Films Reflect Disney Exec’s New Freedom

While others geared up for Halloween last month, David Hoberman was celebrating Independence Day. The occasion was the premiere of “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” in which Hoberman finally emerged from the long shadow of his boss, Walt Disney Studios Chairman Jeffrey Katzenberg.

“Nightmare” was a pet project of Hoberman’s, who had lobbied hard for the filmmakers’ freedom to produce it on their own terms. Now, with “Nightmare” and “The Three Musketeers” burning up the box office charts, Hoberman’s hard-won autonomy appears to be paying off.

“The upcoming batch of movies definitely reflects more of the influence of me and my staff,” said Hoberman, president of both Touchstone and Walt Disney pictures. “Over the last 18 months, we have been able to include more voices in the process.”

That’s no small achievement in the micro-management kingdom that Katzenberg has lorded over for nine years. But sources say it reflects his effort to recharge an executive team that has put on a lot of mileage, and which was shaken by the recent defection of video chief Bill Mechanic to 20th Century Fox.

Hoberman, 41, a former agent at International Creative Management, joined Disney shortly after Katzenberg and Walt Disney Co. Chairman Michael D. Eisner took over in 1984.

In the years that followed, he faithfully played the role of Katzenberg’s key lieutenant, remaining largely in the background during the good times (“Pretty Woman,” “Sister Act,” “Aladdin”) and bad (“The Rocketeer,” “Scenes From a Mall”).

That finally started to change last year, when Disney committed to doubling to 60 the number of films it releases annually. With the workaholic Katzenberg facing more than even he wanted to handle, and with executives such as Hoberman demanding more responsibility, Katzenberg decided it was time to loosen his grip.

“I can’t possibly participate in a hands-on way in a slate of 60 movies a year,” Katzenberg said.

“And David, as much as anybody at the studio, has shown year in and year out to be a superb executive with great creative instincts. I’ve happily handed the reins over to him,” he said.

One of Hoberman’s first decisions was committing to “Nightmare,” a risky move since the darkly comic Tim Burton movie was such a total departure from Disney’s classic animation.

But Hoberman’s faith in producer Burton and director Henry Selick paid off. “Nightmare” won critical raves and has grossed $34 million so far.

Hoberman hit pay dirt again on “The Three Musketeers,” which took the top box office spot in its opening weekend, with $10.6 million. He purchased the “Musketeers” script a year ago, then brought Joe Roth in as the producer when Roth set up his Caravan Pictures at Disney.

On the opposite end, Hoberman released the clunkers “Hocus Pocus” and “Another Stakeout” this year, though sources say those projects predated his new authority.

Hoberman’s 1994 slate includes “Renaissance Man,” with Penny Marshall directing Danny DeVito; “I Love Trouble,” starring Nick Nolte and Julia Roberts, and “When a Man Loves a Woman,” in which Andy Garcia and Meg Ryan try to hold a family together in the face of alcoholism.

Part of Hoberman’s mandate with movies such as “When a Man Loves a Woman,” which he calls a “dark, honest look at relationships,” is to create more diversity.

Hoberman and his staff--Touchstone Executive Vice President Donald DeLine and Walt Disney Pictures Executive Vice President David Vogel--also have to manage that within Katzenberg’s tight budgets, with a few exceptions. People who do business with Disney say that while Katzenberg remains a forceful presence, Hoberman’s new autonomy is genuine.

“David has had a certain amount of authority for the past year to pretty much buy what he wants to buy and develop what he wants to develop,” said Jim Wiatt, president of ICM. “Jeffrey has also given David a lot more flexibility.”

Even more important, as far as talent is concerned, is Hoberman’s reputation for being willing to challenge Katzenberg and Eisner on creative decisions.

“He never hesitates to express his opinion when he disagrees with them,” said another top agent, who asked not to be named. “He lets you know very clearly that he’s going to confront them.”

Hoberman’s celebrity friends include “Nightmare” producer Burton, who was given the go-ahead to make the extremely unusual “Ed Wood” at Touchstone after Columbia Pictures turned it down, and actor Steve Martin, who’s made several films at Disney.

Sources close to Hoberman say one of his next big goals is to move Disney into the big-budget action genre, which is totally alien territory.

Is there room for Arnold and Sly in Mickey’s magic kingdom?

“Hopefully, there’s no movie beyond our reach,” Hoberman said. “If it’s a great story that attracts big talent and it turns out to be an expensive movie, we will not hesitate to move forward with it.”

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Poor Mouth: The management at the new MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas may want to pass the hat for Barbra Streisand when she makes a pair of rare appearances there over New Year’s Eve weekend.

The Hollywood Reporter says Streisand will make only a quarter of the $20 million she was expected to earn from the event, because of her failure to secure a lucrative pay-per-view tie-in. That means the superstar singer will have to get by on a salary of $2.5 million per show, or more than $1 million an hour.