by Ben Fritz
television. See also Netflix
broadcast networks, 133
cable, 101–2, 127–30
director’s role in, 167
executive politics in, 125–27, 131–33, 136–40
film adaptations for, 137
future of, 239–41
golden age lead-up, 129, 131, 133–36
golden age of, xviii–xix, xxiv–xxv, 23, 127–31, 239
international, 139
originality led by, xviii–xix, 23, 102–3, 191–92
profit and revenue versus film, 127–28, 134–36
talent’s move to, 131
technology and, 123–31
tentpoles, xix, 18, 24, 30–33, 210. See also franchise era
Terminator franchise, 170, 213
That’s My Boy, 93
theater attendance
change in, 21–23, 105–6, 115, 131, 232, 238–41
as cultural collective, 238–41
future of, 239–41
IMAX, 205–10, 214
release window, 195–97, 237–38
theme-park adaptations, 152, 155, 158
Thor, 62–63, 72
3D technology, 208–10
Time Warner, 8, 14, 127–28, 139, 236
TiVo, 129
Touchstone Pictures, 13, 147–48, 153–56
Toy Biz, 44–45
toy-based franchises
Hasbro, 182–84
Lego, 166, 171–74
toys. See merchandising
Trank, Josh, 180
Transformers franchise, 171, 183, 213–14
Transparent, 191–92
TriStar Pictures, 105, 115, 132
Tsujihara, Kevin, 139, 172, 237
Turner Pictures, 7, 8
20th Century Fox, 42, 49, 154, 161, 175, 188, 189, 245–48. See also Disney
2.0 Entertainment, 224, 230
U
Universal Pictures
DreamWorks move to, 156
independent label of, 188, 193, 236
Marvel and, 67
Overbrook Entertainment and, 89–90
Steve Jobs picked up by, 123–24
V
Van Amburg, Zack, 134, 234
The Vatican, 136
VCRs, 239
Viacom, 41, 232–33
video-game adaptations, 157, 204, 214
video-on-demand, 21, 237–38. See also Amazon Studios; Netflix
Vinciquerra, Tony, 234, 249
W
Waking Madison, 118
The Walk, 105
Wanda Group, 202–3, 205, 216
Wang Jianlin, 202–3, 205
War Machine, 108–9, 238
Warcraft, 204, 214
Warner Bros.
AT&T and, 236, 248–49
Fox squabble with, 175
franchise flops of, 73–74, 169–71
franchise success of, 24, 74, 172–74
internship at, 168
talent gifts and perks, 93
Time Warner and, 8, 127
The Wedding Singer, 91
Weinstein, Harvey and Bob, 148, 155, 188, 245
White House Down, 26–27
Wonder Woman, 74, 238
writers
rise of, 165–67, 174–81
strike, 170
team process for, 181–84
X
X-Men
box-office revenue, 48, 180
competition, 50
creativity behind, 174–76, 178–81
rights to, 42–43, 175
talent, 48, 212
X-Men: Apocalypse, 180
X-Men: Dark Phoenix, 178, 181
X-Men: Days of Future Past, 179–80, 212
X-Men: The Last Stand, 178
Y
Yun-fat, Chow, 212
Z
Zero Dark Thirty, 117, 119, 120, 128
Zhang Zhou, 218, 219
Zhou Yuan, 201
About the Author
BEN FRITZ is a editor for the Wall Street Journal. He previously covered the entertainment industry for the Journal, as well as for the Los Angeles Times and Variety. He is a graduate of Swarthmore College and the coauthor of the best-selling All the President’s Spin.
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