Chapter 509: Changing the Revenue Sharing Model

[Chapter 574: Changing the Revenue Sharing Model]

When Arthur returned to the Ritz-Carlton in Beverly Hills, he discovered that Tom Cruise had brought his girlfriend, Denise Richards, to promote the film Jerry Maguire. This year, Tom's collaboration with Paramount on Mission: Impossible had set a troubling precedent with its new revenue-sharing model, elevating actors to the same status as the studios.

From the perspective of the film companies, Tom's approach was even more detrimental compared to Jim Carrey receiving a $20 million paycheck for Ace Ventura: Pet Detective. However, Sony was not satisfied with The Cable Guy either -- produced at a cost of $47 million, it only grossed $60 million in North America and $42 million overseas, barely hitting the $100 million mark globally. Moreover, the film received notably poor reviews.

Arthur wasn't too worried about Jim Carrey's ongoing work on Dumb and Dumber 2, noting the success of Warner Bros.' Ace Ventura: Pet Detective as a model. Galaxy MGM had high hopes for Dumb and Dumber 2.

"Arthur, you're here?" Liv Tyler greeted him as she opened the door to her room.

"Uh-huh," Arthur pulled Liv into an embrace and kissed her. His recent flirtation with Charlize Theron had stoked his passion; now, seeing Liv in her sexy pajamas made it hard for him to resist.

They ended up on the bed, and Arthur quickly shed his clothes. He lay on top of Liv and began to nibble on her chest after slipping her robe aside.

Liv wrapped her arms around him, laughing, "Arthur, why are you in such a rush?"

"Mm, what do you think?" he murmured into her neck. "So, got any scripts lately?"

"Ah, there's one, but it's too risqué like Stealing Beauty -- I won't take on projects like that again," she replied. "Moving forward, I should focus on romantic comedies."

Arthur agreed, saying, "You're still young, and it's definitely a good idea to explore different styles. Your performance in Stealing Beauty was actually pretty good."

"Really?" Liv said, rolling over on top of him, taking control of the moment.

"Ah..." Arthur exhaled, brushing his hand through Liv's hair. "Liv, I recently found a nice villa in the Trousdale Estates neighborhood in Beverly Hills. You could move in when you're in Los Angeles."

"Mmm, mmm," Liv responded with vague sounds of approval...

...

Arthur was also keeping an eye on the filming of Titanic at Rosarito Beach in Baja California, where MGM had invested with 20th Century Fox. He was quite curious about James Cameron's film and planned to take some time to visit the set.

Amy Pascal entered Arthur's office, handing him a proposal. "It's a disaster film that Michael Bay is interested in, about a meteor crashing into Earth."

Arthur flipped through the proposal; it was indeed related to Armageddon. "Looks like the success of Twister and Independence Day has sparked interest among filmmakers in big-budget disaster films. This investment seems significant -- make sure to nail down the production budget."

Michael Bay had already proven himself with Bad Boys and The Rock; he certainly had the capability to handle such a special effects-heavy movie.

Amy nodded, continuing, "20th Century Fox is set to invest in Lucasfilm for the Star Wars prequels. They're re-releasing Star Wars: A New Hope early next year, too."

"Re-releasing?" Arthur lifted his head. This was a lead-in for the prequels, as Lucasfilm planned to roll out a trilogy of prequels. If following the timeline correctly, the original trilogy would be labeled Star Wars Episodes IV, V, and VI. Star Wars: A New Hope will eventually be called Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope.

"Is it confirmed that Roland Emmerich will direct Sony's adaptation of Godzilla?" Arthur inquired further.

"Confirmed. Apparently, Jan De Bont's initial budget proposal was too high, and so Sony chose to collaborate with Roland Emmerich instead," Amy explained.

"The budget for Roland Emmerich alone is already in the hundred-million-dollar range," Arthur chuckled. Movie budgets had certainly reached a new level.

"By the way, I heard Paramount has a story about the Normandy landings -- four brothers enlist, three of them die in combat, and the U.S. War Department recalls the youngest back from the battlefield," he continued. "How did Paramount partner with DreamWorks on this?"

"I think it's for Saving Private Ryan. Paramount initially hoped for Michael Bay to direct, but he passed," Amy shrugged. "Coincidentally, Steven Spielberg has always had an interest in WWII stories, and it matched perfectly with Paramount. After discussions, DreamWorks secured the North American distribution rights for Saving Private Ryan. They cast Tom Hanks as the lead, and he opted for a percentage of the profits instead of an upfront fee."

"Well," Arthur said, feeling helpless. They couldn't pull the wool over Paramount's eyes anymore, which was a bit of a shame. Moreover, Tom Hanks was now just as much of a draw as Tom Cruise. The new revenue-sharing model from Mission: Impossible had already begun to ripple through the industry.

With two Academy Awards under his belt for Philadelphia and Forrest Gump, Hanks had the leverage to negotiate well with the studios.

...

Later in the afternoon, Arthur visited the Galaxy Center Arena in downtown Los Angeles, where Rush Hour was filming. Seeing Jackie Chan and Will Smith together filled him with confidence -- Galaxy Center had just opened this year, with Rush Hour being one of its first featured productions.

"Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones's Men in Black is set to release next summer, right?" Arthur asked Kate Beckinsale, who was nearby.

"Yeah, Will will have two buddy films out next summer," Kate replied, intrigued by the prospect. While Will Smith hadn't been cast in Independence Day, he had joined Rush Hour.

"Alright, let's swing by Marvel's office," Arthur said, giving Kate a light pat. "Now that we've acquired Marvel, we don't have to worry about expiring rights anymore; just that the revisions for Spider-Man and the X-Men projects have yet to meet my expectations."

These adaptations had been in development for years and were still falling short of what he had anticipated.

*****

https://www.patreon.com/Sayonara816.