• Nike shares slumped after the company said sales would fall. The stock is down 30% this year.
• The sportswear brand has started implementing a turnaround plan, but the results are yet to be seen.
• Nike's reliance on its lifestyle business seems to be hurting it, one analyst said.

Nike's lost its stride — and is finding it hard to get its pace back up.

In December, the company announced a cost-cutting initiative that included simplifying its assortment of products and cutting jobs.

The aim was to deliver up to $2 billion in savings over the next three years, which "will be invested to fuel future growth, accelerate innovation at speed and scale, and drive greater long-term profitability."

Two quarters on, investors aren't seeing much of that growth.

On Thursday, Nike delivered a lackluster set of Q4 results and said it expects sales for its 2025 fiscal year to fall by mid-single digits, including a 10% drop in the first quarter alone. That shocked investors, especially as analysts had expected a 1% increase this year, according to Reuters.

None of it impressed investors much. Nike's shares closed down 20% on Friday afternoon; the company has dropped 30% since the start of the year.

Some major reasons included a tougher sales environment in China, ongoing challenges with its digital platform, and what Nike CFO Matthew Friend described as "muted" forward wholesale orders with "newness not yet at scale."

It doesn't look like it's going to get better very quickly, either, with Friend saying on the earnings call that the "next few quarters will be challenging."

Meantime, CEO John Donahue said that 2025 "will be a transition year for our business."

So, how can the biggest name in sneakers get its stride back?

One answer rests in what the company calls its "lifestyle" business — basically, shoes and clothing meant for casual wear. Nike's "performance" segment, meanwhile, includes many of its core sports products, such as basketball shoes.

While revenue from performance products grew in Q4, declines in its lifestyle business overshadowed them, contributing to the worse-than-expected results.

In its last fiscal year, lifestyle products have grown to about 60% of Nike's business, UBS analyst Jay Sole estimates.

Dividing sales more evenly between performance and lifestyle products would help Nike "restore its image as a sports brand and make its top-line growth rate more sustainable for the long term," he wrote in a note.

"One of our big takeaways from Nike's 4Q report is its lifestyle business needs a major reset," Sole said.

The company has also lost ground to rivals when it comes to connecting directly with customers.

Members of run clubs in Portland, near Nike's headquarters, say that they have been visited by representatives from smaller brands like Hoka and New Balance — but no one from Nike, The Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday.

CEO Donahue noted that road running "remains a competitive battlefield that we are playing to win" on the call.

Another issue is Nike's pipeline of new products.

Nike has been cutting back on some popular shoe lines to get people hyped about new ones. On Thursday's call, Donahue pointed to areas where Nike has introduced new products, from fitness leggings aimed at female consumers to shoes specifically for road runners.

That could help drive performance sales — especially those through Nike's digital business, a major pain point at the moment for the company.

But Donahue also referenced products that were still in development or months away from release. He teased new versions of Nike's Pegasus and Vomero running shoes, for instance, that aren't scheduled to hit shelves until the second half of fiscal 2025 while referencing a "strong wholesale order book" for coming seasons.

"Talking about newness not in stores doesn't work anymore," Jefferies analyst Randal Konik wrote.

While CFO Friend said management is "confident that we are repositioning Nike to be more competitive," investors have yet to be convinced.

"This is still [Nike] and the right strategy could turn the business," BMO analyst Simeon Siegel wrote in a note after Thursday's earnings report. "But we're not convinced that strategy is presently in place."

• Robert Pattinson and "Daisy Jones & The Six" star Suki Waterhouse have been dating for six years.
• The pair have been linked since 2018, but make few public appearances together.
• Pattinson and Waterhouse welcomed their first child together, a daughter, in March. 
•  

July 28, 2018: Dating rumors begin when Pattinson and Waterhouse are photographed showing affection while walking through London.

Paparazzi photos obtained by Daily Mail and E! News showed the two British stars with their arms wrapped around each other, laughing together, and kissing while walking through the town that weekend.

Both publications reported that Pattinson and Waterhouse caught a screening of "Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again" at Notting Hill's Electric Cinema, followed by a visit to the celeb-frequented SoHo House for drinks.

Daily Mail reported that the PDA-filled photos were taken as the pair walked to her apartment, before heading inside together. 

A source also told People that they "are dating."

Shortly after the photos were published, a source told E! News that Pattinson "likes to have fun when he has breaks in-between filming and him and Suki have a great time together," but he wasn't "looking for anything serious right now" following the end of his three-year relationship with the musician FKA Twigs.

August 1, 2018: Us Weekly reports that the pair "have been dating for months."

An anonymous source told the publication that Pattinson and the singer have "known each other and been around each other for a long time."

They added that the stars "definitely have a love of music in common."

Fall 2018: The "Twilight" star and Waterhouse continue being spotted together, despite reportedly breaking up.

In late August of that year, Daily Mail reported that the couple split "just weeks after they were seen kissing near her Notting Hill home."

But in September, the site Lainey Gossip reported that Pattinson and Waterhouse were still going strong and were caught at the musician Miguel's show at the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles. 

Both stars were also in attendance at the Toronto International Film Festival that month, with Pattinson promoting "High Life" and Waterhouse supporting "Assassination Nation."

