Capítulo 396: Chapter 397: An Encounter
[Chapter 397: An Encounter]
Michael Eisner said, "Disney has been in negotiations with Renny Harlin and Geena Davis, and now we have signed a three-year contract with them. For the next three years, Renny Harlin and Geena Davis won't be working for any company outside of Disney."
Robert Shea paused for a moment before realizing who Michael Eisner was referring to. He recognized that he had made a significant mistake by overlooking this detail; he should have signed agreements with these two before negotiating with the bigger studios.
When Eric had contacted Bruce Evans, the owner of the script for the upcoming film, he had discussed the intention of inviting the two to be the director and lead actress. This was communicated explicitly by Bruce Evans after Eric acquired the script at a high price and understood the situation's nuances.
Faced with Michael Eisner's unrelenting pressure, Robert Shea steeled himself and said, "Hollywood is not lacking in directors and actresses. I can find replacements; don't think you can bully me with this."
"I'm not trying to bully you; we're talking about collaboration here," Michael Eisner's tone turned extremely cold. It lacked the warmth he had shown when negotiating the overseas distribution rights for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles with Robert Shea: "Cutthroat Island is not like Ghost, which had a budget of less than $30 million. This is a super production that will require at least $70 million, and the total costs after marketing could easily exceed $100 million. Just like I mentioned in the anecdote about Ghost, if changing the team leads to a box office failure for Cutthroat Island, such a major investment could result in significant losses.
The repercussions of reduced box office revenues will affect subsequent home video releases and television broadcasting rights. So, as you can see, you own the script, but Disney owns the director and the lead actress. We also need to distribute this movie, and when you calculate that, you're still the one benefiting here.
Of course, you can wait for three years, but if I remember correctly, your contract with Bruce Evans is only for three years as well. If you don't produce a film in that time, the script will automatically revert to Bruce Evans. Do you think you'll be able to snag this script again next time?"
One of Robert Shea's hands trembled nervously on the armrest, clearly agitated. Under Michael Eisner's relentless gaze, he finally exhaled in resignation and said, "Alright, let's talk."
...
New York just had a heavy snowfall, and the weather turned exceptionally cold.
In the Manhattan Soho Grand Hotel, Eric once again found himself in the same suite he had stayed in before. He woke up that morning, jogged on the treadmill for half an hour, took a shower, and planned to head downstairs for breakfast.
Walking into the elevator, Eric pressed the button and distractedly watched the indicator light as the elevator descended. When it reached the third floor, the elevator suddenly stopped.
Realizing someone was getting on, Eric took a step back toward the corner. The doors opened, and a tall woman with her hands tucked into the pockets of her black trench coat stepped in. As their eyes met, they both exclaimed, "It's you?"
Eric gestured for her to enter and closed the elevator doors. "Kathryn, what brings you to New York?"
Kathryn Bigelow curiously looked Eric up and down. "I'm here to unwind. What about you?"
"I'm in New York to make money," Eric said succinctly.
Kathryn assumed Eric was joking and humorously teased, "How pedestrian."
They had only exchanged two sentences, and the elevator had already reached the ground floor. Eric and Kathryn Bigelow walked out side by side. "Care to join me for breakfast, not minding this 'pedestrian' invite? It's on me."
"Sure! I won't be polite to such a rich guy," she replied.
...
Upon entering the restaurant, they found a table to sit at. Just as they ordered breakfast from the waiter, a tall white man approached, nodded slightly towards Kathryn Bigelow, and handed Eric a stack of newspapers and a folder. "Mr. Williams, here are today's newspapers and a few documents that were faxed from Los Angeles last night. Mr. Hansen asked you to call him after you review them."
"I got it," Eric nodded. He didn't plan to look over the documents while Kathryn was there and casually set them aside.
Kathryn Bigelow watched the man return to his corner seat before curiously asking, "Who was that? Where's Allen?"
"My bodyguard. Allen is in Los Angeles, so I had him fill in as a temporary assistant. But let's talk about you. What made you suddenly show up here?"
"I lived in the Soho area for ten years. I just divorced that jerk and came to visit some old friends and clear my head," she replied.
Eric recalled that later, Kathryn would continue to collaborate with Cameron, but right now, it was clear she was still troubled by his betrayal and wouldn't forgive him any time soon.
"What Jim did this time was truly excessive. Do you want me to help you deal with him? Maybe pressure him to cut the budget for Terminator 2 by fifteen to twenty million?"
Kathryn took her breakfast from the waiter and shot Eric a look, "Let's skip that. Don't think I don't know you're a little troublemaker too."
Eric, who had just taken a sip of milk, nearly spluttered, "Why are you trying to throw more flames into my own fire?"
"How else would I respond?"
"If you ask me, your thinking is a bit extreme. That's not good; it can easily lead to cynical obsession."
Kathryn made a dismissive sound, not wanting to continue entertaining Eric's tangents. After a moment, she asked, "Isn't Firefly Productions regrouping? What are you doing here in New York?"
"Seriously, I'm here to make money," Eric pointed toward the stock exchange. "With the Middle East fighting, I'm cashing in on the oil futures difference."
"Oh, so you're a little war profiteer."
"I'll accept 'profiteer,' but can we drop the 'little'?"
"Not a chance!"
Seeing Eric's face turn to one of mock 'disappointment,' Kathryn chuckled. "Hey, how much have you made? Is it more than what you make from a movie?"
Eric shrugged, hesitant to share the full truth. "The big share went to the federal government. Nobody expected this war to be this swift. Before the war, the federal government teamed up with Saudi Arabia to sell off a ton of futures at high prices. Now that oil prices have halved, they've made at least a hundred billion. We small fry just get to sip on the leftover soup."
Kathryn displayed some knowledge about futures trading. "A hundred billion? That means someone is on the losing end too."
"Sure, if you pay attention to the newspapers, you'll see that a large number of oil trading companies around the world canceled their securities departments. This loss will haunt them for over a decade."
*****
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