A New Hollywood Mogul 3 Dynasty!!!

[Abe Sargent]

Yeah it is, baby! Oh, Gwen, stop, Gwen!

Let me take a looksie

The Wonder Years, Drama, although I find the details often screwed up, like the lead is listed at 36.

Note that these came from databases we d/l'ed and not the game. They were made by fans, and a little frustrating, but not too shabby.

[Izulde]

I started a screw around dynasty. My big budget film that cost almost $500 million to make with everything kinda bombed. Lost $211 million but it won four Oscars and was nominated for a ton more. But I got 1* in marketing focus, so that's probably why. And it was R rated.

[Abe Sargent]

We purchase the TV Rights for Pokemon, which is in the files (unlike many other projects). I believe SFX has advanced to the point that live action Pokemon is doable.


I upgrade its dialogue and pace to 4 stars each. The roles I cast are Ash, Misty, Brock, Jessie and James.

Coming of Age is at stake, and I change its target audience to children and families.

It will take 6.5 mill and 26 months (!) to do (Apparently, taking something from animation to real life takes forever)




Quickfire Reviews of Films for March, 2024




Angry Truth

The latest film from Centurion Studios sees some serious angriness and ire being spit from one character to another. This Steven Soderbergh film tries to show the truth that exists (or fails to) in a courtroom. Courtroom procedurals were never all of the rage, but Centurion tries to swing for the fences with this one.

Shia LaBeouf, Patrick Fugit, Rachel Weisz and Jennifer Connelly star in this film. Rachel’s great., Jennifer is good, but our two male leads are decent at best.

All of the pieces are here for a good movie, but it just doesn’t have a good movie feel. This feels like a major miss. At best, it’s a C+, and at worst, well, it’s not. Skip it for other films this month.

[Abe Sargent]

Angry Truth

Dir. Steve Soderbergh – 4 stars
Prod. – 4 stars
Shia – 3
Patrick – 3
Rachel – 5
Jennifer - 4





Domestic – 78mill
Foreign – 149m
Total – 227 mill

Just 26 mil in USA DVD releases but 88 mill abroad helps us to make money:


Total Revenue – 243 mill
Cost – 123 mill
Money Made – 120 mill

Yay!

[Abe Sargent]

Awards:

Screenplay Adaptation – The Passion of Joan of Arc
Original Screenplay – When a Latin Lover Gets Loved
Best Supporting Actress – Helen Hunt, When a Latin Lover Gets Loved
Best Supporting Actor – Mos Def, When a Latin Lover Gets Loved
Best Actress – Nicole Kidman, Vistas
Best Actor – Robin Williams, Walk the Bottom
Best Director – Mike Newell, When a Latin Lover Gets Loved
Best Movie – When a Latin Lover Gets Loved


Acceptance Speech I type in.

Thanks to you all for making one of our first pictures the winner of tonight’s award. We are very happy to have brought you a film that you have enjoyed so much. We have some great competition, and are pleased to see all of the other films get some much-deserved praise as well. We promise to keep putting out great movies – this is just the beginning!

[Abe Sargent]

April –

The Battle of Blair Mountain is ready for casting.
The Prisoner and Cave Girl have entered filming



The Battle of Blair Mountain


We will be filming in Charleston WV.

Casting:


Adrien Brody, 2.5 mill (Nailed the audition of my lead)

Another lead is James MvAvoy for 1.9 mill (4 star audition)

The main villain will be played by Daniel Craig, for 12.4 mill. That gives my film some star power (and a 5 star casting)

2.6 mill brings Josh Hartnett as Ed Mooney, another of the unionizers.

860k brings Helen Mirren to bring Mother Jones to the screen. She had a 4 star cast, and a lot of the older talented women I was looking to bring in have retired recently, so I’m happy to find someone who can do the part.

Spielberg wants way too much dough. 800k brings director James Mangold to the project. Producer Brendan Faulkland wants 750k.

I auto cast the minor roles and they go to Topher Grace, Keither Sutherland and Jason Statham.


I greenlight a 5 star bluegrass soundtrack

320 mill for the project, and 11 months to get ready.

[Abe Sargent]

I create a script for the story of Zheng He and the Chinese Treasure Fleet.

2 star loves scenes, 3 star violence. Historical Epic. Named “The Western Ocean”

Eunuch and Muslim Zheng He is appointed admiral over the greatest fleet to ever sail, as it makes its way through Asia, settling disputes, ending wars, and establishing trade routes.

3 star intelligence, 4 star plot twists, and 5 star everything else.