Any breakup rumors were squashed in October, when they were photographed leaving the London hang-out Chiltern Firehouse together at 2:15 a.m., according to Elle.

Then in early December, Daily Mail published photos of the couple leaving a Christmas party together at London's Regent Street at nearly 5 a.m.

January 11, 2019: Waterhouse celebrates her 27th birthday with a dinner that includes Pattinson and a few other stars.

Waterhouse's dinner at London's Casa Cruz included guests like Liv Tyler, Georgia May Jagger, Cara Delevingne, and Ashley Benson.

Paparazzi photos published by Daily Mail and Just Jared showed Waterhouse and Pattinson exiting Casa Cruz afterward, dressed in casual clothing.

Later that month, the pair were seen holding hands while going for a walk in London. 

April 29, 2019: Pattinson is reluctant to discuss his relationship with Waterhouse during an interview with The Sunday Times.

When asked to talk about Waterhouse, Pattinson responded: "Do I have to?"

"If you let people in, it devalues what love is," he explained. "If a stranger on the street asked you about your relationship, you'd think it extremely rude. If you put up a wall it ends up better."

The "Harry Potter" alum continued: "I can't understand how someone can walk down the street holding hands, and it's the same as when I do it and a hundred people are taking your photo. The line between when you're performing and when you're not will eventually get washed away and you'll go completely mad." 

May 13, 2019: The couple celebrates Pattinson's 33rd birthday.

They marked the occasion with a dinner at Chateau Marmont in LA, People reported. 

Weeks later, Us Weekly reported that Pattinson and Waterhouse went on a double date with Taylor Swift and Joe Alwyn on May 31 at San Vicente Bungalows in Hollywood, California. 

In a feature for Grazia, published on June 18, Waterhouse didn't speak about Pattinson.

However, the reporter, Guy Pewsey, noted that she FaceTimed him while on a break during the photo shoot. 

September 4, 2019: Photographer Sofia Malamute posts a photo of the couple, taken in Ibiza that year.

Malamute shared two photos on Instagram with the caption "Ibiza, 2019." The first image showed Waterhouse with her arms around Pattinson as they both looked at something off-camera. The second photo featured just Pattinson.

This post came weeks after Pattinson and the "Moves" singer were photographed on another casual stroll. 

January 17, 2020: The couple sparks engagement rumors at a Dior perfume dinner in France, where Waterhouse is seen with a gold ring on her fourth finger.

It's worth noting that Waterhouse wore multiple rings during the event, which took place during Paris Fashion Week. 

May 12, 2020: They quarantine together during the pandemic.

Pattinson's June 2020 cover story for GQ indicated this, with writer Zach Baron noting that the actor was "in London with his girlfriend, in the apartment the 'Batman' folks rented for him."

Months later, in September, Pattinson and Waterhouse were photographed kissing with their masks down while sitting on a park bench in London.

This marked the first time Pattinson was seen publicly since production on "The Batman" was shut down due to the actor contracting COVID. 

October 21, 2020: E! News reports that the couple has "discussed getting engaged but are in no rush."

"Rob and Suki have definitely discussed getting engaged but are in no rush," a source told the publication. "Suki is not pressuring him and they are both very committed to each other."

"They are a really good match," the source added. "They have both been spending time in the UK together during this last year and their relationship is stronger than ever."

Pattinson and Waterhouse continued going strong in the months that followed, even being spotted walking through London with the "Twilight" star's parents in November 2020.

April 15, 2021: Waterhouse unintentionally gives fans a glimpse of their relationship in an Instagram post.

Waterhouse posted a photo on Instagram of herself smiling while wearing an outfit from the brand Alessandra Rich and tagged the company in her caption.

But eagle-eyed fans noticed a framed photo of Pattinson and the "Good Looking" singer on a shelf behind her. 

August 1, 2021: Waterhouse calls out a joke made about her on Max's "Gossip Girl" continuation series.

During season one, episode three, the character Luna La (played by Zión Moreno) spoke to Constance newcomer Zoya Lott (Whitney Peak) about elevating her public image, in light of her dating Obie Bergmann (Eli Brown), who comes from a wealthy family. 

"When are you going to get it? As far as the press is concerned, he's R-Patz and you're Suki Nobody," Luna told Zoya of the imbalance in her relationship with Obie. 

Waterhouse reacted to the joke on X (formerly known as Twitter) after the episode was released. Both tweets were deleted, but fan accounts and publications like Glamour captured screenshots of the posts before they were erased. 

"Another day to be reminded that women can also be the patriarchy," Waterhouse tweeted, tagging a writer on the show, Lila Feinberg, and the official "Gossip Girl" account.

"Seeing critiques of the patriarchy and sexism, then I get name-checked as somebody's nobody girlfriend. Make it make sense," she added.

February 8, 2022: Pattinson speaks about Waterhouse in an interview for the March 2022 issue of GQ.

Pattinson's interviewer, Daniel Riley, said that they were initially supposed to meet at the London Zoo, but the actor changed his mind and opted for Holland Park instead.

