The Los Angeles Times has a long feature about the recent trend of studio executives getting sacked wherein it compares the turmoil in Hollywood to that of a slasher flick.
The Los Angeles Times has a long feature about the recent trend of studio executives getting sacked wherein it compares the turmoil in Hollywood to that of a slasher flick.
"Hollywood is in a state of panic-producing turmoil," the LA Times writes, adding that studio executive turnover has reached an "epidemic level."
Dick Cook was recently fired as studio chief at Disney and Universal Pictures dismissed chairmen Marc Shmuger and David Linde on Monday.
Popular opinion blames plummeting DVD sales for the dry spell that's making most media companies crack under the pressure. DVD sales have dropped by as much as 25 percent at some studios, which wouldn't be so bad if outside financing was more readily available.
The article's three writers make strong predictions as to where the new studio executives will look for solutions: "Expect an even greater emphasis on so-called "branded entertainment": sequels and movies based on toys, old television shows and other familiar themes. Movies already in development include one based on the View-Master children's toy and an adaptation of the board game BATTLESHIP, scheduled for release July 2011, the same month as a third TRANSFORMERS film. There also will likely be far fewer adult dramas and less reliance on movie stars -- many of whom can no longer draw ticket buyers, and are seeing their guaranteed salaries slashed."
The LA Times also notes that just half of Hollywood's major studios -- Warner Bros., Sony and 20th Century Fox -- have not suffered any significant leadership shake-ups this year.
"There's been more change in the last 18 months than in the preceding 18 years," Mark Gill, CEO of the Film Department, an independent film finance company, told the LA Times.
