Star Wars Producer Says Box Office is Doomed

Cutriss writes "Seen at CNN, this article interviews Rick McCallum, longtime producer at LucasFilms. McCallum says that DVDs will be responsible for the downfall of the movie industry *without* taking piracy into account, due to the fact that people think the home theatre experience is just as good, or better than the big screens, and they know that in five months, the DVD will be out on the market. Of course, his claim that "studios are barely breaking even" falls on deaf ears when I hear about 9-digit salaries for individual actors in a big-name film that's just some rehash of an old concept. He also mentions, of course, that DVD piracy and movie "sharing" groups will only speed up the cycle, and that they'll be putting Hollywood out of business, possibly within the next three years."

Re:Propoganda

[Torinaga-Sama]

Yeah, I think that it is comparable to the military spending $3000 bucks on a toliet seat.

But I get a lot more enjoyment out of my toliet seat than I do out of most hollywood movies.

Still waiting...

[bottlerocket]

So is this why we don't have Star Wars on DVD yet?

Hyperbole?

[Anonymous Coward]

And I quote - "Literally, our very lives are at stake now."

Not unless someone throws a sharpened DVD at them, ala Oddjob in the James Bond movies.

The box office isn't totally doomed...

[daVinci1980]

As long as they continue to release Star Wars in the theaters again, and don't release episodes IV, V, and VI on DVDs, I'll still have to go to the theater.

Re:Still waiting...

[Anonymous Coward]

Speak for yourself. Others have had it since several months back.

Some movies are doomed

[DrXym]

Good movies won't be doomed, something McCallum & Lucas might like to try making some time.

Re:aa

[CognitiveFusion]

They are probably counting the digits after the decimal.

Interesting Quote in the end..

[cOdEgUru]

George and I are just praying that we can finish 'Episode III' in time, before it's all over."

Its already over lad! George shot his own golden goose with Episode I. "Before its all over" reads to us fans like "before you suckers realize what tripe we are churning out each episode".

Starwars is dead. Long live Starwars.

Silly Me

[futuresheep]

I was under the impression that it was the Video Tape that would kill the Box Office. ;-)

Unless you have money to burn, nothing beats seeing a movie in the theater. Now if they'd just start putting real butter back on the popcorn...

Re:Too Bad...

[morningdave]

You forgot the 12 year old with the laser pointer

Re:Too Bad...

[interiot]

5. Some young couple is making out. 6. You can't stop the movie and make out.

Re:Propoganda

[Kamel Jockey]

They need to learn to budget better like everyone else.

I know... I'm surprised that Hollywood would still keep making the same mistakes over and over again... like putting Madonna in any movie! [foxnews.com]

Re:Too Bad...

[Iguanaphobic]

1. The food portions are smaller than a few years ago.
Go every day. Then you will hardly notice when they get smaller.

2. The price is WAY WAY higher!
Than what?? If you're comparing with a few years ago, see point #1.

3. People's cell phones are going off.
Build a Faraday cage over the building before you go in.

4. Some a**hole is giving comentary to the person sitting next to him/her.
Hmmm.. this is a tough one. I'm torn between a paintball gun and something like this. [darpa.mil]

Movie industry dead within 3 years? Good riddance!

[Rhys]

And don't let the door hit you on the way out.

Re:Too Bad...

[antitribue]

5. ...
6. Profit

It seems that the Tech Industry has set a standard.

That explains it.

[mindstrm]

Now I understand why the movie theater is always packed with a lineup around the block whenever a cool movie comes out. It's because nobody's going to the theater, and they are staying home to wait for the DVD.

Seriously, does this guy GO to the movies?

In other news...

[GMontag]

The Buggy Whip Manufacturer's association is calling for legeslation to restrict, license and tax "horsless carrages" citing safety concerns.

Traveling Theater Companies call for legeslation to regulate the new "moving pictures" industry, citing flickering and health concerns.

The dairy industry seeks non-dairy product regulation and distinctive markings so that consumers will not be "duped" by "inferior" products.

Television networks are calling for increased regulation of Cable and Satellite Television providers citing "unfair competition".

Looks like these movie guys are a little slow on the uptake with the same old false logic.

Who loses?

[Plutor]

"Filmmakers love it because it more closely resembles the film made."

"[Movie-goers] are paying more attention to the fact that the movie will be out on DVD in just four or five months at a rental fee of $4 or $5."

Filmmakers love DVDs, movie-goers love DVDs. Who loses? Popcorn manufacturers.

