Reality Checks: Unscripted Shows Become a Money Pit
Before Donald Trump agreed to tape a second season of his hit reality show "The Apprentice," he says he told NBC he'd need a few things. More creative control would be nice, and perhaps flashier living quarters for the contestants. And how about a personal publicist?
Then Mr. Trump took out his calculator. NBC paid him about $50,000 an episode the first season. But with his show winning huge ratings, Mr. Trump wanted a fat raise. He heard the six actors on the hit comedy "Friends" each took home about $1.5 million an episode so, as the sole star of "The Apprentice," he figured he should get $9 million per show. Still, his program ran an hour and "Friends" just 30 minutes. Mr. Trump bumped the figure to $18 million. "That seemed fair," he says in an interview. "I'm not being totally facetious."
So much for cheap reality-show talent. In just a few seasons, reality programming has gone from a genre known for austere budgets to Hollywood's newest money pit. Executives are relying more heavily than ever on unscripted programming -- 17 reality shows will appear on network TV alone come September, up from eight last fall. Bidding wars are breaking out not only for talent but for producers and even the lowly casting coordinators who troll malls for contestants. Networks are paying six-figure fees for lavish location shoots to set their shows apart. And the newly minted "stars" are demanding -- and getting -- everything from travel perks to a cut of merchandising revenue. "It's the new gravy train," says Dean Valentine, the former president of Walt Disney TV.
When reality programming first gained a foothold on network TV, it promised to break with the industry's high-spending ways. Desperate to offset the soaring cost of comedies and dramas, the networks discovered with 2000's "Survivor" that inexpensive shows with no actors, no writers and barely any sets could win huge ratings. While even average dramas were costing $2 million per episode, producers could deliver a hit reality show for $500,000. Executives bragged that unscripted shows would transform a decades-old model of inflated costs, creating a new paradigm that would revitalize network TV.
But the industry is reverting to its profligate habits. To limit risk, networks are chasing a few producers with successful track records. People such as Mark Burnett, who masterminded "Survivor" and "The Apprentice," are suddenly earning fees once reserved for the likes of "NYPD Blue" creator Steven Bochco. Mr. Burnett "can ask for whatever fee he wants and get it," says Warren Littlefield, former president of NBC Entertainment.
And Mr. Burnett has definitely been asking. Four networks battled for his newest show before NBC clinched it for more than $2 million an episode, a reality-show record. The network was so eager to get "The Contender," which features Sylvester Stallone and Sugar Ray Leonard as boxing coaches, that it surrendered a cut of the ad revenue to Mr. Burnett, a rare concession.
NBC has no regrets. "We think the series is a knockout," says Kevin Reilly, president of NBC Entertainment. Mr. Burnett boasts that it is "very hard to creatively top what we're about to provide," and adds that high insurance rates to cover NBC against any injuries to contestants contributed to making the show more expensive than other reality shows.
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Network executives insist they're careful not to overpay, but they argue that successful reality shows warrant big fees. "The Apprentice," in which contestants compete to run one of Mr. Trump's business projects, costs just below $2 million an episode. With a peak audience of 40 million viewers last season, it is one of the most profitable programs on TV.
The reality genre has also grown up thematically, argues ABC Executive Vice President Andrea Wong. The focus has shifted from silly stunts to "storytelling," she says, resulting in "a higher quality product."
Even so, the networks may be getting less bang for their buck in the long run. Reality shows tend to be more profitable initially than comedies or dramas, but the major money in the TV business comes from building a library of shows and selling reruns to local stations and cable outlets. Only one reality show, NBC's "Fear Factor," has reached that so-called syndication market in the last five years. How its reruns perform when they debut on local stations in September will be a major test for the genre. Reality reruns have typically tanked in the ratings.
Reality shows still remain cheaper than traditional fare. The third season of "America's Next Top Model" is costing broadcast network UPN only about $800,000 a show, less than half as much as many dramas. And while the five cast members of "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy" banded together "Friends"-style to demand pay increases, their salaries only rose to $8,000 an episode from $3,000 -- a far cry from Jennifer Aniston's $1 million-plus paycheck.
But entrenched ways of doing business in Hollywood are raising costs. With surging demand, agents are ratcheting up prices for their clients. "These shows aren't schedule fillers anymore," says Steve Wohl, director of alternative programming at International Creative Management. "They are serious, money-making shows, and the networks need to pay accordingly."
When Fox approached Nicole Richie about a second season of "The Simple Life," the once relatively unknown daughter of singer Lionel Richie says she had her agents "ask for everything I could think of." Honey, her pet Shih Tzu, got an assistant, and Fox threw in free manicures and pedicures for Ms. Richie. At least Ms. Richie can argue she's a bona fide star. "The Simple Life 2," in which she travels cross-country in a pink trailer with hotel heiress Paris Hilton, has been Fox's No. 1 summer program in the demographic favored by advertisers -- adults age 18 to 49.
