1823 Stupid people have too much money
In just three weeks, Sisyphus Pictures has released the latest news about three film projects. Such frequent actions are comparable to those of a second-tier film company. This is not quite right. What’s more, three film projects They have all created different speculations, which is even more abnormal..
The first is the "female spy"”.
This is a comedy film with a medium-sized investment. The current official investment budget is 50 million US dollars. For large-scale commercial films, it can only be regarded as a sprinkle, but for comedy-type works, it can already be included in the " "Medium to High" grade. The cast lineup announced later gave a little explanation of the budget scale: this is the third collaboration between director Paul-Feig and Melissa McCarthy.
Paul Feig, who came out of the classic comedy series "Freaks and Geeks," "Parkside," "The Office," and "Nurse," directed a low-budget comedy "Bridesmaids" in 2011, earning $3,000 With a cost of 10,000,000 yuan, it has achieved a super high box office of 170 million in North America and 288 million globally, and it has gone so far as to win two Oscar nominations for Best Supporting Actress and Best Original Screenplay. It can be said that it is The biggest dark horse of the year.
This also made Paul famous in one battle, and he immediately became the most popular comedy director in Hollywood..
Melissa McCarthy became famous with "Bridesmaids" - before that, she had been in the television field for many years, and she had played small roles in countless movies, but she had never made her mark; but this work has She became famous in North America and was nominated for the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress..
After "Bridesmaids", Melissa and Paul collaborated on "Bridegroom" with Sandra Bullock. Although the final box office performance did not reach the heights of "Bridesmaids", it was still a success. It can be said that It is a rare combination in comedy movies in recent years that can win repeatedly..
Now comes the "female spy"”.
There is no doubt that Melissa and Paul are one of the most sought-after comedy partners in North America. During the preparation of "Female Spy", major film companies launched a fierce competition. Originally, 20th Century Fox took the lead, but due to the production cost However, the two parties were unable to reach an agreement on the actors' remuneration, but in the end, Sisyphus Films was unexpectedly born..
It is rumored that Melissa's salary has risen to 10 million US dollars, and the box office dividend ratio has also reached 2%. There is no doubt that Melissa has become the first-line Hollywood comedian today - although compared to the top Adam San There is still a gap between Della, Ben Stiller and others, but among female comedians, they have already reached the leading position..
However, there are still different versions of rumors about the contract details, which have not yet been confirmed by both parties. The only thing that is certain is that the box office dividend is not full but conditional..
Considering the production cost of $50 million, and considering Melissa's breakout salary, it doesn't seem surprising that Sisyphus Films was able to beat out 20th Century Fox for the project.
In fact, 20th Century Fox has no frustrations or regrets, and industry insiders are not shocked or surprised. On the contrary, mainstream public opinion in the industry believes that Andre Hamilton is a fool who spends too much money, and this investment is likely to be a direct loss. There is a high chance that investment and return are not directly proportional..
The main reason why Melissa and Paul are so popular is that in the North American film market in recent years, the return rate of comedy films has been declining rapidly, and there are more and more failures. Even if it succeeds at the box office, it is difficult to make profits in dividends. People are satisfied, which is why Universal Pictures has always been unwilling to increase the cost budget of comedy movies.
Not only Universal Pictures, but other film companies are also cautious about the production costs of comedy movies. This also makes Melissa and Paul, who have achieved success in two consecutive collaborations, stand out, but even this pair is still unable to Make film companies determined to significantly increase investment costs.
The most direct proof is the salary: Melissa's salary is only 10 million US dollars. Not to mention compared with Renly, even compared with the starring actors in other types of films, it can only be regarded as a middle-weight - "Speed and The supporting actors in "Passion" can already get such salary figures, the only difference is that there is no box office dividend..
But even with such a salary, 20th Century Fox was not willing to do it, and Melissa was able to successfully climb into the top position of the first-line female comedians in North America. This is the most realistic portrayal of the current situation of comedy movies..
Only a layman like Sisyphus Pictures, who does not understand the rules and situation of the industry, and the current situation of the market, would foolishly agree to cooperate..