Music to my ears!

[radpole]

Somebody get a violin please,

Or One Singing Fat Lady.

Thank you.

Their lives are at stake?

[Allaria]

"The business will implode once you can download a movie, give it to your friends and not have a moral problem with doing it. Then we're screwed. Literally, our very lives are at stake now."

Do you mean that I can ruin their lives, and make them sacrifice one of their 7 BMWs in their driveways all by *downloading movies*?!?!?!

I can just feel the power... *looks down at glowing ring*

um.. nevermind...

Re:movie theaters suck...

[lacrymology.com]

You know, I've never been in a theater where someone was talking on their cellphone. I'm starting to wonder if this situation is just an urban myth... by the way, I'm posting this from a tub full of ice.

Re:Propoganda

[gabec]

Good ol' Rick "Chicken Little" McCallum's at it again, eh?

(j/k) ;)

Heh heh

[wunderhorn1]

I actually saw this article a little while ago. Thought about submitting it, then thought, "Nah, it's light on content and overly sensationalistic."

I should have known better ;-)

Anyway, my favorite quote was at the end:

"The business will implode once you can download a movie, give it to your friends and not have a moral problem with doing it. Then we're screwed. Literally, our very lives are at stake now. George and I are just praying that we can finish 'Episode III' in time, before it's all over."

Personally, I'd like to see Lucas standing out on Hollywood Blvd holding a placard that says "The end is near! Repent from your evil filesharing ways!"

Re:Propoganda

[imr]

But I get a lot more enjoyment out of my toliet seat than I do out of most hollywood movies.
more and more, what you find in one is coming from the other.

Re:Oh no!

[OzPhIsH]

"Literally, our very lives are at stake now. George and I are just praying that we can finish 'Episode III' in time, before it's all over."
Thats right, they NEED this money, their lives are at stake!. They'll be dead men if they can't pay off Jabba the Hutt. Maybe a long nap in some carbonite will give George enough time to think about a career change.

Re:puh-lease

[Kredal]

I can see the commercials now..

[Kid seated in front of a computer]: I just downloaded some movies.

[Shot of money being locked in a briefcase]

[Soccer mom at Wal-Mart]: I always buy DVDs for my kids, it's cheaper than the theatre

[Shot of a gun being cocked]

[Teenager at his computer]: I wasn't hurting anybody.

[George Lucas with a gun to his head]

[Voiceover]: If you pirate movies, or even buy DVDs instead of going to the theatre, you're supporting terrorism.

[Soccer mom again]: I wasn't hurting anyone...

[Fade to black]

Re:Too Bad...

[Loligo]

>There isn't a jury alive that will convict a
>baby.

Eh, maybe Texas.

-l

This man needs help

[sssmashy]

"Literally, our very lives are at stake now. George and I are just praying that we can finish 'Episode III' in time, before it's all over."

Is it just me, or does Mr. McCallum sound a little paranoid/delusional? If Episode III brings in less than half a billion in box office and 3 hundred million in merchandising tie-ins, I'd be surprised. Yet Rick and George "literally" have their "very lives" at stake. I guess they're just a few pirated DVDs away from living in a cardboard box.

WTF??

[LordSkippy]

Did this guy sprinkle cocaine on his corn flakes, before smoking crack this morning?

Re:Too Bad...

[GMFTatsujin]

I think much the same about surfing websites for news relevent to my demographic, concerning events that have merit, sometimes... Not naming names, you understand. :)

Trailers *are* the best....

[Wheaty18]

The trailers are usually the best part of the movie... heh.

Home Theatre is better...

[tsmit]

The only thing i need is a baby crying, a woman talking on her cell phone, and teenage kids kicking the back of my couch to make it a true movie-going experience.

Re:Too Bad...

[southpolesammy]

5. No ability to pause for pee break.
6. Stadium seating != La-Z-Boy
7. I decide when to watch, not someone else (with the exception of my wife).
8. Relaxing with your shoes off in the movie theatre is a bad idea due to:
a) floors sticky from spilled pop
b) the insensitive clod in front of me whining something about "can't breathe, need air, blah, blah, blah..."
9. 50" screen at 10' away = good, 50' screen at 10' away = bad
10. Beer is only a few precious steps away...

In a related development

[Joey7F]

Bar owners claim that grocery stores selling alcohol is cut into their profits. They were quoted as saying "No one will go out to drink alcohol at inflated prices if they can get drink at home"

Sigh...

--Joey

The only movie worth seeing in a theater...