Zheng He, lead, heroic, 32, 85 diff, drama

Buddy – 2nd in Command Wang Jinghong, 40, diff 70, friend normal, drama

Villain - Parâkramabâhu VI, King of Kotte, 35, diff 60, cruel, aggressive, action

Major – Pirate Captain, Villain/Heavy, nasty, 35, diff just 50, dies, action

Major – Ma Huan, Zheng He’s assistant and chronicler, 25, diff 50, friend, drama,

Minor – The Yongle Emperor, 50, support, heroic, drama, 50 diff, dies

There are a ton of minor and support roles beyond these, that no one casts. They will be requires to do some stunts, in various battles with pirates and on Ceylon.

It will cost 14 months and 3.75 mill to complete.

[Abe Sargent]

Behind the Scenes Review of “Could it Be True”


Abigail Winters
ETOnline


As you know, my column is dedicated to giving you a rundown of the nuts and bolts used to make the films, not to telling you if it moved my heartstrings. I analyze films on the merit of filmmaking. 210 million credits was spent to bring us the 7th film from Centurion Studios. They are going to hope that a cast of relative low names will hit all of the right notes, and make some cash for the studio.

I’ve seen well casted films with lower cash expectations. When a Latin Lover Gets Loved was released by this very studio with great acting jobs by lesser known talents. This is not. While none of the actors stunk up the screen, two of your majors were simply acceptable, and two were good. When you trade big names for small names, you are supposed to upgrade the performance, and that’s not the case here.

Indeed, cheap director Danny Boyle and cheap producer Jerome Sashburn also turn in average levels of performance. This movie puts a lot of money into production and marketing, and yet the jobs done by the talent was largely lackluster.

I don’t expect there to be a lot of traffic to see a film that won’t have buzz and won’t have star appeal.

[Abe Sargent]

Could it Be True


Dir. Danny Boyle, 3 stars
Prod. Sashburn, 3 stars
Brandon Routh – 4
Jennifer Garner – 3
Megan Fox – 4
Radha Mitchell – 3


Star Appeal – 2
Story – 4
Character – 5
Genre – 3

Prod. Budget – 3
SFX Bud – 3
Script ot Film – 5
Advertising – 5
Marketing – 3



Domestic Gross – 20 million
Foreign – 37 mill
Total – 57 mill

49 mill made in DVD sales


Total money made – 89 mill
Cost – 210 mill
We lost – 121 mill


Ouch!

[ozias]

Well Abe, your dynasty made me give HM3 a shot as well, but it still seems like you can create your own movie that flat out smashes totals.

Here is a screenie of my movie.



All I did was create the title, hired a writer, put 5 stars in all of the post, pre and any other production thing I could think of, used the "auto cast" feature, and paid over 125 mil for advertising.

The film cost 620+ to make but I made that almost 10 times over in return.

It's the reason I stopped playing in the first place, or I've just had amazing luck with some movies.

[Abe Sargent]

Glad you liked it enough to give it a shot, but I miss on films too.

[Simbo Klice]

Originally Posted by ozias

Well Abe, your dynasty made me give HM3 a shot as well, but it still seems like you can create your own movie that flat out smashes totals.

Here is a screenie of my movie.



All I did was create the title, hired a writer, put 5 stars in all of the post, pre and any other production thing I could think of, used the "auto cast" feature, and paid over 125 mil for advertising.

The film cost 620+ to make but I made that almost 10 times over in return.

It's the reason I stopped playing in the first place, or I've just had amazing luck with some movies.

I like that John Belushi is starring in a movie released in 2015.

EDIT: Guess I should also say that this is an interesting dynasty, Abe. I've read a couple of your other ones (including the One Kai dynasty, which was awesome) and I'm a fan.

[Abe Sargent]

Cool cool, thanks!

[Abe Sargent]

End of April


I spend 28 mill of my personal money to buy a Malibu beachfront property with 2 acres of land and a nice mansion.


Lots of scripts are ready – Cthulhu, Canticle, Hammer, and Flatwoods.

Getting Retired has moved to filming.

I have three releases in July, and I’ve scheduled them.


I greenlight Call.




The Call of Cthulhu

4 star state of the art sfx, 5 star everything else.


Cast:

1 mill for director Mike Newell to return for us for another film. He did well for us once before with a Director Academy Award.

600k brings Vic Pakson to my producer role.

Henry Anthony Wilcox – See below

Inspector Legrasse – Edward Norton, 2.6 mill

Old Castro – Sean Penn, 9.6 mill

Major Support – George et all. Jeremy Irons, 860k

Major Support – Gustaf Johansen – 860k Aaron Eckhart



I want to audition DiCaprio and Bale, but neither are interested, so I go to my 3rd choice – Ethan Hawke, who has been great for me so far. He auditions at 5! (it’s a tough role, 95). But he is no longer interested. Ryan Phillipe gives me a 4. Jude Law – 3 star. Ben is the same – 3 stars. I eventually audition a full 15 people, and Bale comes around. His 4 star is enough. Hawke is my only 5 star, and he has never been interested after that. I cast Christian Bale for 14.1 mil.

