The Post

Production Budget Analysis

What was the production budget for The Post?

Directed by Steven Spielberg, with Meryl Streep, Tom Hanks, Sarah Paulson leading the cast, The Post was produced by 20th Century Fox with a confirmed budget of $50,000,000, placing it in the mid-budget category for drama films.

With a $50,000,000 budget, The Post sits in the mid-range of studio releases. Marketing costs for a wide release at this level typically add $30–60 million, putting the break-even point near $125,000,000.

Budget Comparison — Similar Productions

• Angela's Ashes (1999): Budget $50,000,000 | Gross $13,042,112 → ROI: -74% • Dredd (2012): Budget $50,000,000 | Gross $41,037,742 → ROI: -18% • Lord of War (2005): Budget $50,000,000 | Gross $72,600,000 → ROI: 45% • Shall We Dance? (2004): Budget $50,000,000 | Gross $170,128,460 → ROI: 240% • The Iron Giant (1999): Budget $50,000,000 | Gross $23,300,000 → ROI: -53%

Key Budget Allocation Categories

▸ Above-the-Line Talent Drama films live or die on the strength of their performances. Securing award-caliber actors and experienced directors represents the single largest budget line item, often consuming 30–40% of the total production budget.

▸ Location Filming & Period Production Design Authentic locations — whether contemporary or historical — require scouting, permits, travel, lodging, and often significant dressing to match the story's time period. Period dramas add the cost of era-accurate props, vehicles, and set decoration.

▸ Post-Production, Color Grading & Score The editorial process for dramas is typically longer than genre films, with careful attention to pacing and tone. Color grading, a nuanced musical score, and detailed sound mixing are critical to achieving the emotional resonance that defines the genre.

Key Production Personnel

CAST: Meryl Streep, Tom Hanks, Sarah Paulson, Bob Odenkirk, Tracy Letts Key roles: Meryl Streep as Kay Graham; Tom Hanks as Ben Bradlee; Sarah Paulson as Tony Bradlee; Bob Odenkirk as Ben Bagdikian

DIRECTOR: Steven Spielberg CINEMATOGRAPHY: Janusz Kamiński MUSIC: John Williams EDITING: Michael Kahn, Sarah Broshar PRODUCTION: 20th Century Fox, DreamWorks Pictures, Reliance Entertainment, Participant, Amblin Entertainment, Pascal Pictures, TSG Entertainment, Star Thrower Entertainment FILMED IN: United States of America, India

Box Office Performance

The Post earned $81,903,458 domestically and $97,866,009 internationally, for a worldwide total of $179,769,467. Revenue was split 46% domestic / 54% international.

Break-Even Analysis

Using the industry-standard 2.5x multiplier (P&A + exhibitor shares of 40–50% + distribution fees), The Post needed approximately $125,000,000 to break even. The film surpassed this threshold by $54,769,467.

Return on Investment (ROI)

Revenue: $179,769,467 Budget: $50,000,000 Net: $129,769,467 ROI: 259.5%

Profitability Assessment

VERDICT: Profitable

The Post delivered a solid return, earning $179,769,467 worldwide on a $50,000,000 budget (260% ROI). Combined with ancillary revenue, the film was a financial positive for 20th Century Fox.

INDUSTRY IMPACT

The outsized success of The Post likely influenced studio greenlight decisions for similar drama projects.

PRODUCTION NOTES

▸ Production

In October 2016, Amy Pascal won a bid for the rights to the screenplay The Post, written by Liz Hannah. In February 2017, Steven Spielberg cancelled The Kidnapping of Edgardo Mortara with The Weinstein Company after a casting setback, and consequently opened his schedule to other potential films to direct. The following month, it was announced that Spielberg was in negotiations to direct and produce the film, with Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks in talks for the roles of Katharine Graham and Ben Bradlee, respectively. The Post is the first time that Spielberg, Streep, and Hanks had all worked together on a film.

Spielberg read the screenplay and decided to direct the film as soon as possible, saying that "when I read the first draft of the script, this wasn't something that could wait three years or two years — this was a story I felt we needed to tell today." Spielberg worked on The Post while post-production work continued on the visual-effects-heavy Ready Player One, a situation familiar to him from concurrently producing, in the early 1990s, Jurassic Park and Schindler's List. Josh Singer was hired to re-write the screenplay ten weeks before filming.

As filming commenced, a number of New York Times figures who were associated with the Pentagon Papers case—among them James Greenfield, James Goodale, Allan M. Siegal, and Max Frankel—objected to the film's production due to the script's lack of emphasis on the Times role in breaking the story. Goodale, who was at the time the Timess in-house counsel, later called the film "a good movie but bad history."

Spielberg used the real audio tapes of Nixon in the White House: no voice actor was used for the role, who appears only silhouetted.