Compared with the original increase in Renly's salary, Sisyphus Films did not encounter any obstacles in increasing Melissa's salary. Because the major film companies did not care at all. If "Female Spy" failed at the box office, Melly If Melissa offered the same salary, they would not be willing to invest; but if "Female Spy" achieves box office success again, they would not mind giving Melissa a salary of 10 million. To put it simply, Sisyphus Pictures Be the first to eat crabs, why not?？
It is against this background that "Female Spy" became the third film produced by Sisyphus Films.
Subsequently, Sisyphus Pictures successively announced the cast lineup of "Female Spy": the luxurious cast of Rose Byrne, Jude Law, and Jason Statham stunned everyone！
Forget about Rose, she also starred in "Bridesmaids" and had friendships with Melissa and Paul; moreover, she and Renly still have the same agent - when Renly attended the Emmy Awards, Andy Reminded Rose to take care of Renly and was willing to nod to join. Andy must have played an important role in it, but Jude and Jason？
Jude and Jason can be said to be quasi-A-list actors, with good value for money and good audience recognition. The most important thing is that they have not appeared in comedy movies for many years. But now they are willing to nod to join? Is this a credit to Melissa and Paul? It's all thanks to Renly？
If you think about it further, both Jude and Jason are British! Jason also joined "Fast and Furious" under Renly's guidance, and things became interesting..
In addition, after adopting such a lineup, is the production cost budget of 50 million... enough?？
In the past, the industry thought that Sisyphus Pictures had "foolish people and a lot of money", but now looking at the cast lineup, I feel that this seems to be a good deal. It is not that it is "good quality and cheap", but at least it can be said that it is a good deal. It's "breaking even". In the preparation stage, the topicality of the film project has been guaranteed, and it doesn't seem so... silly..
In less than a month, the crew was quickly assembled. On March 31, "Female Spy" officially announced the start of filming in Los Angeles..
First it was "Nightcrawler", and then it was "Female Spy". Sisyphus Films has made two consecutive films without Renly's direct participation. But that's still not all..
Secondly, the formal establishment of the two projects.
In late March, rumors emerged in the industry that Sisyphus Films had officially negotiated two projects. One was a low-budget horror film, "It's Behind", directed by newcomer David-Robert Mitchell. Mitchell, this will be his second directorial work. The investment cost is approximately US$2 million. There is currently no further news about the cast..
This news is quite normal. When an independent film production company was first established, it chose low-cost horror movies to open up the situation. This is a regular Hollywood routine. An investment of two million is considered a small cost even for an independent film company. It’s more normal for Sisyphus Films.
But another project sparked a lot of discussion, "The Revenant"”.
This project is really too famous. In the past two years, this project has been in the preparatory departments of major film companies. Some companies have even appeared more than twice. People are definitely no strangers to it. The production team has been changed several times during the period. The current successor candidates are Alejandro Gonzalez Iñárritu and Leonardo DiCaprio. However, even though there are two big names in charge, Still no company is willing to invest——
Because the cost budget is too high！
Alejandro's current production budget is as high as 100 million US dollars, and according to his shooting plan, the possibility of additional investment is very high; but this is an art film that hits the awards season, not the box office. Commercial works are even more exaggerated and outrageous than Alfonso's "Gravity". Even the wealthy Warner Brothers dare not take it over easily..
“After the success of "Gravity", plans for the production of "The Revenant" briefly appeared, but before the rumors had time to spread further, they were once again shelved.
In the end, Alejandro and Sisyphus Films came together.
According to rumors, Alejandro and Renly came together through Alfonso on Oscar night, and Leonardo also proactively facilitated this interview. Obviously, Alejandro and Renly Leonardo convinced Renly, and Renly convinced the investors of Sisyphus Films, and this difficult cooperation came about..
Renly's matchmaking is expected. Just look at Renly's choice of works and Renly's artistic pursuits. Works like "The Revenant" can always impress him, and he will do whatever it takes to serve the movie. Completely ignoring the rate of return of a movie is the way an artist behaves, but not the way a businessman does things..
This seems to once again confirm the suspicion of industry insiders: Andre is a stupid young man with a lot of money..
Things suddenly became interesting. Judging from the actions of Sisyphus Films, Renly did not directly perform in the three consecutive works, which was inconsistent with everyone's predictions; but judging from the attributes of the three works, Sisyphus Firth Pictures’ choices have no context, and they look more like random investments..
So, is this worth noting? It’s still worth complaining about？
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