Rich

"Amazing, "Saw" breaks $160M at the box office, a classic case of small investment for big gains." - Los Angeles Daily

"Just yesterday, "Saw" announced its end, exiting the market with the demeanor of a victor." - Chicago Daily

"James Wan: Another brilliant rising star. Debut work breaks $100M." - New York Morning Post

...

As Lyman busied himself with company operations and preparing for the filming of the sequel to "Saw", the screening of "Saw" in the North American market finally came to an end.

In fact, by the fourth week of its run, the downward trend was already quite apparent, with weekly box office earnings falling below $10M.

But that was normal.

The screening cycle for cult films was generally on the shorter side.

As the potential audience for the film was nearly exhausted and the number of theaters showing it gradually decreased, ending the run was a natural market choice.

However, there was no doubt that this film was already a considerable miracle.

With a production cost of $10M, a completely new director, and relatively unknown lead actors, it still managed to earn $162.3M in box office revenue in North America alone.

Moreover, EuropaCorp's handling of the overseas market had also been incredibly successful.

It could be confirmed that, in the realm of overseas distribution, there was absolutely no loss; though the popularity and profits might not be as explosive as in North America, earning over $100M in box office revenue made the global box office for "Saw" surpass $300M, which seemed to be not particularly difficult. One had to consider delays in different regions and aside from France, other areas only began screening two weeks later, on October 25th, so the box office statistics were not entirely accurate.

The film's remarkable performance in the market delighted numerous media outlets, which were more than happy to report on the matter.

This time, Paramount Pictures hadn't secretly manipulated the situation; after all, the film had finished its run, so there was no need for any promotion. This was entirely the result of the media taking the initiative to report on it, because the topic itself was compelling.

A film breaking $100M with a completely new director.

Wasn't that news enticing enough?

...

The butler brought the final dish to the table, and James moved his chopsticks as he asked, "Lyman, I'm planning to buy a house in a few days. Do you have any good suggestions?"

Well, for now, James was still sharing a rented house with Leigh. Moreover, that house was in a mid-range community; although the environment wasn't bad, it definitely wasn't great either. In the US, your living environment entirely depends on how much money you're willing to spend on housing. It's like Beverly Hills; why so many wealthy people gather there is simply because the community has its own police station, fire department, and large hospitals—security and protection forces are robust.

As for those less upscale residential communities, they have alarming crime rates with incidents of home invasions, armed extortion, and such.

Of course, Lyman had also invited James and Leigh to come live with him; after all, he had a spacious place with plenty of rooms. However, they were unwilling, and he couldn't force them.

"Where are you planning to move?" Lyman asked.

"I want to move to the Santa Monica community. I went to check it out with Leigh a few days ago; the surrounding facilities and community environment are both quite good."

"Why not move here? Isn't Beverly Hills better?"

Upon hearing this, James hesitated a bit before saying, "We don't have that much money. If we were renting, that'd be fine, but we still want to buy a house to have some peace of mind."

Strange, based on the market performance of "Saw", James should have money.

He might not have had a high basic director's fee, just $500,000, but with such outstanding box office results, Paramount Pictures would definitely provide a bonus and profit-sharing. When all was said and done, he should end up with $3-4M. And with Leigh's role as a writer and producer, he would receive a salary no less than $500,000.

With these calculations, buying a small apartment shouldn't be difficult.

However, at once, Lyman understood and asked with a smile, "Do you have any concerns, which is why you want to save up some money?"

James nodded a bit embarrassedly, "I need to set aside some money for investment."

Indeed, this was how Lyman had arranged the production of the sequel to "Saw". James, the director and producer, would have a base fee of $1.5M plus a $1.5M investment share, accounting for 20% of the total production budget, with an equal share in box office returns. The remainder would be split between Mann Studio and Firefly Films, each contributing half.

In the future, as James' experience grew, this investment ratio would undoubtedly tilt more and more in his favor, similar to Lyman's increasing salary and investment share when cooperating with EuropaCorp.

But for now, with only a 20% share, James needed to put up most of his savings.

Thinking of this, Lyman suggested, "I still think it's better for you to come live here. Coincidentally, I have a friend who has a property nearby, right next to my place. The layout is quite good, it's a standalone house with its own yard, and the price isn't high, around $20M. You can pay a down payment first, and I can help cover some of it, get the purchasing procedure done first. Once the sequel is released, you should be able to pay off the rest."

