Six Hundred and Forty - Wayne Becomes Increasingly Important to Warner Bros.
After Grammy, Wayne only stayed in New York for one day. After going to Blue Sky Studio for a silent observation, he immediately got on the plane back to Los Angeles.
Regarding this animation studio, his attitude has always been to let it go and never interfere in the management and development plans. Even if the animation studio can only accept some advertisements or work as side jobs for Hollywood movie projects, he has never wanted to Utilizing Warner Bros.'s channels gives the studio more convenience.
As we all know, live-action movies can still have a lot of tricks. Even if they are made at a low cost, there are always countless ways to make them. But there are no shortcuts for animated feature films. It’s all about accumulating skills and experience bit by bit until everything comes naturally.
Of course, Hollywood film companies are not fools. Animation studios, or animation departments, are completely money-burning holes. The only reason they can invest money willingly is the existence of visible benefits.
A successful animated feature film can bring in revenue that is simply unmatched by live-action films. Not only at the box office, the main income point of animated feature films has always been offline.
Walt Disney relies on dream-like fairy tales to keep its revenue in Hollywood for decades, and the results are very obvious. Now it is the only large film company that has not been acquired by a media group and has developed into a media group on its own. .
Even as internal turmoil has intensified over the years, Disney has become divided into several factions. Relying on the foundation accumulated from previous successful animated films, it still far surpasses Sony Columbia in terms of revenue.
Therefore, animated feature films have always been a gold mine, but with the changes of the times and the vigorous development of computer animation, there is now a new king in Hollywood, and that is Pixar Animation Studio.
Fortunately, Disney, on the verge of being eliminated by the times, happened to take this bug-like animation studio into its arms again. In the early years, Gang Leader Qiao was in trouble. In order to solve the distribution problem of Pixar Studio, he signed an extremely unequal treaty with Disney, directly binding this studio with unlimited potential to Disney.
The success of "Toy Story" has fully proved to all Hollywood film companies the profitability of computer-animated feature films. Disney's income from crazy sales of toys is completely incomparable to the box office profits.
In terms of animated feature films, Wayne's ambitions are actually not that big, especially with Blue Sky Studio in his hands. In his mind, he has always been managing a high-quality asset waiting to sprout. With this attitude, reaching out without asking or without asking is the greatest help to this studio.
Even if Blue Sky Studio personally took over some of the outsourced animation for "Titanic", there was no trace of his factor in it.
This kind of thing cannot be rushed. What Wayne has to do is to ensure the survival funds of the studio, and more professional animators will naturally develop in the future. After the Grammy Awards ceremony, the time has come to the end of February, and the new year's Oscar Awards ceremony is about to come. He is proceeding step by step during the awards season, continuing to demonstrate his influence.
In early March, after changing into a calm, dark and slim-fitting suit, Wayne accepted an interview with Vanity Fair again after a few years and became the cover star of Vanity Fair's new issue.
Generally speaking, the people on the cover of "Vanity Fair" on the eve of the Oscars are those who intend to compete for the Academy Award. Facing the final sprint for the Oscar, his situation is relatively special. Everyone knows that this year's "Batman: Darkness" "Knight" didn't receive a major Oscar nomination.
"In fact, most outstanding and successful men are one thing on the surface and another behind the scenes! Wayne Greenberg, he is called the Dark King of Hollywood by fans all over the world, and he is also recognized throughout North America as the possessor of modern chivalry. "It only took him three years for his works to become famous all over the world, but it took him seven years to receive the Congressional Gold Medal, which represents the highest honor, and let countless people appreciate the kindness behind him."
These are the words that appear on the cover of the new issue of "Vanity Fair" along with a picture of the cover character. This comment was written by Carter, the well-known editor-in-chief of "Vanity Fair", after personally interviewing Wayne.
Opening this issue of Vanity Fair, editor-in-chief Carter personally wrote an article, and the picture was a classic cover reprinted in Time Magazine. Wayne was wearing a black suit, with his arms folded on his chest and looking forward. Surrounded by icons from hundreds of media outlets, large and small.
No matter who sees this photo, they will immediately think of the past that shocked the United States two years ago. The reason why Warner Bros. and Wayne himself used this photo is quite obvious, which is to continue to make the public aware of this special juncture this year. and some people, evoking some memories of this young Hollywood director.
