I've heard it mentioned that hasbro has to pay royalties to paramount for doing the movie figures. This seems so back asswards to me. I don't get how these movie deals work, but doesn't paramount pay hasbro to use their brand to make it into a movie? At the very least hasbro OWNS the property, so why should they be paying royalties out?
In a sense it kinda should work out even. Paramount gets to use a bankable franchise to put out a movie and make money. Hasbro, in turn, gets to pump out toys with the movie as a multi-million $ commercial, and therefore they make money. I don't know how much money is to be made on either side of the equation though and who actually stands to benefit most. But either way, this royalties business just seems like an excuse to raise figure prices.
Bruce Willis and Dwayne Johnson are both bankable stars and both are paid fees for the licensing of their likenesses. Add to it the obligatory fees also paid to their co-stars that also appear in toy form and there's a considerable added expense. We are talking likely amounts in the millions of dollars here.
Paramount's cut in this is probably less than people are assuming, and its likely NOT royalties, but other costs and such. They are handling distribution of the film, and marketing.....and since the film is their bailiwick, they stand to lose if the thing bombs, moreso than Hasbro does. Hasbro won't lose money on this movie because they can utilize it in many ways over time.
Don't forget that Hasbro has its own network (and its own studio) now--the HUB--that can broadcast their live-action properties just as much as their cartoons. This movie is nothing more than a money-making "scheme"--like all movies-based on toylines are--its an extension of a toy-based TV series concept, essentially a 2hr long commercial for the toys.
The goal here has been to make money all along, so yeah........raising prices is going to be a natural part of that effort.