"I was talking to my girlfriend last night and she was, like, 'You know, people don't really like zoos.…'" Pattinson explained. "I'd been thinking about a metaphorical thing. But then I was thinking that's very wrong, a sad bear walking in circles." 

"I just can't help it," he added. "I'll do it for every single element, every decision, in my life. What is the worst-case scenario for this decision?"

Elsewhere in the interview, Pattinson recalled Waterhouse engaging with a repair man who turned out to be a DC fan.

"The guy came around the other day and he just randomly started talking about what a DC fan he is," said Pattinson, who played Bruce Wayne/Batman in Matt Reeves' "The Batman." "And I'm sitting there facing the other direction, and my girlfriend just keeps continuing the conversation with him. And I'm looking at her like: Shut the fuck up!"

"She was very entertaining," Pattinson said. "Just talking to an obsessive fan."

February 16, 2022: Pattinson says that Waterhouse cried over his performance in "The Batman."

During an appearance on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" Pattinson said that he was "terrified" about how people would respond to his portrayal of the Caped Crusader in "The Batman." 

Pattinson said he watched the movie in advance with Waterhouse and "it was really her reaction that kind of changed the entire thing."

"I'm pretty sure she's not normally into watching kind of superhero movies," he said, adding that he could see the film "capturing her attention the entire time."

"Then, she just held my hand and just touched it right there," Pattinson said, gesturing to his cheek, "and I could feel a little tear, and I was like, 'No way.'"

March to July 2022: The couple continues being spotted together in London, New York, and Los Angeles.

Paparazzi caught them outside the Sunset Tower Hotel in LA, hanging out after Waterhouse's concert at The Echo in LA, and celebrating Georgia May Jagger's hair-dye brand Bleach London at LA hotspot The Viper Room.

Photographer Myles Hendrik also posted a photo of the couple, with Pattinson kissing Waterhouse's cheek, on Instagram in May 2022.  

And in July, they were dressed casually while walking hand-in-hand in New York City. 

December 4, 2022: Pattinson and Waterhouse finally make their red-carpet debut as a couple at Dior's fashion show in Egypt.

They attended the Dior Fall 2023 Menswear Collection show together in Cairo, Egypt.

The show took place at the Great Pyramid of Giza and the couple reportedly wore Dior outfits — Pattinson in a white suit with a brown turtleneck and Waterhouse in a sheer, floor-length mauve dress.

Waterhouse also posted two Polaroids on her Instagram after the event with the caption: "Will never forgot this show, under the stars and in front of the Pyramids of Giza, one of the Seven Wonders of the World."

December 31, 2022: Pattinson and Waterhouse reportedly host a holiday party attended by famous guests.

According to People, the pair's New Year's Eve party was held at Silver Lining at the Moxy Hotel in New York City.

Emma Stone, "Gossip Girl" star Whitney Peak, "Teen Wolf" actor Ian Bohen, and "The O.C." alum Mischa Barton were reportedly among the attendees.

January 19, 2023: Pattinson subtly references Waterhouse when discussing his favorite scent.

In an interview with ES magazine, Pattinson spoke about his long-standing role as a Dior fragrance ambassador.

When asked about his favorite smell, the actor said: "I mean, it's kind of cheesy — if you're in love with someone, their smell becomes very particular to you… so yeah, something like 'girlfriend in a dressing gown.'"

February 19, 2023: Waterhouse tells The Sunday Times that she still feels a spark between her and Pattinson, even after dating for almost five years.

The couple lives together in London and Waterhouse said that they make efforts to see each other during their busy schedules, like her recent tour.

Her interviewer, Laura Pullman, noted that the longest they've spent apart is two months.

"I had two days off the other day, and it was like, no question I'm going back to see him," she said. "Then he'll come out for a couple of days."

"I'm shocked that I'm so happy with someone for nearly five years," Waterhouse said of her relationship.

Even though they're both actors, Waterhouse said that "Rob definitely isn't getting advice from me about acting, but of course I'll try and get him to help me with an audition before he falls asleep on the sofa."

Waterhouse also said that she and Pattinson maintain a mutual joy about each other.

"I'm always incredibly excited when I see his name pop up [on my phone] or even a text, and I think he feels the same about me," she said. "We've always got so much to say, and I find him hilarious."

She also spoke about both of them growing up in separate parts of England.

"We always say that I never, ever would have thought I'd go out with a boy from Barnes, and he didn't think he'd go out with a girl from Chiswick," Waterhouse said.

May 1, 2023: The couple attends the Met Gala together.

Waterhouse wore a sheer Fendi dress with floral accents while Pattinson opted for a Dior drape coat with his outfit. 

They were also spotted at an after-party together, Vogue reported. 

September 2023: Waterhouse says that Pattinson is her biggest supporter.

"Biggest cheerleader outside of my family would be… probably my boyfriend," Waterhouse told Elle UK. "I pretty much taught him to clap every time I enter a room."

October 2023: Waterhouse opens up about moving in with Pattinson.

On the podcast titled "Driven Minds: A Type 7," presented by Gillian Sagansky, Waterhouse said the actor has been more than accommodating about her moving into his place.

