I am Hollywood

[Chapter 800: Countermeasures]

Feeling Kelly's cool fingertips, Eric laid his hand down and comfortably leaned back on the sofa.

"Got a headache? You've been working too hard lately, haven't you?" Kelly's voice came from behind him, softer and more tender than the sharp efficiency expected from a personal assistant.

"The doctor said it's just a result of my recent night-and-day schedule," Eric reclined further, responding casually, then asked, "What about Sony? The box office numbers for Men in Black II should be out by now, right?"

Kelly replied, "$52.16 million. It should land around $75 million for the opening weekend."

Eric murmured in acknowledgment, feeling a bit indifferent. This included the upcoming release of Jumanji 2. Firefly still held a 60% investment share in both films, but since the last dispute, they had completely stepped back from any involvement in the projects aside from financial investment.

While a $75 million opening weekend seemed strong, and North America was likely to hit the $200 million mark in total box office, the sequel had a steep budget of $140 million, plus marketing, bringing the total cost to nearly $200 million.

Even with a global box office high of $600 million, the project could barely break even; though subsequent revenues from DVD, video, and broadcasting rights could yield profits, the long-term operational costs made this project exceedingly unprofitable.

After a moment, Eric asked again, "What about Jumanji 2? I heard the test screenings didn't go so well?"

"Yeah," Kelly didn't want him to worry yet decided to elaborate since he asked, "Many critics said it feels like a circus, not only does the plot feel chaotic, but it completely lost the charm of the first one. Most of these reviews have been suppressed by Sony, so now we'll just have to wait for next week's market reaction. I mean, the special effects are still quite impressive."

Eric hadn't been involved in the sequel's production. Jumanji 2 continued with the board game theme, but the entire crew had changed, including the director. Given that the first film hadn't built a substantial fan base, the current outcome wasn't surprising. Still, replacing the whole crew had its advantages -- the production budget was kept at a relatively acceptable $86 million. Even if it did flop, Firefly wouldn't suffer too much of a loss.

After this summer blockbuster season, it seemed that only Men in Black would hold potential for further development from the films Firefly had originally partnered with Sony on.

Aside from the Jumanji series, discussions about a sequel to Mr. & Mrs. Smith had been ongoing, but everyone knew that Pierce Brosnan, who played James Bond, was unlikely to return. Nicole's salary had skyrocketed past Pierce's in recent years, and with so many commitments, the prospect of making a Mr. & Mrs. Smith sequel was almost non-existent.

Thinking of Sony's development of Godzilla, Eric couldn't help but smile. It looked like Sony was set to struggle for a long time down what they called "flop street."

Noticing Eric's silence, Kelly leaned in slightly and caught sight of his smile. "What are you smiling at?"

Eric shook his head and patted the space beside him. "Come, sit here."

Kelly understood this little man wasn't thinking anything good but complied and sat next to him. Still, she gently reminded, "But it's still daytime. Peter might come by later."

"Just call him and tell him not to come over," Eric chuckled, leaning back and resting on her soft thigh, inhaling her lovely scent. He wrapped his arms around her waist and added, "I'll take a nap. Don't let anyone disturb me, even if the sky falls."

Sighing, Kelly reached for the phone on the coffee table and called Peter Rich. Speaking softly, she mumbled a few instructions before hanging up and glancing down, noticing that Eric had comfortably closed his eyes, his breathing now steady.

...

When he woke again, the living room was dim, with a soft yellow wall lamp glowing. Kelly's leg had become a makeshift cushion.

Eric pulled off the blanket and sat up, instinctively lifting his wrist, only to find his watch had been taken off and set down on the coffee table.

It was nearly 8 PM, and just as he was about to pick up the phone to call Kelly, the door swung open, and Kelly walked in holding a tray.

"Eric, you're awake?" she said, setting the tray down and reaching out to feel his forehead.

He caught her small hand and kissed it. "Why'd you leave me all alone here?"

"I was making dinner for you," Kelly said with a smile, pulling her hand back. "The meeting room is ready. You should eat something; everyone is waiting for you."

"Let's just head over now then," Eric said as he started to get up, but Kelly pressed him back down.

"It's fine; everyone knows you've been tired lately."

...

After a quick dinner, Eric arrived at the nearby Ocean Club at 8:30, walking into a meeting room.

Peter Rich was already there, and unsurprisingly, there were no video conference tools, just a conference phone on the long table.

Eric took a seat, and Kelly spread a few documents in front of him, sitting beside him. She spoke into the conference phone, "Everyone, Eric is here."

"Good evening," Eric greeted them.

Voices from across the line -- Katzenberg, Frank Wells, and other Firefly executives -- returned the greeting.

After some brief pleasantries, Eric said, "So, what's the current situation? Are there still fans protesting outside the headquarters?"

Katzenberg chuckled ruefully. "Yeah, it's been pretty crowded. There are over a hundred people at Burbank and Playa Vista, and the petition website has over 120,000 signatures."

With the Internet lacking registration and verification systems, Eric was well aware that this number was inflated. In addition to deliberate sabotage by competitors, most of the signatures were likely repeats. So, he shrugged off the figure and replied, "Given the circumstances, let's hear your thoughts."

