Ever since being acquired by Time Warner, Warner Bros. has already released two animated feature films for Pixar Animation Studios, namely Cars and Ratatouille.
The former received average reviews and didn't perform particularly well at the box office, while the latter garnered overwhelming critical acclaim and achieved significantly better box office results than the former.
However, in Hollywood, everyone knows that the profit point of animated films has never been at the box office. Cars is a typical example in this regard. Released in the summer of 2006, the film grossed just over $400 million worldwide, yet the revenue generated from related toys and plush merchandise has exceeded $1 billion to date.
As for the critically acclaimed Ratatouille, though it received praise from countless media outlets, its profitability could only be described as average. Not only did it fail to match Cars, it didn't even compare to Pixar's last Disney-distributed film, The Incredibles.
In the eyes of many pure movie buffs, these animated features shouldn't be judged from such a standpoint.
But Duke and Time Warner's aim in targeting Pixar Animation Studios was never professional accolades, nor the Oscar for Best Animated Feature it was purely about commercial profit.
There was a time when Duke considered interfering in Pixar's operations, with the goal of canceling the WALL-E project.
Undeniably, WALL-E is one of Pixar's most iconic animated features, and Duke himself also holds this view. But its relatively highbrow subject matter and content were never going to be hugely popular with the market.
The film's box office was decent, but the peripheral merchandise revenue was dismal.
The majority of consumers willing to spend on animated film merchandise are minors. WALL-E's target audience wasn't minors at all. While many adult viewers were willing to buy movie tickets, few were inclined to spend heavily on merchandise.
A good movie doesn't necessarily translate to high income.
Still, Duke ultimately didn't intervene in the WALL-E project.
First, he had promised Steve Jobs at the time that he and Warner wouldn't interfere too much in Pixar's operations; and second, when Pixar was acquired by Time Warner, the project had already been launched.
Of course, in the face of sufficient commercial interest, none of that matters.
The most important point is that while WALL-E might not generate huge profits like Cars, it wouldn't lose money either.
"Steve. Long time no see."
Walking into the VIP lounge of the premiere theater, Duke found Steve Jobs and shook his hand. "You're looking much better."
Steve Jobs waved nonchalantly. "Just a minor issue."
"We're close partners now. I don't want anything to happen to you."
Although it was a bit inappropriate, Duke still gave a reminder. "I believe Western medicine is more scientific."
"Maybe," Jobs clearly didn't want to discuss this topic.
Duke sighed inwardly and didn't press further. Strictly speaking, this was already a matter of faith. He'd only give a gentle reminder—he wasn't foolish enough to try to persuade someone as stubborn as Steve Jobs.
If the man wouldn't even listen to his family, how could he possibly heed the advice of an outsider?
Besides, even if something unfortunate were to happen to Steve Jobs, Apple would continue to move forward. Despite all the naysayers, the company still proved its strength with solid performance.
Moreover, once Jobs stepped down, it would be more convenient for Duke to intervene in Pixar's affairs.
To be precise, whether Jobs was present or not no longer made a particularly big difference to Duke.
Given his personality, he certainly wouldn't do something that's all effort and no reward.
Although Pixar was acquired by Time Warner, in many ways, it was still Steve Jobs' personal kingdom.
Many members of Time Warner's board, including Duke, were actually planning reforms to Pixar's personnel. For example, promoting Ed Catmull to head of Warner's entire animation business and appointing John Lasseter as chief creative officer for the entire group's animation division…
These were indeed promotions, and Ed Catmull and John Lasseter would gain more power, but transferring them would also break Pixar's currently independent structure.
In fact, beginning with Ratatouille and WALL-E, both Time Warner and Duke had the same concern: that Pixar was venturing too far down the path of highbrow content.
With an introduction from Steve Jobs, Duke soon met Pixar's famous "Five Tiger Generals," arguably the most well-known directors in animation, such as Andrew Stanton and Brad Bird, some of whom also intended to branch into live-action films.
Brad Bird was one of the candidates to direct Tom Cruise's Mission: Impossible 4.
"Hey, Duke."
A somewhat unfamiliar greeting came from the side. Duke quickly turned and shook the outstretched hand. "Hello, Martin. I didn't expect to see you here."
He truly hadn't expected Martin Scorsese to attend the premiere of a Pixar film.