The Person of the Year in 1996 is so special. Time Magazine gave this honor, which comes once a year, to Wayne and the hundreds of media outlets around him, including some of the most well-known and authoritative media outlets in North America. , there are also some gossip tabloids that are usually looked down upon. As long as you see this photo, it is difficult not to remind people of the past that was not even two years ago.
"Unlike literature, dance, music, painting, sculpture, drama and architecture, as the world's eighth largest art category, film has always been quite different from the former. Regardless of whether you want to rely on the big screen to express yourself The idea, first of all, is to give the audience something to gain.”
At the beginning of the article, Vanity Fair editor-in-chief Carter quoted Wayne's original words in an interview. "Some people go to the theater just for pure entertainment, but some people want to get some inspiration from the movie. How to let more people get what they want from the movie. This question has been with me throughout my career."
As Hollywood is recognized as the best director in balancing art and business, most people feel that Wayne has achieved the ultimate in this aspect. The following article is editor Carter's account of Wayne himself.
"Wayne Greenberg, who was born into a family of Hollywood film artists, grew up playing with hand-cranked cameras. The painful process of crazy learning about all film theory knowledge in his childhood and youth set the stage for this man who was destined to start Hollywood. Another director from the golden age who has made an extremely solid accumulation.
To this day, counting his slightly immature graduation film "Happy Death Day", the great "Get Out", "Joker" which broke countless market barriers around the world, and "Joker", which is still regarded as the ceiling of horror films by movie fans. "The Joker", "Batman Begins" which rekindled a generation's memories of DC Comics, and "The Departed", the Oscar-winning film that perfectly interpreted its own style for the first time.
The emergence of one unforgettable classic work after another also witnessed the great progress of this film master step by step. Although God favored this hard-working child and gave him unparalleled directorial talent, it was the accumulation of these works that finally led to the emergence of "Batman: The Dark Knight" that took the entire world by storm.
The perfect combination of great art and business, this is the common evaluation of "The Dark Knight" by countless film critics in various countries and regions. It seems that Wayne Greenberg's talent can no longer be concealed and is constantly spilling out through great films. Today, this film noir master continues to move forward and continues to try to bring audiences to the audience in his own way. Come to more unique works. "
The article of "Vanity Fair" this time is very special. The presentation method does not include questions and answers. Editor-in-chief Carter combined the interview results and the relevant information reviewed to create a complete article with a detailed evaluation and praise of his past works.
This well-known editor-in-chief is very clear about the reasons behind this interview, and he is also willing to create a win-win situation with the other party through his own magazine.
In the following article, he not only frequently mentioned the huge influence of Wayne's films, but also focused on the star-making ability of these works.
"Wayne Greenberg prefers to use newcomer actors. This has almost become a consensus in Hollywood. No matter whether you have been a blank slate before, whether you have been abandoned by the mainstream market before, these actors have joined his cast. , can often show surprises like a new life.
Yin Sang-Hoke, who is now active in major mainstream works, is full of gratitude every time he talks about his cooperation with Wayne in interviews. Even more famous is Will Smith, the African-American superstar. Even after many years, Will Smith, who has become a guaranteed box office hit, still yearns for their collaboration back then.
I'm afraid no one would have guessed at the time that the collaboration between Wayne and Will Smith would make an African-American singer one of Hollywood's signature male stars since the 1990s. From Christian Bale to Gary Oldman and others, all of Wayne's works have allowed them to find their own place on the Hollywood stage.
Charlie Sheen, who was reborn in "The Dark Knight", has always praised Wayne in public. Such an actor, who is recognized in the circle as hopeless, is also struggling with his During the cooperation, I found my former self.
Wayne is like having a pair of eagle-like eyes, always able to see the shining points in actors from places where others cannot. Countless Hollywood actors have told the media that they hope to participate in Wayne's works and hope to find a better version of themselves in working with him. "
With the large-scale publication of this issue of "Vanity Fair", Wayne's works shot in previous years began to be frequently mentioned and discussed by many media. In just a few days, a new trend emerged among the public. More and more people are getting involved.
Warner Bros. was very happy to have such a scene. Even they didn't expect it at first. After the topic was discussed, the videos of films shot by Wayne in his early years such as "Get Out", "Joker", "Joker" and so on , huge shipments and leasing volumes occurred in a short period of time.
