Chapter 32 34. The Next King of the World

Super Burger King, a fast food restaurant located on the roadside in West Hollywood, is characterized by high cost-effectiveness and large quantities. Its main service targets are young people who come to Hollywood to pursue their dreams.

It doesn’t matter if you are short of money, come here and have a high-calorie wall-hanging meal, one meal can last you a whole day.

Considering the predicament of James Wan and Ray Whannell at the time, Eric did not choose those high-end restaurants, but set the meeting place here.

In the United States, when discussing work matters, you are required to pay for meals on your own, which is completely different from China.

Because if one party treats the other, there will be suspicion of bribery, and people tend to be soft-hearted, so it is generally avoided.

Similarly, when friends invite each other to a dinner party at home, they usually just take some cheap things such as food or alcohol, and will not bring any valuable items.

Another advantage of eating at Burger King is that you don't have to tip, because you have to do everything yourself like picking up and ordering the food. But if you go to a slightly higher-end restaurant, tipping is inevitable.

After a meal, a tip of around 15% is a considerable expense. Moreover, in the United States, it is not only restaurants that collect tips.

Except for a few places such as fast food restaurants, government departments, hospitals, schools, supermarkets, etc., tipping is required for almost all other services. It is so exaggerated that Americans themselves often complain about the tipping culture.

Eric and Judy sat around a round table on the street. After waiting for a while, Judy raised her chin and said, "Look behind. They are coming."

Eric turned around and saw two young men in their 20s rushing over here.

The white young man in front looks handsome and is dressed very decently in a white shirt and trousers.

The Asian youth at the back looked a bit cheap, with his skinny body and short stature, especially the exaggerated non-mainstream hairstyle on his head, which made him stand out among the crowd all the time.

With a sigh, as a time traveler, Eric really couldn't appreciate this incredible hairstyle. Judging from the movie, James Wan definitely understands aesthetics, but when it comes to his own hair, it is very abstract, and he seems to be particularly fond of non-mainstream haircuts and blow-dries.

Eric waved at them, "Wen, Lei, over here!"

The two didn't know him, but when they saw Judy, they understood, and hurried over and extended their hands.

"James Wan, Mr. Eric, nice to meet you."

"Levonal, Mr. Eric, it's nice to meet you."

"Eric Cooper, nice to meet you guys as well."

The two ordered food and chatted while eating. As for a big shot like Eric, he chose to meet here. They were not fools. This was obviously to accommodate them, and they immediately felt good about him.

"Lei, I read your script. Although I just glanced at it, the good ideas can't be concealed. I think it's very good."

Ray Wonnal and James Wan looked at each other. When they received the call, they felt that good luck was coming, and it seemed to be true.

Ray Whannell got straight to the point: "Mr. Eric, you mean that MGM is interested in Saw?"

"Of course, otherwise why would I invite you? Let me put it bluntly, MGM is interested in investing, and I want to film this story about life."

A gust of wind blew, and it felt dark in front of his eyes. James Wan hurriedly grabbed his flowing hair and said, "Mr. Eric, the director..."

Eric looked at him with a smile: "Don't worry, I won't break you up. I don't think anyone knows this story better than you."

His heart tightened and James Wan suddenly began to tremble all over.

Leiwonal patted his shoulder: "Don't get excited, this is what you always wanted, isn't it?"

James Wan took a big bite of the hamburger on the plate, swallowed it whole, and looked gratefully at the handsome guy sitting opposite him who was younger than him.

"Mr. Eric, I really don't know what to say. We have visited almost all small companies, but no one is willing to invest even if it only takes 1 million dollars."

"Then we went to Warner, Universal, and Paramount, but we were turned away. Even if they wanted the script, they would never agree to let me direct."

James Wan was actually choked up as he spoke. In Hollywood, new actors have the easiest job, followed by new screenwriters, and the hardest job is new directors.

Actors can start out as minor supporting roles, and it’s no big deal if they’re used in the wrong roles. It’s no big deal if you buy the wrong script, the worst that can happen is that it’ll just be thrown away in the warehouse.

But if the director uses it incorrectly, it will definitely be a disaster. The investment in a low-budget movie will cost several million dollars, and a loss may directly drag down a small film and television company.

For example, Josh Trank became famous overnight with the low-budget science fiction movie "Chronicle".

Then 20th Century Fox gave him "The New Fantastic Four", and the result was a piece of shit, causing Fox to lose more than hundreds of millions of dollars.

Superhero blockbusters like this don't have such high requirements for screenwriters. After all, everyone knows the story. The director is the key, and this is the result of using the wrong director.

Of course, this guy wasn't doing much better either. All his subsequent contracts were cancelled, and he fell straight to the bottom. It wasn't until Eric traveled through time that we seemed to hear from him again. This time he disappeared for five years, which shows how terrible the sequelae were.

"Mr. Eric, your courage is absolutely top-notch in Hollywood. It's only been a few hours since we entered MGM, and I don't know what I'm saying anymore," Ray Wonnal said excitedly and awkwardly trying to flatter him.

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Eric laughed and said, "If I'm really grateful, then the best way to repay you is to make a good movie. But before that, we still need to discuss the details."

"First of all, it's a matter of remuneration. I don't want to be troubled by the union afterwards."

Ray Whannell asked tentatively, "Can you really let me play the leading actor?"

"If you insist on doing this, I agree. No one knows what the movie wants to express better than you, but I hope you will think clearly about your position, whether you are an actor or a screenwriter. This is related to your future career planning."

Lei Wonnal nodded and said, "I will consider your opinion. As for the script fee, we will follow the union's minimum standard. I really appreciate your willingness to give us this opportunity."

Eric looked at James Wan again, and he hesitated for a moment before saying, "Can I ask first, what is MGM's budget?"

Eric opened his palm and said, "No more than 5 million US dollars, but the specific figure needs to be discussed within the company."

A smile immediately appeared on James Wan's face: "Then I will do the same as Warner and only take the minimum salary."

Eric was a little surprised: "So, what is the purpose of your asking this question?"

"Mr. Eric, Ray and I have also made an expectation in our minds. If MGM's investment is less than 2 million, we will not ask for any remuneration but only take a share of the profits. This way we can save costs."

"But if it's $4 million or even $5 million, we can go all out and make the music, props, editing and other aspects even more perfect."

"Mr. Eric, what Lei and I really want is an opportunity, a chance to prove ourselves, especially since I'm Chinese, you know."

Eric nodded. It is well known how difficult it is for Chinese people to make a name for themselves in the United States. This is already an open unspoken rule.

"Wen, Cameron was willing to exchange the directing rights of "Terminator" for $1, and he became the king of the world. I believe you will be the next king of the world!"

On the second day of the trial, the editor said that in order to advance, I need to have at least 300 follow-up readers, which means I need to increase by more than 200 readers in three days. I am still far from that goal.

I hope all my brothers can help me a lot! 　　I beg for collection, follow-up reading, reward, monthly ticket, recommendation, and comment. Thank you all!

(End of this chapter)