Compared to completely blacklisting Brett Ratner, slapping him with a five-year "film ban" might actually suit Dunn better.
If Dunn truly cut off all of Ratner's escape routes, even if Barry Meyer and Bob Shaye caved, the fallout would be a headache. Other movie giants and Legendary Pictures, tied up in their "portfolio investment" projects, might give Dunn some leeway.
But Disney? No chance. The two companies had long since burned every bridge.
If it came to that, Ratner would likely run to Disney, maybe even team up with Harvey Weinstein, staying active in the film market and chipping away at Dunn's authority.
This way, though, it's different. A five-year ban, with Barry Meyer smoothing things over, keeps Ratner from going off the deep end—no matter how fired up he gets.
He'd have to swallow his pride, apologize, and repent.
Dunn's tough stance and unshakable clout in the industry would naturally solidify.
Feeling good, Dunn gazed out at the vast ocean with a grin. "By the way, The Lord of the Rings is coming up soon, right? I heard it's got over 1,500 VFX shots?"
Bob Shaye let out a small sigh. "Yeah, just making those effects cost us $47 million!"
Dunn shook his head. "Bob, you should be grateful. Lucky you picked New Zealand—no unions, low wages, low taxes, and unlimited overtime. If this was shot in the U.S., 1,500 CGI shots would've run you at least $100 million!"
Bob chuckled. "True, we owe that to Peter and his Weta Workshop."
The Lord of the Rings trilogy is legendary, its place in film history right up there with Titanic and Avatar. Dunn was hooked on the topic.
"I heard the project's journey was a mess. Care to break it down?"
"Sure, no secrets here," Bob said, pausing. "But it's a long story—could fill a book."
Barry Meyer grinned. "Quit teasing and spill it! I've seen the final cut of The Rings—it's stunning. Looks like a blockbuster in the making."
Bob's eyes lit up at that, and he cleared his throat before diving in.
"This goes back 35 years. United Artists hadn't been bought by MGM yet. They wanted to adapt Tolkien's books into movies, so they shelled out £10,000 for the film rights to The Lord of the Rings trilogy and The Hobbit. Oh, and one thing—this wasn't some time-limited deal; it was a permanent buyout."
"The budget was too big, though, and United Artists couldn't get it off the ground. It just sat there. Then this animation director, Ralph Bakshi, came along. He wanted to turn The Rings into an animated film. He tried convincing MGM to buy the rights for $3 million, but they said no. So he went to a producer he'd worked with before, Saul Zaentz."
"Saul Zaentz ponied up $3.5 million and snagged the film adaptation rights to the Rings trilogy, plus production rights to The Hobbit."
"Hold up!" Dunn cut in, raising a hand. "You're saying this producer only got production rights to The Hobbit?"
Bob nodded. "Yep. The distribution rights stayed with United Artists. Of course, now that MGM's swallowed up United Artists, those rights are with MGM."
Dunn got it now. No wonder MGM popped up out of nowhere for the Hobbit trilogy later on.
Bob went on. "To make The Rings into an animated flick, Saul Zaentz also bought the trademark rights to all the characters, settings, and objects from Tolkien's heirs, clearing the last hurdle for production."
Barry Meyer nodded. "I saw that animated Rings. Box office was solid, but the reviews were awful. Killed any chance of a sequel."
"And then?" Dunn pressed.
"Fast forward to 1993," Bob said. "Peter Jackson caught the eye of big-shot director Robert Zemeckis, who tapped him to direct The Frighteners. Peter convinced Zemeckis to shoot in New Zealand and use his Weta Workshop for the effects. It turned out great."
"Think about it—Jurassic Park had just 50 VFX shots, but The Frighteners had 570. The CGI was smooth, gorgeous, and blew everyone in Hollywood away."
"Then in 1994, Peter's Heavenly Creatures came out, and the reviews were even better. Harvey Weinstein took notice, bought the distribution rights, and in return, locked in 'first-look' rights to Peter's next film."
Dunn's brow furrowed. He hadn't expected Harvey Weinstein to worm his way into The Rings like that.
First-look rights meant Peter's next movie—whatever it was—had to go through Harvey.
Bob continued. "By then, with Zemeckis and Weinstein boosting him, Peter Jackson was suddenly a hot name in Hollywood. Twentieth Century Fox wanted him for Planet of the Apes with James Cameron producing. Universal pitched him King Kong—his dream project. And Harvey, thanks to a favor, wanted to kick off The Hobbit!"
"The Hobbit?" The name alone made Dunn blurt it out.
Bob had to explain. "Saul Zaentz had produced this huge film—maybe you've heard of it, The English Patient. It started with Fox Searchlight, but they bailed over profit disputes. Miramax stepped in and funded it, so Saul owed Harvey a favor."
Dunn's head was spinning. What a tangled web!
And it wasn't over. Bob smirked. "Harvey wanted to do The Hobbit, but with the distribution rights stuck at MGM, it got messy. So he pivoted to The Lord of the Rings trilogy instead."
"So… Harvey Weinstein was the real driving force behind The Rings?" Dunn's frown deepened.
Bob nodded. "Results say yes. Peter was just a small-time director—passionate, driven, but no connections. He couldn't have pulled off a project this massive alone."
That Harvey Weinstein—flipping the game like it was nothing!
Dunn waved a hand, half-exhausted. "Go on, what's next?"
"Harvey planned The Rings as a two-parter," Bob said. "Peter didn't want to do Planet of the Apes—too scared of being overshadowed by Cameron. But King Kong? He was all over that. He wanted to make it."
"To get Peter to delay Kong and focus on The Rings, Harvey cut a deal with Universal. Universal handed over Kong's international distribution rights to Miramax, and Miramax gave The Rings' international rights to Universal—a win-win partnership."
"But Harvey's Rings was two films, while Kong was just one. Miramax got the short end of the stick, so Universal tossed them another project to even it out—the big one, Shakespeare in Love."
Even Anne Hathaway, a newbie actress, was floored. Dunn? He was practically dumbfounded.
What a convoluted mess!
Dunn had long seen Universal as his for the taking, but hearing Shakespeare in Love came from them to Miramax? He nearly spat blood.
The English Patient and Shakespeare in Love—Miramax's Oscar darlings. One from Fox, one from Universal. Was Harvey just stupidly lucky, or insanely good?
Barry Meyer shot Bob a look. "You've talked this long, and it's all got nothing to do with New Line. How'd New Line even get in on The Rings? Don't tell me… another gift from our old pal?"
"Old pal?" Dunn raised an eyebrow.
Barry smirked. "Michael Eisner!"
Rush Hour was originally Disney's baby, but Michael Eisner couldn't stand Jackie Chan's style—same way he hated Johnny Depp's vibe in Pirates of the Caribbean. He called it "clownish monkey business."
So, thanks to the big boss's distaste, Rush Hour landed in New Line's lap.
Bob burst out laughing. "Yep, once again, we've got our old friend to thank!"
Dunn caught on and couldn't help but join in the mocking.
Michael Eisner's eye for films was seriously outdated!
Maybe back in the '80s at Paramount, he had some knack for it. But at Disney? His taste in movies had gone completely off the rails.
From Rush Hour to The Rings to later Elf—all these hits ended up with New Line. Even after Jerry Bruckheimer made Pirates, Eisner trashed it, calling it Disney's future flop!
History proved otherwise. The Pirates series ended up on par with The Rings…