From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Filmmaking financial practice
First-dollar gross is a practice in
filmmaking in which a participant receives a percentage of the gross
box-office
revenue , starting from a film's first day of
release .
[1]
[2] The participant begins sharing in the revenue from the first ticket sale, not waiting until the
film studio turns a profit.
[3] It is a
film finance and
distribution term used primarily in the
United States
film industry .
[4] In
France , as of September 2003, one condition for filmmakers to get
government support is that money must be reimbursed on the first-dollar gross basis.
[5] First-dollar gross has become a rare arrangement,
[6]
[7] and compensation has increasingly shifted away from first-dollar gross to back-end compensation.
[8] Some contracts define "first dollar" as a net figure after certain expense deductions rather than a true distributor's gross.
[9]
Examples
For
Inception ,
DiCaprio chose to forgo his normal rate in favor of first-dollar gross.
[10]
If a film does well, a first-dollar gross arrangement can be very lucrative for the participant.
[11]
Natalie Wood took 10 percent of the first-dollar gross on
Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice , which according to
Freddie Fields earned her more money than she did on any other movie.
[12]
Cameron Diaz negotiated first-dollar gross on
Bad Teacher , and netted $42 million.
[13]
Sandra Bullock made more from her 15 percent first-dollar gross deal on
Gravity than from her upfront pay of $20 million.
[14] In his heyday,
Arnold Schwarzenegger received 25 percent first-dollar gross.
[15]
When
Warner Bros. thought
Inception was a risky investment,
Leonardo DiCaprio agreed to cut his then-normal $20 million salary to a minimal salary with a first-dollar gross to make the film, which eventually paid him $50 million.
[10]
Tom Hanks and
Steven Spielberg shared a 40 percent first-dollar gross on
Saving Private Ryan .
[16] Some other filmmakers known to have made first-dollar gross deals are
Tyler Perry ,
[17]
Eli Roth ,
[18]
Clint Eastwood ,
[8]
Quentin Tarantino ,
[19]
Christopher Nolan ,
[20] actor
Tom Cruise ,
[21] and film producer
Jason Blum .
[22] Many actors had earned $100 million later, after an initial payment.
[23] For example, Tom Cruise was paid between $12–14 million for his performance in
Top Gun: Maverick , which was revised to over $100 million after his share of the film's box office gross.
[24]
See also
References
^ Kelly, Kate; Marr, Merissa (13 January 2006).
"Sweetheart Star Deals Go Sour" .
The Wall Street Journal . Retrieved 30 March 2019 .
^ Weinstein, Mark I. (13 August 1998).
"Guide to Deal Structures" (PDF) .
University of Southern California . p. 4. Retrieved 30 March 2019 .
^
Cieply, Michael (3 March 2010).
"For Movie Stars, the Big Money Is Now Deferred" .
The New York Times . Retrieved 30 March 2019 .
^
"first dollar / first dollar gross - Lexikon der Filmbegriffe" .
University of Kiel (in German). 2 August 2011. Retrieved 30 March 2019 .
^
"House of Commons - Culture, Media and Sport - Sixth Report" .
Parliament of the United Kingdom . 18 September 2003. Retrieved 30 March 2019 .
^ Cones, John W. (1997).
The Feature Film Distribution Deal: A Critical Analysis of the Single Most Important Film Industry Agreement .
Southern Illinois University Press . p. 31.
ISBN
978-0-8093-2081-3 .
^
Goldstein, Patrick ; Rainey, James (3 August 2009).
"Hollywood gets tough on talent: $20-million movie salaries go down the tubes" .
Los Angeles Times . Retrieved 30 March 2019 .
^
a
b Vogel, Harold L. (2011).
Entertainment Industry Economics: A Guide for Financial Analysis .
Cambridge University Press . p. 228.
ISBN
978-1-107-00309-5 .
^ Kroon, Richard W. (2010).
A/V A to Z: An Encyclopedic Dictionary of Media, Entertainment and Other Audiovisual Terms .
McFarland & Company . p. 280.
ISBN
978-0-7864-4405-2 .
^
a
b Bacardi, Francesca (22 January 2014).
"Jonah Hill Was Paid $60,000 for 'Wolf of Wall Street' " .
Variety . Retrieved 30 March 2019 .
^
Cieply, Michael (11 November 2007).
"Hollywood strike underlines bleak outlook for movie business" .
The New York Times . Retrieved 30 March 2019 .
^ Welkos, Robert W. (15 December 2007).
"Freddie Fields, 84, talent agent to stars" .
The Boston Globe . Retrieved 30 March 2019 .
^ Fisher, Luchina (18 October 2013).
"Role Reversal: Actresses Over 40 Top Hollywood" .
ABC News . Retrieved 30 March 2019 .
^
"Hollywood's biggest paydays" .
The Daily Telegraph . Retrieved 30 March 2019 .
^
Finke, Nikki (29 April 2011).
"Arnold's Payday: $10 Million Plus 25% First Dollar Gross For Schwarzenegger's Next Film" .
Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved 30 March 2019 .
^
Bart, Peter (17 January 1999).
"Movie Math: A Study in Profit and Gloss" .
The Washington Post . Retrieved 30 March 2019 .
^ Fernandez, Jay A. (11 September 2008).
"Film mogul Tyler Perry takes his biggest risk" .
Philadelphia Media Network . Retrieved 30 March 2019 .
^ Ago, Alessandro (2009).
"SCA Alumni Screening Series: INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS" .
USC School of Cinematic Arts . Retrieved 30 March 2019 .
^ Kit, Borys (18 November 2017).
"How Sony Nabbed Quentin Tarantino's Manson Movie" .
The Hollywood Reporter . Retrieved 30 March 2019 .
^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (16 May 2020).
"Is 'Tenet' Still Sticking On Its July 17 Release Date?" .
Deadline . Retrieved 16 May 2020 .
^ Fleming, Michael (13 June 2008).
"Hollywood all grossed out" .
Variety . Retrieved 30 March 2019 .
^ Masters, Kim (27 February 2014).
"Jason Blum's Crowded Movie Morgue: Downside of a Microbudget Empire" .
The Hollywood Reporter . Retrieved 30 March 2019 .
^
"Actors Who Made over $100 Million from One Movie" . 7 May 2023.
^
"Tom Cruise will reportedly get at least $100 million for 'Top Gun: Maverick' — one of the biggest paydays for an actor ever" .
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