But on second thought, Duke guessed the reason.
After parting ways with Michael Ovitz, Martin Scorsese's Oscar-contending film this year, The Departed, was produced and distributed by Warner Bros.
Duke thought Scorsese might subtly bring up Oscar voting, but unexpectedly, he raised a completely unrelated topic.
"Duke, no matter what, Michael and I are old friends," Martin Scorsese sighed and said in a low voice, "You two have been entangled for so many years. Isn't it time to—"
Duke roughly guessed what Scorsese was about to say and raised his hand to cut him off. "Martin, it was ICM, CAA, and William Morris who poached the clients of the Artists Management Company. That had nothing to do with me."
At this point, he gestured toward Leonardo DiCaprio, who had just walked in. "Sorry, I have something to discuss with Leo."
Even if it were Spielberg himself asking, Duke wouldn't give up the opportunity to dismantle Michael Ovitz.
And even if he did give it up, would the three major agencies that had already poached many high-quality clients from the Artists Management Company give up such easily attainable profits?
Michael Ovitz had been riding high in this circle for far too many years. The number of people who wanted to trample him underfoot was countless.
Even a lion eventually grows old. Artists Management Company ultimately did not become the second CAA. After one packaged project after another from Michael Ovitz failed to meet expectations, both he and his company inevitably faced the encirclement and strangulation by entrenched forces.
Martin Scorsese's kind of nostalgic loyalty is rare in this circle.
"How's it going?"
Walking over to Leonardo, Duke asked directly, "All prepared?"
"I've done basically everything I could." Leonardo bumped fists with Duke and said, "First we need to secure the nomination. Right now Matt Damon is gaining momentum. If he gets nominated, my chances will shrink."
The chances of a film receiving two Best Actor nominations are slim to none.
Leonardo seemed lacking in confidence. "I'm considering shifting to compete for Best Supporting Actor."
"That's not a good idea," Duke shook his head without hesitation. "You have no hope in the Supporting Actor category."
Death is far more powerful than any PR or favors. Next year's Oscar for Best Supporting Actor is practically a foregone conclusion.
Duke gave Leonardo a light pat on the arm. "I'll support you with everything I've got."
"Thanks." Leonardo then joked, "Too bad your influence inside the Academy is limited."
"Let's go. It's almost screening time."
The two walked toward the theater. Duke spoke as they walked. "I really don't have much sway with the Academy's core old men, but I do have a few votes in hand."
People like Charles Roven, Robin Grande, John Schwartzman, and Anna Prince are also Academy members now.
But just as Leonardo said, Duke and his team don't put much weight on the Oscars, and their relationship with the Academy's inner circle is, at best, average.
In truth, Duke knew very well that Leonardo's chances of winning Best Actor were slim. Some of the Academy's discrimination tends to ignore the merits of the discriminated.
After taking his seat, Duke tossed the Oscars aside and focused on the upcoming screening of WALL-E.
Although many details in the film had changed, it wasn't much different from Duke's impression. The film was indeed excellent, especially WALL-E's scenes on Earth, which were absolutely Oscar-worthy performances in the realm of animated films.
But the film's problems were also obvious. Pixar's animated features had never really leaned toward children, and WALL-E completely broke away from the child-friendly mold this was basically an animated film made for adults.
No matter how mature the North American film market becomes, the main audience for animated films will always be minors especially when it comes to merchandising.
This animated feature earned $64 million over its opening weekend from nearly 4,000 theaters in North America, which was definitely an impressive achievement. In terms of box office alone, WALL-E was absolutely destined to be a hit.
However, when it came to the bigger chunk of revenue—merchandising—WALL-E performed very poorly. Though its merchandise wasn't completely ignored, it still fell far short of Warner's expectations.
What's more, despite the film's overwhelming critical acclaim, its highbrow theme didn't translate into stable box office momentum. The second weekend saw a steep drop of nearly 50%, with earnings just over $32 million.
Judging by the opening weekend numbers and strong word-of-mouth, WALL-E's final North American box office was bound to reach or even surpass $300 million. But based on the second weekend's decline, the film would most likely end up around $220 million domestically.
With lukewarm merchandise sales and a steep box office drop in its second week, this animated feature, which had a massive $180 million production budget, would have to rely on long-term operations to become profitable.
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