These are real profits. At this point, even 20th Century Fox has taken advantage. The full copyright of "Happy Death Day" is in their hands, and the sales and rentals of video tapes have also skyrocketed.
As time went by, in mid-to-late March, a piece of news suddenly broke out in the media, occupying almost all the pages before the Oscars. This news was also very closely related to Wayne, but this time This time he is no longer the protagonist, and has sadly become someone else's background.
"Titanic" used anti-market rules and unreasonable box office trends to finally surpass "The Dark Knight" in the global box office, with a box office of 1.23 billion US dollars. At the same time, this big ship's The pace showed no intention of stopping and continued to move towards an even more incredible peak.
It is against this background that Warner Bros. bucked the norm for Oscar-winning films and quickly withdrew "The Dark Knight" from the North American and global theater markets, which had few screenings left. After a ten-month run, it was withdrawn from all theaters.
"The Dark Knight" was released in May 1997 and was released in late March 1998. The North American box office revenue was 553 million U.S. dollars, and the overseas box office revenue was 669 million U.S. dollars. The global box office totaled 1.222 billion U.S. dollars, although it was only the highest in film history. It stayed at the top of the list for less than a year and was unreasonably surpassed by "Titanic", but this did not detract from the greatness of "The Dark Knight" at all.
"The Point Guard Is Here"
On the day after "The Dark Knight" was officially announced to be released globally, the video tapes of the movie instantly appeared in mainstream video stores and movie peripheral stores in major cities across the United States.
Warner Bros. has had many relevant experiences, especially with "The Dark Knight," and the entire distribution department has invested top-notch attention. Their sufficient preparations proved to be very wise afterwards. On the day the video tape of "The Dark Knight" was released, a large number of movie fans lined up in front of the video stores in some mainstream commercial districts.
"The Director's Cut, priced at US$39.9, sold out on the first day, and the regular version at US$14.99 was not much better. It seems that everything related to "The Dark Knight" has become a competition for fans. the key of."
In Burbank, the media capital, in the CEO office of the Warner Bros. headquarters building, Bruce Rosenblum spoke in a relaxed tone and said to Jeff Robinoff who was watching the sales data: "Shit, luckily we prepared this time It was quite sufficient, and the inventory was shipped to the nearest dealer on the same day when each dealer called for replenishment."
Jeff Robinov, who also had a smile on his face, nodded. While flipping through the sales data report, he tilted his head and asked, "Over there at the factory..."
"It's been a week since the video tape sales day, and everyone is working overtime 24 hours a day to produce."
Whistling proudly, Bruce Rosenblum didn't wait for the other party to finish asking, and said directly: "I don't care what those shitty unions in the factory say, if they delay "The Dark Knight" "Production, I will bankrupt them with the contract!"
A sinister look flashed across his face, and Jeff Robinov frowned without a trace. The two of them were exemplary partners, both in work and in personal relationships, but it was the other's... The CEO of Warner Bros. has always been concerned about his sharp-edged character even after he has passed middle age.
Looking back at the sales statistics in front of them, the "Batman: The Dark Knight" video tape sold for a crazy US$45.6 million in the past week. What surprised them all was that the very expensive director's cut version, Accounting for one-third of this number!
In the video tape sales and rental market, long-term success has always been the rule. For example, "Batman Begins" two years ago is still contributing a large amount of revenue to Warner Bros. Judging from the current first-week sales of "The Dark Knight", this film can bring revenue of 300 to 500 million US dollars to Warner Bros. in a short period of time in the video tape market!
And this is just the video tape market. After the film was officially released, Warner Bros. has started the operation of all copyright channels, and is bound to squeeze out all the offline potential of this film.
"ABC is the North American TV premiere rights for "The Dark Knight," and the latest round of bids is US$50 million!"
Bruce Rosenblum is also responsible for this work, and there is unconcealable excitement in his voice. "The North American TV premiere rights, if nothing else, will definitely set a new sky-high price record. CBS, FOX, and PBS's previous bid was US$37 million. We are not in a hurry. These three companies will definitely make new offers again."
"There's really no need to rush for the premiere TV rights."
Jeff Robinov nodded and said: "Even if it is delayed until after the Oscars, it will only be good for us. Believe me, as time goes by, the price will be higher."
Not only the TV broadcast rights in North America, but also the five English-speaking countries headed by the British Isles, and even the entire Western region, can create a huge amount of revenue for Warner Bros. in terms of TV broadcast rights.
