Hollywood What If Chapter 479
He couldn't help but smile as he looked at the numbers that represented the revenue they earned this year. He clasped his hands as if he were praying that everything was real. His eyes gazed at Stella.
"This is incredible. With only two projects this year, I'd say we outdid ourselves."
Stella also smiled, pleased that the boss was satisfied. She knew that the board of directors would also be happy once they heard about this outcome.
After swapping shares with 20th Century Fox, Grey Pictures had a board of directors, but their presence was not that important. They were more like inspectors, particularly the people who represented 20th Century Fox. Most of the time, the board of directors helped with the production of their projects. They were sort of like executive producers.
"Indeed, our strategic investment and partnerships have paid off," Stella agreed. Working with 20th Century Fox to have a steady distribution of products helped them a lot.
They couldn't ignore the fact that 20th Century Fox might absorb Grey Pictures in the long run, but as long as Kazir was in the company, Grey Pictures was safe. Kazir was the heart of Grey Pictures and the key to their success.
20th Century Fox wouldn't take the copyrights of their projects, such as the CCU and Pirates of the Caribbean, as long as Kazir was providing them benefits.
The fact that Final Destination was a box-office hit satisfied their hunger.
It was a win-win situation for both sides.
Kazir's mind drifted to the possibilities. "What's the breakdown of our revenue?"
"Taken 3 grossed over $780 million after four months of screening worldwide. Forty percent of that $780 million became our revenue, which was $312 million. So far, Game of Thrones Season 2 has generated more than $350 million. And the remaining $740 million came from merchandise, DVDs, and peripherals that were sold this year."
It was $1.4 billion in revenue.
Taken 3 was so strong because of its amazing plot, and the word of mouth was positive. Even now, despite four months of screening, the CinemaScore was still A+.
Grey Pictures believed that the movie could surpass $1 billion! It might become the second $1 billion movie of the Continental Cinematic Universe.
Christopher Nolan became a hot topic in Hollywood, and many studios expressed their intention of working with the director.
It was true that Taken 3 grossed $780 million, but it had to be divided among three sides. Cinema Alliance and 20th Century Fox got 60% of that amount, while Grey Pictures was left with 40%, which was $312 million. The accounting was still not done because Taken 3 was still making money. Although Grey Pictures had already received $250 million from them.
The money they invested in Taken 3 was $150 million, including promotion, and the box office returns were worth it.
As for Game of Thrones Season 2, since it only had 10 episodes, Grey Pictures spent $135 million to create it.
The two projects generated money, but the profit would only range between 30 to 20 percent.
If there was good news, the profit from DVDs and peripherals was more than 50%.
The accounting department computed that the profit in 2005 was $600 million.
Kazir clapped his hands.
"Stella, you better expect a bonus. The employees as well."
Stella started thinking about her vacation... but she realized that she had already taken one this year, so her mood dampened a little bit. Well, she could go to a singles mixer during the holidays to find a boyfriend.
$1.4 billion in revenue might be a lot, but it was nothing compared to the Big Six.
On average, the Big Six had a revenue of $10 billion per year. Walt Disney's average revenue in the 2010s ranged around $30 billion.
Still, for Grey Pictures to have a steady income per year was amazing.
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The completion of Pirates of the Caribbean was smooth sailing. Dead Man's Chest had 90% completion, while At World's End had 70% completion.
If the schedule didn't suffer any bumps, the two movies would probably finish filming in February.
So far, Kazir had been focusing on the filming of Dead Man's Chest, since this movie needed editing and special effects.
Kazir's life was steady and didn't suffer hiccups compared to a few years ago.
His last movie, Batman Begins, had ended its screening worldwide. The movie grossed $549 million at the box office. Warner Brothers naturally invited Kazir to their Christmas party to celebrate the success of Batman Begins. Scarlett and the other cast members of Batman Begins were also invited.
Even though some people in the management were disappointed, most were happy that they had broken the curse of their superhero movies.
Catwoman was... Ahem.
Also, the last Batman movie had a bad reputation, and it was fortunate that Kazir changed the perception of people when it came to Batman Begins. At least Batman Begins had a positive reputation.
Kazir attended the party together with Scarlett and mingled with the others.
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"Nice yacht."
Tom and Kazir were fishing together in the ocean, hundreds of meters away from the shore of Santa Monica Beach.
"What do you think of it?"
Kazir tapped the yacht that he had recently bought.
"It's amazing," Tom chuckled. "I'll add it to my collection."
"You better be, I spent $8 million just to buy this yacht," Kazir grumbled.
The two had made a bet. Nothing big, just a small wager to have fun.
The bet was about their movies, which were Batman Begins and War of the Worlds. The highest box office would win a yacht.
Batman Begins grossed $549 million, while War of the Worlds grossed $603 million.
Obviously, Kazir lost the bet and had to gift a yacht to Tom. And now, they were using said yacht to fish in the ocean. They were having fun fishing, as they had already filled one of their containers.
"Haha, looks like we'll have sushi tonight. I'll contact my chef." Since Tom received a new yacht, he decided to celebrate.
Honestly, he thought he was going to lose, but it seemed that Kazir also missed sometimes... if the definition of failure was only earning $549 million at the box office.