Scott Hettrick on Michael Bay's Blu-ray support

[kaliraver]

It would appear that the glass of Kool-Aid that Paramount and DreamWorks execs hurriedly coaxed Michael Bay to drink a couple months ago to retract his angry words about "Transformers" not being released on Blu-ray Disc has lost its taste for the filmmaker. (see Aug. 21 Hettrick blog: "Pissed Michael Bay")

USAToday.com quotes the quote-meister as reverting back to his original contention that Blu-ray Disc is superior, this within a few days of the release of "Transformers" only on HD DVD (and DVD).

His quote about the format war in general and his preference for Blu-ray specifically:

"It's short-sighted and it has delayed consumers' moving to HD (home video)," he says. "As a director, my critical eye is that Blu-ray is where my money is. Consumers are smart, and they are going to wait it out."

Readers here at HollywoodinHiDef.com have weighed in with their disappointment that the HD DVD version of "Transformers" does not have Dolby TrueHD or uncompressed PCM audio due to the limitations of the 30 GB HD DVD format. Those superior audio choices have become practically standard on Blu-ray with its far greater capacity of 50 GB.

Bay was also unhappy about the "Transformers" DVD being so rushed that he could not be as involved with it as he would have liked, saying it's not as good as it could have been.

Granted, Bay is a control freak, as has proven to be perfectly warranted and as even he himself seems almost proud to admit in all his production diary featurettes on his movies.

But it strikes me as very puzzling and not just a little strategically dangerous and consumer-unfriendly for studios like Paramount and DreamWorks to appear to be going out of their way to displease their biggest filmmakers in Bay and Steven Spielberg (and, most likely, George Lucas with his Indiana Jones movies and Young Indy TV series) by refusing to release any of the movies from these moviemaking giants on what at least two of them have made publicly clear is their preferred high-def format, Blu-ray Disc.

http://www.hollywoodinhidef.com/blog_detail.php?id=135

I find this article funny how Paramount/Dreamworks can piss off not only Blu-Ray supporters and their invaluable Director's in Steven Spielberg & Michael Bay. With the pressure from those two guys & the numbers Blu-Ray is winning by I hope Paramount & DW wake up and join the blu team and end this retarded war along with Warner in 08.

[mystiksuicide]

It's not at all puzzling it's called a Payola or a Bribe from HD DVD.

[cajun1975]

Paramount and Dreamworks need to wake TFU and get with the program. The General consumer will not adopt this new format as long as the B.S war drags on and on ad nasuim, PERIOD!

[jw]

smells like they are already planning a double dip.
Transformers Unrated Extreme Uncut Transformed directors Cut!!!!
Look for it transforming to a store near you!!!

I think these crooks at these studios should offer a mail in rebate for us who buy the first edition and then have to double dip to get the 2nd edition.

[BillCable]

I'm curious about how much money Michael Bay lost as a result of those 160,000 copies of Transformers on Blu-ray not selling (assuming the regular 2-1 ratio).

[aphex]

Originally Posted by BillCable

I'm curious about how much money Michael Bay lost as a result of those 160,000 copies of Transformers on Blu-ray not selling (assuming the regular 2-1 ratio).

negligible

there were like 8 million dvds sold.

[Gio]

Originally Posted by mystiksuicide

It's not at all puzzling it's called a Payola or a Bribe from HD DVD.

honestly can you blame paramount for taking the bribe, if you think about it lets say paramount was neutral and released in both formats right now, and lets say BLU sold 300k to 350k copies that totals around 1 million dollars in blu sales, they really dont care since they still have 149 million left over, shrek 3 is their only other big title and that will probabally only sell about half of what transformers did, now throw in some other crappy titles over the next year (if hd-dvd survives that long) at worst case scenario they'll still be 100 million dollars ahead, now can you really blame them

[The Guardian]

Is all the negative press worth $150 Mil though?

[aphex]

Originally Posted by The Guardian

Is all the negative press worth $150 Mil though?

probably.

[WriteSimply]

Negative press is one thing.

Paramount and Viacom's execs have effectively damaged their standing in Hollywood over their treatment of Spielberg. People will remember and it'll hurt them more in the future.


fuad

[DealsR4theDevil]

Originally Posted by The Guardian

Is all the negative press worth $150 Mil though?

Normally prolly not. But most people dont care about Blu-ray/HD DVD and are prolly unaware of what Paramount did. For the $150 million they pissed off us, Blu-ray supporters, and, although it is sometimes easy to forget when I am on this site, there are not too many of us. Well at least theres more of us than HD DVD supporters.

