Chapter 424: Chapter 425: Internal Screening
[Chapter 425: Internal Screening]
Donald Trump was always one for the spotlight, as anyone could tell from his eagerness to play bit parts in Hollywood films.
After casting for the role of the female lead's childhood, Donald even wanted to personally act as her father, Joe. However, Eric firmly rejected the request, as Donald Trump's privileged image was nothing like that of an Oklahoma farmer. Despite this, Donald Trump took his daughter Ivanka to Ponca City, Oklahoma, where she had just begun her summer break.
At eight in the evening, on a small farm outside Ponca City, the crew busily prepared for the shooting. Eric seized a moment to relax in the director's chair, sipping coffee while casually chatting with Donald Trump, who sat next to him. Meanwhile, Ivanka played with a lion dog nearby, which would also be featured in the shoot.
Donald glanced over at his daughter and remarked, "Eric, I heard that the shooting hasn't been going well lately."
Eric recalled the challenges of the past two months and replied, "It has been a bit of a headache. Fortunately, most of the major scenes are nearly finished, so the upcoming shoots should be much simpler. How about you? How's business been?"
Donald Trump said, "I'm planning to build high-rise condos in Manhattan and am currently securing financing. By the way, Eric, you don't have real estate in New York, do you?"
Eric figured that Donald was referring to the famous Trump Tower near the United Nations. He wasn't sure when the building was constructed, but it likely wouldn't have been this early. It seemed his presence impacted quite a few things.
Due to some experiences in his past life, Eric was not interested in high-rise apartments and even found them somewhat distasteful; he preferred single-family homes. However, he didn't outright reject Donald Trump's sales pitch, considering that buying such an apartment could be a nice option for keeping a mistress.
"I'll check it out once it's built."
Donald Trump only mentioned it casually, and Eric's response essentially sealed the deal without delving deeper into the topic.
As they continued their conversation, Ivanka ran over with the little dog, squatting down and cradling it in her arms, looking expectantly at Donald Trump. "Daddy, Pokey is so sweet! Can I take him home?"
Donald knew that this dog was a specially trained animal actor and replied, "Sweetie, Pokey has to stay and shoot. You can't take him home."
Ivanka didn't quite understand her father's words and became a bit upset upon hearing his response.
Eric chimed in, "Ivanka, that little dog has an owner. It would take at least $1,000 to bring him home. Do you have that much money?"
Eric wasn't sure how much animal actors were worth; he just recalled how financially savvy the little girl had been last year and threw out a figure to gauge her reaction.
As expected, Ivanka's face fell at the mention of $1,000. Her thin lips pressed together; she thought, "$1,000? That's 1,000 one-dollar bills. There's no way I can come up with that." The little dog seemed to sense her disappointment and affectionately licked her small hand with its tongue.
Noticing Ivanka's fondness for the dog, Eric added, "But Ivanka, if you behave well going forward, I can buy Pokey and give him to you."
For a moment, Ivanka looked pleased but quickly shook her head, "I don't want him."
Eric was surprised, "Why not?"
"Because Mommy told me that when boys give gifts to girls, they must have some bad intentions. I don't want to take your present."
Watching Ivanka say this with such serious conviction, despite her not really understanding what it meant, Eric exchanged glances with Donald, and they both burst into laughter.
Hearing them laugh, Ivanka pouted and said, "You're both bad guys! I'm not talking to you!"
With that, she called the little dog's name and ran off to a distance.
...
A deputy director soon approached to inform Eric that the scene was ready. He finished his coffee in a few sips, stood up, and began his work. This scene would only take about three minutes in the final cut of the film, but it was clear they wouldn't finish shooting that night. Fortunately, the little girl was on summer vacation, so there was no rush.
However, there was a minor dispute between Eric and Ivanka during the filming.
Holding a teddy bear in her hands, Ivanka complained to Eric, "Why do I have to hold this? I'm about to turn ten!"
Eric obviously couldn't admit it was part of his peculiar taste. After Ivanka appeared in Ghost, Eric planned for her to continue portraying a character holding a stuffed animal, much like a certain old man who always popped up mysteriously in superhero movies.
"Ivanka, this is a prop for the film. Look, it says so in the script," Eric said earnestly, waving the script in front of her.
Clearly, the little girl didn't know that scripts could be changed. Seeing it written that the character Jo held a teddy bear, she reluctantly followed directions.
After starting to shoot this scene, everything proceeded unusually smoothly. Despite occasionally appearing a bit clumsy, Ivanka brought an undeniable charm to her performance, even making fewer mistakes than the two adult actors playing her parents. Within just two nights, they finished filming the scenes that covered her character's childhood experiences.
When leaving, Ivanka did, in fact, take the little dog with her. It wasn't uncommon for actors to develop bonds with animal co-stars and later adopt them.
After Ivanka left, the crew continued their filming seamlessly since most of the action sequences had already been shot; the upcoming scenes posed no major issues.
...
In the second week of June, at Disney's headquarters in Los Angeles, an internal screening drew considerable attention. Michael Eisner, Robert Shea, and a host of Disney executives filled the screening room.
Though the title of the first movie to break the $100 million investment barrier had gone to Terminator 2, the marketing for Cutthroat Island, which was set to release earlier, garnered just as much media and fan interest, as it was also boasting a $100 million budget.
