Chasing Stars in Hollywood

In its first seven days, "Lethal Weapon 3" grossed $42.94 million, slightly below the expected $45 million.

Due to its action-comedy nature, "Lethal Weapon 3" had a production budget of only $35 million.

The $42.94 million opening weekend marked a major success relative to its cost.

However, because Mel Gibson, Danny Glover, and director Richard Donner, among other key creators, had signed profit-sharing agreements that took more than half of the film's net profit, Warner Bros.' expected earnings from this sequel were less than those of the key creators.

Considering the increasing costs and risks of continuing the series, whether "Lethal Weapon 4" would proceed depended largely on the negotiation of profit distribution between Warner Bros. and Mel Gibson, among others.

In Simon's memory, "Lethal Weapon 4" was not released until 1998, largely due to these reasons. Additionally, because of the long delay, the production cost of "Lethal Weapon 4" reached $140 million, but its North American box office did not even break even.

The Hollywood trilogy curse sometimes isn't a bad thing for either the studios or the filmmakers.

On May 22, in the second week of the summer season, Disney released the black comedy "Sister Act" starring Whoopi Goldberg. With a budget of $31 million, the film opened on only 1,430 screens.

A few years ago, 1,430 screens would have been a major release. In 1992, it indicated a lack of confidence in the film's box office potential.

Disney planned to release several films this summer. Besides sequels like "Honey, I Blew Up the Kid" and the 2D animated film "Aladdin," even the re-release of the classic 2D animated film "Pinocchio" in mid-July was expected to open on more than 1,600 screens, surpassing "Sister Act."

In addition to "Sister Act," another film released on the same day was "Damage," distributed by New World Pictures under Daenerys Entertainment.

"Damage," directed by renowned French director Louis Malle and starring Oscar winner Jeremy Irons and famous French actress Juliette Binoche, tells the story of a British MP who has an illicit affair with his son's girlfriend.

New World Pictures marketed "Damage" as a film similar to Michael Douglas's hit "Fatal Attraction" from a few years ago.

However, unlike the suspense of "Fatal Attraction," "Damage" focused on a single theme: sex.

Under the operation of New World Pictures' distribution team, mainstream newspapers and magazines seriously analyzed the plot of "Damage," while more gossip-oriented platforms like The New York Times highlighted the 'conflict' with the MPAA over the film's rating.

Due to several explicit love scenes, the MPAA initially rated "Damage" NC-17. After much debate and some compromises from New World Pictures, the film finally received an R rating.

This rating conflict was, of course, a deliberate move by New World Pictures.

Hollywood studios frequently clashed with the MPAA over ratings every year, and Daenerys Entertainment was no exception, though most disputes were resolved quietly.

Occasionally making a high-profile announcement in the media proved to be very effective.

Opening on 516 screens, "Damage" grossed $5.39 million in its first week, with an average of over $10,000 per screen, indicating a strong performance.

Given the limited audience for French films in the North American market and the competitive summer season, New World Pictures did not plan to increase the screen count in the following week, aiming for a scarcity marketing effect.

With a $5.39 million opening week, "Damage" was expected to earn at least $15 million in North America.

Despite being directed by Louis Malle, known for "Atlantic City" and "Pretty Baby," "Damage" had received mediocre reviews in Europe and performed modestly at the box office. New World Pictures bought all North American rights for just $2 million, with an additional $2 million for promotion.

This was a gamble.

Louis Malle was never considered a box office director.

The distribution team at New World Pictures initially predicted that the film might only gross $5 million in North America.

With a $4 million total investment, if the film only grossed $5 million domestically, the project would have to rely on video and other post-theatrical revenue to break even.

The European producers of "Damage" likely foresaw this possibility, which is why they were willing to sell the North American rights outright.

Also, because it was a buyout, "Damage" could secure a good summer release slot. If it were a revenue-sharing release, the film would likely be given a less favorable release window, such as January or September.

With a projected $15 million North American box office, New World Pictures would recoup its initial investment and make a profit.

Previously, many in Hollywood could not understand why Daenerys Entertainment, which owned the DC movie universe and many other blockbuster IPs, would also involve itself in low-budget independent and art films.

Now, with time and Daenerys Entertainment's consistent success in this area, other studios were beginning to realize that a film with a modest $10-20 million gross could still be highly profitable due to its low cost.

For Daenerys Entertainment, starting with films like "Reservoir Dogs," "Strictly Ballroom," and "Twin Dragons" earlier this year, and now including "Damage," New World Pictures and Gaumont Pictures had released nine low-budget indie films with over $10 million in box office revenue.

Even if each film only netted $2-3 million, the total annual profit, including video and television revenue, would exceed $100 million.

And that's just from low-budget indie projects.

Gaumont Pictures and New World Pictures also had major releases like "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles," "The Naked Gun," and "The Piano."

Overall, these two subsidiaries could easily generate $200-300 million or more in annual profits for Daenerys Entertainment. In a typical year, other major Hollywood studios often only netted $200-300 million.

However, even as they began to understand this, other studios found it difficult to catch up with Daenerys Entertainment in the low-budget indie film sector, just as they struggled to compete with New Line and Miramax in their respective niches in the original timeline.

