How to Make a Hit Hollywood Film

HOW TO MAKE A HIT HOLLYWOOD FILM The movie industry is big business, with box-office hits raking in millions for studios worldwide. But as William Golman noted, 'nobody knows anything' when it comes to predicting which films will succeed at the box office. But how true is this? To find out, we've produced this visual guide to making a hit Hollywood film, based on an analysis completed by The Economist. ANNOUNCE A LARGE BUDGET FOR THE FILM Audiences appear to take a movie's announced budget as a signal of quality and studio commitment, and as a result those with a large budget make the most money (even if you don't actually spend the amount you announced). An average of 80 cents is generated for every dollar a studio promises to spend on the film. Films with a budget of $10m-40m open, on average, in 1,600 of 6,000+ cinemas in America and Canada. Films with a budget over $100m open, on average, in 3,000 of 6,000+ cinemas in America and Canada. MAKE A SEQUEL Sequels, on average, make $35 million more than a non-sequel. Studios have clearly realised this, with nearly one in five Hollywood films being a sequel, up from one in twelve 20 years ago. MAKE A SUPERHERO FILM A superhero film will earn $58m more at the box-office than a non-superhero film (based on a $200 million budget). Again studios have realised this, with Hollywood making 8 superhero films between 1996 and 2000, but have made 19 superhero films in the last five years. AVOID R-RATED FILMS With the exception of Deadpool, making your film R-rated will earn you $16 million less at the box office. THINK CAREFULLY ABOUT YOUR LEAD ACTOR A top-name actor will help a little, but it doesn't make a huge difference. Leonardo Di Caprio or Jennifer Lawrence will see your film earn $10 million more. a0D AIM FOR A SUMMER RELEASE A summer release will earn you an extra $15 million, compared to any other time of the year JUNE JULY AUGUST 1st 31st DON'T WORRY ABOUT THE CRITICS They might not like to hear it, but critics don't make a huge difference to box office receipts. Every 10% increase in the Rotten Tomatoes rating will only earn you an additional $1 million. ... TOMATOMETER 28% Abysmal. AUDIENCE BUZZ MATTERS MUCH MORE While the critics reviews won't make a huge different, audience scores have much more of an impact. Every 10% increase in the Rotten Tomatoes audience review score will net you an additional $11.5 million increase in box-office revenues. THE HIT FILM BLUEPRINT: Create a child-friendly superhero film with plenty of action, ideally either a sequel or a film with scope for turning it into a franchise. Set the budget at around $85m, release the film in the summer with a wide release, and cast two lead actors with a solid but unspectacular box-office history. With reasonable reviews from critics and audiences, your film would make about $125 million at the US box office, giving you a solid profit of $40m. Chances of winning an Oscar for Best Picture for this film: 1 in 500 SOURCES PRODUCED BY www.economist.com/news/business/21693594-how-make-hit-film-silver-screen-playbook www.centives.net/S/2016/how-to-manufacture-the-next-hollywood-hit/ www.economist.com/blogs/graphicdetail/2016/02/daily-chart-19 www.the-numbers.com/ www.rottentomatoes.com/ shade STATION