Zane Blackwood carefully read the new "Spider-Man 1" script, comparing it again and again to the movie he remembered.
"Good, this is very good!" Zane said, his voice full of excitement. "Bill, Kevin, the script is excellent. Kevin, please tell the writing department they did an amazing job. I personally approve their work!"
(Zane loved to give out verbal encouragement. It made his team happy, and best of all, it was free!)
"By the way," Zane asked, "has the production department figured out how much Spider-Man 1 will cost to make yet?"
Kevin Fitch responded, "Boss, I asked them to start, but the numbers aren't ready yet. It should take about another week."
Zane nodded. He understood. Making a budget for a movie was a big, serious job. Spider-Man was going to be a giant, "Class A" movie. They had to be careful and count every penny. If they weren't careful now, they could run out of money in the middle of filming, and that would be a disaster.
"Zane... I mean, boss," Old Bill, the company president, began.
Zane just laughed, waving his hand. "Bill, please, don't be so formal. You've been doing this for decades. Just call me Zane."
"Okay, Zane," Bill nodded, smiling. "I've read the script a few times. My guess is that the cost will be at least $100 million. That's the minimum. If we want the special effects to look really good, we might need an extra $20 or $30 million."
Kevin Fitch gasped. "That much money?!"
"It definitely needs that much," Bill said firmly.
Zane nodded, too. He agreed with Bill. In this one short chat, Zane could really see the difference between his two top bosses.
Kevin was young, full of energy, and got things done fast. He had done a perfect job getting the Spider-Man script ready.
Old Bill was the expert. He had decades of experience. A giant movie like this, which made Kevin nervous, was no problem for him.
Zane was very happy he had hired them both.
He was already thinking about casting. He felt in his gut that he should stick with the actor he remembered from his old life—Toby Maguire.
Zane also knew he couldn't start his big "Marvel movie universe" plan just yet. I haven't even bought Marvel Studios yet, he thought. If I start the MCU now, Marvel and the other studios will get all the benefits. I'm not a charity! I have to own Marvel before I release Spider-Man.
Kevin Fitch interrupted his thoughts, and he looked worried. "Boss... Spider-Man 1 needs $100 million. And Harry Potter is probably going to cost $100 million, too. The company... well... the company doesn't have that much money in its bank account right now."
Old Bill just pursed his lips. No money, no movie.
Zane was stunned for a second. Where did all the money go? Oh, right. Even though his movies were making money, he had spent all of those profits on building his new distribution network and buying the book companies.
"Kevin," Zane said, his voice calm and full of confidence, "don't you worry. The Spider-Man 1 project is officially greenlit. As for the money... I'll find a solution."
(Zane personally had plenty of money, but he kept his own money separate from his company's money. A company had to be able to stand on its own.)
It seems I have three options, Zane thought.
Get a giant bank loan.
Partner with another big Hollywood studio (but then he'd have to share all the profits).
Accept money from outside investors.
In the end, Zane firmly chose the third path. This was just a normal, smart way of doing business in Hollywood.
He knew that big, successful studios, like Spielberg's DreamWorks, did this all the time. They would let outside investors help pay for a movie, but they had smart, legal ways to make sure the real profits stayed with their company. It was just playing the game.
Wald Pictures was a big, serious studio now. They could do the same. It was the only way to protect his company and his team from being taken advantage of by the bigger studios.
Besides, he knew his other new movies, 300 and My Big Fat Greek Wedding, were about to be big hits. Once those came out, all the investors in the world would be begging to give him their money.
Successful people, he knew, always attract followers. That was just a truth of the world.
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