The importance of completion bond and cast insurance

Edward Jay Epstein's "Hollywood Economist" column for the web journal Slate is a must read for those interested in the movie business.

For example, one of his recent articles - Nicole Kidman's Knee: Or, how the insurance business runs Hollywood - deals with, as the title suggests, the importance of insurance to the movie business. I am somewhat familiar with the critical importance of "completion bond" in Hollywood movie making. However, my grasp of "cast insurance" is not up to scratch. According to Epstein, if a star has led to many past claims, those which provide cast insurance could set a premium so high that the star could become practically uninsurable. Hollywood executives may have to think twice or thrice if they intend to cast that particular star in their movie projects.

Epstein cites Nicole Kidman's knee as an example ... I won't spoil your reading interest; go direct to the article.