America Tycoon: The Wolf of Showbiz-Chapter 955 - 880 Kims Money Game_2
Chapter 955: Chapter 880: Kim’s Money Game_2
Chapter 955 -880: Kim’s Money Game_2
Martin Davis, a talented actor and one of Hollywood’s most distinguished superstars, whose influence and commercial appeal were beyond question, directed the thriller “Shark Beach” halfway through, which had a full release in North America last weekend.
Before the film’s release, there were endless doubts, with many believing that Martin would only deliver a flop; too many examples of Hollywood stars turned directors had produced terrible films. However, once the movie was released, both the critical reception and commercial response were quite good, even snatching last week’s North American box office crown.
From the angle of transitioning from actor to director, Martin’s directorial debut was fairly solid, showing none of the immaturity of a newcomer. Instead, it was very steady, proving Martin had a firm grip on pacing, and his scene design also had a great feel to it.
Admittedly, Martin was still far, far away from heavyweights like Spielberg, Nolan, and Cameron. After all, Hollywood’s first-rate directors were few and far between, a title that required not just hard work, but innate talent as well. Perhaps one day, we might see Martin Davis join their ranks.
In the Warner Bros. office, Daniel put down the “Los Angeles Times” he was holding, looked across at Hamada, and said, “Have you seen the opening week box office numbers for ‘Shark Beach’? Martin’s capability as a director has been somewhat proven, he’s no worse than the candidates you recommended.”
Hamada’s face darkened as the box office numbers for “Shark Beach” were beyond his expectations.
Previously, he thought it would have been quite acceptable for the film to take in 18 million US dollars in its opening week, but the actual figures were nearly double his forecast.
Despite the reality being right in front of him, Hamada was still defiant: “This film is opportunistic. Rather than saying the movie is really successful, it’s more apt to say the marketing was done well.”
Daniel shook his head with a smile: “Isn’t marketing a part of the film?” The smile faded from his face, “Our business is production and promotion of commodities, and movies are our products. Achieving high profits from a movie means success.”
Hamada couldn’t argue because that was the reality of Hollywood.
He abruptly changed the subject: “Next weekend, your ‘Jupiter Ascending’ will be released, directly competing with ‘Shark Beach.'”
Daniel said, “That project was left over by my predecessor Jon Berg. The internal screenings, as well as several public previews, have had very poor receptions. Warner Bros. won’t invest much resource into this film. ‘Jupiter Ascending’ getting into theaters has the sole aim to recoup as much as possible from the loss caused by my predecessor.”
Hearing the name Jon Berg, Hamada also felt it was a pitfall; that guy was now permanently etched onto Hollywood’s pillar of shame.
Daniel continued, “I don’t understand why the corporate review committee approved ‘Jupiter Ascending.’ The Wachowski Brothers… no, siblings…”
“Now it’s sisters,” Hamada corrected him.
Daniel nodded, “The Wachowski Sisters, after ‘The Matrix,’ have failed time and again, incurring huge losses for Warner. Why would a 185 million US dollar investment in ‘Jupiter Ascending’ be approved? I suspect there was dereliction of duty involved!”
He had already taken a clear stance against the Warner Bros. Team and applied direct pressure, “I’ll write a report and send it straight to the board of directors, asking them to thoroughly investigate this project.”
Hamada couldn’t sit still any longer and quickly came up with an excuse to report the situation to Kevin Tsujihara.
As Daniel watched him leave, he instructed his assistant to prepare the report. He knew that under Kevin Tsujihara, who held the position as CEO and Chairman, such a report was unlikely to pass, yet it might win him more elbow room to exercise his power, ensuring that the voice of the Warner Bros. Team was truly distanced from Warner Bros. Studios.
It was only from his position that Daniel could scrutinize the actions of his predecessor Jon Berg and realize that the Warner Bros. Team was absolutely like a team of deities.