▸ Filming & Locations

The film began principal photography in New York on May 30, 2017. On June 6, 2017, it was announced that the project, retitled The Papers, would also star Alison Brie, Carrie Coon, David Cross, Bruce Greenwood, Tracy Letts, Bob Odenkirk, Sarah Paulson, Jesse Plemons, Matthew Rhys, Michael Stuhlbarg, Bradley Whitford, and Zach Woods. On August 25, 2017, the film's title reverted to The Post. Spielberg finished the final cut of the film on November 6, 2017, with the final sound mix also completed along with the musical score a week later, on November 13.

[Filming] The film began principal photography in New York on May 30, 2017. On June 6, 2017, it was announced that the project, retitled The Papers, would also star Alison Brie, Carrie Coon, David Cross, Bruce Greenwood, Tracy Letts, Bob Odenkirk, Sarah Paulson, Jesse Plemons, Matthew Rhys, Michael Stuhlbarg, Bradley Whitford, and Zach Woods. On August 25, 2017, the film's title reverted to The Post. Spielberg finished the final cut of the film on November 6, 2017, with the final sound mix also completed along with the musical score a week later, on November 13.

▸ Music & Score

The score for the film was written by John Williams; it is his 28th collaboration with Spielberg. The music is a combination of traditional orchestral instrumentation and what Williams has called "very light, computerised electronic effects." Williams was originally attached to write the music for Spielberg's 2018 film Ready Player One, but, because both films had similar post-production schedules, Williams chose to work on The Post, while Alan Silvestri composed for Ready Player One.

Recording began on October 30, 2017, in Los Angeles. The soundtrack was released digitally by Sony Classical Records on December 22, 2017, and in physical form on January 12, 2018.

▸ Marketing & Release

The first official image from The Post was released on October 31, 2017. The trailer for The Post premiered exclusively on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, on November 7, 2017, and the film's poster, designed by BLT Communications, was released the next day. The first TV spot, titled "Uncover the Truth", was released on November 21, 2017. Music for the trailer featured the Boston Typewriter Orchestra.

AWARDS & RECOGNITION

Awards Won: ★ National Board of Review: Top Ten Films ★ National Board of Review Award for Best Film

Nominations: ○ Academy Award for Best Actress (90th Academy Awards) ○ Academy Award for Best Picture (90th Academy Awards)

Additional Recognition: !scope="col"| Award !scope="col"| Date of ceremony !scope="col"| Category !scope="col"| Nominee(s) !scope="col"| Result !scope="col" class="unsortable"|

! scope="row" rowspan="5"| AARP's Movies for Grownups Awards

! scope="row" rowspan="2"| Academy Awards

! scope="row" rowspan="2"| Alliance of Women Film Journalists

! scope="row" | American Cinema Editors

! scope="row" | American Film Institute

! scope="row" | Art Directors Guild

! scope="row" | Casting Society of America

! scope="row" rowspan="8"| Critics' Choice Movie Awards

! scope="row" rowspan="4"| Dallas–Fort Worth Film Critics Association

! scope="row" rowspan="2"| Detroit Film Critics Society

! scope="row" | Florida Film Critics Circle

! scope="row" rowspan="3"| Georgia Film Critics Association

! scope="row" rowspan="6"| Golden Globe Awards

! scope="row" rowspan="4"| Houston Film Critics Society

! scope="row" | Humanitas Prize

! scope="row" | IndieWire Critics Poll

! scope="row" rowspan="3"| National Board of Review

! scope="row" | National Society of Film Critics

! scope="row" | New York Film Critics Online

! scope="row" | Online Film Critics Society

! scope="row" | Producers Guild of America Awards

! scope="row" rowspan="2"| San Diego Film Critics Society

! scope="row" | San Francisco Film Critics Circle

! scope="row" | Saturn Awards

! scope="row" rowspan="3"| Seattle Film Critics Society

! scope="row" rowspan="6"| St.

CRITICAL RECEPTION

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 88% based on 409 reviews, with an average rating of 7.90/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "The Post period setting belies its bitingly timely themes, brought compellingly to life by director Steven Spielberg and an outstanding ensemble cast." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 83 out of 100, based on 51 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale, while PostTrak reported 63% of audience members gave the film a "definite recommend".

Alonso Duralde of TheWrap praised the acting and Spielberg's direction, though he noted the script was too on-the-nose at times, saying, "The Post passes the trickiest tests of a historical drama: it makes us understand that decisions validated by the lens of history were difficult ones to make in the moment, and it generates suspense over how all the pieces fell into place to make those decisions come to fruition." David Ehrlich of IndieWire gave the film an A− and wrote: "Nobody needs to be reminded that history tends to go in circles, but The Post is so vital because it captures the ecstasy of trying to break the chain and bend things towards justice; defending the fundamental tenets of the Constitution hasn't been this much fun since Hamilton."

Chris Nashawaty, writing for Entertainment Weekly, gave the film a positive review, but also compared it with previous journalism films such as All the President's Men stating, "Spielberg makes these crucial days in American history easy to follow. But if you look at The Post next to something like All the President's Men, you see the difference between having a story passively explained to you and actively helping to untangle it. That's a small quibble with an urgent and impeccably acted film.