[aleksey]

... is the Rocky Horror Picture Show.

Everything else really doesn't have the value-add to make it worth driving out to a mega-plex to be surrounded by the same people you see on Cops and Girls Gone Wild.

Re:Propoganda

[Psmylie]

Don't worry. He'll license her image, and she'll be in movies forever. Just digitally.

Solution...

[Anonymous Coward]

Hey, this whole "Internet" thing has gotten WAAAAAAAY out of hand. Just shut the whole thing down so we can return to the good ol' ways. It's nuttin' but one big humongous copy machine, that's all!

Re:Too Bad...

[mcmoyer]

1) Many of us can't afford a huge home theater. I watch movies on a 27" TV with two external speakers. It's good enough for most movies, but huge movies like Braveheart or Lord of the Rings really deserve the big screen.

Sit Closer...It's all in your perspective :)

Re:Too Bad...

[digidave]

Then the movie industry really would collapse. Who else are they going to market these movies to?

Re:movie theaters suck...

[susano_otter]

I'm posting this from a tub full of ice.

It's good to hear that losing a kidney doesn't mean I can't participate in Slashdot discussions.

But the cell phone thing is not a myth. It happens to me all the time. You are a very lucky person (except for the whole kidney thing, of course).

Re:...and don't forget the food throwing

[gooberguy]

I've found the best solution for annoyances like that is to carry around a baseball bat with six aerator spikes hammered into the end of it. Usually the intimidation factor alone is enough to deter anyone from offending you. It also could be used as a weapon to deter burglars from robbing your house.

D/\ Gooberguy

Re:movie theaters suck...

[Saige]

I saw the first LOTR twice in the theatres. The first time, it was a great crowd, quiet, no distractions, so much fun.

The second time, three different cell phones rang during the movie, and two of the people even had converstations! If the one guy who was in the row in front of me was only a couple seats closer to me, I would have reached down and turned off his phone for him. Perhaps even with the power button instead of throwing it against the wall.

It's not an urban legend - they're not common, but it happens.

Re:Price gouging at the consession stands

[jerrytcow]

Since they say you can't bring in your own stuff...

Sure, they say this, but are you telling me anyone is really checked before they come in to see if they have food with them. Some of the bigger items aren't practical, but candy will fit pockets just fine. If you live in colder climates, then just about anything is game thanks to winter clothing. You can fit a one liter or several 20 oz. bottles of soda in a coat sleeve and throw it over your shoulder. Those huge bags of popcorn that are sold in grocery stores will also fit in a coat sleeve - sure I got strange looks when the coat thrown over my shoulder had one sleeve sticking out at a 90 degree angle, but they people who work there really don't care.

Re:Too Bad...

[Cyclone66]

Canada will!! Oh wait no, I mean Texas.
As you were.

Re:Well...

[mttlg]

perhaps well some a little more quality independent film then?

And here we have an example of proper use of the "Interesting" mod - interesting way of combining perfectly good words in a way that looks like it might make sense, yet falls just a bit short.

I've encountered this phenomenon often enough that I think I can translate for those of you who speak English. If the big, crap-producing, "We'll find a way to squeeze money out of you" movie studios can't find a way to make money with the latest retread of a remake of an adaptation of an extension of a story that wasn't all that good in the first place, it could open the door for independent studios to step in with well-made films that cost much less to produce and therefore can compete in a market with diminished revenues. These films would then be made available to wider audiences in greater quantities, in theory anyway.

Not that I think this is likely - if independent films get too popular, the major studios could always use their last resort and make fewer, better films with talented, reasonably priced actors and lower production costs. If movies like Pluto Nash (Leonard Part 6 for a new generation?) are still getting made, Hollywood obviously isn't hurting all that much.

Re:They are also ridiculously expensive

[carlos_benj]

The popcorn is great, and the portions huge.

Wow! That popcorm MUST be great.... Oh, wait. I thought you said the patrons were huge.

Re:Too Bad...

[gte275e]

They are getting more butt into the seat. It is just more surface area and not more cheeks [usatoday.com].



Eric

You should never use a paintball gun...

[raehl]

To shoot anyone not playing in a paintball game.

That's what real guns are for.

Re:movie theaters suck...

[chazbot]

That's nothing. Have you ever sat in front of someone translating all of the dialogue into spanish for the person next to them? Oh, the agony...

Re:Propoganda

[PaleBoy]

"more and more, what you find in one is coming from the other." Matt Damon is going to come out of my toilet?

