The Covenant
EST V ACT domestic box office revenue
$16 – 20MM V $17MM
Mythosis universal quests used
2
Audience appeal
~0.55%
Script Score
0.02
The Covenant released in 2023 was co-written, produced and directed by Guy Ritchie. The movie is about an Afghan interpreter saving a U.S. Army Sergeant from the Taliban and his pay back.
1. The invisible plot structure of The Covenant
1A. The script of The Covenant borrows 89% of its events from 2 mythological tales
Ahmad’s quest is driven by the desire for honour & loyalty. The quest borrows events from the tale of Hanuman in Hindu mythology. Both Hanuman & Ahmad demonstrate unquestioned loyalty, showing a willingness to sacrifice themselves to protect their masters.
John’s quest is driven by the desire for finding an elusive person/object. The quest borrows events from the tale of Jason in Greek mythology. Jason’s desire to find The Golden Fleece is shared by John trying to recover Ahmad.
NOTE: Detailed mirroring of each character’s primary quest to their respective mythological tales is in section “3A. Quests of characters and their mythological counterparts”
Mythosis plot structure
# 296
Tales interweaved
Hanuman & Jason
I. How does interweaving mythological tales lead to infinite story plots?
II. Can the pursuit of a Desire have more than one quest?
2. The potential of The Covenant's plot structure: $16-20MM
The interweaving of 32 mythological tales can generate a billion unique stories. By using these 32 tales, we can extract the plot structure of any story across various genres. Our study of blockbuster, hit, and flop plot structures led to the discovery of the Mythosis Code, a set of principles for creating compelling stories. The plot structure of a story is analyzed to see how well it adheres to these storytelling principles.
2A. Plot structure evaluation of The Covenant
- All Blockbusters have at least 3 universal quests. The Covenant uses two universal quests of Honour & Expedition.
- In Blockbusters, each universal quest is mirrored by ONLY ONE character. Ahmad mirrors the universal quest of Honour & John mirrors the universal quest of Expedition.
- Every Blockbuster character borrows at least 35% of the universal quest. Ahmad borrows 48% events from the quest for Honour whereas John borrows 26% events from the quest for Expedition.
- Blockbusters have a quest interweaving threshold of 0.5. Interweaving occurs when events of 2 quests occur simultaneously in the story. Quests in The Covenant aren’t interwoven.
2B. Box office revenue estimation of The Covenant
Plot structure of The Covenant doesn’t interweave both the quests which makes the movie appear as two stories.
The Script Score measures a plot structure’s adherence to the four principles of Mythosis Code. We use the Script Score to estimate a movie’s audience appeal & revenues. Blockbuster plot structures have a score of at least 0.64 and appeal to 20% of the audiences.
Script Score
0.02
Audience appeal
~0.55%
I. How is Mythosis Code used to estimate revenues?
II. Aren’t box-office revenues influenced by several factors beyond just the story plot?
3. The ideal plot structure of The Covenant
We have identified 32 mythological tales, the superset of all tales across cultures. The quests of these tales have also recurred over time periods. They represent human behaviours that are deeply embedded in our shared memories. Each tale is the richest expression of the pursuit of a human desire. The tales have a unique pattern of events spread over 5 major arcs.
Mapping a character’s quest to the relevant mythological tale reveals the gaps in their quest, if any. Plugging these gaps with the missing events deepens the character quest. The missing events also provide an opportunity for interweaving the various quests. These events strengthen the story and unlock its hidden potential.
3A.Quest of characters and their mythological counterparts
Quest 1: Ahmad mirrors the universal quest for Honour
Ahmad’s desire for Honour stems from his need for loyalty towards clan or order. The tale of Hanuman from Hindu mythology is the universal quest for Honour.
Quest 2: John mirrors the universal quest for Expedition
John’s desire for Expedition stems from his need to find an elusive object. The tale of Jason from Greek mythology is the universal quest for Expedition.
3B.Gaps in the current plot structure
The hidden potential lies in interweaving the two quests.
3C.Unlocking the hidden potential
Plot of The Covenant is a sub set of Mythosis Plot Structure # 296. It uses the tales of Hanuman & Jason.
Unlock the potential with Mythosis Plot Structure # 296
Tags: Jason, Hanuman, Expedition, Honour, Guy Ritchie, STX Films, 2023