Wall Street's Falling Stars Burn Hollywood

When Steven Spielberg is feeling a budget pinch, you know the financial crisis is bad. His hunt for financing on a new studio deal gets tougher with each day of bad news from Wall Street, Time reports. With credit as tough to come by in Hollywood as everywhere else, many studios are “making a conscious decision to slow it down,” one exec says.

Wall Street poured billions into the industry in recent years, with movie “mutual funds” created 4 years ago allowing investors to diversify by funding several projects. Those sticking with Hollywood in the current market want more money and choice over the movies in their portfolios. But there’s no “fire sale” yet, assures a studio financier. “Smart deals will continue to get made.” (More Hollywood stories.)