America Tycoon: The Wolf of Showbiz-Chapter 990 - 898 The Beginning of the Fall of Warner
Chapter 990 -898: The Beginning of the Fall of Warner Bros. Team
Chapter 990 -898: The Beginning of the Fall of Warner Bros. Team
“The most embarrassing moment in Oscar history!”
This was practically the headline on the front page of all entertainment media the next day.
Despite the fact that everyone present gave face to the Academy and didn’t reveal what happened to the media, various versions of speculation were still flying high.
This year’s Oscar ceremony attracted a level of attention not seen in nearly a decade.
It even gave the illusion that the Oscars had returned to their 1990s heyday.
The surge in public interest was there, but so was the negative impact.
The Academy immediately held a press conference and, together with PricewaterhouseCoopers, announced the results of the internal investigation: an accountant had handed the wrong envelope to award presenter Warren Beatty, leading to the Best Picture mishap.
Faced with the immense controversy, Academy President Tom Sherak apologized solemnly, swearing, “This was not a premeditated plan, we truly made a serious mistake.”
Though these words seemed intended to quell the dispute, they sounded to many ears as if they were leading the public to suspect a conspiracy.
The Academy’s press conference did not settle the controversy; instead, it became even more heated, with North American media and the internet buzzing with discussions about the Oscars.
The fever for the Oscars had finally returned.
According to statistics from various institutions, the viewership for this year’s award ceremony peaked at the highest point of the new century at the moment of the Best Picture flub.
The news and attention following the ceremony were the highest in nearly twenty years!
The mishap captured the attention of many movie fans, but Martin’s second Best Actor Oscar was also a hot topic in the media.
“The only truly deserving, undisputed winner at this Oscars is Martin Davis for Best Actor!”
“The award Martin received is one of the least controversial Best Actor awards in nearly thirty years.”
Riding on the coattails of the Oscar win, “Split” sparked a final wave of movie-going in North America and overseas before being pulled from theaters.
This R-rated psychological thriller exited cinemas around the globe two weeks later, with its North American box office tally solidified at $266 million.
The global box office totaled an impressive $534 million.
“The only issue with the project is whether to shoot a sequel?”
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In the post-production studio at Disney Studio, Louise raised a question, “Split has a fantastic reputation, your character escaped the police, and fans are very interested in what happens next.”
Martin had just come out of the editing room, rubbing his forehead, and said, “A sequel will certainly happen, but not now. We’ll discuss it after ‘Joker’ is released.”
Louise nodded slightly and asked, “Is the editing not going smoothly?”
Martin replied, “It’s alright. Joel Negron has finished the third cut of the editing, but the film’s length is still over 200 minutes. I’m planning to keep it within two hours.”
Louise commented, “That length also meets the needs of commercial screenings; too long isn’t good for scheduling.”
Martin glanced at the time: “Let’s go, let’s check on the scoring.”
The two of them, along with assistant director Steve Downton, headed to a nearby theater.
The production hired English composer Rachel Portman to score the film, who had already created several pieces of music, even crafting specific background themes for different iterations of Joker.
For instance, the Joker at the opening of the movie, a bottom-tier character in society, had a backdrop of music that was decadent and sad.
By the climax at the end, the score became rousing and passionate, fitting the Joker’s emergence as a city hero.
Post-production of the film was quite complicated, and although Martin still mainly took charge, he also followed up on specific work.
Having gained some insights into directing, he naturally wanted to continue improving.
After discussing the score with Rachel Portman and requesting adjustments for several segments, he then visited Warner Bros. to finalize the specific release timing of “Joker” with Daniel.
Martin chose this October from a range of dates provided by Warner Bros.
It was a familiar rhythm for chasing awards, well known to everyone from the studio to management to the PR team.
Thanks to the huge success of “Split,” Warner Bros. was prepared to invest over $100 million in promotional and distribution funds for “Joker.”
In the reception room, Daniel glanced at Martin and said, “We need to be prepared in advance; the project won’t get support from the DC side.”
Martin was already mentally prepared and said, “As long as they don’t hinder us.”
Daniel explained, “DC is busy with the production of ‘Justice League’ and has no time for shenanigans. The success or failure of this project relates not only to the DC Extended Universe plan but also to the futures of Kevin Tsujihara, Hamada, and others within Warner Bros.”
The Warner Bros. Team had clashed with Martin several times. Aside from the forced departure of Jon Berg, Kevin Tsujihara had once even sent a woman to the set to seduce Martin.
Martin had always wanted to find an opportunity to stir up trouble with the Warner Bros. Team, asking, “The poor reception of ‘Batman v Superman,’ does it affect the ‘Justice League’ production?”
He had also subtly passed on information about Joss Whedon to DC through Louise but had not been following it closely lately, being busy with the award push for “Split” and post-production of “Joker.” He inquired, “How is Zack Snyder’s project progressing?”
Daniel simply said, “You know the previous situation. ‘Batman v Superman’ received disappointing reviews, and its box office and commercial revenue fell far short of expectations. Hamada and Kevin Tsujihara considered replacing Zack Snyder, but as ‘Justice League’ was nearing its final stages of preparation at the time of release, switching directors could have led to losses of hundreds of millions. They chose to continue with Zack Snyder.”