A 5 star orchestral soundtrack and full DVD features are ordered.

Total cost – 365 mill credits!!!

[Abe Sargent]

I greenlight Flatwoods

We will be filming in Charleston, WV

5 star everything, inc state of the art sfx

Cast:

Gene Lemon – 285k for 4 star Jamie Bell

Kathleen May – 11.5 mill for Catherine Zeta-Jones

100k for Steven Booksley as the Flatwoods Monster

2.13 mill for A. Lee Stewart to be done by Ewan McGregor

2.28 mill for John Cusack as the Sheriff.

Wes Craven expressed interest, so I handed him the project for 2.62 mill

Dillon Verlon agrees to be producer for 705k

5 star soundtrack with a country/folk selection of tunes.

Every possible DVD extra is added.

382 mill is the cost, and it will be shown on 5000 screens

[Abe Sargent]

I greenlight Lucifer’s Hammer

I up the budget to the max for everything. Standard sfx though. We will film here in CA (since its set here)

Alfonso Cuaron, 800k, dir, and Theodore Levy Prod for 450k

Ethan Hawke, 1.83 mill for our lead

13.58mill gives us Charlize Theron as our love interest

Daniel Day-Lewis, villain (Rev. Armitage), 3.68 mill

Sen. Jellison – I had a pair of 5 star auditions for men who didn’t want it (Liam Neeson, Kevin Costner). 5 star Alfred Molina will play him instead. 385k

Prof Dan Forrester – 860k for Gary Oldman

Minor roles to:

Michael Pena, 435k; 150k to Bridget Moynahan


5 star pop and romance soundtrack.

320 mill for the project

[Abe Sargent]

Post on FOFC by Warhammer


I heard that they will be doing a Battletech film. Can you imagine? I wonder what the plot will be?

[Abe Sargent]

Mechwarrior



After war is declared against the Capellan Confederation, various characters interact as the Fourth Succession War begins.


Science Fiction
Action

Foul language, 4 stars of violence, no love scenes, scope 4 stars. Sets 4 stars, pyro, robotics, and sfx all 5

Main - Anton Ridzik – Wayward bastard son of Pavel Ridzik, caught in the beginning of the war as Davion forces assault the Confederation. Ultimately the film will end with Anton leading one of the forces on Tikonov against the Capellan Confederation after his father declares Tikonov free. (Action, 30, lead, heroic, lives, needed for sequel, diff 80)

Love Interest – Sgt. Rachel Hammersmith. (30, lead, heroic, lives, needed, action, diff 70)

Villain – Pavel Ridzik, 57, diff 70, action, fierce, cruel, needed for sequel

Major – Justin Xiang, 35, diff 65, needed for sequel, action, lead, intimidating

Major – Candace Liao, 38, diff 60, needed for sequel, drama, friend, normal.

Minor – Maximillian Liao, 60, villain, fierce, needed for sequel, drama, diff 60

Minor - Colonel Adam Kingston Bailey, CO of McGregor’s Armored Scouts, one of the Capellan units that assault Tikonov that fights against Anton Ridzik’s unit. Villain, heroic, 38, not needed for next film, but survives, diff 50

Minor – Colonel Xhang Li, the CO of Anton’s unit who dies in the first rounds of the Battle for Tikonov, forcing him into the CO position. Support, action, tough, diff 50, 40 years old, dies, not needed for sequel.


15 months, 3.75 mill

[Abe Sargent]

Review of “Lonely Fingers do a Dance”


AllHollywoodBlog


…and after leaving that theater, I moved to the virtual theater right next to it. I might as well see all of the May releases in one day, right? It IS Memorial Day weekend after all.

This is easily the best film released this month. Everybody does a really good job. No one is amazing, but this is a very consistent movie. Originally, it seemed like Centurion’s base film was a genre-savvy film with comedy laced in. Then they moved away, and it’s nice to see them return this ,month, when Leonardo DiCaprio stars in Lonely Fingers do a Dance.

I don’t want to spoil much of the plot, but Leo’s character is a drug lord, and Ryan Reynolds is a rival drug lord. The two have henchmen, farmers, and more. It’s a biting satire at your typical action film. You’ll love it. It’s got plenty of twists and turns, in addition to laughs and points being made about movies and America.

I give it a good, strong 3.5 stars out of 5.

