"Kendrick is just an ordinary contracted producer under Sony. He mainly produces B-level movies. He doesn't even have his own studio. He's very unclassy. Jet, I have to remind you, because "Dark Man" , there will definitely be many people contacting you privately recently, bypassing us, but please don’t promise anything rashly, no matter what, at least discuss it with me.”
The two left the Sunset Tower Hotel, and Jeremy Zhao personally drove Jet Lee to Malibu Daenerys Studios, saying this to the customer in the passenger seat.
Jet Lee has been in the industry for so many years and has experienced ups and downs. Of course, he is cautious, but he still said: "I think he is quite sincere and promised to pay half of the salary in advance as long as I let go."
"Jet, don't be so naive. Do you think you will definitely get the money?"
"Isn't Hollywood very formal? If I really sign a contract with him, I will definitely write this in the contract."
Jeremy turned the steering wheel and accelerated to overtake a Ford in front of him. He shook his head and said: "Jet, perfect laws and abide by contracts. This must be the impression that many of you guys who have just arrived in the United States have on this country. I dare not say anything about other areas. , but in Hollywood, these do not exist. Hollywood is a place full of deceit and deceit. Just like the guy just now, you signed a contract with him, and if everything goes well, of course everyone is happy. However, once something goes wrong, even if It’s clearly stated in the contract that he won’t pay you either.”
Jet Lee said: "Then let's go to court?"
"Of course, here's the problem. If you go to court with him, you have a high chance of winning. However, if you are entangled in such a lawsuit, it can take anywhere from three to five months to a year and a half, and nothing else will happen during that period. If you can’t do it, you’ll have to spend a lot of legal fees, do you think you can afford it?”
Hearing this, Jet Li thought of some past events and suddenly stopped talking.
The agent glanced at him and added: "So, no matter how big-name stars are in Hollywood, they have actually encountered things like salary arrears and breach of contracts. Most of them are resolved privately because no one can afford it, and after all, they may still cooperate in the future. , and rarely quarrel with each other."
Jet Lee was silent for a moment before finally speaking again: "Are there no rules?"
"Of course, Jett, the rules in Hollywood are actually very simple. As long as you can prove your worth and always have value, then you are the rules. Not to mention the aloof Simon Westeros, the evergreen big names in Hollywood Directors and stars, such as Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, Robert De Niro, Tom Hanks, etc., are all pursued by major studios. Of course, Once they lose their value, they can only follow other people's rules."
"This... is too realistic."
"If it weren't for this, Hollywood wouldn't be so prosperous. So, Jet, I hope you will be very cautious about this opportunity to break into Hollywood. You know, Jack started trying to break into Hollywood very early, until "The Peak" at the beginning of this year Moment" can be regarded as successfully entering the mainstream. This is actually more successful than Bruce Lee back then. It is a miracle for us Chinese." At this point, Jeremy Zhao, who was looking at the road ahead seriously, became After a pause, he turned to look at Jet Lee and said, "I hope you can become the next miracle."
Jet Li had never been very used to this manager with a weird accent in Cantonese before. However, when he suddenly heard the other party's words and felt the middle-aged man's sincere eyes, he was suddenly a little moved. With the inexplicable pride that followed, he stretched out his hand and said, "Jerry, I also hope that I can live up to your expectations."
The middle-aged Chinese agent shook hands with Jet Lee and said again: "Actually, in my opinion, Jet, if you want to make a breakthrough in Hollywood, the key is to work at Daenerys Entertainment Here, as far as I know, "Rush Hour" that brought Jack to the mainstream was an idea proposed by Simon Westeros himself. Westeros's talent in movies is unparalleled. I believe "Dark Man" It should also be related to the other party. If my guess is correct, then there will definitely not be only one "Black Man"."
Jet Lee nodded in approval and couldn't help but said: "Actually, I'm still thinking about Mr. Ang Lee's "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon". Can't we try again?"
Jeremy shook his head: "Jet, this project is really not suitable for you. I have recently watched all of Lee's films, and I have also explored the details of "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" more deeply. Generally speaking, Lee's positioning I am more inclined to be a literary film director. Although "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" is a martial arts film, it should also be a literary martial arts film. It has high requirements for acting skills. This is not what you are good at. Your specialty should be action. In any case, We will meet with Danny Morris, the president of New World Pictures, later, and if Simon Westeros is interested in you, the results should come out today."
