Sublime

After the comedian Kevin Hart experienced several disappointing failures in a row, his career was at a crossroads. The movies he’d expected to make him a star hadn’t hit; his television deal hadn’t panned out. So he did what comedians do best—he hit the road. But unlike many successful comedians, he didn’t just go to the cities where he could sell

This asset is so unusual in Hollywood that it actually became controversial when Hart began to leverage it. Negotiations between the actor’s representatives and Sony Pictures Studios that leaked during the infamous Sony hacking scandal showed Hart’s ability to command higher paydays from the studio in exchange for his willingness to promote on his

John Ruhlin, John Kane, Jon Vroman, and Hal Elrod, thank you for your friendship, inspiration, and support through this writing journey.