Beverly Hills.
In a reception room at the MGM headquarters, Tony Tomopoulos, chairman of United Artists, leaned on the sofa, holding the coffee just delivered by his secretary, and said to Michael Ovitz sitting on the other side: " Did you hear that? That kid tested Semel to see if he could sell DC to him at a party hosted by Warner Bros. last night. Pascal seems to be still negotiating the rights to a TV series with Columbia on his behalf, and Columbia offered 10 million. The U.S. dollar didn't scare him away, tsk tsk. Now young people, just after making some money, they plan to buy the whole world."
Michael Ovitz listened to the obviously unbalanced tone of Tomopoulos, who was already over sixty years old. Although he didn't think that Simon Westeros had started to forget about everything because of his sudden wealth, but because of the purpose of today's meeting, He still smiled in agreement and said: "Hollywood needs this kind of people, otherwise, how would it be possible for all the movies we produce every year to get investment."
Tony Tomopoulos heard this, a flash of shrewdness flashed in his eyes, and said: "Michael, I know you have always wanted to promote the "Rain Man" project, but that guy has performed really well in cooperating with the Fox companies. A bit greedy, a screenwriter actually asked for 10% of the box office share, which has never happened in the history of Hollywood. As for this cooperation, even if "Rain Man" continues to be delayed, it is in the interests of United Artists, and I definitely will not Give in."
Michael Ovitz nodded and said: "I understand, Tony. In fact, I have always admired the sharing of interests. If everyone makes money together, the business can last long."
While the two were chatting, Tomopoulos's secretary walked in with Amy Pascal.
After greeting each other, the three of them sat down on the sofa, and Michael Ovitz smiled and asked Amy, "How was your conversation with Robin?"
Amy Pascal had just met Hollywood actor Robin Williams over the matter of "Dead Poets Society" before arriving at the MGM headquarters. Although she was a client of CAA, she could only be considered a second-tier customer at this time. Ovitz was not personally responsible for Robin Williams.
However, Amy was not surprised by Ovitz's sudden question. This CAA boss who likes to control everything is like a spider, always making people feel that he knows all the trends in Hollywood.
"Robin is very interested in the script of "Dead Poets Society" and we are going to sign the contract tomorrow."
Michael Ovitz was a little surprised: "So urgent?"
Amy said: "Simon hopes that this matter will be finalized before the year, and preparations can be started after he comes back."
Tony Tomopoulos couldn't understand what Amy and Ovitz were talking about, and said at this time: "Westeros is not in Los Angeles?"
Amy turned to Tomopoulos and said, "Simon has gone to New York. Tomorrow night is Christmas Eve, and his girlfriend is over there."
The secretary brought coffee to Amy at this time. Tony Tomopoulos waited for a moment and said: "In that case, Amy, first tell me about your development plan for "The Hobbit"? This is a very classic film The novel, United Artists will not hand it over to others lightly.”
"Tony, Daenerys Pictures has no plans to launch "The Hobbit" immediately. We hope to obtain the copyright first and spend two to three years designing and perfecting the special effects technology required for this fantasy epic before launching it. Production.”
Tomopoulos shook his head and said: "Three years is too long, and these words sound completely like an excuse to get the copyright."
Amy retorted: "Tony, if I say that Daenerys Pictures will immediately put into production, this is a real excuse. "The Hobbit" is a fantasy novel involving dragons, elves, dwarves and other elements. , without enough time for careful preparation, forced start, the result will only be failure.”
Tomopoulos said: "Okay, Amy, where's your offer?"
"Tony, I have made an offer to United Artists, US$1 million. Now, as a supplement, Daenerys Pictures can invest US$10 million in "Rain Man"."
Although he had just worked hard on "The Hobbit", Tony Tomopoulos actually didn't care too much about the copyright of this novel.
United Artists obtained the rights to "The Lord of the Rings" and "The Hobbit" in 1969. It has been almost 20 years now. Although the novels were very popular at that time, the Middle-earth series has not shown any noticeable success in film and television. Commercial potential, otherwise United Artists would not have transferred the rights to "Lord of the Rings" to Saul Zaenz in 1976.
At this time, after hearing that Amy readily agreed to invest 10 million US dollars in "Rain Man", and then thinking about the rich net worth of a certain little guy, Tomopoulos quickly shook his head and said: "No, this is not enough, Amy. If you want to get The Hobbit, you need to invest at least $15 million."
Upon hearing this, Amy turned to Ovitz suspiciously: "Michael, you didn't tell me this on the phone."
Michael Ovitz was also a little surprised by Tomopoulos's temporary change of heart. He couldn't help frowning and said: "Tony, you can't do this. It will only make "Rain Man" stranded again."
