry Met Sally".

You know, "When Harry Met Sally" had the least number of screens among the top five works on the weekly box office list."Gold Medal Police Academy 5", which Warner Bros. has high hopes for, even has 1700 screens, but the film only earned $509 million in its second week of release, ranking fifth with a cumulative box office of $1252 million.

Look at "When Harry Met Sally" again, with 1077 screens, including the previous screenings, the cumulative box office has easily exceeded 2000 million US dollars in three weeks, reaching 2156 million.

When Daenerys Films promoted "When Harry Met Sally" last year, almost all studios were not optimistic about the project. The attitude of Met Sally began to loosen, and Daenerys Pictures finally signed a very unequal distribution contract with Disney.

Although both parties have not announced the details of the cooperation, but in Hollywood where there are no secrets at all, this matter has become a topic that many people in the circle talk about.

After Simon suddenly accumulated a huge net worth through the operation of the stock index futures market, his "profligacy" in Hollywood in the past few months has also been labeled by too many people as a rookie, a fat sheep, and an upstart.

After the formation of the major studios, for more than half a century, too many capitals that tried to enter the Hollywood hilltop have almost failed. In recent years, Canon Pictures, De Laurentiis Entertainment and New World Entertainment, etc. The second-tier film companies that have expanded and then declined rapidly are the most direct examples.

In the eyes of many people, what Simon Westero has done in the recent period is completely following the old path of companies such as Canon Pictures.

Now, with the release of When Harry Met Sally, many are calming down and taking a fresh look at a young man who's been in Hollywood for less than two years.

After the large-scale opening of the first week, the box office directly exceeded 2000 million US dollars. Coupled with the overwhelming reputation of film critics and the popularity of topics, it is obvious that "When Harry Met Sally" has a very high hope of breaking the [-] million North American box office.

or.

Despite this conservative attitude, "When Harry Met Sally" was destined to be the first domestic box office movie in 1988 to break [-] million.

The local box office has exceeded [-] million, a seemingly simple concept, but it is a goal that too many Hollywood filmmakers pursue in their lifetimes and may not be able to achieve it.

You know, there are about four or five hundred movies that can enter the theaters in North America every year. Not to mention, in the past 10 years, there are no more than five works that can achieve a box office of over 5 million in North America every year on average.Moreover, most of them have concentrated the most outstanding filmmakers in Hollywood in this era and the studios have spared no effort in publicity and distribution investment, which can hit the domestic box office with a purely dark horse like "When Harry Met Sally" and hit the domestic box office. , the number is even rarer.

However, for a young man, breaking the threshold of [-] million domestic box office seems so easy.

Of Simon's three films last year, one won the title of the year, and the other had a box office of over 7000 million. Even "Death Comes" with the worst box office performance, squeezed into the annual list No.9 with a domestic box office of more than [-] million US dollars. s position.

In the new year, when many people watched a certain young man who got rich and began to "do something wrong" with a mentality of watching the excitement, an anti-genre romance movie that the whole Hollywood was not optimistic about suddenly appeared again. It has shown the potential of breaking [-] million at the local box office.

Four films in a row, four hits in a row.

Now, as long as people with normal IQs, it is impossible to think that this series of successes of Simon Westeros is just accidental.

"..."

"Meg Ryan is so beautiful, and that scene, haha, it really is a classic, I will definitely buy the videotape as a collection in the future."

"..."

"Did you guys know that Meg Ryan has other movies?"

"The sacrificed pilot wife character in Top Gun, have you forgotten. However, Meg Ryan's appearance in that movie is really terrible, and the performance is also very pompous. It's normal not to remember. .It seems that she is more suitable for the role of Sally."

"..."

"Autumn in New York is so beautiful, Toby, how about we go to New York in autumn and stay at my aunt's house."

"..."

Inside a movie theater in downtown Burbank.

At the end of the movie, listening to the voices of the audience who started to leave the venue, C President Michael Ovitz, who was still sitting still, said to Disney CEO Michael Eisner beside him: "If you count the "Good Morning" Vietnam", this should be the fifth time. Simon Westeros was eager to sign Robin at the end of last year, must have discovered the box office potential of "Good Morning Vietnam". That thing was blocked by me After that, I also had some small conflicts with Westeros. Now I have some doubts about whether my actions are right or wrong, and Robin may have missed a better movie."

"When Harry Met Sally" was distributed by Disney, and if one wanted to see it, Michael Eisner had only to order a copy, and someone would send him a copy.However, both he and Michael Ovitz wanted to experience the movie's repercussions among the audience in the most intuitive way, so they took the time to come to the cinema together.

