Bloomberg Says SPIDER-MAN Has 'No Chance' to Recoup

According to the New York Times this weekend, another delay in the opening of SPIDER-MAN: TURN OF THE DARK may be imminent. A sixth postponement is being considered by the producers of the $65 million musical. 

Among the ideas being considered are postponing the opening until as late as June, turning the currently schedule March 15 opening performance into a celebration of the work done so far.  The management team of the show has already planned for the show on March 15 to be an invitation-only performance at 4:30 p.m., followed by an A-list gala at the Grand Hyatt New York, according to sources with knowledge of the deliberations.

The news for the show doesn't get much better this morning with Jeremy Gerard in Bloomberg News doing an indepth analysis of the show's finances, as well as talking to some of the show's producers about what's been going on behind the scenes. 

Gerard has analyzed the show's 'gross grosses' that are reported each week, and then factored in likely credit card and other charges that are not taken into account in the reporting to reveal the show's real grosses, along with behind the scenes costs of the elongated preview period, rehearsals, and more. 

His final analysis? "The true amount available to the producers is nearly 10 percent less than the published figure. In the case of "Spider- Man," the real weekly gross is closer to $1.26 million.

So with $1.1 million in running costs, the producers net 160,000 per week. Forty percent of that goes to the creative team and others in the show's profit pool. That leaves about $100,000 for divvying up among the investors.

At that rate, "Spider-Man" will have to run for 650 weeks -- 12-plus years -- before turning a profit. Even if the producers' net doubled, they still face six years to recoupment."

On Saturday, Rick Miramontez, a spokesman for the production, said only, "Opening night remains scheduled for March 15."