An Aug. 29 Business article incorrectly referred to Stephen Glass, subject of the movie "Shattered Glass," as a plagiarist. Glass did not steal material; he fabricated it.
Snyder Adds New Star to His Lineup: Cruise
Redskins Owner to Finance Film Projects
Tom Cruise starred in "Mission: Impossible III," which took in about $390 million.
(By Stephen Vaughan -- Associated Press)
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Tuesday, August 29, 2006
Just days after media mogul Sumner M. Redstone cut ties with Tom Cruise for his off-screen conduct, the star has a new backer: Washington Redskins owner Daniel Snyder.
Snyder, partnering with home builder Dwight C. Schar and Six Flags chief executive Mark Shapiro, cut a two-year deal with Cruise's production company to pay between $3 million and $10 million annually for development and overhead costs in exchange for the opportunity to finance film projects and to profit from any hit movies.
The deal marks the latest addition to Snyder's burgeoning entertainment empire. Having made his fortune in marketing and building the Redskins into one of the most valuable franchises in professional sports, Snyder last year won control of ailing theme park operator Six Flags Inc. He recruited Shapiro, a former top ESPN programming executive, to run it and Miramax co-founder Harvey Weinstein to sit on the board. Snyder also owns five radio stations, which broadcast Redskins games.
Working under a new partnership called First and Goal LLC, the group's investment will help cover operational costs while Cruise and his production partner, Paula Wagner, develop movie projects. Shapiro will oversee the investment. Snyder, Schar and Shapiro have the right to back out after two years or the option to renew the deal long term.
Cruise and Wagner, are still working on lining up other financing and distribution deals.
"We are entering into what we know will be a profitable relationship with unlimited creative and financial potential," Wagner said in a joint press release with Snyder.
Shapiro did not return several e-mails seeking comment.
"Paula and Tom have a superior instinct for developing and producing films with universal appeal," Snyder said in the release, adding that together they were "creating an alliance that goes beyond traditional film financing models and serves as an exceptional investment for us."
Beyond the Redskins, Snyder has yet to score a major success in the entertainment business. Since Shapiro launched a strategy to make Six Flags more family friendly, revenue and attendance have been down .
By investing in Cruise's company, Snyder has inserted himself into the middle of a major Hollywood breach, backing a marquee name who just last week was spurned by his corporate supporters.
Cruise has been a major box-office draw for Paramount Pictures, part of Viacom, which is chaired by Redstone. His last two films for the studio, "War of the Worlds" and "Mission: Impossible III," grossed $1 billion worldwide.
But he is an expensive talent, given a large percentage of each ticket sold -- as much as 20 percent, according to some reports.