That so-called friend was none other than Nicolas Cage, who, as usual, was skilled in financial matters. He had chosen the right investment—real estate in the US. Those exorbitant property taxes could easily ruin him if the market took even a slight downturn. High-end real estate prices in the US aren't excessively expensive; it's the subsequent maintenance fees, property taxes, and inheritance taxes that are the real traps. In recent years, the real estate market has been on the rise overall, so Nicolas had earned quite a bit. However, if housing prices were to fall, he'd be left holding a bag of losses, transforming him from a millionaire to a debtor with thousands.

As for James, it was obvious that he didn't want to trouble Lyman too much, so he didn't say anything about helping with the full payment.

Although $20M was no big deal for the current Lyman, Firefly Films still had over $80M in its accounts, not to mention Mann Studio's savings that had long surpassed $200M. The former was his personal wealth, while the latter was shared with René, not something that could be mixed up. But Lyman did have spare money, and since there were no other projects apart from the sequel to "Saw", he wouldn't need much cash. Rather than letting it depreciate in the bank, it was better to spend it wisely.

On one hand, it was a favor for James, and on the other, it was also giving a hand to Nicolas, making sure he wouldn't suffer too much in the end.

Currently, with his high-profile participation in "National Treasure", his salary had reached $17M plus a 15% share of the total North American box office, as he was gradually ascending to the peak of his acting career. Although he didn't listen to advice, at least he wouldn't be left with the title of "King of Bad Movies" from his previous life.

Friends, after all, help each other.

Finally, after Lyman's earnest persuasion, James made up his mind to buy a house in Beverly Hills.

After making a phone call to Nicolas, he said the matter would be settled in a few days.

With the housing issue resolved, Lyman smiled and said, "With this, we can consider ourselves neighbors."

"Yes, haha." James nodded. He now respected Lyman more and was full of hope for their future prospects. He also asked with anticipation, "Lyman, when will the production of the sequel start?"

Lyman answered, "No rush. These days, we're still selecting suitable actors and crew members. Once the crew is set up, it'll probably take another week or two."

As they dined, they discussed the future of their filmmaking endeavors.

Although James had directed a film, he still lacked confidence in certain aspects. For instance, guiding the actors; that was where he needed more experience.

As for Leigh, he was also quite talented. His writing skills were impressive, and many of the ingenious murder mechanisms and clues in "Saw" were his ideas. He was diligent and reliable, acting as James's right-hand man. Their relationship had stood the test of time, from university until now. However, if he had to solely shoulder the role of a producer, he lacked a bit of finesse and could only be an assistant, continuing to learn.

On the other hand, René and Thomas, after these two years of filming, had rapidly gained experience and developed their own capabilities.

René could try taking charge of the company's marketing department, and as for Thomas, he had no great ambitions, only wanting to excel in his photography. He might consider progressing towards a leadership position in the company's production department, overseeing the photography and lighting teams. Of course, whether these aspirations would be realized depended on their willingness. If they weren't interested, Lyman certainly wouldn't force them.

They were a group of good friends. Lyman also hoped for their better development.

After finishing their meal, James left.

He was a workaholic too, mentioning that he was going to help at CAA to assist in casting actors and setting up the crew.

After taking a short nap for a little rest, Lyman also headed to the company.

The conclusion of "Saw" meant that its impact extended beyond a mere box office number to determine its value.

For instance, the operation of various peripheral copyrights.

This included authorizing toy manufacturers, creating calendars, notebooks, and other merchandise associated with the movie.

Following the movie's release, Paramount Pictures had also approached suitable manufacturers to profit from secondary rights development.

For items like posters or calendars, if they were sold at $1 each, Lyman would earn 2 cents in profit.

Then there were the television and premium channel broadcast rights, with each negotiation potentially fetching several hundred thousand dollars in revenue. Hollywood is so fond of producing big-budget films precisely because they aren't too worried about box office performance, unlike the domestic film market where movies rely solely on box office earnings. The bulk of Hollywood film profits come from offline markets. To illustrate, the DVD sales of "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" in North America exceeded $130M in revenue, and those discs continue to sell. Ponder that for a moment—how much money did Disney make? So, they distribute box office earnings among many parties without a second thought. The creators collectively earn over 50% of North American box office revenue. Additionally, regarding toy licensing, Disney's annual financial report indicated that the Star Wars series generated a whopping $700M in domestic toy revenue. With these figures, it's clear why Hollywood studios are so fond of producing big-budget blockbusters, not caring much about small-budget films or even making losses as long as they can develop major films.

Unfortunately, due to Paramount's investment involvement and distributorship, they took away most of the profits from peripheral development.

In the afternoon, while Lyman was dealing with business at the company, Shirley Lansing called him to inform him about the celebration event they were planning.