[Musashi]

Fact remains, taking the bribe delayed the settling the needless format war and keeps mass adoption more and more difficult. Long term, theyd've done better financially to reject the bribe.

[javabear]

Whoever at Paramount that took the bribe from Toshiba to not release movies on superior Blu-ray format should be trashed! I'm angry at Paramount and I won't support any of their movies until they come to their senses!

[thegland]

Originally Posted by javabear

Whoever at Paramount that took the bribe from Toshiba to not release movies on superior Blu-ray format should be trashed! I'm angry at Paramount and I won't support any of their movies until they come to their senses!

come on man,it's not that serious.

[LeoneFan]

Originally Posted by thegland

come on man,it's not that serious.

Yes, it really is serious. What Paramount did was basically spit in the faces of all the Blu-ray supporters who helped their releases sell at a 2:1 ratio on BD.

[ADPNIGHTMARE]

Originally Posted by Gio

honestly can you blame paramount for taking the bribe, if you think about it lets say paramount was neutral and released in both formats right now, and lets say BLU sold 300k to 350k copies that totals around 1 million dollars in blu sales, they really dont care since they still have 149 million left over, shrek 3 is their only other big title and that will probabally only sell about half of what transformers did, now throw in some other crappy titles over the next year (if hd-dvd survives that long) at worst case scenario they'll still be 100 million dollars ahead, now can you really blame them

i agree. but since I am not buying any dvds they wont get ANY of my money and there are enough movies available that I can only rent blu-rays now thnks to the selection at my local blockbuster. so no renting paramount dvds either

[DrinkMore]

Who cares anymore. MB is a joke now after his flip flop. Need anyone say anymore?

[powersfoss]

Originally Posted by DrinkMore

Who cares anymore. MB is a joke now after his flip flop. Need anyone say anymore?

I didn't see it as Michael Bay flip flopping. I saw it as MB showing his true colors (blu) and then getting slapped by PM/DW and still wanting to direct TF2. He's since made additional pro-blu statements again showing his true colors even at the risk of further pissing off PM/DW. The director of the fastest selling HD DVD touting the superiority of blu-ray. If you ask me, he's pretty ballsy. Now he wants to host a blu-ray/hd dvd debate on michaelbay.com. LOL Go MB! Keep spreading the word about the best HD format!

[DrinkMore]

Originally Posted by powersfoss

I didn't see it as Michael Bay flip flopping. I saw it as MB showing his true colors (blu) and then getting slapped by PM/DW and still wanting to direct TF2. He's since made additional pro-blu statements again showing his true colors even at the risk of further pissing off PM/DW. The director of the fastest selling HD DVD touting the superiority of blu-ray. If you ask me, he's pretty ballsy. Now he wants to host a blu-ray/hd dvd debate on michaelbay.com. LOL Go MB! Keep spreading the word about the best HD format!

How do you know he got slapped? Seriously - do you work there? Everything is just speculation.

[powersfoss]

Originally Posted by DrinkMore

How do you know he got slapped? Seriously - do you work there? Everything is just speculation.

I do not work there. I don't know he got slapped. I am speculating that he got slapped based on his retraction to his statement that he would not do Transformers 2 because of Paramount/Dreamworks decision to go HD DVD only. He specifically wrote in his blog the following day:

"Last night at dinner I was having dinner with three Blu-Ray owners, they were pissed about no Transformers Blu-Ray and I drank the kool aid hook line and sinker. So at 1:30 in the morning I posted - nothing good ever comes out of early am posts mind you - I over reacted. I heard where Paramount is coming from and the future of HD and players that will be close to the $200 mark which is the magic number. I like what I heard."

The part where he "heard where Paramount is coming from" and the non-sense about the $200 players leads me to believe that he was either coerced to make that statement or felt the need to for fear of losing TF2. Either he, A) was told another director would be selected to do the sequel if he did not retract his statement, or B) he decided to retract his statement for fear they would go with someone else, the end result is the same. He had to retract his statement.

Regarding PM/DM decision to go HD DVD only, he later states, "It's short-sighted and it has delayed consumers' moving to HD. As a director, my critical eye is that Blu-ray is where my money is. Consumers are smart, and they are going to wait it out." Tells me that he really believes in blu-ray and his original assertion while drunk at a party discussing the HD wars with his friends were his true emotions/feelings on the matter. In vino veritas, right?