[Chapter 231: A Small Victory]
On June 10th, Guess Pictures released Speed amidst significant competition.
The tough situation stemmed from the fact that three major films debuted on the same day. The first was Universal Pictures' comedy The Cowboy Way, starring Woody Harrelson and Kiefer Sutherland, with a production budget of $22 million. The second was Paramount Pictures' Beverly Hills Cop 3, led by the renowned comedian Eddie Murphy. The first film in this franchise had been a massive success, becoming the first to release in over 2,000 theaters nationwide and grossing $316 million globally. The second film, released in '87, pulled in $299 million worldwide. The third installment, made with the same creative team, was expected to gross at least $200 million as well. The third film was Disney's comedy Renaissance Man, with a budget of $35 million.
On top of that, there were still running hits like The Flintstones, Maverick, and The Crow, along with the upcoming release of The Lion King next week.
For Speed to break through the crowd of marquee films and perform well was going to be challenging. Given its $30 million production cost and a hefty $10 million marketing budget, many media outlets predicted it might lead to financial losses, hinting it could be the start of Guess Pictures' downfall.
...
However, when the first week's box office numbers came in, Speed exceeded everyone's expectations. It grossed $20.75 million in its debut weekend, becoming the top film in North America, shown in 2,147 theaters.
Coming in second was Beverly Hills Cop 3, which was shown in 2,748 theaters and raked in $11.42 million. The average per-theater ticket sales were a mere $1,337, far below the break-even point and considerably lower than Paramount and media expectations. This third installment had a shocking production cost of $50 million. Before its release, to counter Speed's momentum, Paramount had raised Beverly Hills Cop 3's marketing budget from $5 million to $10 million and enlisted big stars like Tom Cruise for promotional support. Additionally, they expanded the film's release to over 2,700 theaters, surpassing the number of theaters for Jurassic Park's opening.
Originally, predictions for Beverly Hills Cop 3's first week box office had been set at no less than $30 million, yet it came in at less than half that figure. Once the weekend box office results were published, the entertainment industry buzzed with discussions.
...
Some marveled at Speed's resilience, managing to overcome the competition of seven or eight other major films and claim victory. Others envied Guess Pictures for their good fortune, as they had just seen success with Dumb and Dumber in April, followed by another hit with Speed in June, outshining the "big seven" studios.
There were also those who felt regretful, seeing that Guess Pictures' new films were performing well and speculated it might prolong their survival.
Many media outlets wrote about the ups and downs of both films. Total Film offered three reasons for Speed's successful opening:
First, the movie featured an exciting plot with a mix of car chases, shootouts, intelligence games between cops and robbers, romance, and summer blockbuster explosions, making it an action-packed commercial film.
Second, the casting was notably effective. Keanu Reeves, as the male lead, was handsome and agile, one of Hollywood's rising stars. The female lead, Sandra Bullock, was striking and sensual, appealing to male audiences. Their on-screen chemistry as a couple further heightened the film's appeal, particularly among younger viewers.
Third, Guess Pictures had spared no expense in marketing, pouring significant funds into television advertisements. These three factors were the primary reasons Speed outperformed media predictions.
Total Film also identified three reasons for Beverly Hills Cop 3's box office struggles.
First, as the third film in its series, the story was overly familiar and lacked fresh content, which risked losing audience interest.
Second, in the past two years, the genre had seen a surge in new comedies, including family-friendly hits like Home Alone and edgy works like Quentin Tarantino's Pulp Fiction and Jim Carrey's nonsensical comedies. The popularity of these newer films indicated shifting audience tastes, while Eddie Murphy's routine felt stale in contrast.
Third, the abundance of major films releasing simultaneously diminished the competitive viability of lower-quality entries, leading to poor box office performance.
In simple terms, Speed was overwhelmingly strong, while Beverly Hills Cop 3 fell flat. One succeeded, and the other failed because of market and audience choices.
In a different context, this wouldn't have been considered a major news item. But since these films were being wielded by Guess Pictures and Paramount as weapons in the battle for box office dominance, it took on a different meaning.
Speed's surprising defeat of Beverly Hills Cop 3 became a story worth telling.
Moreover, the third position on the box office this week was occupied by The Flintstones, which had been out for four weeks, grossing $6.83 million this week and totaling $94.63 million so far, with expectations of crossing the $100 million mark next week.
