Hollywood Road

It's well known that net worth and wealth aren't synonymous with liquid assets. Fixed assets like real estate, airplanes, yachts, and stocks all count towards one's net worth, yet they can't be quickly converted into cash. This is especially true for stocks, which are essentially just numbers in a wealth game. Some individuals owning hundreds of billions in stock can find it challenging to liquidate even a hundred million in cash.

At the auction, many attendees had a net worth surpassing Murphy, given he was only a rising power in Hollywood.

However, when it came to the amount of cash and liquid assets, few could compete.

This month, part of the revenue share from the first and second seasons of "Game of Thrones" had just been transferred to Stanton Studios. Since it wasn't the total revenue share, it didn't reach a hundred million dollars, but it was still around fifty million dollars.

Next month, according to the director's contract he had signed, Warner Bros. would pay Murphy the first share of the North American box office revenue for "Man of Steel," which totaled up to 400 million dollars, meaning Murphy would get twenty percent of that.

He would also receive twenty percent from the first share of the international box office, which amounted to another two hundred million dollars.

Apart from a small portion used to repay a loan from David Ellison's Sky Cinema Fund, Murphy had no immediate plans for these funds and could freely use them.

With this kind of cash flow at his disposal, he could outbid nearly ninety-nine percent of the people present.

When Murphy bid one hundred million dollars, the banquet hall fell into a stunned silence. The psychological impact of one hundred million compared to ninety-five million was similar to the difference between items priced at ninety-nine dollars versus a hundred dollars—it moved from the realm of millions to the psychological threshold of a hundred million.

The former symbolized astronomical figures, whereas the latter was still within a manageable range.

Murphy looked towards his main competitor, Maria Carey, who had fallen silent, with no signs of further bids.

It seemed the contest was decided.

"Director Murphy Stanton's bid of one hundred million dollars! On behalf of the orphaned African American children, I thank him for his generosity!" the auctioneer declared, breaking the silence. Many turned to look in Murphy's direction as he nodded politely, and then the auctioneer continued loudly, "One hundred million dollars for the first time! One hundred million dollars for the second time! One hundred million dollars for the third time..."

The gavel fell with a crisp sound, and the auctioneer announced loudly, "The 'Flower of Lis' sold for one hundred million dollars! Congratulations, Director Stanton!"

A warm round of applause erupted in the hall. Like the previous winners of the "charitable" auction, Murphy stood and bowed slightly, displaying great decorum.

After sitting down, Murphy thought about the additional benefit of his hefty bid in this themed charity auction. Having spent one hundred million dollars, if anyone later accused him of racial discrimination, he could easily reference today's auction. He could ask those claiming to be non-discriminatory if they were willing to spend a hundred million dollars to aid African Americans.

As for whether the one hundred million dollars would truly help orphaned African American children, that responsibility fell to Susan Sapperstein, not him, the financier.

"The 'Flower of Lis' was the last item auctioned, and with its sale, the charity auction came to an end.

"Congratulations on becoming tonight's biggest buyer."

As the crowd dispersed, Leonardo DiCaprio made a point to come over and congratulate him. "When are you throwing a party to celebrate?"

Murphy slapped his outstretched hand, "Once I've moved in."

After chatting with DiCaprio, Murphy and Gal Gadot, led by staff, went to a side room to handle some necessary paperwork.

No auction involving significant sums required immediate payment on-site, and this was no exception. Murphy only needed to pay the first installment of forty million dollars within ten days, with the remaining balance due within two months.

However, Murphy planned to pay in full when settling the account to quickly secure ownership of the "Flower of Lis." His current rental agreement was ending soon, and before moving in, the "Flower of Lis" would need some renovation.

Moreover, the name "Flower of Lis" was certainly to be discarded.

With the purchase of the luxurious estate settled, Murphy could now redirect his energy away from these matters. The forthcoming renovation would be managed by Gal Gadot, who was eager to make their new house a home.

September 2007 seamlessly entered Murphy's life. "Man of Steel" continued to show in major cinemas across North America, but after fifteen weeks, it was playing in less than three hundred theaters with an untraceable screen count, and daily showings not exceeding four hundred.

Consequently, there was no longer a need to keep "Man of Steel"

 in North American cinemas. On September 4th, the film officially ended its run, with the North American box office tallying at 458.96 million dollars.