"It doesn't feel like that much of a crazy thing," she said of living with Pattinson. "And I'm very lucky because he is so accepting of the mess and the chaos. He never says anything about it. He kind of thinks it's charming. So I'm very lucky for that."

Waterhouse also said that she was burned by past relationships, and began dating Pattinson following a "bout of celibacy" that lasted about six months.

The singer said that her dynamic with Pattinson differs from past ones because "I actually have something to share now."

"I have a life that I'm proud of that I want to share with someone and I'm stable and I have my shit together," she said. 

November 19, 2023: Waterhouse confirms that she's pregnant and expecting her first child with Pattinson.

Waterhouse commented on pregnancy rumors while performing at the Corona Capital 2023 Music Festival in Mexico City. 

"I thought I'd wear something sparkly today because I thought it might distract you from something else I've got going on," Waterhouse said, referring to her glitzy attire and gesturing to her stomach area. "I'm not sure it's working."

Waterhouse's announcement came weeks after being spotted at the annual GO Gala in LA with Pattinson, an ambassador.  

The couple was also previously seen attending Kendall Jenner's Halloween party at Chateau Marmont in LA.

December 21, 2023: People magazine reports that Pattinson and Waterhouse are engaged.

Earlier in the month, the actors were seen attending the NYC premiere and after-party for the film "Poor Things" with Taylor Swift. The couple fueled engagement speculation after TMZ published photos of Waterhouse wearing a gem on her ring finger. 

People magazine cited multiple sources, with one telling the publication, "They are engaged. They both want to be married. It's important for them."

 

March 26, 2024: Daily Mail reports that the couple welcomed their first child together.

The Daily Mail published photos of Pattinson and Waterhouse walking in Los Angeles, with the "Batman" star pushing a baby stroller. 

Representatives for Pattinson and Waterhouse didn't respond to requests for comment from Business Insider. 

April 12, 2024: At Coachella, Waterhouse reveals that she gave birth to a baby girl.

Earlier that month, Waterhouse shared a photo of her and her newborn on Instagram with the caption, "welcome to the world angel."

During the first weekend of Coachella, the singer revealed the sex of the baby. 

"I don't know if some of you know, but I had some big life changes happen recently, some pretty big events have been going down," Waterhouse said while performing onstage. "I love amazing ladies and I've been very lucky to have my own little amazing lady and meet the love of my life."

June 21, 2024: Pattinson gushes about their daughter at Paris Fashion Week.

In videos that circulated on X of Pattinson at the Dior Homme menswear spring/summer 2025 show in Paris, Pattinson was seen talking to Delphine Arnault, the CEO of Christian Dior. During their conversation, the actor joked that having a baby "makes you feel very old and very young."

"She's so cute," he said. "I'm amazed by how quickly their personality comes. So even at 3 months, I'm like, 'Oh, I can kinda see who she is already.'"

July 2, 2024: Waterhouse opens up about parenthood and her relationship with Pattinson in a cover story for British Vogue's August issue.

Waterhouse posed on the cover of Briitish Vogue with her and Pattinson's daughter. In her interview, the musician explained that she and Pattinson met six years ago while playing Werewolf at a game night in LA. 

Waterhouse said that the "intense" game night featured stars such as Al Pacino, Javier Bardem, and Penélope Cruz. While the other guests were taking the game seriously, Waterhouse said and Pattinson gravitated toward each other. 

"I think we both sort of have the same slight uncomfortable-ness," she said, adding that they "started giggling at the absurdity of the whole thing" — to the point that a director split them up because of their distracting laughter.

They bumped into each other six or seven months later, and Waterhouse, who's from the UK, told British Vogue that living in LA "definitely became a lot more fun" when she met Pattinson. 

Waterhouse told the publication that she and Pattinson planned the pregnancy during a time when they felt ready for parenthood.

"One day we looked at each other and said, 'Well, this is as ready as we're going to be,'" she said.

Waterhouse said that Pattinson was "really nervous," when the time came for her to give birth.

"But for someone who's quite an anxious person, he's been very calm," she said, adding that he's "the dad I could have hoped for."

Waterhouse's upcoming album, "Memoir of a Sparklemuffin," includes songs inspired by her past heartbreak as well as the joy of her relationship with Pattinson. 

"I had a very clear feeling of being like, 'Oh, wow, Rob and I have been together six years and I'm still really into this,'" she said of "To Love," the final track on the album. "That's never happened to me before, that's like a crazy thing."

• Dua Lipa and British actor Callum Turner were spotted together in January.
• They made their first official appearance together at the 2024 BAFTAs after-party.
• Lipa shared photos with Turner for the first time following her headline show at Glastonbury.

Dua Lipa and Callum Turner are staking their claim as the hot new couple of 2024.

The two were first spotted getting cozy at a party celebrating "Masters of the Air," a new Apple TV+ miniseries starring Turner, Austin Butler, and Barry Keoghan.

Turner was previously known for playing Theseus Scamander, protagonist Newt Scamander's brother, in the "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" movie franchise.

Here's everything we know about Turner and Lipa's romance.

December 2023: Lipa says she's single

In an interview with Rolling Stone's Brittany Spanos to promote her third album, "Radical Optimism," Lipa confirmed her single status.

