On February 11, alongside "Four Weddings and a Funeral," Disney released "Richie Rich" and Columbia Pictures released "My Girl 2." Both films had a similar number of screens to "Four Weddings and a Funeral."
"Richie Rich" tells the story of a young boy who unexpectedly gains a million dollars and outwits criminals who lost the money. "My Girl 2," a sequel to the original starring Macaulay Culkin, features a new child star.
Even without knowing the content, the titles alone suggest they were following in the footsteps of "Home Alone."
Danneel Entertainment had long since shelved further development of the "Home Alone" series, but Hollywood remained captivated by this blockbuster children's series. Naturally, they introduced some "innovations," like the romantic subplot in "Richie Rich," fitting for Valentine's Day.
Mainstream North American newspapers, still at odds with the Westeros system, were nonetheless unforgiving towards these copycat competitors.
Upon release, reviews for "My Girl 2" were dismal, with a media score of just 2.7. Worse still, Disney's "Richie Rich" was utterly panned, with a composite score of 0.9.
In contrast, despite the inherent negative bias towards Danneel Entertainment in print media, "Four Weddings and a Funeral" only saw its score drop from 9.5 at Sundance to 8.6—a classic rating. "Variety" praised it as "a smart, funny, and unconventional love story with the warmth of winter afternoon sunlight."
The film not only shone but also brought long-overdue recognition to Hugh Grant, whose restrained yet humorous performance was highlighted by many critics. Model-turned-actress Andie MacDowell also received acclaim, following her previous success in "Sex, Lies, and Videotape."
With a production budget of $5 million and an equal amount for marketing, "Four Weddings and a Funeral" was modestly funded. In comparison, "Richie Rich" had a $15 million production budget. From the outset, Simon understood that the film's success hinged on word-of-mouth.
Despite the ongoing media feud, traditional outlets couldn't ignore the widespread acclaim from numerous critics, who unanimously praised "Four Weddings and a Funeral." To downplay such a film would insult their readers' intelligence.
For films destined to be classics, media reviews were just the icing on the cake. The film's rapid popularity among moviegoers was the key, as more and more audiences, influenced by peers, started buying tickets.
The Danneel Entertainment distribution team acted swiftly.
With stellar box office results on Friday and Saturday, Simon personally approved an additional $10 million marketing budget.
From February 11 to 13, "Four Weddings and a Funeral" grossed $9.81 million in its opening weekend, recouping its $5 million production budget.
Following this, on Valentine's Day, despite being a Monday, the film earned $5.13 million, surpassing any single day of the opening weekend.
By the end of its first week, "Four Weddings and a Funeral" had grossed $21.79 million, easily claiming the Valentine's Day box office crown with an impressive per-screen average of $13,000.
For a modestly budgeted romantic comedy in the February off-season and a relatively low-key Valentine's Day slot, grossing $21.79 million in its first week exceeded all expectations.
Given the film's stellar reviews and growing popularity, with no strong competitors in sight, "Four Weddings and a Funeral" was poised for a strong box office run, with the potential to surpass $100 million domestically.
Danneel Entertainment thus secured its first potential blockbuster of 1994.
In the same week, the DC Universe blockbuster "Cyborg" ranked second, entering its eighth week of release.
Due to Valentine's Day, "Cyborg" saw only a 17% drop, earning an additional $7.98 million and bringing its total to $241.43 million. This made it the third-highest grosser of 1993, behind "Superman" and "The Lion King."
Disney's "Richie Rich" opened to just $6.91 million, placing third. With 1,841 screens, the film's poor performance yielded a per-screen average of just over $3,700, indicating a likely steep drop in screen numbers within two weeks.
In fourth place was Steven Spielberg's "Schindler's List," grossing $6.28 million this week, with a cumulative total of $37.2 million, nearly recouping its $22 million production cost.
"My Girl 2," without Macaulay Culkin, fared worse than "Richie Rich," opening with $6.05 million, placing fifth.
With poor reviews and dismal box office starts, both films were expected to gross around $15 million domestically, far from recouping their costs.
In the same week, as "Four Weddings and a Funeral" emerged as a dark horse, "The Lion King," in its 13th week, earned another $4.35 million, bringing its total to $302.56 million, making it Hollywood's first animated film to surpass $300 million domestically.
The Oscar nomination for Best Picture had reignited global interest in "The Lion King," leading to box office rebounds and new releases in overseas markets.
Latest data showed its international gross at $467 million, with a global total of $769 million, setting a new record for animated films.
Given current trends, "The Lion King" had $20 to $30 million more potential domestically and at least another $100 million internationally, aiming for a $900 million global total.
Even if it fell short of $1 billion, such an impressive performance for a 3D animated film was astounding.
Since "The Lion King's" release and its phenomenal success, other Hollywood studios had significantly increased investments in 3D technology. Pixar, part of Danneel Entertainment, faced severe poaching as "Toy Story" and "The Lion King" continued to revolutionize the industry.
The biggest live-action film, "Cyborg," faced limitations in international markets due to its all-Black cast, with a global total of $510 million, including $270 million internationally and $240 million domestically.
Unlike "The Lion King," "Cyborg," a popcorn blockbuster, was nearing the end of its run. It was expected to earn an additional $50 million globally, totaling around $550 to $570 million.