"I think we need to give the public a clear response as soon as possible to diffuse this situation," Frank Wells' voice came through. "I suggest we go ahead with the Wachowskis' original script. Of course, we can shoot just the second one. I believe the popularity of the first movie will guarantee profit. Even if the sequel isn't up to par, it's unlikely we'd see a repeat of this current situation."

"That sounds like a reasonable approach," Eric nodded, then asked, "Jeffrey, what's your take?"

It seemed they had reached a consensus. On the other end, they replied, "Eric, we've all seen the Wachowskis' script, and we know it would be a disaster for this franchise, but we don't have any other good alternatives right now. Frank's suggestion is about the best solution we have."

Eric smiled wryly, saying, "So, this franchise is pretty much dead weight for us."

Frank Wells remarked, "I wouldn't call it dead weight. Regardless, the current recognition of the film assures that a sequel would definitely turn a profit."

Eric couldn't help but rub his temples. Even without this crazy situation, he felt skeptical about the modified script from the Wachowskis.

A director's style is hard to change, and even if the brothers write a new script, unless Firefly sent someone to supervise every shot, it would be impossible to avoid them slipping into their own style again.

Moreover, the strategy of having someone monitor the set was unfeasible since such overreach would only lead to disastrous consequences. As Eric knew, the Wachowskis were notoriously fiery; during the first film, as newcomers, they managed to remain humble and restrained, but now that they were famous, expecting them to stay obedient was impossible.

After a moment of contemplation, Eric asked, "So, what are the current box office numbers across the board?"

There was a moment of silence before Kelly beside him said, "North America is at $223.5 million, overseas $136 million, but we still have major markets like France, Japan, and Italy yet to release. Once the film lands in those countries, it's expected that the overseas box office will be between $350 million to $400 million, bringing the global total to around $600 million."

With recent trade agreements led by the U.S., many overseas markets had opened up, and the overseas box office splits had started to increase. Hollywood films were now seeing an overseas revenue share of about 35% on average.

According to the average splits in the U.S. and overseas, Firefly could expect to retrieve about $250 million from a $600 million gross, and with ticket sales usually accounting for about a third of total revenue, the future profits from merchandise and other revenue sources would likely double that figure. After deducting all expenses, Firefly would potentially earn around $500 million from this project.

Of course, while box office revenue could mostly be recouped within a year, subsequent income from DVD and video releases, as well as licensing, required a longer operation period -- often over three years -- another reason why many mid-tier Hollywood studios remained fixated on box office results. A three-year plus capital cycle was only manageable for the major studios in Hollywood; for smaller to mid-tier companies, if a film failed to recoup its costs quickly at the box office, it could lead to serious cash flow issues and stunted company development.

Eric remembered that the two sequels of The Matrix had grossed nearly $1.2 billion combined, with Warner Bros. generally reclaiming about $500 million from ticket sales.

However, the production cost for the two sequels reached $300 million, and the marketing costs were at least around $100 million, meaning that even with a staggering $1.2 billion global box office, Warner only ended up with a meager $100 million profit from the sequels. Furthermore, due to the sequels' poor reception and quality, subsequent revenue from DVDs and other sources wouldn't be promising either.

While Eric couldn't know the exact numbers, he was certain that the profits from both sequels combined probably wouldn't match the success of the first film, which had received massive praise and had a significant impact.

After some thought, Eric proposed, "What do you all think about selling the rights for the Matrix sequels?"

"No way!"

"Absolutely not."

"Eric, you've lost it."

Immediately, a chorus of opposition erupted on the line, with Kelly and Peter looking surprised at Eric.

Although they were facing many challenges, none of the top brass at Firefly had ever entertained such an idea.

There were countless examples in Hollywood of studios exchanging or selling rights for various reasons, but those typically involved projects still in development with uncertain futures. The Matrix was different; the first film could already guarantee the company over $500 million in pure profits. The idea of selling such a project was considered nothing short of madness.

Once the tensions settled slightly, Katzenberg said, "Eric, we absolutely can't sell The Matrix. You must have seen the news lately; we've already let go of enough projects."

Eric patiently argued, "I think everyone has been overly sensitive lately. Sure, our box office share this summer wasn't great, but that's just a temporary situation. Every movie studio goes through these lows; our 'low' even surpasses the peak of some other studios. If you think about it, we've had three films breaking the $100 million mark this year -- Se7en, The Matrix, and The Rock. We also have Rumble in the Bronx as well as the recently released Final Destination, all performing excellently. By and large, we're still doing better than most movie studios."

Frank Wells' gentle voice came through the phone, offering, "Eric, but we still need to think about the future. We can't just let go of iconic projects like The Matrix."

"Speaking of the future," Eric patiently recounted, "we have plenty of projects lined up. Although we've had a gap this year, next year our Disney animation and Pixar can release both Monsters, Inc. and Finding Nemo, bringing in 3D animated films back-to-back. Beyond that, we have Jurassic Park 3 and The Day After Tomorrow, which will help maintain strong revenue for live-action films. Moreover, the company will continue to develop other high-quality rights."

*****

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