Lipa had recently split from French film director Romain Gavras after about eight months of dating. Before that, she dated Anwar Hadid (younger brother of models Bella and Gigi Hadid) for two years before their breakup in December 2021.

"Dating, I think overall, is just a little confusing," Lipa told Rolling Stone. "It's either through friends of friends or people you trust where you can meet new people, because [dating] is not really so straightforward when you are, I guess, a public person."

January 10, 2024: Lipa and Turner are caught on video together

Lipa and Callum both attended the "Masters of the Air" premiere after-party, where Lipa was filmed dancing with a "mystery man."

TMZ published footage of the encounter the following day, causing fans to speculate it was Turner. Shortly after, Page Six confirmed his identity.

"It's new, but they're mad about each other," an anonymous source told the tabloid. "She was at the premiere to support him."

January 14, 2024: They go out to dinner together

Two days after the video emerged, paparazzi photographed Lipa and Turner in Santa Monica, California.

The couple dined at R+D Kitchen with a group of friends, Page Six reported.

January 16, 2024: They're spotted kissing and cuddling

Lipa and Turner appeared to confirm their romance with a PDA-filled dinner date in Los Angeles.

Turner was photographed planting a kiss on Lipa's cheek while they stood outside Sushi Park restaurant, a popular destination for celebrities.

January 30, 2024: Lipa and Turner take a PDA-filled walk together in Los Angeles

The pair was caught by paparazzi during a shopping trip in Beverly Hills. In several photos, Turner has his arm around Lipa's shoulder. They were also seen kissing and laughing.

February 19, 2024: They make their first official public appearance together at a BAFTAs after-party

Following the 2024 BAFTA Film Awards in London, Lipa and Turner attended the annual after-party hosted by British Vogue and Tiffany & Co.

Lipa and Turner held hands as they left Annabel's nightclub, all but confirming their relationship status. The couple also posed for photos in their car.

March 26, 2024: They travel back to London together

Lipa and Turner were photographed arriving at London St Pancras Station after leaving Paris.

Earlier that month, they had also been spotted traveling together in Los Angeles and Mexico City.

"Callum is really the first serious relationship she's had in the past few years," an anonymous source told Us Weekly. "Dua and Callum spend almost all their time together and are nearly inseparable."

The source added that Lipa and Turner had met each other's families and had become "very serious" about their relationship.

March 26, 2024: Lipa and Turner enjoyed a dinner date after the Time100 Gala in New York City

The couple were photographed holding hands in Manhattan after Lipa posed solo on the red carpet for the Time100 Gala. (She also performed three songs at the event, including "Houdini.")

May 13, 2024: Lipa and Turner become 'Instagram official'

Lipa shared her first official photo with Turner amid a carousel of images on Instagram, captioned simply, "sunshineeeeeee :)))))."

The photo shows Lipa and Turner with their arms wrapped around each other. However, neither of their faces is visible, and Turner is not tagged in the post.

July 2, 2024: Turner's face makes an official debut on Lipa's Instagram

Following her celebrated headline performance at Glastonbury, Lipa shared a collection of photos taken at the music festival, including two with Turner.

The first shows Turner kissing Lipa's head, while the second shows them lying on the grass together.

"dancing until you see the sunrise at stone circle is the glasto ritual," Lipa wrote in the caption.

Lipa and Turner had also been photographed walking through the festival holding hands, dancing backstage, and partying together through the night.

• Kevin Costner invested $38 million of his own money into "Horizon," plus marketing costs.
• He needs the movie to make roughly $65 million domestically to break even.
• Presales and a favorable Warner Bros. deal could help recoup costs despite challenges.

With Kevin Costner's epic three-hour Western "Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1" only making $11 million its opening weekend in theaters, it's going to be a long road for the Oscar winner to recoup the money he put into it.

Costner, who directed, produced, and stars in the project and is one of its main financiers, had been developing the multi-part saga set in the American West for decades.

After years of development at Warner Bros., which once considered sending the movie directly to its streaming service Max, Costner threw caution to the wind and decided to self-finance not just one "Horizon" movie, but potentially four.

To get "Horizon" made, the former "Yellowstone" star mortgaged his property in Santa Barbara and invested $38 million of his own money. (It's unclear if that number refers to the cost to make the first two installments, which were shot back-to-back, or just the first film.) Costner and his other undisclosed financial backers are also covering the film's marketing, which Variety estimates cost $30 million, though it's unclear if that's an additional sum or included in Costner's own $38 million estimate.

With Warner Bros. working strictly as a distribution partner, Costner has bet on himself: According to the trade, Warner is only taking 8% of the movie's box office gross.

But will the self-finance route pay off for the star? One industry insider told Business Insider they were skeptical: "He won't lose his house, but he's potentially going to lose a lot of money."

Foreign presales helped reduce Costner's risk

Thank god for Cannes.

The South of France is home to one of the most famous film festivals in the world. It's also a massive film marketplace that, if used properly, can help directors and producers navigate the murky world of movie financing.

The objective is to entice international territories to agree to distribute a movie long before they see a single frame of it. This is called presales, and it involves a lot of connections and a recognizable face to sell the project convincingly. Who better than Costner to pull that off?

