MGM President Pamela Abdy Preaches Virtues of Originality
Pamela Abdy, president of MGM Motion Picture Group, and Michael de Luca, chairman of MGM Motion Picture Group, have reaffirmed their commitment to creating original tales as rival studios increasingly rely on existing franchises.
Despite MGM’s own significant IP, like as James Bond and the Creed flicks spun off from the Rocky franchise, the pair view their biggest opportunity in this market as uncovering fresh ideas and focusing on theatrical. Their remarks occurred during a session moderated by Roeg Sutherland of CAA at this year’s Zurich Summit, which was held in collaboration with the Zurich Film Festival.
Michael de Luca commented “We thought there was a lane open for the movies Hollywood used to make – bold provocative originals, “Not everything has to be a tentpole or a franchise entry.”
the exec further added, “We felt that the legacy studios had left originality in the rear viewer mirror, they had become very risk adverse, making the same kind of movie again and again.” “We thought there was an opportunity for a studio to stand up and fly the flag of original films made by the finest directors we could entice.”
Sutherland questioned the two about why MGM was doubling down on project acquisitions during the pandemic, while many other corporations were cutting back.
Luca said “We’re an indie studio, we don’t have unlimited resources,” “I think whenever you’re at a smaller, scrappier company, you look to what the big guys aren’t doing. We’re very opportunistic. What can we be doing that they’re not doing?
“When we saw their response to the pandemic – that theatrical had an uncertain future – the streamers exploited that to their advantage. We thought, let’s do the opposite,” he further added. “It wasn’t fun shooting movies during the pandemic but it was possible, as long as we could lock them down safely. We decided to double down on production and have movies for release when this pandemic finally recedes – we thought there’d be an appetite for original movies on the other side.”
De Luca said “Audiences are always looking for something original,”. “Theatrical has that FOMO [fear of missing out] feeling. We’re looking for projects with that special sauce. People will show up for something that’s not pandering, derivative.”
De Luca believed that being selective was essential for living in today’s environment.