Despite impressive numbers, "Cyborg" paled in comparison to "The Lion King."
Moreover, "Cyborg's" merchandise revenue, expected to reach $500 million over five years, was dwarfed by "The Lion King," whose recent merchandise sales alone exceeded $1.3 billion, with a five-year projection of $3 to $4 billion.
A phenomenon like "The Lion King" could generate a total value exceeding $10 billion through long-term operations, overshadowing its box office revenue.
After Valentine's Day, Simon and Janet flew to New York to discuss Danneel Entertainment's upcoming IPO with Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs. With "The Lion King" surpassing $300 million domestically, the IPO garnered significant media attention.
Last month, a "Wall Street Journal" article predicted Danneel Entertainment's 1993 net profit at $2 billion, estimating a conservative IPO valuation of no less than $30 billion.
Corporate IPO valuations hinge on several factors, but primarily on profitability and long-term growth potential.
With "The Lion King" grossing over $300 million domestically and aiming for $900 million globally, Danneel Entertainment's profitability was unquestioned.
The media focus shifted to Danneel Entertainment's growth potential.
In the past year, the group released 46 films, with four breaking the $100 million mark domestically: "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective 2," "The Firm," "Seven," and "The Lion King," all ranking in the year's top ten. Additionally, films like "Carlito's Way," "Schindler's List," and "What's Love Got to Do with It" contributed significantly to box office revenues.
Excluding co-productions like "Superman" and "Sleepless in Seattle," Danneel Entertainment captured $1.7 billion out of North America's total $5.6 billion box office, a 31% market share. Including co-productions, the share rose to 46%.
Danneel Entertainment alone accounted for nearly half of Hollywood's market share, verging on monopoly.
Many media outlets believed the film business, contributing most of Danneel's profits, had little room for growth. Even Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs' teams shared this view.
If Danneel's future growth was limited, its IPO valuation's price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio would be low.
A simple valuation formula is P/E ratio multiplied by annual net profit.
Apple, despite being the world's most profitable company, had a P/E ratio around 10 due to growth stagnation. In contrast, high-growth companies like Amazon had P/E ratios near 100.
The "Wall Street Journal's" conservative $30 billion valuation was based on a 15 P/E ratio.
Simon had long recognized this issue, redirecting efforts into music and gaming.
Even if the core film business plateaued, it didn't mean Danneel Entertainment would stop growing. As a comprehensive entertainment giant, its music, gaming, merchandise, and theme parks could still thrive, driven by the film division.
Moreover, even if other ventures failed, the global film industry's natural growth over the next decade would sustain Danneel's performance.
Additionally, if the media industry consolidation ban was lifted, Danneel could expand into television. Despite the internet's early arrival, North America's TV industry, especially cable, had at least ten years of growth.
Therefore, despite media speculation, Simon would not budge on
Danneel's IPO valuation.
If the P/E ratio fell below 20, he would cancel the IPO.
At a 20 P/E ratio, Danneel's IPO valuation would reach at least $40 billion.
This would make it the largest IPO in history, easily entering the $50 billion club and ranking among the world's top companies.
New York, Manhattan.
It was February 19, a Saturday.
After Valentine's Day, Simon and Janet spent several weekdays in New York. Janet returned to Los Angeles yesterday, taking Veronica back to the West Coast.
Simon stayed in New York.
This had become an unspoken understanding between him and Janet.
Simon never intended to be a homebound, faithful husband, and Janet had long accepted that her husband wouldn't have just one woman. She ensured Simon had personal space when needed. Despite this, their relationship remained strong, with no other woman, except Jennifer, interfering in their lives.
That evening, Simon attended a party at Rupert Murdoch's residence, located in a high-rise near Central Park South.
Due to some inexplicable amusement, Simon's companion for the night was again Jerry Hall.
Jerry Hall had divorced Mick Jagger last year.
Their relationship had long soured. After filing for divorce, Jagger quickly countered to avoid losing too much wealth, challenging their private Bali wedding's validity. Hall fought back, and they went to court.
After months of legal battles, Hall received a £5 million settlement, roughly one-tenth of Jagger's assets, along with custody of their three children.
Post-divorce, Hall moved to New York, focusing on her TV career while maintaining a discreet relationship with Simon.
Navigating Murdoch's party until after 10 PM, Simon prepared to leave, politely bidding the host farewell.
Murdoch's invitation aimed to explore further collaboration in the internet domain.
Unlike the conservative Sumner Redstone, Murdoch, despite his long-term commitment to newspapers, didn't shy away from new industries. In Simon's memory, News Corp had invested in many internet ventures, like the Hulu streaming platform with Disney to counter Netflix.
As Simon was about to leave, Murdoch didn't detain him but handed him a file, explaining, "This is a press release intercepted by News Corp's 'News of the World' in the UK. It's about a group of Russian girls in London. Simon, News Corp won't cover this, but you know how things are in the UK. Other media won't make the same promise."
_________________________
[Check out my Patreon for +200 additional chapters in all my fanfics! $5 for all!!]
[w w w . p a t r e o n .com / INNIT]
[+50 PowerStones = +1 Chapter]