Costner began this process at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival when he brought on German-based sales firm K5 International to handle the foreign sales for "Horizon" Chapters 1 and 2.

By the time Chapter 1 of "Horizon" had its world premiere at Cannes in May 2024, the firm had sold out most of the international territories, according to Variety.

A producer familiar with foreign sales who asked to speak anonymously told BI that that money more than likely recouped Costner's $38 million investment in the movie.

But if that $30 million marketing price tag Costner and his backers are on the hook for is separate from the $38 million figure, Costner isn't out of the woods yet.

Costner gets a major chunk of the movie's box office

Foreign presales are great, but because this movie is an American Western, a genre that historically doesn't translate well overseas, Costner can't expect huge box office returns internationally. That's why he has to make sure to get the bulk of the domestic grosses.

With Warner Bros. reportedly only taking 8% of grosses, the studio essentially has a service deal with Costner: Costner gets his cut of the box office grosses starting the first day the movie is out, as opposed to once the film turns a profit. Doing the math, that means that for every $10 million "Horizon" makes at the box office, Costner and his investors see $4.6 million back.

That means to recoup the $30 million Costner invested in marketing the first "Horizon" movie, it will have to make north of $65 million domestically. (Right now, it's made $11 million.)

We haven't even started talking about profit yet.

Costner needs a huge "Pay 1" deal

Costner believes in the long game. When he made the box office bomb "Waterworld" back in 1995, which was the most expensive movie ever made at the time, it took ancillary deals like paid cable and DVD sales to finally break even. And that took years.

DVD sales have fallen off the map since the mid-1990s, so Costner can't lean into that. Instead, he'll have to land a major deal with a streamer or cable company for the movie's post-theatrical release.

This is known in the industry as "Pay 1."

Pay 1 deals kick in after a movie is through with its Video-On-Demand option. Deals can range from a couple of years to as high as six.

While pay varies, the producer who spoke to BI said Costner could negotiate a deal in the tens of millions because of his star power, especially if it's for the "Horizon" franchise and not just the first film.

What sweetens the pot for a streamer is that Costner is a fixture in Westerns. As the face of "Yellowstone," (at least, until he quit), fans of that show love him. A streamer could be convinced that the true "Horizon" audience didn't show up to theaters and, due to its three-hour runtime, is waiting for the movie to hit streaming.

It's a windy road, but there's a path for Costner to come out of "Horizon" without a major loss. The only problem is that there are more installments on the way, which means more money needs to be spent first: "Horizon: Chapter 2" opens August 16, "Chapter 3" has begun principal photography for a May 2024 release, and "Chapter 4" is in development.

Business Insider contacted reps for Warner Bros. and Kevin Costner to comment on this story but did not receive a response.

Russia is planning to send youth to a summer camp in North Korea. The decision comes after the two countries signed a new strategic pact that includes mutual defense clauses.

• Hunter Biden in recent days has become more involved in meetings at the White House, per NBC News.
• While Hunter Biden is no stranger to the residence, his presence at meetings is a new development.
• The report comes as President Biden's debate performance is forcing him to defend his reelection bid.

This past weekend, President Joe Biden went to Camp David for a family gathering that had been planned before his widely panned debate performance against former President Donald Trump.

While at the presidential retreat, Biden's family urged him to remain in the 2024 race amid some Democratic consternation over his chances this fall, with presidential son Hunter Biden being one of the most vocal advocates of his father remaining the party's nominee.

And in recent days, Hunter Biden has upped his presence at the White House, advising his father and taking part in meetings with him alongside high-level aides, according to NBC News.

Per NBC News, Hunter Biden has also been spotted conversing with other top-level White House staffers.

Hunter Biden is no stranger to the White House residence, but he has generally not taken part in meetings involving the president's work.

The development comes just weeks after Hunter Biden, who for years has been fodder for GOP attempts to paint the presidential family in an unflattering light, was recently convicted on felony gun charges.

The president checks in with Hunter Biden often and has steadfastly supported him, especially when Hunter Biden in the past has battled alcohol and drug addiction.

An individual who spoke with CNN about Hunter Biden's increased presence at the White House this week said he "popped into" a few meetings and calls that his father held with several advisors.

Two individuals with knowledge of Hunter Biden's plans remarked that he stayed in Washington to partake in Independence Day festivities with his family later in the week.

White House senior deputy press secretary Andrew Bates in a statement to NBC News said that Hunter Biden returned with his father from Camp David and "went with the President straight into speech prep," referencing Joe Biden's remarks on Monday where he blasted the US Supreme Court's ruling on presidential immunity.

• I'm an American who lived in Japan for about six years until I started to feel lonely and lost.
• I sold my house in Tokyo and traveled around Europe until I fell in love with the Netherlands.
• I used a special treaty to get citizenship in Europe and I'm happy living here. 

One day in January 2022, it hit me: I had outgrown my life in Japan.

I was an American living in Tokyo and still felt like a fish out of water after six years, despite my many attempts at mastering Japanese, perfecting my bow, and learning how to (politely) push my way through the crowded rush-hour trains.