Jet Lee was disappointed again, but he also understood the correctness of his agent's words. He stopped talking and remembered something and said: "By the way, Jerry, I just received a call from Hong Kong. The producers of "The Hero", let me help find out if Daenerys is interested in making a sequel?"
"I heard that the box office there was very bad, maybe a huge loss?"
Jet Lee, of course, had better information than his agent on this aspect. He nodded and said, "It's only HK$3.79 million in the first week, and it's expected to be a loss of HK$30 million."
The agent roughly knew the copyright division of "Dark Man", and also understood that a film company on the other side of the ocean would probably suffer a loss of 30 million Hong Kong dollars. He was a little stunned, but he quickly said: "I think Daenerys is Bian probably has no interest in a sequel."
"Why?"
The agent did not answer, but asked: "Jet, frankly speaking, do you think "Dark Man" is a good movie?"
Jet Lee paused and shook his head slightly.
The agent said: "Therefore, the success of this movie depends on the fact that North American audiences are interested in your kung fu skills on the one hand. On the other hand, and mainly, it relies on the strong distribution of Daenerys Entertainment. For a movie , the reputation is not good, and the box office, to be honest, 25 million is nothing in North America, so there is no need to develop a sequel.”
Jet Lee hesitated for a moment and then said: "Jerry, the gentleman who developed this movie was kind to me... well, it's kind of a kindness. I can't reply to him like this, right?"
Jeremy asked: "If a sequel is to be developed over there, does Daenerys need to agree?"
"Well, I don't know the specific contract terms."
Jeremy thought for a while and said: "If it were me, if Daenerys no longer participates in the sequel, I will cooperate with other Hollywood film companies. After all, the box office of "The Dark Knight" is pretty good, so it should be able to Find a partner, and this time it’s best to package and sell the sequel rights directly to make up for the loss of the first film.”
The agent said it tactfully, but Jet Li understood that it was actually a trick to make up for his losses.
If you think about it carefully, this is the best way to make amends.
So he made up his mind to wait and see what Daenerys said. If the other party was not willing to develop a sequel, he planned to reply to the Hong Kong side like this.
Seeing Jet Lee's expression of understanding, Jeremy continued: "In addition, Jet, I advise you not to participate in the sequel. If you are a favor, you may be able to compensate in other ways, but if you participate in the sequel, you may be responsible for the consequences." Your popularity has a negative effect.”
Jet Lee hesitated this time.
The agent noticed his hesitation, thought for a moment, and said: "In this way, you can delay. Or, if we can reach an agreement with Daenerys later, the excuse will be more sufficient. Hong Kong has lost so much, if If we want to make up for the losses as soon as possible, we definitely can’t afford to delay, and we should try to use other actors.”
Jet Lee didn't answer this time.
However, that's probably all.
The kindness can be compensated in the future. If you miss this opportunity, you may never get it again in the future.
The two chatted all the way and finally arrived at Daenerys Studios in Malibu.
He found the office building where New World Pictures was located and checked the time. It was three minutes earlier than the agreed time. Jeremy drove fast all the way and was never late.
The secretary outside Danny Morris's office received the two people very politely. After waiting for a moment, the door of the office opened and Danny Morris sent two middle-aged men with Asian faces out, a man and a woman. They happened to meet The two met Jet Lee in the outside lounge.
They recognized each other's identities, but the atmosphere was a bit awkward.
The two Chinese were one named Li and the other Dong. After all, they had been in the same circle before, so even if they had no intersection, they happened to be acquaintances. The man is an executive of Golden Harvest Film Company, and the woman named Dong is the producer of "Police Story 4" by Jack Cheng.
Because of some entanglements in the past few years, Jet Li did not have a good impression of Jiahe.
If it weren't for Daenerys Entertainment's help this time, Jack Cheng, who has a close relationship with Jiahe, probably wouldn't have supported his "Dark Man".
It was awkward. After all, we were all strangers in a foreign land, so we still greeted each other politely.
Jet Lee also guessed that the two of them were probably discussing cooperation with Daenerys on "Police Story 4". In fact, after the success of "Rush Hour", Jack Cost should focus all his energy on Hollywood is a wise choice, but in an industry, there are always various indispensable constraints, and after all, you can't do whatever you want.
After the two left, Danny Morris and Jet Lee greeted them and entered the office together.
