Only eight movies before Twilight have cracked $100 million domestic from distributors that were not studio-affiliated. And the only company in that group that are still seriously in the distribution business is Lionsgate. And they got their one movie in 9-figures from Miramax, a Disney division. Avco, Newmarket, Orion, USA… all gone. IFC does occasional theatrical releases now, but is primarily working the new media angle.
So, congrats on Twilight, Summit… and watch your ass.
I don’t know how Avco went down. Newmarket couldn’t collect on some percentage of the massive gross for The Passion and Mel got the lion’s share anyway… sending Bob Berney out and into Picturehouse and Newmarket back into DVD. Orion got big and then crashed in a mighty blaze as the economy and some expensive titles went bad. And USA was a Barry Diller pie-of-the-puzzle that ended up being mushed into what became Focus Features. IFC just couldn’t deal with the massive costs of marketing primarily for theatrical with arthouse product.
So what of Summit, whose #2 all-time grosser (of just 6 releases) is the $25 million domestic for the Sean Faris classic, Never Back Down? (#3 is the $12.4 million for the 3D bug comedy Fly Me To The Moon.) Is Twilight going to be their Passion of the Christ or March of the Penquins or My Big Fat Greek Wedding? Or, as Chicago would sing, is this only the beginning?
I hate to kick a company when it’s up, but I don’t see the next Twilight (well, literally I do) or even their Good Night, And Good Luck in the hopper.
I don’t know how much trouble they will have getting 100% of their rentals on Twilight with only The Brothers Bloom as motivation for good behavior on the part of exhibitors. On the other hand, they are already a more stable operation than Newmarket was. And the number on Twilight will not be as overwhelming/tempting to exhibitors willing to make mischief. (On the other hand, cash flow is an issue everywhere right now… even for guys like Phil Anchutz.)
I do wish Rob Friedman and everyone at Summit the very best. They have done a great job on Twilight… which will be the third or fourth biggest film of the season and still get a lot more attention for that success than any of the films that do better. But the feast/famine thing is very, very dangerous. Tread lightly, even in the light of this great success… that’s all I’m sayin’.
And on the flip side, there is a reason why studio machines roll on. Warner Bros. has dumped two of the most successful films of this season, Twilight and Slumdog Millionaire. And no one is getting them out of the business. No one is getting fired for incompetance. After all, they have The Dark Knight, a film coming directly out of time-Warner's ownership of DC Comics, the kind of relationship which independant companies cannot afford. Instead, the indies wait around hoping to get Marvel dregs. And Harry Potter & Batman team up to erase all mistakes, no matter how massive. Taa-dah!!!
Read the complete post at http://www.mcnblogs.com/thehotblog/archives/2008/11/you_have_a_150.html