My first few years in Japan were exciting and dreamy, what many would expect when they imagine living in Japan.

I visited stunning shrines and temples, sipped oolong-hai cocktails with friends in izakayas, spent hours exploring the streets of Shibuya — back then, Japan felt like my playground.

My experience in Japan changed with time

Eventually, some of the drawbacks of living in the Land of the Rising Sun started to wear on me.

No matter how quiet and inconspicuous I tried to be, I received stares (and occasionally glares) in my suburban neighborhood because of how much I stood out as someone who is not Japanese.

After all, only 2.5% of the country's population is non-Japanese. Although Japanese culture is fascinating, I started to miss diversity and multiculturalism.

Living in Japan also felt increasingly lonely with each year I stayed. For one, Japanese society is known for being reserved, and striking up a conversation with a stranger in big cities like Tokyo is often viewed as a transgression against the order and harmony woven into most interactions.

On top of that, Japan is literally isolated, surrounded by water on all sides. This can make it challenging to get out and visit other countries.

I was eager to explore new places and make more connections — and Japan no longer seemed to align with these values.

I didn't know where to move to next but going back to the US didn't feel right

After my revelation in early 2022, my husband — a Japanese national I met within my first year in the East Asian country — and I assumed the only other option was to live in the US, where I'm from. But we struggled to settle on an American city that fit our ideal lifestyle and goals.

To stall our decision, we sold our home in Tokyo and traveled around Europe as digital nomads for a few months.

Our adventure began in 2023 and included a stop in the Netherlands, which we were surprised to discover felt like home.

In Amsterdam, we tallied up the perks that Japan lacked: multiculturalism, locals who made small talk with us about our little dog, and convenient travel to other countries, among others.

And without the stares and unwanted attention I'd once received, I noticed a refreshing sense of freedom.

During our trip, I also learned about the Dutch American Friendship Treaty, an agreement that allows American entrepreneurs to obtain residence in the Netherlands with little hassle.

Staying in Europe long-term never seemed realistic, but with this program, I saw it could be a feasible option.

The Netherlands offers what I had missed in Japan

Less than a year after our trip to the Netherlands, we returned to the country as residents rather than tourists.

I've felt welcomed by my neighbors, already made friends from numerous countries and backgrounds, and even found it easier to visit my family in the US compared to when I was living in Japan.

The Netherlands is often ranked as one of the happiest countries in the world, and although many Dutch locals would scoff at their position on the list (complaining seems to be a national pastime here), I've found evidence to support it.

Aside from the open, friendly people and ease of travel, I'm routinely delighted by the little things here, like my neighborhood's "used goods" box where residents pass down their belongings to a new owner, the people leisurely reading in the park on a weekday afternoon, and the bike lanes that make it so easy to live a car-free life. These charming observations would have been rare in Tokyo.

Of course, I'm still new to the Netherlands, and I know my feelings may change with time — as they did in Japan. People and places can both evolve, and though a country might feel like home during one phase of life, it might not feel that way forever.

I've learned to embrace that feeling while it lasts, whether it's for two years or seven or the rest of my life. For now, I've decided that living in the Netherlands is what my dream life looks like.

• The schedule didn't start before 11 a.m. and included an afternoon lie-down, sources told the NYT.
• Debate prep was cut short by 2 days, as the president was tired after a hectic travel week.
• The White House insists that Biden is healthy, despite reports of more frequent mental lapses.

For President Biden, debate prep was not a strict 9-to-5 job. In the six days leading up to Thursday's damaging performance, Biden never began his preparations before 11 a.m. and always had time for an afternoon nap, sources told the New York Times.

The report is based on interviews with current and former aides, donors, political advisors, and administrators who spent time with the president over the past few weeks. Though the White House insists that Biden is in good physical and cognitive shape, many of the sources noted that he has seemed increasingly confused in recent months.

During the debate, Biden was incoherent at times, trailing off mid-sentence and haphazardly stringing together facts. Biden's team cut debate preparations by two days, citing the president's exhaustion after jam-packed trips to Europe. He spent those days resting at his home in Delaware.

Still, aides said that his preparations at Camp David were robust.

Of the reported late-morning start time, White House spokesperson Andrew Bates told The Times that "the president was working well before then, after exercising." Bates said that, as of Tuesday, the White House physician saw no reason to reevaluate Biden for Parkinson's disease.

The White House did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for further comment.

By comparison, a different New York Times article from 2012 detailed how Barack Obama prepared for his second debate after an abysmal initial showdown against Mitt Romney. According to the article, he followed a rigorous schedule and only left the camp once, briefly.

Sources close to Biden have largely seen him oscillate between mental agility and disorientation — in some moments he is sharp on questions of national security and in others mixes up basic facts, like the countries of France and Italy.

While in Europe, Biden visited Normandy for a D-Day event. There, members of his own generation were divided on his capacity to serve.

"He did not appear any different to me in person than he does on television — and that is as a person who is fragile and not really in charge," Bill Casassa, a 98-year-old honoree who supports Trump, told the Times.

Yet Marvin E. Gilmore Jr., who is just shy of his 100th birthday, attested to the opposite: "There was nothing I saw in him that said he was an old man."

