Chapter 239: DC and Marvel

After seeing off Gal Gadot, Murphy spent the next few days mostly in his Stanton studio. Now, this studio had become a standard shell company, with no projects to operate except for the collaboration with Fox Spotlight on "Saw II". Its main utility was using the government's film industry policies to help Murphy reduce his tax burden.

Stanton Studio hadn't expanded at all so far. Having a clearer understanding of the industry, Murphy gradually gave up his previous unrealistic ideas. With his capabilities and financial strength, trying to grow Stanton Studio without considering the actual situation could lead to a bankruptcy crisis.

After all, Hollywood isn't a state prison where most matters can be settled by a few fists and cunning plans behind the scenes. The rules and circumstances in this circle won't change according to one's personal will.

Many situations won't disappear just because he chooses not to think about them.

Continuing to maintain Stanton Studio as a shell company actually benefitted Murphy, allowing him to concentrate as much as possible on his directing work.

Currently, Stanton Studio, including Murphy himself, only had four people: a financial officer, a receptionist and telephone operator, and Paul Wilson, who doubled as Murphy's assistant.

In the short term, Murphy had no plans to expand Stanton Studio, and his focus remained primarily on his directing career, preparing for the next step.

His next targets were Marvel Comics and DC Comics.

He had already initiated contact with Marvel Comics, but the situation was not optimistic. Since 2000, Marvel had escaped the poor situation of the 90s. Although not as glorious as it would be in the future, it was no longer a company that someone of Murphy's status and wealth could easily influence.

After facing setbacks with Marvel Comics, Murphy naturally prepared to turn towards DC Comics.

The situation for DC Comics was quite different from Marvel's, even reversing in some aspects.

Before the new century, DC Comics, acquired by Warner Bros., was doing well. When people talked about superheroes, Superman and Batman were usually the first names that came to mind. Regarding superhero movies, it was mainly these two characters.

Clark Kent and Bruce Wayne's glory on the big screen was something that Marvel's Avengers couldn't compare to at the time.

However, now the situation for DC Comics and Marvel Comics was completely different.

The former, in collaboration with Warner Bros., had nearly destroyed the Superman movie series with "Superman IV". Joel Schumacher's two costume extravaganzas also led the Batman movies into a dead end, forcing Warner Bros. to put Bruce Wayne on ice.

Meanwhile, Marvel had reversed its decline, starting with "Blade" and continuing through "X-Men" and "Spider-Man", becoming a mainstay of comic book adaptations on the big screen. "Spider-Man" even became the first movie in North American history to gross over $100 million in its opening weekend.

This success gave Marvel Comics a lot of confidence. According to the information Murphy got, they were preparing their own film division to produce movies based on their superheroes.

For Murphy, and other film companies, it was becoming increasingly difficult to acquire film adaptation rights for Marvel's first and even second-tier superheroes. Only those like "X-Men", "Spider-Man", "Daredevil", and "Fantastic Four", which had their rights acquired early, were available for adaptation by other companies.

To break out of its slump, DC Comics also made moves, like successfully poaching "X-Men" director Bryan Singer for "Superman Returns" and collaborating with Oscar-winning actress Halle Berry for the rare female superhero movie "Catwoman".

Thinking about these two movies, Murphy subconsciously felt they might become obstacles for him. Both films had massive investments, especially "Superman Returns", rumored to have a production budget exceeding that of "Titanic", becoming the most expensive film ever made. Even though Warner Bros. could resolve some of the financial issues through partnerships, financing, and presales, it was still a heavy burden and pressure.

Sitting in the office on the second floor of Stanton Studio, Murphy considered the current situation before formulating a plan. Movies, or this form of art, do not exist in a vacuum separate from social reality. Both the current social environment and the situation of the company involved could have a significant impact on a film.

He took out a document from the file cabinet. This was the information sent over after Bill Rossetti's investigation, including the recent situations of DC Comics and Warner Bros., as well as an introduction to their management personnel. Warner Bros. had recently changed its CEO, with the new CEO being a Jewish man named Bruce Berman.