The three of them sat down in the reception area and waited for the secretary to change the coffee and leave. Danny Morris smiled and said: "Jet, let me guess, a lot of people must have contacted you recently, right?"
Jett Lee smiled and said, "I would also like to thank Mr. Morris for New World Pictures' efforts in the release of "The Black Man"."
"This is what we should do," Danny Morris took a sip of the coffee, put down the cup, and looked at the two of them: "Okay, let's get down to business. We made an appointment with you two today, mainly to talk about us. Follow-up cooperation. Jeter, this is what Simon personally told us. I hope we can reach a long-term cooperation agreement."
Jeremy Zhao's eyelids jumped when he heard 'long-term cooperation agreement'.
Not a surprise.
But I immediately thought of Jim Carrey’s long-term contract.
Of course, not all long-term contracts in Hollywood are deceptive. However, such as the DC movie universe long-term contract with higher gold content, because the core actors of the current project have basically been finalized, and there is no news that other superheroes will be developed soon. So, other than that, Apart from that, there seems to be no other better opportunity.
Before Jet Lee could speak, Jeremy took over the conversation: "Danny, can you tell me more about it?"
Danny Morris turned to his agent: "Jerry, I know what you are worried about, but Jett is different. We are very aware of his status in the Asian film circle, and of course he will not be given the same A new contract. As I just said, this was handed down by Simon himself. He hopes that both of us can reach an agreement first to avoid Mr. Li taking detours."
"detour?"
"Yes," Danny Morris said: "Because of the success of "The Dark Knight," I think other studios must have contacted you in the past few days, and, not surprisingly, the projects involved should all be in China. Low-cost B-level movies are a detour for Mr. Li. If he makes a mistake, he may only be able to star in low-cost popcorn B-level movies for many years to come, or even his entire Hollywood career, just like Dolph. Lundgren and Jean-Claude Van Damme are all successful in their own fields, but due to long-term restrictions on film style, it is now difficult to enter the mainstream, and the chance of becoming a big name like Schwarzenegger and Stallone is even slimmer. .”
Now Jet Lee and Jeremy Zhao both understood.
However, after all they had read about the world, both of them were very moved, but they were not impatient. Jeremy Zhao asked: "Danny, since it was arranged by Mr. Westeros personally, can I ask if there are currently any projects suitable for Jett?"
Danny Morris shook his head: "Not yet. In fact, I also asked Simon the same question, and he said he is still considering it. You two, you must understand that with Simon's current position, he can consider it personally. There are not many things going on. The original "Rush Hour" was an idea proposed by the boss himself. Simon is very busy recently, so he needs some time."
The two looked at each other, and Jeremy asked again: "Danny, what is the specific cooperation agreement?"
Danny Morris said: "With a three-film contract, the starting salary is US$2.5 million. Depending on the circumstances, the salary will add up to a maximum of US$5 million and US$7.5 million respectively."
Jeremy shook his head and said: "Danny, I still know something about Jack's salary situation. Jet and Jack are actors of the same level in Asia. He should not be half of Jack's."
"This is different," Danny Morris waved his hand slightly and said, "Jerry, "Dark Man" is Jeter's first movie released in North America, or at least the first movie that made him famous. , and Jack has been working here for many years, and his Asian qualifications are not counted in Hollywood."
The agent exchanged glances with Jet Lee again and argued: "We need to increase the share clause on the basis of the basic salary."
Danny Morris directly refused: "Unfortunately, I also mentioned this possibility to the boss, but he did not agree. In fact, you should be able to see that this is already a very sincere contract. I guess recently The film studio you contacted probably offered this level of salary. As for the future, you two, to be fair, if Jett can become a first-line star in Hollywood with a salary of tens of millions through these three projects, you will be the one to take advantage. , too many people in Hollywood cannot dream of this possibility. Moreover, I checked, Jett is 9 years younger than Jack, and is only 33 years old this year. As long as the operation is done properly, he will have a long peak period."
When Jet Lee heard this, they exchanged glances again. After all, they had to be reserved. Instead of agreeing on the spot, Jeremy said: "Danny, we need to think about it again."
"No problem, but please give me an answer tomorrow morning."
The topic ends here.
Jett Lee then asked about "Dark Man" again.
As expected, Daenerys has no interest in the sequel. She seems to have learned about the tragic experience of the Hong Kong producer, or received someone's instruction. Danny Morris readily stated that Hong Kong can handle the sequel on its own. There will be no further participation here.