Fourth was the newly released Renaissance Man, at $5.05 million. Fifth was The Cowboy Way, with $4.37 million. The former might end up being a loss, while the latter might barely break even.
Total Film had to announce that in this week's box office competition, Speed had triumphed against the odds, achieving a resounding victory. The magazine's cover featured a cartoon of Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock driving that iconic bus from the film, crashing through obstacles labeled with titles like Beverly Hills Cop 3 and Renaissance Man, with a shining "Winner" tag affixed to the front.
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"Are you kidding me?! God, how did this happen?!"
After the box office results came in, Michael Ovitz and executives from several film companies vented their frustrations.
Before the summer movie season, they had strategically positioned five or six blockbuster films to target Speed's box office, akin to a group of strongmen ganging up on a young upstart. Yet, not only did they fail to win, but they ended up on the ground, defeated.
This was infuriating.
"Do these idiots not watch cop movies? Speed is just an average film, far inferior to Stallone, Schwarzenegger, or Bruce Willis films. Why are they flocking to it?" Michael Ovitz was enraged.
The North American audience seemed to be opposing him, reminiscent of the previous year when the film The Firm struggled at the box office; if audiences had rallied behind it, perhaps it wouldn't have faced defeat.
The same went for Speed; while it had its merits, it was nothing particularly special compared to other offerings, yet it grossed significantly more.
Michael Ovitz glared at the newspaper, took a deep breath, and called a few partners to express his dissatisfaction. Initially, when discussing how to suppress Guess Pictures' films, he had suggested deploying high-quality blockbusters to blockade Speed.
While these films had the sound of blockbusters, aside from Beverly Hills Cop 3, the rest were more akin to arranged mismatches lacking substance.
Losing revenue to Guess Pictures this time left Paramount in a precarious situation. Warner Brothers' President, Terry Semel, advised him to cool down, as Disney's highly anticipated animated feature The Lion King was set to release next week, which would definitely cut into Speed's box office.
Ovitz was not pleased. With a $20.75 million debut, Speed could easily hit $60 million in North America next week - another successful film. Even amidst their concerted effort to suppress it, Guess Pictures' film still succeeded.
What was the point of their tactics?
Sid Sheinberg, President of Universal Pictures, said they were corporate leaders, not owners of the company, with limited options at their disposal. They couldn't risk their jobs by suppressing Guess Pictures.
Barry Diller, President of 20th Century Fox, urged him not to fret; actions against Guess Pictures had just begun, and this was a marathon, not a sprint. A small loss now shouldn't be a concern; they needed to have faith in eventual victory.
Ovitz cursed, slammed down the phone, flustered.
This minor defeat was not due to his incompetence but rather a lack of cohesion among the alliance members, each with their own agendas.
How could they expect to defeat someone with deep pockets like Link?
...
"Michael, Guess Pictures is on a tremendous upswing, rivaling the big seven studios. As an agency, it would be advantageous for us to collaborate with them rather than oppose them," Jay Moloney, the vice president, said.
"Work with Link? Ha! You can discuss that once you become CAA's president. For now, as president, our stance on Guess Pictures must align with mine." Ovitz retorted.
Moloney shrugged and chose not to elaborate further.
Realizing his emotional outburst, Ovitz dialed back his tone to apologize to Moloney.
It wasn't that he didn't want to improve relations with Link; he simply couldn't afford to. He had already aligned himself with the alliance and had become a vital figure.
Abruptly switching sides to partner with Link would leave him without any credibility in the eyes of others.
Additionally, entertainment capital had its sights set on Guess Pictures as a lucrative target, and as Link was unwilling to share, the financial backers would continue to pursue Guess Pictures vehemently; they would not allow Link to hoard all the riches.
This implied their actions against Link and Guess Pictures had the tacit approval of the financiers, who were prepared to enjoy the unfolding drama.
Ovitz realized he couldn't afford to pull back now; it would portray him as inept in the eyes of others and inconsistent with his power status in Hollywood.
Also, he had suffered two consecutive defeats against Link, losing significant funds, resources, and prestige.
If he couldn't win back what he had lost, he would be left with a gnawing sense of discontent for the rest of his life.
Realizing the seriousness of the situation, Moloney no longer attempted to persuade him. He planned to discuss it with Link during their golf outing the next day, hoping to convince him to withdraw while he was ahead and accept capital management, steering clear of larger conflicts.
*****
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