A somewhat familiar name, Murphy thought for a while but couldn't recall any specific memories and then gave up. His brain, though efficient, was not an automatic storage computer. It was normal not to remember some less important people.

He focused more on the production strategies of Warner Bros. and DC Comics.

Undoubtedly, since DC Comics was acquired by Warner, it had begun an in-depth collaboration with Warner Bros. The Superman and Batman series were the results of this partnership, and there was an unspoken understanding between the two companies. If a top-tier superhero from DC Comics was to be adapted into a film, Warner Bros. would invariably lead.

Although Warner Bros. sometimes introduced other partners to share financial pressure and thus reduce risk, the film rights for characters like Clark Kent and Bruce Wayne were always tightly held.

This also meant that for Murphy, hoping to collaborate with DC Comics, acquiring corresponding rights would be impossible.

Fortunately, DC's superheroes were in a dormant period, unlike Marvel's popular ones, so there was still a possibility to persuade them to reboot the superhero series.

Murphy's aim was simple: to become the director of the series and gain as much authority as possible, allowing him to break into the ranks of A-list directors.

Previously, he lacked the experience for many endeavors, which went unnoticed even if attempted. Now, with three successful movies consecutively, he undoubtedly had some persuasive power. The pursuit from paparazzi and entertainment journalists also showed he was no longer an obscure small-time director.

Especially with the success of "Sin City", his reputation soared.

After nearly three months in North American theaters, the movie grossed an impressive $91.54 million. Although it did not break the $100 million mark and was already off the screens, the North American box office alone almost allowed Miramax to recover the total investment of $40 million in production and $15 million in marketing.

During these three months, "Sin City" also debuted in more overseas theaters. Despite a generally weaker response than in North America due to its themes, it had still grossed over $34 million overseas, bringing the global box office to over $125 million.

This was Murphy's highest global box office to date.

Moreover, Miramax's negotiations with DVD distributors and TV networks had also concluded. The agreement reached was roughly in line with the North American box office's 10% convention for the first round of TV broadcast rights, only slightly lower due to the film's explicit content, but it still sold for $8 million.

The basic transfer fee for DVDs was also $5 million, with subsequent sales and rental commissions to follow.

There was also revenue from emerging online streaming rights, not as high as TV broadcast rights but still amounting to $2 million.

Even after paying royalties to Dark Horse Comics and Frank Miller, Miramax easily realized a significant profit.

All these were Murphy's capital for negotiating new projects with other companies.

Of course, for him, the more direct benefit was financial.

With "Sin City" basically off the screens in North America, Miramax sent Stanton Studio a financial statement, clearly marking Murphy's directorial dividend.

According to the director's agreement signed with Murphy, he would receive two payments of $1 million each before the start of filming and after completing all production work. If the North American box office of "Sin City" exceeded the set production cost line, he would receive a $1.5 million basic reward. If the box office reached $50 million, the dividend would be $3 million, $4.5 million for $80 million, and $6 million for $100 million.

The $2 million basic fee had already been paid by Miramax before the film's release. The remaining amount was mainly the North American box office dividend. Since the film grossed over $80 million but did not reach $100 million, Murphy's share of the North American box office was the agreed $4.5 million.

Additionally, the agreement stipulated that Murphy would receive 1% of the North American TV and DVD rights revenue of "Sin City" as compensation, which meant he would earn $80,000 and $50,000 from the first transfer fee, respectively.

As for the subsequent sales and rental commissions, those would be long-term income.

The total of $130,000 from North American TV and DVD rights had already been paid by Miramax a few days ago. The main box office dividend, like previous times, needed to wait a bit longer.

But Murphy was not in a hurry; he was not short of money.

In the following days, Murphy started to prepare project proposals and plans for DC Comics and Warner Bros. Convincing these guys was not an easy task; at the very least, he needed a viable plan.

After finalizing the project proposals and plans, good news came from Bill Rossetti. He had arranged a meeting with several executives of DC Comics and Warner Bros. through CAA channels.

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