Yes, but you have to admit that it’s a popularity contest as well.
When Oliver Stone wants to make a film, which most people don’t care to see, he gets the backing.
Well, Stone’s ‘Any Given Sunday’ was a hit. On the basis of that he got the backing for Alexander which was not. He tried to recapture the mainstream with World Trade Center which was a modest hit.
It depends on how well Oliver Stone’s last two movies did at the box office. I’ve known quite a few people in Hollywood — and I can say with a fair amount of certainty, nobody picks up the phone to a studio executive and says, “Yeah, hey, howzit going? Can you give me $100 million to make this movie?”
Hollywood is one of those places where you don’t get to make many mistakes.
One of the reasons there are not many conservatives in Hollywood is that it’s a very risky profession. Who wants to spend $100 million and get a very, very long piece of plastic with tiny pictures on it?