[Abe Sargent]

Lonely Fingers do a Dance

Dir. Coen Brothers – 4 stars
Prod. Howard Pillow – 4 stars
Ryan Reynolds – 4
Eric Bana – 4
Ziyi Zhang – 4
Robin Tunney – 4
Zoe Tapper – 4

Appeal:
Star – 3
Story – 3
Character – 5
Genre – 2

Prod Budget – 2
SFX Budget – 3
Script to Film – 4
Advertising – 1
Marketing – 3


Domestic – 93 mill
Foreign – 178 mill
Total – 272 mill

101 mill in DVD

Revenue – 247 mill
Cost – 234 mill
Money Made – 12 mill


Well, at least it wasn’t as bad as last month’s!

[Abe Sargent]

End of May


Writing Complete – Coupling, Jeremiah, Steel Drivin’ Man



Coupling

Filmed in Vancouver


Steve – Jimmy Fallon, 860k
Susan – Julia Stiles, 910k
Jeff – 1.11 m for Jon Heder
Jane – Katherine Heigl, 10 mill
Sally – 2.23 mill to Keri Russell
Patrick – Casey Affleck, 1.83 mill

Dir – Jason Reitman, 1.78 mill
Prod – 400k for Lester Eastport


It will take 11 months

236 mill for project (includes tons of marketing, a good dvd/blu ray release, and 5 star soundtrack with 80s pop and rock

[Abe Sargent]

Steel Drivin’ Man

Filmed in Charleston, WV

Playing the past of John Henry is tough.


Buddy – Whoops!
Villain – Clive Own, 3.73 mill



John Henry – After failing to find someone with the right body type, we scour and spend 29 auditions to create this actor:

Raymond Jenkins, 35, 3 star in action, comedy, work ethic, composure, humility, takes direction, 5 star drama, sex appeal, screen presence

Producer Holly Mustlow, 645k; Director Richard Linklater, 905k



Minors:

Ziyi Zhang, Chiwetal Ejiofor, Anson Mount


I run out of auditions for my buddy. I cast 5 men, all had 4s or 5s, and none want the part. I have to move on, and finish casting next month.


I have no movie release this month.

[Abe Sargent]

CENTURION STUDIOS PRESS RELEASE


Centurion Studios, a studio dedicated to producing smart and provocative films, announced that they purchased the movie rights to Torchwood. This will allow Centurion to achieve their objective of crafting movies that will last, and that you will want to watch over and over.

A spin-off of Doctor Who, with a Who script in the writing stage right now, this will allow the movie screen to see one of the more interesting TV shows of the last 20 years, while also developing a cross product.

We believe that this project has the great properties people have come to expect from Centurion.

Centurion is committed to quality movies and will continue to scour all available material for suitable entertainment for our minds and souls.

[Abe Sargent]

Torchwood

After the collapse of Torchwood, Captain Jack Harkness takes over the Cardiff branch and turns it into a new line of defense against aliens and the rift.

Sci-Fi/Alien Invasion


Target audience is now changed to people younger. (Males and females, 18-35)

3 star foul languages, 4 star violence, 2 star love scenes. 4 star pyro, no robotics, 4 star sfx.

Capt Jack – 85 diff, 38 age, action, lead heroic, 2 star stunts
Gwen Cooper – 65 diff, 30, lead, heroic, action, 2 star stunts
Villain – Billis Manger, conniving, aggressive, 50, diff 60, no stunts, not needed for sequel
Owen Harper, 1 star nudity, 2 star stunts, 32, diff 60, action, support, tough
Toshiko Sato, 2 star stunts, 1 star nudity, 34, diff 60, nerd, naïve

Minor –

Ianto Jones, diff 40, 25, support, normal, action


15 months, 3.75 mill

[Abe Sargent]

End of June


July –

Before checking my mail, I go to finish casting Steel Drivin’ man.

I cast Jonathan Rhys-Meyers for 485k
329m spent for Steel Drivin’ man.

Now to news.

Three projects are finished:

Oil Me Up, On Foreign Soil, and Fearful Dreams. They are screening at 85, 86 and 86, respectively.

Filming on Cave Girl has wrapped up


I authorize a reedit of On Foreign Soil. After playing around with various edits, the one that most worked was changing the ending from happy to heartbreaking, and it jumped to a 91% screen. It will still be ready in time for its Halloween release.

[Abe Sargent]

Jeremiah



Filming in Mexico

19.55 mill for Tobey McGuire as Jeremiah
4.23 mill for Kate Beckinsale as his love interest
1.06 mill for Ryan Gosling, the villain
522k for Mos Def
2.28 mill for Ellen Page

No minor roles

5.35 mill for director Christopher Nolan, 805k, Prod Harvey Salliman

Advance revenue is 24.5 million!