Ovitz suddenly became interested in "Good Morning Vietnam" late last year, and the family arranged a home screening, and Eisner naturally knew why.Also listening to the enthusiastic discussions of the audience around him, Michael Eisner asked: "The script, Michael, can you talk to me carefully?"

"A feature film called "Dead Poets Society," Michael Ovitz said, "If you are interested, I will send someone a script later."

Michael Eisner nodded, and suddenly said: "Michael, do you think it is possible for Disney to acquire Daenerys Pictures?"

"After "When Harry Met Sally", several other companies will definitely have this idea," Michael Ovitz shook his head with a smile: "However, if you think about the kid's current wealth, how could he put Sell ​​your own film company?"

Michael Eisner said: "Maybe he will want to be affiliated with a big film company. Simon Westero's talent in film is beyond doubt, but the company's operations are a complete mess. It's like "When Harry Met Sally," if I was in his position, I would never have signed the original contract with Disney."

In the contract signed between Daenerys Films and Disney last year, if the North American box office of "When Harry Met Sally" was less than 4000 million U.S. dollars, Daenerys Films needs to pay Disney a fixed distribution commission of 600 million U.S. dollars.The North American box office exceeds 4000 million US dollars, and Disney will receive 18% of the box office as a distribution commission.

This means that the higher the North American box office of "When Harry Met Sally", the higher the publishing commission that Disney gets as a distributor.Normally, this sort of thing should be the other way around.

right now,

Even if the North American box office of "When Harry Met Sally" is calculated at US$1 million, Disney can get US$1800 million in commission income only with this movie.Moreover, Disney will also have the priority to obtain the distribution rights of other channels of the film in the future.

Since the two are good friends, Michael Ovitz generally understands this matter.

Thinking of Simon Westero's various deeds in Hollywood after he became rich, it seems really chaotic on the surface.

but.

Pointing to the big screen in front of him, Michael Ovitz said: "Michael, if Simon Westeros hadn't signed such a seemingly disadvantageous contract, would Disney be willing to spare no effort to promote this movie?"

Michael Eisner paused for a moment, with a dazed expression on his face, shook his head and smiled wryly: "No, and, if it was released by a general agency, I would definitely not give this movie an Easter schedule and more than 1000 yuan. Show the screen."

Michael Ovitz shrugged and said: "So, do you still think that young man can't run a company? In my opinion, he knows Hollywood as well as you and me. And, this is also a A young man who knows how to choose. He knows that only by paying enough can he get what he wants. Now, look at "When Harry Met Sally", the North American box office of this movie is calculated at $1 million , the proportion of theater chains is 50%, and Disney can get 1800 million US dollars, which seems very generous. However, Daenerys Pictures, which still holds the distribution rights of all channels other than local theaters, will be able to obtain in the future. Profits will be more lucrative.”

The people in the auditorium gradually dispersed, and the two also got up and started to walk out.

When Michael Eisner heard Michael Ovitz's words, he made some calculations and had to nod again with a wry smile.

indeed.

If it weren't for the conditions set out by Simon Westeros, Disney would definitely not spend too much energy on this movie.

Now, it is Disney who has invested a lot of resources in publicity and distribution. Through two consecutive months of TV trailer promotion, more than 1000 screens rolled out at one time, and a complete set of distribution operations such as the popular Easter schedule, it has ensured that "When "Harry Met Sally" did well at the box office.

Without these prerequisites, with the excellent quality of the film, "When Harry Met Sally" may still be able to sell well, but the box office results will definitely not be as good as it is now.Moreover, the domestic box office can exceed [-] million yuan, and the boost to the film's subsequent distribution on all other channels is also immeasurable.

According to the income ratio of various platforms of Hollywood movies, the total income of "When Harry Met Sally" from channels such as overseas, TV and video tapes will be three to four times that of the domestic box office, because the follow-up release does not require much publicity The more you invest, the more profitable you will be.

Moreover, even after deducting commissions and investment in publicity and distribution, Daenerys Pictures is more than enough to recover all production costs through the North American box office, and no matter how much it gains from subsequent channel distribution, it is a net profit.

Calculated in this way, Disney only received a commission of 1800 million U.S. dollars, but it suffered a loss.

The two got into a car parked outside the theater together, and when the driver drove back to the Disney headquarters, Michael Eisner said again: "So, Michael, what do you think about Simon Westero's project during this time?" What about those videos?"

"I have basically read all the scripts, such as "Rain Man". It will be a good movie, but the commercial box office potential is difficult to guarantee." Michael Ovitz said while thinking, "In Hollywood for so many years, everyone understands that no one can make a movie until it is released. Predict whether it will be successful or not, but I'm not sure now."

Michael Eisner: "So, you think any Daenerys movie can be like 'When Harry Met Sally'?"