Additionally, New World Pictures and Gaumont Pictures, now subsidiaries of Daenerys Entertainment, were not available for acquisition by other studios.

Despite "Damage" performing well relative to its budget, it didn't stand out on the weekly box office chart.

For the week of May 22-28, "Lethal Weapon 3" continued to lead the box office with $32.31 million, a 24% drop from its opening week.

Disney's "Sister Act" defied expectations, grossing $16.76 million from 1,430 screens, with an impressive per-screen average of over $11,000.

In its opening week, New World Pictures' "Damage" grossed $5.39 million from 516 screens, maintaining a per-screen average of over $10,000.

On May 29, North American theaters finally welcomed the first true high-budget blockbuster of the 1992 summer season, Sony's Columbia Pictures' "Far and Away," with a production cost of $60 million.

This film, set in the late 19th century and starring Tom Cruise, directed by Ron Howard, told the story of Irish immigrants in North America.

In the original timeline, "Far and Away" was a 'couples' movie with Cruise's then-wife Nicole Kidman as the female lead.

This time, however, the female lead was another 'acquaintance' of Simon, Catherine Zeta-Jones.

Having parted ways with Columbia Pictures president Jon Peters, Zeta-Jones had built a decent network in Hollywood.

To protect his interests, Tom Cruise rarely collaborated with other major stars, especially female leads, who were typically second or third-tier actresses, making Zeta-Jones a suitable choice.

Columbia Pictures not only invested $60 million in "Far and Away" but also allocated $30 million for promotion, bringing the total project investment to $90 million.

Tom Cruise pulled out all the stops to ensure the film's success.

Due to the altered timeline, Cruise had divorced his first wife Mimi Rogers just a year ago. To generate more buzz for "Far and Away," the media extensively covered the 'romance' between Cruise and Zeta-Jones.

This type of media strategy was almost clichéd in Hollywood.

However, it was used repeatedly because it worked.

The 'romance' between Cruise and Zeta-Jones attracted significant attention, boosting the film's profile.

Despite the large production and promotional investment, the widespread media buzz, and the highly publicized romance, "Far and Away" still failed to gain traction.

Opening on 2,791 screens, the film received mediocre reviews, reflecting Cruise's declining popularity and the audience's lack of interest in the story, leading to a meager $10.19 million opening weekend, less than a third of Columbia's expectations.

This was a harsh wake-up call.

By the end of the first week, "Far and Away" had only grossed $15.62 million, placing it third on the weekly box office chart.

Due to "Far and Away" underperforming, Warner Bros.' "Lethal Weapon 3" remained the weekly box office champion.

In its third week, "Lethal Weapon 3" earned another $20.02 million, bringing its total to $95.28 million, on the brink of crossing the $100 million mark.

Disney's "Sister Act" showed potential as a sleeper hit in its second week.

Though it ranked second,

 its second-week gross of $16.29 million, after expanding to 1,742 screens, only dipped 3% from its opening week. In just two weeks, the film's total gross surpassed its $31 million budget, reaching $33.05 million.

If not for the impending release of "Wonder Woman," "Sister Act" could have had a longer box office run.

Like last year's "The Flash," "Wonder Woman's" final production and promotional budget was $80 million, totaling $160 million.

To recoup this investment with a 55% North American box office share, the film needed to gross $290 million domestically.

However, the DC movie universe projects, while heavily relying on domestic box office success, were not overly dependent on it for profitability.

As a well-known IP with no major stars, "Wonder Woman" was still the most anticipated film of the summer. Its trailers featured stunning special effects and the high beauty of Famke Janssen as Diana Prince, generating immense excitement among fans and general audiences alike.

Additionally, Daenerys Entertainment's promotional team effectively leveraged the theme of female empowerment.

Recent successful female-led films in Hollywood, along with the three female directors nominated for Best Director at this year's Oscars and the first female Best Director winner, bolstered confidence in "Wonder Woman."

Diana Prince's debut in "Batman: Dark Knight," the DC movie universe's crossover plan, and the successes of "Batman: Year One," "Batman: Dark Knight," and "The Flash" provided a solid foundation for "Wonder Woman."

Confident in the film's quality, "Wonder Woman's" premiere was scheduled for Wednesday, June 3, with media reviews embargoed until the following day.

The film received an aggregate media score of 9.3, with unanimous praise for its plot, special effects, cinematography, and score.

The Hollywood Reporter's review echoed the general sentiment: "A seamless, thrilling plot, groundbreaking special effects, well-defined and engaging characters, and masterful foreshadowing—'Wonder Woman' officially launches the DC movie universe."

Variety praised Famke Janssen's performance: "Easily overshadowed by her beauty, this North European actress successfully portrays a strong, justice-driven female superhero."

Simon's custom background score for Diana Prince, inspired by the original "Is She with You," also caught media attention.

Rolling Stone's prominent critic predicted "Wonder Woman's" soundtrack would be one of the most collectible albums of 1992 and humorously congratulated Simon Westeros on potentially receiving another Oscar nomination for Original Score.

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