As an ordinary mortal, he could not withstand the whims of such divine teammates.
Though Jon Berg had been removed, he left a lot of legacies for Daniel, such as the disastrous project “Jupiter Ascending.”
Daniel picked up the phone and dialed Martin’s number, saying with a laugh, “Congratulations Martin, your directorial debut was a box office hit.”
Martin responded with a few familiar words from his side: “Thank you, just luck, and good assistants.”
Daniel paid no mind to these modest statements; success was success, and he sincerely suggested, “We’ve been unable to find the right director for ‘Joker’; I think you could give it a try yourself.”
Martin was forthright, “I’ve been considering that recently.”
Like most people in the circle, Daniel believed that success bred further success, and he said, “You don’t need to worry about Warner Bros. on your end, I’ll support you fully.”
“I will try to make a shooting plan,” Martin replied.
Daniel quickly hung up the phone, thinking that Warner Bros. should probably strengthen their collaboration with Martin on the director front.
The same thought was shared by Disney Studios.
In the reception room at Disney Studios, Ellen Horn had been chatting with Martin for over half an hour, mostly about directorial collaboration.
He wanted to sign Martin to three exclusive directing contracts with Disney Studios.
But Martin had not yet made his position clear.
Because with that kind of collaboration, Disney Studios would have complete control, and if a film failed, Disney Studios could just sit on the contract, which would limit Martin’s own choices.
Martin said directly, “Ellen, you understand some things. My next project is the DC Comics-adapted superhero movie ‘Joker,’ which is a Warner Bros. project. Besides being the lead actor, as of now, we’ve yet to find a suitable director. If this remains the case after the Oscar ceremony, I might have to try directing and acting myself.”
Ellen Horn knew a little bit about it and said, “‘Joker’ aside, if you’re interested in directing other projects, Disney Studios is always ready to collaborate with you.”
“I don’t have an idea for the next project yet. Shall we talk when there is a clearer picture?” When Martin decided to direct ‘Shark Beach,’ almost all other companies in Hollywood kept silent aside from Louise’s Pacific Pictures.
Now that ‘Shark Beach’ was a big hit at the North American box office, all those good people came rushing to tell Martin how great they were.
Martin had grown accustomed to this over the years.
This week, the crew would leave North America and head to Europe, East Asia, and Southeast Asia to promote ‘Shark Beach.’
However, compared with mid to high budget films, the promotional budget for ‘Shark Beach’ was a bit tight, and the main creators going overseas for the promo tour were only two—Martin and Blake Lively.
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This solo journey was particularly exhausting for Blake Lively. As the absolute lead, the core figure in promotions, she had to handle all sorts of questions from the media during the day, and maintain the best demeanor for the fans.
In the evenings, a physically strong Martin with particularly intense demands would always make her feel dead and alive.
Just having left London for their second stop in Europe, Paris, Blake Lively called for backup. Conveniently holding a fan meet-up on the Seine Riverbank, Taylor Swift and her European bestie Cara Delevingne joined Martin’s game.
Cara Delevingne also called her sister, Poppy Delevingne.
The latter, who is also an actress, was quite interested in Martin, passed Martin’s test, and successfully joined Taylor’s girl squad.
Meanwhile, ‘Shark Beach’ entered its second weekend in North America.
This week was the traditional Super Bowl weekend in North America when the public’s attention was largely focused on the Super Bowl.
The newly released ‘Jupiter Ascending’ was scheduled for this slot, a clear sign that there had been given up on by Warner Bros.
The box office proved that the film didn’t do well.
In North America’s opening weekend, ‘Jupiter Ascending’ only took in $15.21 million in box office.
And the film’s disclosed production budget was a whopping $185 million.
The Wachowskis became a box office disaster maker.
‘Shark Beach,’ with its steady box office performance, continued to hold the champion title on the North American box office chart.
The film took $18.56 million in its second weekend, with a North American box office cumulative total of $72.88 million.