Even participants in less popular shows are turning into prima donnas. This summer, Bravo launched "Blow Out," about Jonathan Antin, a Beverly Hills hairstylist. While not a runaway hit, it notched solid ratings. Mr. Antin is now angling for another season, but not without "more money, full creative control and an executive producer title," he says. Informed of his requirements, a Bravo spokesman says: "Oh my."
The people in front of the camera aren't the only ones getting raises. Andrew Glassman, executive producer of NBC's "Average Joe," says demand is so strong for experienced reality-show crews that salaries for casting coordinators and editors skilled at culling hundreds of hours of footage have soared 125%.
Then there are the sets. Producers are trekking to more exotic places and building more elaborate backdrops. On the first season of "America's Next Top Model," the judging sequence was filmed in a New York hotel room. Two seasons and a 20% budget bump later, the judging suite is a specially-built set with high-tech lighting, and the show is in production in Asia.
For all the spiraling costs, the networks still have to draw the line somewhere. While NBC declined to comment on salaries, people familiar with Mr. Trump's paycheck say the network agreed to raise the real-estate mogul's salary -- but only to six figures, not the eight he wanted. Mr. Trump says he'll demand more money if NBC wants to renew his contract. And this time he'll have some help: Two months ago, he signed with Creative Artists Agency.
真人秀：收视、成本步步走高
在唐纳?特普朗(Donald Trump)同意录制第二季真人秀《学徒》(Apprentice)之前，他说已经告诉美国全国广播公司(National Broadcasting Company, 简称NBC)，这个节目需要增加新东西：应当有更多创意，也许还应该给参赛者提供更豪华点的住宿条件。最后，再来个私人发言人怎么样？
接著，特普朗掏出计算器。NBC第一季付给他的报酬是每集5万美金。但随著收视率不断攀升，特普朗开始狮子大开口。他听说前一阵大红大紫的《老友记》(Friends)的六位演员每人每集的报酬是150万美元，因此，作为《学徒》的唯一大牌，他认为自己每集应该拿900万美元。还有，他的节目每集一小时，而《老友记》才30分钟，于是数字又跳到1,800万美元。“这样才公平，”特普朗在一次采访中说，“我不是任何时候都开玩笑的。”
低制作的真人秀节目再也没有了。仅几季节目的时间，原来以省钱著称的真人秀如今却成为好莱坞吞钱的无底洞。经营者们越来越倚重这些无脚本节目--单是9月份就有17部真人秀要在有线电视网上播出，而去年秋天只有8部。电视台之间不仅为争夺天才表演者和制片人打得不可开交，甚至还要争抢曾经地位低微的选角协调员，因为要由他们到商城去物色有看头的参赛者。为了使节目与众不同，运营商们不惜支付6位数字的成本到一些豪华的场地去拍摄。而那些初露头角的“星星们”也开始要求多多，并且都得到了满足--从旅行补助到广告收入的一部份分成。“这可是一份新的美差，”迪士尼电视前总裁迪安?瓦伦丁(Dean Valentine)说。
当真人秀第一次在电视网站稳脚跟时，就曾誓言要打破这个行业挥金如土的运作模式。正当有线电视运营商们为控制高居不下的电视剧成本而几近绝望的时候，他们从2000年《幸存者》(Survivor)的成功中惊喜地发现，没有明星大腕、没有金牌编剧、甚至没有什么布景的便宜节目居然也能创造高收视。最普通的电视剧每集也要耗费200万美元，而真人秀一集不过50万美元。管理者们满怀信心地高呼：无脚本节目将一改过去几十年的高成本模式，成为给有线电视再次注入生机的典范。
