Company Town Film Profit Report

By RICHARD NATALE

Feb. 20, 2001 12 AM PT

This report is based on projections of total U.S. box-office gross from a consensus of industry sources and studio financial models. The U.S. returns represent only 20% of a film’s final revenue, which includes income from video, TV and overseas theatrical release. Typical industry marketing costs are factored into this profit analysis. Results for the weekend of Feb. 16-18:

Highlights:

For the record:

12:00 a.m. Feb. 28, 2001 For the Record
Los Angeles Times Wednesday February 28, 2001 Home Edition Calendar Part F Page 2 Entertainment Desk 1 inches; 35 words Type of Material: Correction
Film rankings--”Traffic” placed No. 6 in box office for the past weekend, having taken in $5.13 million, and “Sweet November” was No. 7, with $5.12 million. The box-office chart that ran in Tuesday’s Calendar gave an incorrect ranking for both films.

Paramount will reap strong profits from “Down to Earth,” having paid only 35% of the total budget in return for domestic rights and a distribution fee to Village Roadshow for most international territories.

“Recess: School’s Out” will recoup in theatrical release and then throw off profit for Disney in home video.

Unless it holds strongly, “Sweet November” may not quite make it into the black.

$$ Mega-Moneymakers ($50 million or more in profit)

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Projected Box- Estimated U.S. box-office* office cost, in receipts,* Movie title Studio rank millions in millions Cast Away Fox/DreamWorks 8 $90 $230 Hannibal MGM/Universal 1 80 170 Crouching Tiger Sony Classics 5 15 100 Traffic USA 6 50 100 Save the Last Dance Paramount 11 13 85

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$ Moneymakers ($10 million or more in profit)

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Box- Estimated office cost, in Movie title Studio rank millions The Wedding Planner Sony 7 $28 Down to Earth Paramount 2 30 Chocolat Miramax 9 25 Recess: School’s Out Disney 3 10 O Brother Disney/Universal 12 26

Projected U.S. box-office* receipts,* Movie title in millions The Wedding Planner $58 Down to Earth 55 Chocolat 50 Recess: School’s Out 40 O Brother 30

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? Toss-ups ($5 million or more in profit/loss)

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Projected Box- Estimated U.S. box-office* office cost, in receipts,* Movie title Studio rank millions in millions Saving Silverman Sony 10 $22 $22

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Losers (more than $5 million in loss)

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Projected Box- Estimated U.S. box-office* office cost, in receipts,* Movie title Studio rank millions in millions Sweet November Warner Bros. 3 $40

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Notes: Cost estimates are for production only. Only half of box-office receipts come back to the studio.

If you have information or comments about the chart, call (213) 237-2001 or send e-mail to company.town@latimes.com. Send faxes to (213) 237-7837.