Huayu 1999: Starting with nothing but getting something for nothing

On the third day, the Chinese man, Yang Che, appeared and had a detailed discussion with Mark from Lionsgate. Although Mark also mentioned wanting to work with Wu Shixian to buy Yang Che's shares...

Lionsgate's terms weren't as generous as Sony Pictures Classics', but their proposals were the most detailed and involved long-term collaborations.

Upon meeting Yang Che, Mark showed no embarrassment: "The moment I saw Jigsaw close the door, I knew this could be a movie series. So instead of rushing to talk to you, I spent the entire day working on a proposal."

They were still observing the reaction. Just as Robert Redford predicted, Saw was a hit at Sundance. Although the opinions were mixed, no one was talking about the quality of the film. In fact, no one was.

Correspondingly, the media also began to spread the word.

Yang Che admired this aspect of Americans: as long as they could make money, he'd be their grandson. Of course, if they couldn't make money for him, they weren't even worthy of living, let alone being called grandsons.

The first clause in the plan is that if "Saw" grosses more than $5000 million at the box office, then the collaboration will be finalized, and the sequel will be independently produced by Vertical Entertainment and exclusively distributed globally by Lionsgate.

The second strategy is the release date strategy. The film is released every Halloween without competing for any popular release dates, thus creating market inertia and brand recognition. This release date is exclusively enjoyed by the company.

The third point concerns the distribution strategy. Lionsgate is willing to advance $300 million in distribution costs, editing the most thrilling trailer with the theme of "extreme gore + survival in a confined space," and releasing it in theaters and online. There will be no previews; it will be released directly in over 2000 theaters across North America.

The fourth point is something that happens after the film's release in the United States: a global R-rated release, uncut, adhering to the extreme style to the end;

The fifth point is about profit sharing:

There is no special fund in North America, so after deducting the 55% from theaters, the remaining 45% is the revenue sharing from box office revenue.

Lionsgate takes 20% of the box office revenue, which is 9% of the total, making it the highest in the industry, considering that Hollywood typically takes between 15% and 20%.

That means the production company only has 36% left.

Lionsgate still takes a 9% cut of the remaining DVDs/videotapes, TV rights, merchandise/derivatives/games.

This is incredible, because the revenue from videotapes of horror movies is often higher than the box office revenue. For example, 80% of the box office revenue for Saw came from videotapes, which is the biggest part of the revenue.

For example, if the box office is $100 million, Vertical Entertainment's revenue from videotapes alone would be $72.8 million. If we include box office revenue sharing, merchandise, etc., Yang Che's personal share would be $100 million.

The reason Lionsgate gave this condition is because it is the last point, and also a supplement to the first one.

In other words, in the investment of the sequel to "Saw", Lionsgate will invest 50% for a 55 split of revenue and share the copyright. The distribution will still be financed by Lionsgate, but the revenue share will be changed to 15%.

In Mark's view, Yang Che could not refuse this contract.

"After I was unable to buy your 500 million RMB investment with 500 million USD, I gave up my sense of relief, because I realized that you were the real core, and it turned out to be true."

After pondering for three seconds, Yang Che approved the agreement. Lionsgate was the most sincere, and they were the ones who successfully promoted "Saw" in the original world, so it was probably the person in front of him who was the one.

Whether he's full at one meal or full at another, Yang Che still knows how to choose.

"45%, Lionsgate can only invest 45%, I must guarantee my absolute rights in the production."

Mark didn't refute, but smiled and said, "As far as I know, Dane owns 20% of Vertical Entertainment, so Lionsgate is still the largest shareholder of the project with 45% ownership."

Yang Che pointed to his head: "Even if interests cause me and Lao Wu to disagree, the idea for the movie is mine, and I'm confident that my idea is the fastest and best, just like we're already working on the second one."

Mark, you might not know this, but one of the romantic comedies I produced has already grossed $200 million in South Korea, a country that's so small. It had a limited screening in Japan, but the occupancy rate didn't drop below 85%. Correspondingly, it's also doing well at the box office in other Asian countries and regions.

I have enough creative ability, I have enough marketing ability, and I have enough box office appeal in Asia. Mark, do you understand what I'm saying?

Mark's expression shifted, and he said, "I hope to know the story ideas for the second movie."

Yang Che smiled.

After signing a confidentiality agreement, Mark listened to James Wan's explanation of the plot of the second Saw movie.

The logical design remains clear, and the final twist is still amazing.

Of course, it is also far more exciting than the second original film. Yang Che made a lot of changes, reducing the number of people and deepening the motivation. After all, the eight-person locked room scene was too bloated, and Obi and Jonas were just cannon fodder who were consumed, and their crimes were not sufficiently foreshadowed, so they were removed.

The idea of ​​"mutual suspicion versus cooperation for survival" has countless examples throughout China's long history that can be copied. For instance, the story of Zhuge Liang's journey to Eastern Wu in "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" is enough for four or five "Saw" movies to copy...

Another change is that Jigsaw remains invisible until the middle of the film. Although the mystery was solved in the first movie, the mastermind is still the mastermind, and psychological terror is more frightening than physical confrontation.

The plot twist for Amanda is subtly foreshadowed, which is easy to understand, since they weren't thinking about the third movie when they were filming the second one.

Another point is to reduce the excessive gore in the second film. Again, enhance psychological horror. Moral dilemmas are a form of psychological horror. For example, make the prisoners confess to framing others in order to obtain clues. The philosophical core of crime and punishment must be preserved.

Finally, they cut the ending that paid homage to the first movie. It's not like they're not going to make a third movie. Strengthening the closed loop is more important than nostalgia.

On January 5, Wu Shixian, CEO of Vertical Entertainment, officially signed a distribution and cooperation agreement for "Saw" with Frank Gustave, the head of Lionsgate, in New York.

The agreement was basically drafted by Mark, and the investment ratio for the sequel was 45%, as requested by Yang Che.

This is the result of the big boss's final decision.

Prior to this, Wu Shih-hsien had also signed copyright revenue sharing agreements for the first and second films with James Wan, Leigh Whannell, and Laurie Torruney, respectively, at 2%, 1%, and 1.5%. After all, the three of them were the core of the production team: director, screenwriter, and producer.