Re:Coming Soon to theaters...

[Tiny Elvis]

Unfortunately, at the end, Hollywood would be saved and live happily ever after.

Maybe we should...

[NeuroManson]

Take all the megamovieplexgargantua theaters, and instead of each minitheater being open to all, have them designated as:

Theater 1, The Playpen: Squalling babies allowed, offering counselling at a premium for idiots who take their 2 year olds in to see the latest rated R slasher flicks.

Theater 2, The Lame Room: For people who really don't care about watching the movie, and instead want to talk, make out, use their cel phones.

Theater 3, The Idiot Room: for people who want to do their own MST3K performance.

Theater 4, Paradise: For people who actually want to *gasp* watch the movie.

That way, they'll actually make MORE money, rather than driving away the folks who would normally want Theater 4!

Meanwhile, has anyone else noticed the irony that this is the same Lucasfilm that not only took upwards of 5 years originally to release their movies to tape/DVD, but supported the old "pay to watch" DIVX standard, refusing to release the original trilogy to DVD until it died?

Re:And yet, box office receipts keep rising...

[Kaenneth]

"The problem is one of repeating a lie often enough that people believe it."

We need to invade Iraq.

Re:Nonsense!

[delus10n0]

Huh? This doesn't even make sense. THX is a certification. They have certifications for video systems (projectors/decoders/even "screens") as well as audio systems (decoders, amps)..

I'm pretty much failing to see where you're coming from on your rant. And just what IS your rant? That Lucasfilm has a secret plot to monopolize theatres using it's THX certification? Give me a break.

Re:Price gouging at the consession stands

[Anonymous Coward]

I once smuggled a small box of good-n-plentys into a theater... I made it to my seat, was sitting there for 10 minutes not bothering anyone, and the usher caught sight of the box and confiscated them. It was just some frickin candy that they were too lazy to sell there.
I think the guy was just getting a minimum wage power trip or was just too stupid to realize he wasn't helping anyone. I'm boycotting that theater, but perhaps I will go back someday to smuggle in a fresh roasted turkey and sell plates with mashed potatoes in the back of the theater!

Imminent Death

[Anonymous Coward]

Imminent Death Of Movie Industry Predicted. No Film at 11.

Re:Price gouging at the consession stands

[Zeinfeld]

Those huge bags of popcorn that are sold in grocery stores will also fit in a coat sleeve - sure I got strange looks when the coat thrown over my shoulder had one sleeve sticking out at a 90 degree angle, but they people who work there really don't care.

I have to have my popcorn fresh. So to avoid price cgouging I take a small portable pop corn popper and a bag of corn. That fits into my pocket real easy.

Some of the other people in the audience sometimes give me funny looks, particularly if the sound of the corn popping gets a bit distracting.

Obvious Response

[compjma]

I think you're all missing the fact that Hollywood won't die on the vine, they'll just call their pet congressmen and make sure that DVDs are only playable one time in a specially formatted RIAA controlled player. Then charge you for the your own popcorn that you made in YOUR microwave, because you ate it during the DVD playback, and you had to agree to this charge in the EULA when you opened the DVD case.

Re:Price gouging at the consession stands

[Anonymous Coward]

The MPAA and RIAA say they are losing a shitload of money from people sneaking in food and are forced to charge 2000%-5000% markups to make up for the losses.!!!

/sarcasm

Re:Price gouging at the consession stands

[Anonymous Coward]

>I made it to my seat, was sitting there for 10 minutes not bothering anyone, and the usher caught sight of the box and confiscated them.

Too bad you didn't make a big deal of it.

Tell him he's legally stolen them now, and your lawyer dad doesn't react well to things like that. Then say he can make it up to you by returning the things and getting you a refund on the seat (something they need to do lawfully anyways, since they don't own the candy, and they're planning to eject you without you finishing the movie, so it isn't extortion) and letting you watch the rest of the movie in peace.

I bet he'll get you your refund.

(Not that I've never smuggled 2 1/2 lb. chip bags, 6-pack of coke, 3 or 4 chocolate bars, etc, etc, into various movies for the family -- heh, sometimes being a fatass has its merits!)

Re:movie theaters suck...

[mgblst]

I watched a movie once where a guy had his 2 kids with him.

Was that kindergarden cop?? Doesn't sound like a good movie anyway, you were probably lucky you missed it.

Hollywood going out of business...

[anonymous_wombat]

Good, maybe now the movie theatres will start showing movies with decent scripts.