Everything Wrong With Entertainment

[Spitfire]

LOS ANGELES -- This town's top celebrities have long had more than their fair share of plastic parts. Hollywood's newest movie stars are no exception.

Soon to be starring in his own feature-length film with Universal Pictures: Stretch Armstrong, the pliant, muscle-bound doll whose roots go back to the 1970s. Big Wheel, the plastic tricycle, has its own TV show in the works. Even the board game Risk has a deal for a film, to be co-produced by star Will Smith.

Toys now are receiving the same A-list treatment that any bankable movie star here has come to expect. That includes top billing and contracts with special perks. They even have their own talent agents.

Creative Artists Agency recently signed up Mattel Inc.'s Barbie to star in a live-action feature film at General Electric Co.'s Universal Pictures. International Creative Management, another talent agency, sparked a four-studio bidding war for a movie starring Asteroids, a brand from its client, videogame publisher Atari SA.

John Fogelman represents the likes of Courteney Cox, Whoopi Goldberg and director J.J. Abrams for talent agency William Morris Endeavor Entertainment LLC. But lately, his hottest stars have been toys such as G.I. Joe and Candy Land from his client Hasbro Inc.

"We treated them like the most important movie star client on the roster," says the 44-year-old Mr. Fogelman.

The star turn for toys is part of a mania that has swept Hollywood in recent months. Action figures such as G.I. Joe and Transformers ruled the box office this summer. Meanwhile, real-life stars who were once golden, such as Will Ferrell and Adam Sandler, failed to draw crowds.

"There's chaos right now," says Mr. Fogelman in his Beverly Hills office, grabbing a beer from the walnut-wood bar that Hasbro Chief Executive Brian Goldner gave him for his birthday this year. "Hollywood had matured to a place where most of the artists were being forced to accept what was offered to them," he says. "I was looking to find ways to gain ground back for the artist community."

The craze for toy-driven feature films has given rise to a new term in the Hollywood lexicon. In production meetings, studio executives have begun asking if a particular project is "toyetic" -- meaning whether its concept can lend itself to a toy, and whether the project will be able to sell tickets and merchandise.

No recent project has been more toyetic than "Transformers." This summer, the second movie in the franchise grossed more than $833 million at the world-wide box office. In 2007, after the first "Transformers" film came out, Hasbro said revenues from "Transformers" hit $484 million, up from about $100 million in 2006.

Nonetheless, the director, Michael Bay, also a client of Mr. Fogelman, was reluctant to sign on for a third installment. "I didn't want to do it," says Mr. Bay, "but Paramount, they begged me." He says he caved after a trip to Vegas with Paramount's executives. Paramount Chairman Brad Grey, whose Viacom Inc.-owned studio made both "Transformers" blockbusters, says: "We're proud to be in business with him."

To be sure, Hollywood has played with toys before. Walt Disney Co.'s "Toy Story" franchise drew huge audiences in the 1990s, with name-brand playthings in supporting roles. The company is releasing another in the series in 3-D next year.

Few have taken the toy ride more seriously than Mr. Fogelman. The veteran agent spent much of last year on the road trying to cut new deals for Hasbro. He says he left the Emmys early, took up to four meetings a day, and gained 20 pounds from having so many dinner powwows with potential partners.

But he succeeded in enshrining Hasbro among the pantheon of powerful forces in Hollywood: The company recently secured its own office on the Universal lot, identifiable by the 6-foot statue of Mr. Potato Head standing outside. Only a few others have achieved the status of having offices on the lot, among them, Steven Spielberg, whose DreamWorks Studios sits just a stone's throw away.

As often happens in Hollywood, the stratospheric success of projects such as "Transformers" has unleashed a stampede of producers looking for the next big toy. Projects in the works include movie versions of the games Monopoly and Battleship.

The fervor has allowed even the most uncinematic of playthings to get a shot at the silver screen. The Ohio Art Co., which owns Etch A Sketch, says it has received numerous calls from producers interested in acquiring the rights to make a stand-alone film based on the toy. The company has yet to sign a deal.

"There's a herd mentality in Hollywood," says Stephen Sommers, who made "The Mummy" franchise and directed "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra," which took in more than $300 million at the global box office. "Sometimes I read about toys in development and just think, 'What! Battleship and Monopoly? Really?' I mean, best of luck."