Simultaneously, the film also concluded its run in most overseas territories, achieving a global box office of 1.07545 billion dollars, surpassing "Pirates of the Caribbean 2: Dead Man's Chest" and becoming one of the highest-grossing films globally, only behind "Titanic" and "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King."

Even the most critical could not deny the immense success of "Man of Steel."

This success was not only measured in box office returns but also in critical reception. As "Man of Steel" ended its North American run, it still boasted an IMDB rating of 8.9, a Rotten Tomatoes fresh rating of 87%, and a high average critical score of 78.

Undoubtedly, "Man of Steel" was a dual triumph in both box office and critical acclaim.

Some media even speculated that "Man of Steel" deserved an Academy Award nomination for Best Picture next year, and Murphy should receive a nomination for Best Director.

But Murphy knew this was unlikely, as "Man of Steel," fundamentally, was still a superhero film.

With the film withdrawn from North American theaters, Warner Bros., which had been preparing for some time, officially released "Man of Steel" DVDs across various outlets, from major e-commerce websites to Walmart stores, showcasing various DVD editions for sale.

Following the typical North American DVD market strategy, "Man of Steel" DVDs were available in three editions: a standard version for 19.9 dollars, a deluxe Blu-ray set for 39.9 dollars, and a supreme edition for 99.9 dollars packaged in a super "S" emblem box.

The supreme edition included not only behind-the-scenes content but also a wealth of exclusive footage, deleted scenes from the theater version, and many secrets from behind the screen. Additionally, it featured a highly prized extra allowing fans to admire Superman and Wonder Woman's costumes from a 360-degree perspective, with zoomed-in details, and also catered to comic fans with short films showcasing the comic characters.

In its first week on the North American market, the various editions of "Man of Steel" DVDs sold a staggering 8.52 million sets, outperforming several competitors. Its first-week sales were second only to "Pirates of the Caribbean 2: Dead Man's Chest," which sold 9.49 million sets, ranking second in the history of North American film DVD first-week sales.

With the rise of online streaming and downloads, 2007 and 2008 marked the last craze in the Hollywood disc market. Just in its first week, "Man of Steel" DVD sales approached two hundred million dollars, even exceeding the film's opening weekend box office.

However, DVD sales wouldn't always remain robust, and Hollywood had identified a pattern where a blockbuster's final DVD sales in North America generally doubled its first-week figures.

That meant "Man of Steel" could potentially reach a final North American DVD sales tally of around 17 million sets.

This was a frightening figure; 17 million sets could almost generate four hundred million dollars in sales. Unlike the film itself, DVDs have very low production costs apart from modest marketing expenses, and the profit margin could exceed eighty percent of the selling price.

Thus, it wasn't without reason that many said DVDs saved Hollywood in the new century.

Yet, like the videocassette before it, the DVD's days of glory were numbered. These two years marked a turning point in Hollywood DVD sales, especially following the huge sales of "Transformers" DVDs the next year, after which the North American DVD market gradually declined, never to return to its former glory.

The DVD sales of "Man of Steel" were undoubtedly a profit feast, with Warner Bros. and DC Comics as the primary beneficiaries, but Murphy also partook in the feast.

Under the terms of Murphy's director contract, besides a base salary of ten million dollars, he was also entitled to twenty percent of the global box office and DVD revenue as a bonus.

Clearly, just from the first week of DVD sales for "Man of Steel," Murphy was set to earn over thirty million dollars in bonuses.

Although Warner Bros. and DC Comics were the biggest winners from "Man of Steel," Murphy also reaped substantial profits. In the face of such massive bonus figures, purchasing the 'Flower of Lis' estate was merely a minor affair.

This substantial sum also represented the biggest obstacle for Warner Bros. not signing a new contract with him, and Murphy was not about to foolishly reduce his compensation to serve Warner Bros. and DC Comics.

In early September, Warner Bros. paid Murphy the first share of both North American and international box office bonuses, totaling 120 million dollars.

Professional accountants handled the financial and tax aspects of this transaction, allowing Murphy to focus on oversight without worrying too much about the details. Plus,

 a new premiere awaited his participation.

Directed by Seth Rogen, "The Hangover" premiered on the second weekend of September.

___________________

(Support with power stones, comments or reviews)

If you guys enjoy this story, In support me on Patreon and get access to +200 advance Chapters

Read Ahead

Patreon.com/INNIT

Get 33% off all subscription levels from Jan 11–18! Use code: 5CEC6