We spend 6.2 for a 5 star rock/pop album


Total Cost - 314 mill

[Abe Sargent]

A Canticle for Leibowitz

Filming in Mexico


Starring Guy Pearce, 910k, James McAvoy for 1.93 mill, George Clooney for 19 mill, Johsh Hartnett for 2.63 mill, and Jim Caviezel for 1 mill

David Fincher, 1.95 mill, 845k for Arthur Sparks as Producer


307 mill

[Abe Sargent]

Review of Oil Me Up


Dir Doug Limon – 4 stars
Prod Harriet Aborman 4 stars
Ben Affleck – 4 stars
Kate Beckinsale – 5 stars
Hugh Jackman – 4
Shia LaBeouf – 3

Appeal:
Star - 2
Story – 3
Character – 5
Genre – 2

Prod Budget – 4
SFX – 5
Script to Film – 4
Ad – 5
Marketing – 4


Here we go!

Domestic Gross 70
Foreign – 133
Total – 203

DVD and Blu Ray sales were almost 150 mill profit.

Revenue – 281 mill
Cost – 317
Loss – 34 mill


It’s a loss, but not a major one. We need some hits soon though.

[Abe Sargent]

End of July


I reject a domestic partnership with a random expensive film.

Writing complete on Nightfall, Stormbringer.

Filming has begun for Smallville, Jagged Alliance, and Lucifer’s Hammer.

We are in the red as a studio. Ouch.



Stormbringer


5 star everything inc Groundbreaking SFX

We are filming in Mexico

5 star heavy rock/metal soundtrack

It will open on 6000 screens!

I load the DVD with extras.

Let’s Cast:


I know who I want to star, and he’s interested. Leo casts at a 4 star though. Who else, under heavy make-up and SFX, could portray Elric? I cast him anyway.


Elric – Leonardo diCaprio, 30 mill sequel contract, 23 mill today
Cymoril – Charlize Theron, 15.9 mill, not needed for sequel
Yyrkoon – James Franco, 1.12 mill


Minors:

Ewan McGregor for 2.55 mill and Scott Speedman, 970k


The only one needed for a sequel is Elric.


Dir. (Peter Jackson wanted a huge salary upgrade, so…)1 mill for Guillermo del Toro

Prod Ferdinand Yeedman, 250k

It will take 26 months to make (spending 12 months in post production)

[Abe Sargent]

Nightfall

Production budget amped, state of the art sfx, filmed in Mexico, 22 month schedule, (Everything is upgraded to 5 stars in production area)


340k, Director Larry Fessenden

460k for Producer Stuart Woyman

1 mill for Zach Braff as my star
2.8 mill for Kate Winslet
11.6 mill for Hugh Jackman
2.14 mill for Eric Bana
210k for Wes Bentley
Minor role – 100k for Shawn Hatosy


5 star opera and orchestral soundtrack

340m for this project and 419 m for Stormbringer. That’s with a cost reduction by being in Mexico!






I need to make some money, so I buy a 4 star script, already written:

Promising Love, a martial arts film

We’ll cast it next month.

[Abe Sargent]

Review of Fearful Dreams

EyeSpy.com



This month’s thriller from Centurion Studios sees Ryan Gosling plunged from the average life of an accountant into the role of a mistaken spy. Better yet, the spy who everybody believes Ryan is, happens to be dead, so he won’t be coming back any time soon. Olga Kurylenko is the only spy to have ever met the one people believe Ryan to be, but she needs Ryan to play the role a bit longer.

A spy for the American government, played by Benicio del Toro, is tracking down our hero ruthlessly. He will take no prisoners, and stop at no Patriot Act in order to find Ryan.

We have other nations involved as well. A French spy (Audrey Tautou), an Irish spy (Elijah Wood) and more. At first is seems like a high octane version of North by Northwest, but very quickly, it spins out of control, with no one being who they seem, at first. No spoilers, but you will not guess this ending!

SPOILERS: Except for our villain. As the film unfolds, we find out that Ryan actually IS the spy, Olga actually works for Ukraine, Ryan is a double spy, Audrey is a double spy, and Elijah is actually an Irish terrorist, not a spy. Only our villain is who he says he is, and eventually you are rooting for the bad guy, despite the lengths he goes to, in order to shut down this ring of terrorists and spies.


The plot and script are good stuff. The director, Christopher Nolan, does very well with the film. The producer did a fantastic job. Except for Olga, all of the actors turned in really strong performances. Ryan, Audrey and a minor character played by Mika Boorem were especially great . Overall, this is a good film! A-

[Abe Sargent]

Fearful Dreams

Dir Nolan – 4 stars
Prod Vince Peyer – 5
Ryan Gosling – 5
Olga Kurylenko – 3
Benicio del Toro – 4
Elijah Wood – 4
Audrey Tautou – 5
Mika Boorem – 5
Emilie de Ravin – 4
Debra Messing – 4

Appeal
Star – 2
Story – 3
Character – 5
Genre – 3

Production Bud – 4
SFX – 5
Script to film – 5
Ad – 4
Marketing - 3


Domestic – 68mill
Foreign - 133
Total – 201 mill


I just can’t break it open. (I am at the hardest level of difficulty, fyi)

DVD sale revenue was around 110 mill


Total Revenue – 250 mill
Cost – 264
Loss – 14

Well, I didn’t lose too much, but I need to start making money again.