Donald Trump has a lighter schedule than the president and does not exercise regularly, but does seemingly partake in the occasional nap himself, namely at his own criminal trial.

• The Great Depression was the worst economic crisis in US history, when unemployment reached 25%.
• When the pandemic hit in 2020, Americans hadn't felt that level of economic tragedy in a century.
• These photos reveal what life looked like in the bleak 1930s after the stock market crashed.

During the Great Depression, the most tragic economic collapse in US history, more than 15 million Americans were left jobless and desperate for an income.

By 1932, nearly one in four Americans was out of a job, and by 1933, unemployment levels reached an estimated 25%.

For comparison, during the coronavirus pandemic, the US unemployment rate spiked to 14.7% in April 2020.

These photos reveal how desolate the country looked during the Great Depression, when food and job lines stretched for blocks.

This story was originally published in May 2020 and was updated in July 2024.

The Great Depression was the worst economic tragedy in American history.

The crisis resulted in skyrocketing rates of unemployment, hunger, and desperation.

Following a period of booming prosperity in the 1920s, the Great Depression began when the US stock market crashed in 1929.

Known as Black Thursday, the 1929 crash was attributed in part to a vast imbalance of wealth between the rich and poor, a fervent production of goods, little to no wage gains, an increase in personal debt, and government mismanagement.

Over the course of the decade, more than 15 million Americans lost their jobs.

The effects of the Great Depression could be felt into the early 1940s.

The unemployment rate jumped at a shocking speed.

From 1929 to 1930, unemployment rose from fewer than 3 million to 4 million, according to figures cited by the University of Houston's Digital History archive. In 1931, it doubled to 8 million, and by 1932, unemployment levels reached a staggering 12.5 million.

By that year, one out of every four US workers was unemployed.

Thousands of Americans lost their homes, and hundreds of thousands attempted to travel through the country on foot or by boxcar to find work, according to the Library of Congress.

Those who were fortunate enough to remain working often suffered large pay cuts and decreased hours.

By 1932, 75% of all remaining workers were on a part-time schedule, according to the University of Houston's Digital History archive.

Families who were unable to pay rent were frequently evicted from their homes.

Vagrants looking for work on public trains were kicked to the curb.

The struggle for money became so desperate that families across the country often lived in crowded shacks.

Some families inhabited caves or sewer pipes out of desperation.

During the winters of 1932 and 1933, an estimated 1.2 million Americans were homeless.

The population of the US at that time was about 125 million, according to the US Census Bureau.

In an effort to save money, families planted their own gardens, canned foods, bought old bread, sought out soup kitchens, and stopped buying common items like milk.

Many also sacrificed medical and dental care because they couldn't afford it.

Food banks became commonplace.

Lines for food ration programs and free meals exploded across the country.

At the beginning of the Depression, President Herbert Hoover largely dismissed the stock market crash as a "passing incident in our national lives."

Hoover did not believe in offering federal aid to the impoverished or using the power of the federal government to manage prices or currency, according to the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History.

Americans grew angry, and Hoover became widely blamed for the economic turmoil.

Impoverished people living in shantytowns across the country started referring to them as "Hoovervilles," and empty pockets turned inside out were known as "Hoover flags."

Desperate Americans threatened with hunger and starvation began organizing marches and labor riots.

In 1932, 20,000 veterans of World War I marched to the Capitol to demand the payment of bonuses that they were scheduled to receive in 1945, according to the Library of Congress. The bill to do so did not pass in Congress.

The following year, 10,000 unemployed people joined a "hunger march" in Los Angeles.

The Depression also had a negative impact on family life as many couples delayed their marriages or postponed having children.

Throughout the decade, separation rates grew. By 1940, there were 1.5 million American women living apart from their husbands, according to the University of Houston's Digital History archive.

Children were adversely affected, as well.

An estimated 200,000 vagrant children wandered the streets of America due to the break-up and collapse of their families, according to Virginia Commonwealth University's Social Welfare History Project.

Black and Mexican communities experienced higher rates of unemployment and discrimination during the Depression.

Half of Black workers were unemployed by 1932 compared to the general unemployment rate of 25%, according to the Library of Congress. In Southern states, the percentage of unemployed Black workers was even higher.

Over the course of the Depression, authorities deported an estimated 400,000 Mexican Americans over fears of workplace competition, according to the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History. Many of those people were American citizens.

The Depression had a significant impact on the psychology of unemployed men.

As men struggled to provide for their families as cultural breadwinners, some turned to alcohol to cope, while others became abusive or gave up hope altogether.

Suicide rates increased during the Great Depression.

Suicide rates peaked when unemployment reached high points in 1932 and 1938, according to the US National Library of Medicine.

President Franklin Delano Roosevelt was elected in 1933 and shepherded the New Deal through Congress.

The set of emergency relief programs, work programs, and large-scale government reforms implemented by Roosevelt helped boost the economy. The US's entrance into World War II in 1941 jumpstarted American manufacturing.

The Great Depression had lasting effects on the US.

Its aftermath fundamentally changed the relationship between Americans and their government and led to the development of more government programs, responsibility, and involvement.