Tony Tomopoulos just looked at Amy and said: "Since West Loken is offering $10 million for a TV series from Columbia Pictures that has little value, Dustin Hoffman and Tom Clark For a movie starring two superstars like Ruth, he probably wouldn’t mind paying an extra $5 million, not to mention getting the rights to The Hobbit.”
Amy looked slightly annoyed and retorted: "Tony, we didn't ask for $10 million for a TV series."
Tony Tomopoulos thought for a while, sat up straight, and said, "Amy, I think it's better for Westeros to come and talk to me in person about this matter."
Amy shook her head and said: "I just explained it, Tony, Simon is in New York."
Tony Tomopoulos smiled and said: "This is not two hundred years ago, so just make a phone call."
Amy picked up the satchel that had just been placed next to her and said, "If you insist, Tony, I'll go back and discuss it with Simon."
"No, I mean now," Tony Tomopoulos didn't want to give Simon and Amy too much preparation time and insisted: "We can hold an impromptu conference call."
Amy looked at her watch and said, "It's already five o'clock in the afternoon in New York, and it's Simon's private time now."
"Amy, I hope this matter can be resolved today, so call him. Or, you can tell him tomorrow during business hours in Westeros that this matter is over."
Amy looked at Tony Tomopoulos, and after a moment of stalemate, she sat down again and dialed a series of numbers through the landline on the coffee table.
In hands-free mode, Simon's voice soon sounded from the speaker: "Hello?"
"Simon, it's me," Amy raised her eyes and glanced at Tomopoulos, and said, "I'm at the MGM headquarters. Mr. Tomopoulos wants to talk to you in person."
"Tomopoulos?"
"Chairman of United Artists."
"oh."
Tony Tomopoulos felt a little uncomfortable listening to the careless voice from the speaker, but he still took over the conversation and said: "Simon, I am Tony Tomopoulos."
"Hello, Tony."
Tony Tomopoulos did not exchange too many pleasantries and said straight to the point: "Simon, let's be direct. "The Hobbit" is a very precious copyright asset of United Artists. If you want to get the copyright of this novel, Dan Nelise Pictures needs to bear at least US$15 million in investment for "Rain Man."
After a brief pause for a few seconds, Simon's voice sounded again: "Tony, the budget of "Rain Man" is 25 million US dollars, right? If Daenerys Pictures invests 15 million US dollars, who does this movie belong to?"
Tony Tomopoulos said: "Simon, United Artists developed the entire project, and the copyright naturally belongs to us. However, Daenerys Pictures will definitely be able to get its due share of the revenue in the future."
"Sorry, Tony, I'm not used to paying enough but not getting the initiative. If United Artists wants $15 million, the project has to be handed over to Daenerys Pictures, just like "Basic Instinct" .”
Tony Tomopoulos refused: "Simon, it's impossible unless Daenerys Films takes on the entire investment."
"Tony, I'm not interested in this project. I just want "The Hobbit." US$10 million is enough for United Artists. It's not a big problem for you to raise another US$15 million."
"$15 million, Simon, since you want The Hobbit, it has to be $15 million."
There was another moment of silence on the other side of the phone before Simon said: "Then it's 25 million US dollars. Daenerys Pictures will be responsible for the production and United Artists will be responsible for the distribution. At the same time, you must ensure the schedule, marketing efforts and guaranteed number of screens."
Tony Tomopoulos originally thought he was going to argue with Simon on the phone for dozens of minutes, but he didn't expect that this would suddenly be the result.
United Artists has previously purchased the script rights for "Rain Man". Tony Tomopoulos's planned production and promotion strategy is to seek external investment as much as possible. If it is no longer possible to raise some funds through copyright pre-sales and loans, finally Produced by United Artists and distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.
With Dustin Hoffman and Tom Cruise starring as two A-list superstars, although it is generally not optimistic, compared to most Hollywood projects, the commercial prospects of "Rain Man" are still guaranteed.
In United Artists' current situation, it is impossible for high-quality film projects to fall on its side.
According to this operating strategy, our company will be able to earn a stable issuance fee in the future no matter what. If the film is successful, United Artists, as the producer, will be able to reap some additional profits. The project failed and the company did not suffer much loss.
Now.
A certain wealthy little guy suddenly proposed a plan that he had never expected before.
$25 million.
It was taken out so easily. You must know that Warner, Universal, Paramount and other companies have all rejected this project before. Even Spielberg failed to get enough funds for the film, so he used " Raiders of the Lost Ark 3" as an excuse to quit.
