[Chapter 166: Launching The Rock and Happy Death Day]
Compared to The Rock, Happy Death Day was relatively simpler.
It mainly relied on creativity, introducing the concept of a time loop where a college girl relived her death repeatedly, unraveling the killer's mystery amid suspense and humor, culminating in a twist that defied expectations.
The shooting locations were also very simple: a school and a hospital. Moreover, due to the time loop, scenes could be reused multiple times.
The shooting schedule was short, planned for 40 days, partly because Ryan was a newcomer. If Linton had directed it, filming could have finished in at most 20 days.
Ryan proposed a production budget of just $1.5 million, which was reasonable. Also, this kind of movie didn't require big stars, so including crew salaries, the total budget wouldn't exceed $3 million.
However, the largest expenses were likely Linton's script fee and the co-producer's pay. With the huge success of The Shallows, his fees rose to $1.5 million each, and he does not accept any other plays.
Linton and Robert were both quite satisfied with Ryan's proposal.
"Robert, what do you think?"
"I think it's good."
"Great. Let's greenlight Happy Death Day and assign Ryan as director."
"Thank you, boss. I won't let you down."
"Boss, what about the producer and budget? How do you want to handle that?"
"Let Kenneth be the producer. I'll co-produce. The budget is tentatively set at $6 million."
"Since this is a thriller, I recommend releasing it between Halloween and Christmas at the end of the year."
"Right, that doesn't leave much time. Keep a close eye on it and have them start preparations immediately. Also, we should distribute this movie ourselves. Add Harvey and Clinsman to the project so they can get involved from the start. Let's aim for a big hit."
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Soon after, Linton Films officially announced the greenlighting of The Rock and Happy Death Day.
Project teams were established, initially injecting $6 million for The Rock and $1.5 million for Happy Death Day.
The crews signed directing contracts with Michael Bay and Ryan Coaster respectively, with salaries of $200,000 each.
...
Hollywood insiders eagerly sought details about the two projects. Upon learning both would be helmed by rookie directors, it caused a huge stir in the industry.
Two complete newcomers to the film industry -- both had only served as assistant director on one film for Linton but was now taking the helm alone, and one of them was a commercial blockbuster.
This was unheard of.
Supporters praised Linton as a great mentor and talent scout, highlighting his ability to discover and nurture new talent. This sentiment was partly influenced by Zack and The Shallows's ongoing success.
Critics lambasted Linton for reckless behavior, claiming he ignored industry norms, and confidently predicted his approach was premature and detrimental to both talent and investments.
Linton and his film company became more famous within industry circles, though the general public remained focused mainly on stars rather than directors behind the scenes.
Linton didn't mind. Praise and criticism barely affected him beyond slightly aiding his Starlight Spark training. He preferred to let box office results speak for themselves.
---
Good news soon arrived from Universal Pictures and Universal Records.
After financial audits, Universal Records settled earnings with Linton and his film company from The Shallows's soundtrack album and three singles: I Swear, Taste the Feeling, and Sold Out.
The first part was revenue sharing from The Shallows soundtrack album. Since Linton hadn't participated in production, and the album quality was average, the sales were moderate despite the film's blockbuster success.
By the end of May, the album sold 1.95 million copies at an average price of $14.50. Per agreement, the film company's share was $5.655 million.
The second part was from the single I Swear, which sold 27.35 million copies in total. Since March, it sold an additional 550,000 copies at $4.90 each, giving Linton a personal share of $592,900.
The third part was from Taste the Feeling, with total sales of 25.3 million copies. Since March, it sold 7.7 million more copies at $5.30 each. Linton's share was $8.9782 million.
The fourth part was from Sold Out, which sold 24.7 million copies at $5.40 each. His personal share amounted to $28.8002 million.
The fifth part was new licensing fees from I Swear, Taste the Feeling, and Sold Out combined, totaling $7.58 million, with Linton's share being $1.516 million.
The sixth part was licensing revenue from songs on The Shallows soundtrack album totaling $870,000. The film company's share was $174,000.
In total, Linton Films received $5.829 million, while Linton's personal total share was $39.8873 million. After deducting 6% for the agency and 1% for Henry, Linton kept $37.095 million.
He kept $7.095 million for himself, injected $10 million as working capital into the Anderson Farm, and transferred the remaining $20 million to the charity foundation account managed by Winnie.
...
Shortly after, Universal settled home video rental and sales revenue for Step Up's second quarter with Linton Films.
From mid-February to the end of April 1993, Universal sold 780,000 videotapes, mostly director's cut editions, at an average price of $34.50.
The tapes were rented 2.43 million times, at an average rental price of $4.20 each.
Total revenue was $37.116 million. According to the agreement, Linton Films received $8.90784 million.
---
After the video revenue settlement, Linton and Robert brought the The Rock script and project plan to the Lou Wasserman office.
"Linton, congratulations! The Shallows's box office was a huge success," Lou Wasserman said happily. The film's release had brought Universal significant profits, and with the following Jurassic Park, Speed, and Step Up 2, Universal's performance this year was set to make a complete turnaround.
"Thanks, we all benefited and made big money together."
"Honestly, I never imagined such a small-budget film without big-name stars could perform so well. Your script was fantastic, of course Zack and Cameron did great too."
"Yeah, I didn't expect such a hit either. I initially hoped for $40 million domestic box office, so this was a huge surprise."
"I hope Speed and Step Up 2 also smash box office records."
"Definitely. I'm very confident, but your distribution and publicity have to be top-notch. Don't let it down."
"Don't worry. Universal will handle those films with the highest release and promotional standards. Jurassic Park premieres soon, then full efforts will go into Speed's release."
"I feel relieved. I have high hopes for those films."
"Jurassic Park's premiere is on June 9. Invitations have been sent to you. Don't forget to come support it."
"Of course. Jurassic Park is Spielberg's latest masterpiece and adapted from a bestselling novel. I'm really looking forward to seeing it early. Wishing the film huge box office success in advance."
*****
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