You are so honest about how much money you got from the sales of Big Fish, and I want to thank you for that because that was always a question I wondered but never knew who to ask. My question is:
Do screenwriters make anything from movie rentals? Big Fish sold 2 million in its first week, but it also took in an estimated $13.5 million in gross rental revenue. Do you see a dime of any of that?
–Peter
Shortest answer yet: No.
The writer doesn’t get residuals on rentals, except for whatever Blockbuster paid for each videotape or DVD it bought it from Sony. Those 10 copies of BIG FISH on the shelf net me $0.50, if that. This disparity is one reason DVD has been a windfall for almost everyone: many people buy the disk, rather than just renting. Sucks for Blockbuster, though.