Inside the screening room, after a brief opening title sequence, Gina Davis's character, Morgan Adams, made her entrance with a swift twist, followed by stunning aerial shots of the pirate ship. The vast ocean basked in sunset hues as the impressive vessel floated beautifully, leading to Morgan boarding the pirate ship, facing off against its crew to claim her father's captaincy and embark on a treasure-hunting adventure.
If Eric had been there, he would have noticed that the city chase sequence in this film bore a striking resemblance to what he remembered from Pirates of the Caribbean; even the costumes and set designs felt akin.
However, one major difference between the two films was that Cutthroat Island featured no special effects whatsoever. Even the climactic scene of two warships cannoning each other relied purely on real-life shooting without any bells and whistles.
But without any special effects, this big-budget pirate film lost its luster, and the entire two-hour runtime felt rather bland and unexciting.
Perhaps because of high expectations, when the two-hour film finished, there were surprisingly few applauses; many attendees exchanged puzzled glances, as the movie left little impression -- lacking any stand-out moments. Even the climactic cannon battle felt underwhelming to those who had seen many wartime visuals. Furthermore, Morgan's treasure-seeking journey felt overly tame, lacking any suspense.
As the lights came on in the screening room, Michael Eisner's expression was notably dark. By now, he hadn't linked the film's lackluster nature to Eric's heavy meddling, but it was evident that the uninspired film would land the blame squarely on Renny Harlin's shoulders.
Now, although Renny Harlin was the film director, he didn't occupy the front-row position but instead had to sit behind Gina Davis in the second row, right behind Michael Eisner and Robert Shea.
Watching the reactions of the audience after the flick ended, Renny Harlin sensed the situation was grim.
He recognized that this movie was disappointingly dull. However, Renny didn't believe it had much to do with him. While he was the film's director, the fact that the budget had ballooned to $100 million meant that even he had limited control. Although he had participated in the editing process, the final cut lied outside his authority.
Additionally, Renny had even suggested that this movie be rated R. That way, many scenes could've been more freely executed. But due to cost concerns, Disney and Robert Shea had declined his proposal, relegating the movie to a PG-13 rating, ultimately rendering the pirate altercations quite juvenile.
At that moment, Michael Eisner couldn't help but want to exclaim, "What a piece of junk!" However, with so many people present, voicing such sentiments was out of the question. Besides, since he fully supported this film, admitting that would come back to bite him.
Having worked in the industry for over a decade, Robert Shea had a decent eye for films. At least, he possessed a fair amount of insight regarding completed films. Thus, after the showing, an uneasy premonition took root in his mind.
...
"So, everyone, what did you think? What needs...what needs to be changed?"
Once they transitioned to the meeting room, Michael Eisner was the first to speak.
The room grew awkwardly silent as everyone exchanged nervous glances. Those who had climbed to the upper echelons weren't lacking in foresight regarding box office potential. After screening the film, most executives concluded that it had little to offer in terms of highlights and that the conflicts felt too weak. This left them reluctant to voice their thoughts first, worrying that if they voiced the wrong opinion and the film failed, they could take the fall.
An awkward silence stretched for a full minute. Michael Eisner furrowed his brow slightly and turned directly to Renny Harlin, seated to his right. "Mr. Harlin, why don't you go first?"
Michael Eisner had always called him Renny in a friendly manner, but switching to a formal address clearly hinted at his displeasure. Renny Harlin felt rather dejected but had no choice but to respond, "Mr. Eisner, I don't think any modifications are necessary. This final cut is quite good."
Renny emphasized "final cut" to remind everyone that this version didn't reflect his vision as the director, as his ideas hadn't been fully realized.
Those present were sharp enough to catch his veiled suggestion. Several wore faint smirks, realizing that discussing the matter now served little purpose. If this $100 million film's release flopped, Renny Harlin wouldn't survive in Hollywood.
Noticing their expressions, Renny recognized the underlying disdain within the room; his face darkened noticeably.
Robert Shea only spent 50 million U.S. dollars on this film and its promotion. Now he was somewhat fortunate that he only got 40% of the investment share. However, Robert Shea didn't want to see his investment dwindled away. As an outsider, he had no qualms, and after Renny concluded, Robert Shea then proposed, "Why don't we delay the release?"
At that suggestion, the atmosphere in the meeting room froze once again.
With no one willing to speak up, Michael Eisner stiffened and asked, "If we're delaying, when do we plan to release it -- by the end of the year or next year?"
Cutthroat Island was originally set for a June 28 release, and with summer already well underway, a delay couldn't push it to August, the tail end of the summer blockbuster season. Not to mention, Disney had already signed agreements for the film to debut in 2,500 theaters. Due to the Gulf War earlier that year, many production companies had already trimmed their output. Should Cutthroat Island be delayed, Disney's chances of finding a suitable replacement dwindled, forcing them to cough up hefty penalties.
Furthermore, any delay would cast doubt on the quality of Cutthroat Island. While many production companies publicly touted grand reasons for altering release dates, insiders knew well that if a completed film suddenly faced a change, that usually signaled significant issues with its quality.
Ultimately, Disney's President Frank Wells, who served as Eisner's right-hand man, spoke up. "The risks of delaying the film are greater, so sticking to the original schedule is advisable."
Michael Eisner turned to the distribution team, saying, "If that's the case, we need to adjust the distribution plan. Clark, why don't you start with that?"
As planned, after this internal screening, the next step would be to arrange critic screenings, audience previews, and ultimately, the premiere.
However, with everyone now lacking confidence in the movie's quality, large-scale screenings and previews could no longer proceed unmitigated.
*****
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