"Tens and Tens of Dollars" ("Troy")
When Warner Brothers greenlit "Troy", the studio gave the project a budget of $185 million; instantly making it one of the most expensive movies to produce at the time. They had faith Brad Pitt's star power alone would pull in massive audiences and felt confident the cast and crew would be showered with numerous prestigious gold awards they just went ahead and debuted it at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival without screening it before a test audience. The movie was, as they say in the business, guaranteed to print money.
After the dust cleared and all the award ceremonies were over, Brad Pitt went home with a Teens Choice Award while Peter O' Toole was honored by the Irish Film and Television Awards for Best Supporting Actor.
And that was it.
$185 million so Brad Pitt could receive an award in the shape of a surfboard.
$185 million so Peter O'Toole could be recognized by an Irish organization in 2004 which had been celebrating the best in Irish-based performances since 2003.
Money well spent. - Jake