[Abe Sargent]

End of Aug


I have no films to release in Sept, but I may have one, hold up

Harry’s All Night is finished writing

Last Quarter is done. It is screening at 95%

The Battle of Blair Mountain has begun filming


I can release Last Quarter now, or I can schedule it for Valentine’s Day, which no one has grabbed yet. Hmm.

We’ll schedule the drama and romance for now.

[Abe Sargent]

Promising Love

Dir Sam Mendes, 985k
Prod Arlen Savant, 145k
Lead – Al Pacino, 4.73 mill
Buddy – Michael Douglas, 3.8 mill
Villain – Joan Allen, 535k
Meg Ryan, 760k
Sigourney Weaver, 350k

I just want to push this film out the door. It will take 12 months to do in LA .

We are currently at 257 mill for this (largely marketing). Negative cost is 120 with sfx

[Abe Sargent]

Why I Left Harry’s All-Night Hamburgers

Filming in Charleston, WV

4 star production instead of 5, inc sfx at 4 stars

Talent:

Dir Frank Darabont, 795k
Prod Vince Peyer, 200k (Let’s put him right back to work again)
Lead – Anton Yelchin, 285k
Buddy – Daniel Radcliffe, 960k
Major Support – Val Kilmer, 860k
Major S. – Patrick Dempsey, 1.16 mill
Major S – 10.5 mill, Owen Wilson (upgrades to lead buddy if sequel)


5 star rock and hard rock soundtrack

[Abe Sargent]

I purchase another 4 star script, a political and comedy named Electric Heart.

I have 4 stars for production, we will film in LA.

Let’s cast it!


Electric Heart


Dir Paul Thomas Anderson, 885k
Prod Jackie Daman, 145k
Lead Adrien Brody, 2.53 mill
Love Jessica Biel, 2.17 mill
Villain Natalie Portman, 3.48 mill


I greenlight it.

It will take 11 months to do.

247 mill and 4000 screens.

I take out a loan of 500 mill

[Abe Sargent]

Last Quarter (Foreign Film Remake)



D. Peter Weir – 3
P. Claude Purdue – 5
Cate Blanchett – 4
Patrick Fugit -4
Ellen Page – 5
Claire Danes – 4
Franka Potente – 5


Appeal:

Star – 2
Story – 4
Character – 5
Genre – 2
Prod Budget – 1
SFX Budget – 2
Script to film – 5
Advertising – 4
Marketing – 4


Domestic Gross – 170 mill
Foreign – 297
Total – 468

Finally!

DVD and Blu Ray sales were more than 200 million

Revenue – 480
Cost – 275
Revenue – 205 mill

Yay!!!

I’m glad I released that now!

[Abe Sargent]

End of September


Cave Girl is done and screening at 91%; The Prisoner is screening at 88%

Flatwoods is filming

Getting Retired finished shooting

Degrassi is done writing.

I authorize a sequel for Last Quarter entitled Final Quarter

9 months and 2.2 mill to finish.

I slate Cave Girl for a Valentine’s Day release (Romantic Comedy after all). The Prisoner is put in an empty week (the only one) in December

[Abe Sargent]

Degrassi –

Shoot in LA

Saoirse Ronan, 285k
Jimmy Bennett, 89k
Mackenzie Vega, 89k
Jacob Kogan, 74k
Taylor Momsen, 50k

Dir. Johnathan Kasden, 158k; Producer Daryl Smith, 145k


9 months needed.

131 mill cost

[Abe Sargent]

On Foreign Soil


Dir. John Singleton - 3
Prod. Arlen Savant - 3
Ethan Hawke - 5
Rebecca Romjin - 5
Jude Law – 4

Appeal:
Star – 1
Story – 3
Character – 5
Genre – 2
Prod Bud – 5
SFX Bud – 5
Script to Film – 4
Adver – 5
Marketing – 3


(Another studio moved a film to compete with us on Halloween weekend)

Domestic – 88 mill
Foreign – 167
Total – 256

Domestic DVDs went THROUGH THE ROOF. 242 mill on domestic DVDs. 77 mill more in foreign market. Soundtrack sold 26 mill for 6 mill investment.


Revenue – 498 mill
Cost – 277 mill
Money Made – 220 mill


What’s interesting is that we made so much money off DVDs, soundtrack, ancillaries like video game rights, novelization, and yet didn’t do that well in the box office comparatively. Still, the project was a hit financially.