然而不幸的是，这个行业眼下正在回到昔日挥霍无度的老路上去。为了降低风险，有线电视运营商都在抢夺那些有成功经验的制作人。马克?伯内特(Mark Burnett)是《幸存者》和《学徒》的策划制作人，如今像他这样的制作人一夜之间已是身价百倍，而这类价钱过去只有策划《纽约重案组》(NYPD Blue) 的史蒂文?布奇柯(Steven Bochco)这个级别的制作人才有资格获得。“伯内特开价多少就能拿到多少，”NBC Entertainment前总裁沃伦?利特尔菲尔德(Warren Littlefield)说。
伯内特当然要开价了。四家有线电视台为了竞争他最新的真人秀打得不亦乐乎，最终NBC以每集超过200万美元的创纪录高价夺得演播权。NBC为了夺得这个名为《角逐者》(The Contender)的真人秀节目，甚至同意把广告收入的一部份分给伯内特，这在业内并不多见。西尔维斯特?史泰隆(Sylvester Stallone)和拳击手莱昂纳德(Sugar Ray Leonard)将以拳击教练的身份出现在这个节目上。
NBC没有丝毫遗憾。“我们认为这套节目将会引起轰动，”NBC Entertainment总裁凯文?瑞里(Kevin Reilly)说。伯内特也吹嘘称“要在创意上超越这套将要播出的节目是很难的”。他补充说，为参赛者支付的高额人身保险也使得这个节目比其他真人秀节目要更昂贵。
NBC管理层一再强调会小心从事，避免耗资过巨，但他们也辩称成功的真人秀是物有所值的。在《学徒》中，参赛者为了获得特普朗旗下的一个商业项目的经营机会而展开竞争。这个节目每集成本不到200万美元，而在上一季收视高峰时有4,000万观众收看该节目，因此它也是最赚钱的电视节目之一。
ABC执行副总裁Andrea Wong说，真人秀节目的内容也已走向成熟。她说，节目的焦点已经从无聊的噱头演变为“叙述故事，节目质量得到了提高”。
即使如此，从长期来看，电视网运营商的利润可能在逐步下降。
真人秀在开始时往往比电视剧要挣钱，然而电视经营的主要收入来自建立一个节目库并把这些节目的重播权卖给地方电视台和有线电视台。在过去五年中只有一个真人秀节目：NBC的《谁敢来挑战》(Fear Factor)成功地打入了所谓的媒体联合市场(syndication market)。它9月份在地方电视台的初次重播表现如何将是真人秀节目的一次关键考验。通常而言，真人秀重播时的收视率都会下降。
但真人秀仍然比传统节目便宜。广播网运营商UPN的《全美超级模特新秀大赛》(America's Next Top Model)第三季的成本只是80万美元一集，不到许多电视剧的一半。《粉雄救兵》(Queer Eye for the Straight Guy)五名主持人效仿《老友记》的六位主角联名要求加薪后，他们的薪水也只是从每集3,000美元涨到8,000美元，与珍妮弗?安妮斯顿(Jennifer Aniston)一百万美元的加薪额度相比可谓小巫见大巫。
但是，好莱坞约定俗成的运作方式却使成本在逐步增加。随著需求的飙升，经纪人也替其代理的演职员逐步提高要价。International Creative Management的候选节目负责人史蒂夫?沃尔(Steve Wohl) 说，“这些节目不再是用来填满节目单的边角料，而是正儿八经的创收节目，当然在价钱上要有相应的体现。”
当Fox找到莱昂内尔?里奇(Lionel Richie)的千金妮可?里奇(Nicole Richie)，和她商量《简单生活》(The Simple Life)的第二季节目时，曾经默默无闻的她表示已经委托经纪人替她争取一切她能想到的照顾。于是，她的宠物狮子狗Honey有了个助手，Fox还慷慨答应为里奇小姐提供免费的修甲和足疗服务。至少里奇小姐还称得上是个“腕儿”。在《简单生活2》中，里奇和希尔顿酒店集团继承人帕里斯?希尔顿(Paris Hilton)同乘粉红色旅行拖车穿越美国。这档节目是今年Fox的头号暑期节目，其忠实观众也是广告商最感兴趣的18到49年龄段的成年人。
甚至连那些不太出名的节目的参赛者也变成了“腕儿”。今年夏天，Bravo电视推出真人秀《Blow Out》，讲的是有关贝弗利山(Beverly Hills)发型师乔纳森?安廷(Jonathan Antin)的事情 。这个节目播出时尽管说不上万人空巷，但也创下了不俗的收视。安廷眼下正在赶制下一季的节目，但条件是“加薪、完全控制创意、以及加上执行制作人的头衔”，否则不干。Bravo的发言人得知这些条件时的反应是：“我的天啊！”
摄影机前的表演者不是唯一享受加薪的人。NBC《Average
Joe》的执行制片安德鲁?格拉斯曼(Andrew Glassman)称，目前经验丰富的真人秀工作人员十分抢手，选角协调员和擅长编辑几百小时节目的工作人员的报酬增加了125%。
接下来就是布景了。制作人为了挑选更具奇异的拍摄地点、更美轮美奂的背景而不惜长途跋涉、费尽苦心。在《全美超级模特新秀大赛》第一季节目中，评审过程是在纽约一家酒店拍摄。在两季节目下来、预算增加了20%后，如今的评审环境经过了特别的设计，照明也使用了高科技技术，整个节目的制作在亚洲进行。
面对持续上升的成本，电视运营商们也不得不划出自己的底线。虽然NBC拒绝评论特普朗的薪水，但据熟悉此人收入的人士称，NBC已同意给他涨工资，但只能涨到六位数，而不是特普朗开出的八位数。特普朗称，如果NBC想跟他续约，他还会加价。这次他需要些帮手：最近，他和Creative Artists Agency签订了经纪协议。