Yet some of Hollywood's top directors and actors are eager to hitch their names to films starring a toy. Will Smith, who currently commands one of the biggest paychecks in the industry, signed on with partner James Lassiter to produce a movie based on the board game Risk, for Sony Corp.'s Sony Pictures.

Messrs. Smith and Lassiter are also developing a TV show based on the Big Wheel toy for a yet-unnamed TV channel, a joint venture between Hasbro and Discovery Communications set to launch next fall. "It was my favorite toy growing up," says Mr. Lassiter.

J.J. Abrams, who created the TV show "Lost" and directed this summer's "Star Trek" film, is in discussions to produce a movie about Japanese toy line Micronauts, which Hasbro just acquired.

Other big names are piling in. Brian Grazer will produce "Stretch Armstrong." Ridley Scott, the British director who made "Gladiator" and "Blade Runner," has agreed to direct "Monopoly."

Mr. Fogelman says he, along with Hasbro CEO Mr. Goldner, makes sure to lock up the rights to the company's brands before letting studios in on the deal. "We protect the [intellectual property] as if it's the most precious metal on the planet," he says. "The studios -- they don't even get the rights to the script until the day we start principal photography. I can tell you, that's never been done before!"

People familiar with the matter say he has brokered deals for Hasbro that include "saw teeth," special provisions worked into a contract to protect the client. For example, studios must greenlight a movie within a number of weeks of acquiring it, or pay a $5 million kill fee directly back to Hasbro. "We wanted to be in the business of making movies, not deals," says Hasbro's Mr. Goldner. Mr. Fogelman declined to elaborate.

Mr. Abrams, the "Star Trek" director, says those who doubt whether a board game or science-fiction toy should be accorded star status will be proved wrong.

"Sometimes, when someone is not a celebrity and you are casting them in a role, everyone who is in a seat of authority voices questions about that actor's talent, sex appeal, looks, ability -- their everything," he says. "But then they get the role, and suddenly they are on the cover of every magazine, and nobody questions those things again. In retrospect, everyone says, 'Of course that person is a star.'"

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125737028160428961.html

This is just sad. Most of the movies coming out now will be based off of action figures and board games. That to me is just ludicrous. The fact it's now socially acceptable for big stars to be in them, and that studios are ready to dish out millions to make them, just depresses me. I understand mindless entertainment but it has to at least be well made. I'm sure at least one or two of these will end up being well done, mainly Monopoly cause of Scott, but I don't see many of them turning out better then GI Joe or Transformers did. I personally thought those films were train wrecks.

How about you guys? What do you think about action figure/board game movies? What toyline/board game do you think they will try for next?

[Powder]

Not that I'm truly on topic, but I was JUST thinking about how horrible all modern entertainment industries are nowadays... Disney girls becoming total train wrecks, scripted reality shows, mainstream sex etc etc etc. Obviously people no longer have creativity in this day & age, explaining countless reboots, and so on. F^ck hollywood man.

[Ninjinister]

Like it's never been done before....

[Spitfire]

Originally Posted by The Ninjinister

Like it's never been done before....

Yeah and it became a cult classic. That's one movie though, made a really long time ago. This is a bunch all at the same time and some of them I fail to see how they could make a movie out of. At least Clue has a premise that somewhat works, who done it. Risk and Candyland hardly have that going for it.

[ThirdMarioBro]

Heh, I had a stretch armstrong when I was a kid and that other dude you sucked the air out of to freeze his shape (can't remember the name). Wouldn't go to a movie if it was free through.

And Clue kicked ass, you know, back before Tim Curry blew his career to hell with Congo.

[The Stryker]

Whine whine bitch bitch.

Things were better in my day. Who gives a crap. Don't like it, don't watch it. Easy peasy.

[odupianist]

Creativity in Hollywood was lost years ago

[Mecha Cow]

Hey, Pirates of the Caribbean was based on a theme park ride...

[joe-eyeball]

The bottom line is that Hollywood is no different than anything or anyone else which is: Go the path of least resistance that will acheive the highest possible gain. Society has made it easy for them to put out crap because like it or not crap has been selling a whole lot these days. The market says people want toy/video game based films now and Hollywood is going milk every last cent out of it and then some before moving onto the next big cash cow. I believe it has absolutely nothing to do with a lack of creativity, its more that consumers have made it easier for them to go this route.

[愛]

Maybe the next thing they'll do is a movie about a kid complaining on the internet about everything. Kind of like a modern day Scrooge.