[Abe Sargent]

November

The Call of Cthulhu and Coupling are now filming

Moving out of shooting is Smallville and Lucifer’s Hammer

I spend 250 mill to repay half of our loan.

We have no release in Nov or Jan, and our next project isn’t complete until Mar, 2025, when we can release Smallville.


I slate Jagged Alliance for release on Labor Day Weekend. I want to claim it now. I slate Lucifer’s Hammer on the 4th of July week against a small exploitation film. Smallville is set for week 3 of March. Blair Mountain is scheduled for an unused week in June. Getting Retired for second week of December, 2025. Unused. All of the big weekends are taken by major projects. I slate Call of Cthulhu for Memorial Day weekend in 2026. I schedule Flatwoods for the 4th of July weekend that summer too. Finally, I slate Coupling for Aug, 3rd week – schools back, the final chance for all genres to get a boost. No one else has a release then, yet.

I have no scripts to greenlight. I purchase one”

I purchase Superstorm, a 4 star drama/tearjerker script with 5 star Intelligence, and pace, 1 star genre, 2 plot and 4 dialogue.

We will film it in LA.

Talent:

James Franco, 960k
Brittany Snow, 235k
Ben Affleck, 2.46mill
Mekhi Phifer, 375k
Matt Dillon, 1.73 mill

165k for Dir Baltazar Kormakur; 805k to reuse Claude Purdue, who produced by best grossing film

Total cost of project, currently, is 209 mill.

[Abe Sargent]

End of November

Filming is done on Blair Mountain. Writing is done on Liberty Valance. Steel Drivin’ Man has entered production.



The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance

9 months to complete.

I give it 5 star production.


Jude Law, 4.18 mill
Scarlett Johansen, 10.56 mill
Orlando Bloom, 10.88 mill
Aaron Eckhart, 860k
Ashley Judd, 760k

(The major roles are above all are needed for sequel, and locked in)

Minor roles:

Franka Potente, 385k
Jason Statham, 910k
Ryan Phillipe, 810k
Lake Bell, 185k
Gerard Butler, 485k


Director, Peter Weir, 815k; Producer Howard Pillow, 405k


5 star country soundtrack

Total cost, with major marketing, 298 mill

I need a hit with The Prisoner. It will really help us out of the red and into the black

[Abe Sargent]

The Prisoner


D Jonathan Demme – 4
P Dwight, Ferten, 5
Daniel Craig – 5
Milla Jovovich – 4
Tobey Macguire – 5
Rob Brown – 4
Ben Affleck – 4
Michael Imperioli – 5
Ari Graynor – 5
Mod Def – 4
Adam Beach – 5


Appeal –

Star – 4
Story - 3
Character – 5
Genre - 5

Pro Bud – 2
SFX – None
Script to film – 5
Advertising – 4
Marketing - 3


Wow. Are you ready? You aren’t.

Domestic – 11 mill
Foreign – 20
Total 31 mill

DVD sales 52 mill and that’s it

Total Revenue – 69 mill
Costs – 286 mill
Result – minus 197 mill

I have no idea why that happened. Great script, great acting, great direction, great production, the critics liked it, it’s a good film, enough marketing and advertising, and yet – wow.

[Abe Sargent]

Jan 2025

Lots of other studios have been having difficulty too. For example, last month a film with Will Smith, Leo, and Matt Damon – 2 of the 5 biggest stars in Hollywood, and another top 25, the result was 163 mill total worldwide. Here’s another from last month directed by George Lucas. Starring Christian Bale (who’s a major movie star these days), Jake Gyllenhaal, Diane Keaton and Richard Gere, just 182 mill worldwide.


Degrassi and Canticle move to filming.
Jagged Alliance and Flatwoods move to post-production.


I purchase the movie rights for They Live, a domestic film from a while back, and send it out for a quick touch, 1 mill, 4 months

[Abe Sargent]

February

Eldorado Pictures released a remake of Boyz N Da Hood directed by Clint Eastwood and starring Ashton Kucher, Leonardo DiCaprio, Christina Ricci and Jodie Foster. HAHAHA


Retirees – Lily Tomlin, Peter Fonda, Jane Alexander, Fred Willard, Terence Stamp


Script is ready for Avengers Assemble.

Ready for filming: Nightfall, Jeremiah, Promising Love, Electric Heart, Harry’s, Superstorm

Coupling and Cthulhu move to post-production



Greenlight Avengers Assemble

Shoot in Vancouver – it adds two months but reduces the cost. 5 star production and effects

The problem with casting this is we don’t have a lot of Black actresses available. I cast every one within 4 years of our lead, and I get one 5 star audition. Gabrielle Union. I have 5 4s as well, and none of these people wants to get locked down for the role. I widen my net, and cast actresses with no action experience. 9 auditions, several more options, and still none of the 4s and 5s wants the role after the audition. I don’t get it. This is a career defining role – star in a major big budget film? It’s tough, I widen my net further, by expanding the age talent can be. I finally cast a 4 star audition, Taraji P Henson.