Who could have imagined that things would turn around so suddenly.
A series of emotions flashed through his mind, and Tony Tomopoulos couldn't help but ask: "Simon, Daenerys Pictures will bear all the $25 million, are you sure you are not joking?"
"Tony, do you think I'm joking?" Simon said with a bit of impatience in his tone: "Okay, that's it. Amy, let's talk about this matter. I still want to go out for dinner with Jenny. Just talking, goodbye."
After saying this, the call was cut off.
After a slight click, the living room fell silent.
Amy noticed that Tony Tomopoulos' expression quickly began to flicker after a moment of silence, and quickly stood up and said: "Tony, let's talk about this later. Simon's decision was too hasty. I need to talk to him." Talk to him."
When things go wrong, there must be monsters.
Tony Tomopoulos has been in Hollywood for so many years, and he has already matured.
Although he feels very unbalanced that Simon has a net worth of more than one billion U.S. dollars at such a young age, he definitely agrees with that young man's talent in movies. Moreover, Tomopoulos also had a general understanding of Simon’s previous exciting cooperation plans with Orion, Fox and Disney, which were either bold, shrewd or risky.
Therefore, Tony Tomopoulos did not think that Simon Westeros would be a person who spent $25 million on a script that no one was optimistic about just for the copyright of a novel.
Current situation.
Or, Simon Westeros is actually very optimistic about this script, so he just pretended to be stupid and asked to win the entire project. Or, a huge amount of money turns a young man who was originally stunningly talented into a playboy with a short-circuited brain.
Hearing Amy's voice, Tomopoulos added another reason in his mind. Or perhaps, this woman was responsible for planning all of Simon Westeros' previous business operations, and his nature was just like that on the phone.
Wanting to see if Amy was playing hard to get, when she stood up, Tony Tomopoulos quickly stood up, stretched out his hand to the woman again, and said: "Then, that's it for today, Amy, I need it too Think about it again. Let’s, um, make an appointment next week.”
Amy shook hands with Tomopoulos, nodded to Ovitz, then turned and walked towards the living room.
There was no way to continue talking about the matter, and Michael Ovitz, who had been watching quietly just now, stood up and said goodbye to Tomopoulos.
After leaving the MGM office building, he noticed that Amy's car was just pulling out of the parking lot. Ovitz walked over, knocked on her car window, waited for the glass to slide down, and asked with a smile: "Amy, can I give it to you?" Can I explain, what is going on?"
Amy showed a helpless expression on her face and said: "Michael, you have also seen that Simon has recently..." After saying this, Amy shook her head slightly and sighed: "I don't know how to persuade him now. "
But Michael Ovitz's smile remained unchanged and said: "Amy, if I remember correctly, when we talked on the phone on Monday, you complained that the investment of 10 million US dollars was too much, but today you have no intention of reducing the share."
There was no flaw in Amy's expression as she said, "This is Simon's decision."
The two chatted for a few words, and Ovitz watched Amy drive away, but the smile on his face did not change. He realized that, no matter what, the Rain Man project was definitely on the way.
perhaps.
According to the vision and ability of a young man, this film will bring some surprises to everyone in the future.
After all, Michael Ovitz never believed that young people who could make him feel the same kind of feelings at the first meeting would be so easily lost in the mind of huge amounts of money and become wanton and without judgment.
Thinking of this, Michael Ovitz suddenly remembered a certain detail that Amy Pascal mentioned at the beginning of the meeting.
There was a little more smile on his face.
Little guy, since you are so eager to sign Robin Williams, I definitely can't let you succeed.
Let’s see if this thing can bring any surprises first.
Um.
Robin Williams.
Michael Ovitz recalled that his brain with its excellent memory quickly provided him with a stream of information.
Robin Williams, who entered the film industry with the live-action version of "Popeye", has not had any outstanding works in recent years and can only be regarded as a second-tier comedy star. There seems to be a new movie released recently, "Good Morning Vietnam", a popular Vietnam War reflection type, with a satirical comedy style, a bit like Robert Altman's "Army Field Hospital" which was nominated for Best Picture that year.
The internal test screenings have received good reviews, and the film will be scheduled for December 25, which is the day after tomorrow.
However, Disney seems to be planning to let this movie follow a route similar to "Army Field Hospital" to win awards, using a long-term strategy of small-scale production to accumulate word-of-mouth, with only single-digit screens in the early stage.
The driver drove the car over.
After Michael Ovitz got in the car, he picked up the car phone and dialed the number of his friend and Disney CEO Michael Eisner. The two families are neighbors, so perhaps a family screening could be arranged in the evening to watch a comedy or something together.