[Spitfire]

Originally Posted by joe-eyeball

The bottom line is that Hollywood is no different than anything or anyone else which is: Go the path of least resistance that will acheive the highest possible gain. Society has made it easy for them to put out crap because like it or not crap has been selling a whole lot these days. The market says people want toy/video game based films now and Hollywood is going milk every last cent out of it and then some before moving onto the next big cash cow. I believe it has absolutely nothing to do with a lack of creativity, its more that consumers have made it easier for them to go this route.

Exactly, I was happier when the big craze was comic book films. At least that has source material that you can work with. Even most of those were bad though. I guess if I had to choose I'd rather see ads for comic movies then board games.

Originally Posted by Stryker

Whine whine bitch bitch.

Things were better in my day. Who gives a crap. Don't like it, don't watch it. Easy peasy.

So I'm not allowed to express concern about the current state of a industry I plan on entering? Yeah I don't have to see it but I also don't want to work on it either. My Dad used to joke the first film I'd end up working on would be a sequel to Doom now it's gonna be Stratego the motion picture.

[BoggleKng]

Still waiting for the Smurf movie, dammit...

[ThirdMarioBro]

Make a movie about Mouse Trap. I'd go see that.

[愛]

Originally Posted by Spitfire

So I'm not allowed to express concern about the current state of a industry I plan on entering? Yeah I don't have to see it but I also don't want to work on it either. My Dad used to joke the first film I'd end up working on would be a sequel to Doom now it's gonna be Stratego the motion picture.

Why would you enter an industry that you don't even like? Seems like all you do is complain about it. I'd find something else to do, or go "indies" or whatever.

I'd also go see a movie about Mouse Trap. That game takes 20 minutes to set up, and 5 minutes to play.

[Spitfire]

Originally Posted by Ai

Why would you enter an industry that you don't even like? Seems like all you do is complain about it. I'd find something else to do, or go "indies" or whatever.

Well that's gonna be the plan with the way things are going. Film is slowly moving away from Hollywood now anyways.With any luck that will turn things a bit. Can't deny what the public wants to see though. I might work in another country. Film in places like Europe is a lot different then here. When you watch a movie from there you often say "They wouldn't be allowed to do that here.". It's kinda like when you watch an old movie and say "You couldn't get away with that nowadays."

[Brodie]

Ai has a point. You complain about the state of film on a fairly consistent basis. Maybe you should just go into television, since it seems like they're being more creative on a more ragular basis.

For someone who touts about having their thumb on the pulse of the "industry", aware of the workings of film....you'd think you'd be more aware of the fact that the film industry, just like teens, have fads. This current fad? Sequels, remakes, TV and toy movies.

As expensive as they are, movies are the cheapest form of escapism. The economy is ****, but people can still pay 30 bucks to take their family to the movies. And you know what makes money? Toy movies, game movies, and you know what's more important? Sequels are safe. With the economy the way it is, its more fiscal to bank on sequels.

Just like everyone else, the film industry is trying to stay afloat, ensuring their longevity.

If you're so interested in getting into the film industry, maybe you should focus more on understanding why they're doing what they're doing, rather than bitching. As ****** as it is, they're ensuring that there's a career field for you to dream of getting into.

Wait til you have a job in that field before you start to complain about the abysmal state of the industry.

[Spitfire]

I'm fully aware of why they're doing what they're doing. I've observed the industry slowly moving further and further away from the type of films I'd like to make. While it's all business their business isn't serving them well. A lot of companies are still losing money because they see success in one type of film and all try to copy it. Copying the formula doesn't always work, in most cases it doesn't work at all.

You can call my opinions bitching, complaining, whining all you want it's no different then anything you guys do. You guys just get all upset about it for some reason like disliking the films you all enjoy makes me the anti-Christ.

[Master Splinter]

There are quite a few movies that are coming out this year and the next few years that I am looking forward to. Ya gotta remember that Hollywood isn't the only town making movies these days. And if your so concerned about what's being released, do the best thing ya can do, not watch it. There is so much entertainment in this world that there is likely going to be a bunch of crap. So just grin , and keep doing what ya do, cause the more ya ridin' on the negative, the less you're enjoyin' the positive.

-mm

[Peanut]

I would have thought you'd grown out of "You hate me because I have different opinions" thing by now, Spit. Are you still 16?

[PAAATE]

These kinds of movies are what we have RiffTrax for