I skip her for now and move to the Black Panther. I end up with Derek Luke for 285k after bigger names weren’t coming.

My villain, Graviton, Thomas Jane, 1.12 mill. I wanted to make this my big splash, big name, but the big names in the age group didn’t want the gig. I audition Tom Cruise at 5 stars, but then he wasn’t interested anymore.

Hawkeye will be Ryan Reynolds, 1.07 mill. He’s brilliant for the part, but I wanted others. He was willing to sign.

Black Knight is Jonathan Rhys-Meyers, a good cast. I’m happy with that. 535k

Firebird is Rhona Mitra, 235k. I offered to the Hispanic women (small number) and had a 5 star audition with Rosario Dawson, but no one wanted a contract after that, so I looked for someone with a 5 star casting who looked like they could be Bonita Juarez.

Moon Knight is Matt Damon, 37 mill, one of the biggest stars will give me some star quality here. I couldn’t get it elsewhere.

Grim Reaper – Cillian Murphy, 1.17m

Director – Jonathan Demme, 975k.
Producer – Santiago Triles, 175k


335 mill, 19 months

[Abe Sargent]

Nominations:

Adapted Screen play – The Prisoner, Last Quarter
Original Screenplay – Fearful Dreams
Supporting Actress – Ellen Page, Last Quarter; Franka Potente, Last Quarter; Mika Boorem, Fearful Dreams
Supporting Actor – Adam Beach, The Prisoner;
Best Actress – Anna Paquin, Hot Tamales; Cate Blanchett, Last Quarter;
Best Actor = None
Best Director – Doug Liman, Oil Me Up; Johnathan Demme, The Prisoner; Steven Soderbergh, Angry Truth
Best Picture – The Prisoner, Hot Tamales, Last Quarter, Angry Truth, Fearful Dream

A sweep of the best picture nominees wow!

[Abe Sargent]

Cave Gold

"www.laugh.co"
The Other Woman


Good comedy is about timing. Bad comedy is about repetition. Cave Girl is the latest movie from Centurion Studios. At first, they put out a lot of films that had black comedy elements and genre savvy. Most of their projects on the horizon are more focused on the past and the future with serious overtones. Today’s comedy is one of the last truly funny films the studio will be working on. How does their final comedy before the storm fare?

Cave Girl is the story of Broont, (Jake Gyllenhaal), who is dealing with the problem of finding a woman. Jaan (Julia Stiles), is the girl-next-cave who Broont soon fixes his eyes upon. They are joining by her brother (Ryan Gosling) and his ex-boyfriend (Ryan Reynolds). The combination of a bisexual love triangle between Reynolds, Gyllenhaal and Stiles is hilarious, especially when set against the era of cave people.

Harold Ramis’s job is to bring this talented cast into the negative 21st century by enhancing the film, and he does yeoman’s work. It’s not special, but it’s enough. Overall, the film is solid. It’s not a new hit of comedy, but its fresh and interesting. Ryan Gosling steals the show, he makes ordinary lines funny. Reynolds and Stiles are really on point, and Jake is adequate as the lead. The result is a very interesting story, but not anything that I would call Must See TV. I give it a B.

[Abe Sargent]

Cave Girl



Dir Harold Ramis 3
Prod Sophie Texlan 4
Jake Gyl – 3
Julia Stiles – 4
Ryan Gosling – 5
Ryan Reynolds – 4

Star 2
Story 3
Character 5
Genre 5
Prod 2
Script to Film 5
Advertising 5
Marketing 3


Domestic – 151
Foreign – 264
Total – 417

Yay!

DVD sales yielded 124 mill and soundtrack 41 mill

Revenue – 409
Cost – 238

Profit – 171 mll

Back in black baby

[Izulde]

Originally Posted by Abe Sargent

February

Eldorado Pictures released a remake of Boyz N Da Hood directed by Clint Eastwood and starring Ashton Kucher, Leonardo DiCaprio, Christina Ricci and Jodie Foster. HAHAHA

W.T.F?!?!

[Abe Sargent]

March – John Hurt retires

Writing done on Blue Gender

Smallville done, screening at 79 - ick
Blair Mountain is screening at 98 – awesome

Filming done on Steel drivin Man

Shooting begins for Liberty Valance

I take Smallville to the editing room and get it to 85% from a pace and action edit. It was to be released this month, that ain’t happening

It now has a Week 4 May release


I spend 9 months to sequel Cave Girl into Cave Boy. We will spend the time making the script 5 stars all of the way across.