"Will there be any good news?" Bruce Rosenblum straightened his face and asked with a hint of confusion: "This film is basically unlikely to have a big harvest at the Oscars, and neither we nor Wayne will." Get involved in PR…”
"An old fellow gave me a hint."
Deliberately lowering his voice slightly, Jeff Robinoff said: "The Academy will officially release the final list of the AFL's top 100 movies shortly after the Oscars!"
Nodding thoughtfully, Bruce Rosenblum figured out a lot of things at once. Everyone knew Wayne's character. No wonder he took the initiative to accept the report from Vanity Fair. No wonder he took the initiative to participate in the Grammy Awards. No wonder he took the initiative to participate in the Grammy Awards. The media owned by Warner Bros. has been using various soft articles to constantly mention the greatness of Wayne's previous movies.
Everything makes sense. In order to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the birth of North American cinema, the appearance of the 100th Century Greatest Films list means the greatest authority, and no film director is willing to miss it. The Oscars are selected every year, but once this list is included, it means that it will be frequently mentioned as an authority for many years to come, and will almost never change.
"F**k, Wayne's name represents a huge amount of interests!"
Subconsciously sighing, Bruce Rosenblum and Jeff Robinoff smiled at each other, each lit a thick cigar, and looked at the statistics on the table leisurely.
His lament is definitely not unfounded. In the week or so since the release of "The Dark Knight", through licensing of postcards, cultural shirts, pencils, pencil cases, related toys and dolls, etc., there have been more than 80 product categories. Subsequently, More products will be added to the authorized scope.
Not counting the follow-up, in terms of peripheral product licensing, the movies have successively brought more than 450 million US dollars in revenue to Warner Bros., plus more than 45 million US dollars sold in the first week of video tapes, and TV broadcast authorizations, etc. These major offline derivative channels have already made Warner Brothers salivate.
Both of them know that this is just the beginning. Whether it is the licensing of peripheral products or the sale and rental of video tapes, they are not one-time transactions like box office sharing. Although various derivative incomes will slowly decrease over time, but This profit timeline can be extended to more than ten years!
“Wayne is becoming more and more important to Warner Bros.!”
The two executives saw this emotion in each other's eyes. Especially Bruce Rosenblum, he knows better than anyone else that as long as he maintains a good personal relationship with Wayne, no one else can take away what he deserves.
Especially as time goes by, Wayne's importance to Warner Bros. continues to grow. Not only the executives and shareholders of Warner Bros. and Time Warner, but also the entire Hollywood circle, understand very well that the current DC series has achieved extremely brilliant development, and when "Justice League" arrives, it will really make the world more popular. Warner Bros. makes money even while lying down.
"The revenue generated by DC movies is getting more and more terrifying. Even if these data are kept confidential, other movie companies can still make a rough guess."
Breathing out a large cloud of smoke, Jeff Robinoff sighed in a low voice: "Every live-action movie has the offline profitability of an animated feature film. This is something Hollywood has never had before. It is the only one that can The only live-action series that rivals the revenue of the DC series is the Star Wars series!"
It’s no wonder that the CEO of Warner Bros. lamented that even if the revenue of the Star Wars series could be comparable to that of the DC series, there is no comparability between the two. How many years did it take for a Star Wars movie to be released? But in Wayne's hands, the DC series continues to appear one piece a year. What makes him even more happy is that the speed of appearance may be faster in the future!
"Bruce, how do you think those shareholders will react now when they see the revenue data of "The Dark Knight"?"
"I guess they must be scratching their heads to think of a solution."
Bruce Rosenblum curled his lips and joked with obvious sarcasm: "Find a way to tie Wayne to the Warner Brothers ship."
"After the Oscars, I will initiate a proposal at a high-level meeting." No matter what others think, Jeff Robinov has always been willing to show that he is on Wayne's side, and he has not hesitated to use various methods to get involved with Wayne. relationship with the other party. "Wayne's remaining share of the director's salary must be paid to him before The Flash is released."
Looking at the proud expression of the Warner Bros. CEO, Bruce Rosenblum suddenly understood a lot of things and learned a lot.
Is it difficult to be the CEO of Warner Bros., the head of the six Hollywood giants? No, it's not difficult at all. As long as you stand beside the young man at all times and think and act in the interests of the other party at all times, it's really not difficult at all!