Chapter 42 44. They are coming (Please collect, please read, please don’t support the book)
MGM Tower.
Eric quietly drank the coffee in front of him, waiting for the other party to finish reading the script.
Sitting opposite him was Frank Darabont, a director who was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay twice and Best Picture once, and the director of "The Shawshank Redemption" and "The Green Mile". He was reading the script of "The Walking Dead".
This script has been polished for more than two months since Eric gave the outline, which was longer than the polishing time of the "Transformers" script. Finally, we felt that it was almost ready. The company also contacted Darabont, and today the bald director came as promised.
After taking a long breath, Darabont first took a big sip of coffee. He didn't like adding sugar, and the bitter taste made his bald head look even more twisted.
“This is a good script. I like the struggle of humanity in the end times, but it seems to be incomplete.”
"Frank, what do you want to do?"
"Are there any plans for filming? How is the start date set? I want to know if MGM is in a hurry to film."
"The sooner the better. This project has been delayed for a long time, and I don't want to miss the Emmy Awards next year."
If the Oscars are the highest award for movies, then the Emmys are the highest award for TV series.
Although the Emmy Awards ceremony is usually held in September, the works that can be selected are excerpts from June 1 of the previous year to May 31 of this year.
In other words, if "The Walking Dead" wants to be nominated for the Emmy Awards, it must at least be aired before May 31 next year.
It is now early November, and MGM only has seven months left, during which time there are still casting, shooting, post-production, and the most important step of selling the film to TV stations, so time is still very tight.
Darabont groaned for a moment. "Then give me another week. I want to revise the script! No, I want to enrich the script! It's already great. All I can do is polish it."
Eric nodded: "Okay."
"Also, how much say do I have in casting?"
"Except for the role of Maggie Green, you have the final say on the other roles. I trust your vision."
Employ people with confidence, and don't employ people who you doubt! Darabont smiled. Who wouldn't like this kind of investor and producer? It's perfect! The two shook hands. Looking at Eric's young face, Darabont couldn't help but sigh: "What a courageous young man!"
On the other hand, I invited Jim Carrey to film the movie "Forget Who I Am" last year. I had planned to win an Oscar with it, and Jim Carrey also hoped to transform into a serious drama with this movie.
But unfortunately, Jim Carrey really got his fill of acting, but the movie failed both at the box office and reputation, not to mention an Oscar. He was almost covered in shame from all the scolding from the critics.
This failure also cast a shadow on Darabont's resume, and some jobs were canceled. Hollywood is such a realistic place.
"Maybe it's a good idea to try TV dramas. I hope it can help me open up a new world!"
By late November, Red Dragon had already been taken off the screen, and its final global box office was less than $310 million.
The "Silence of the Lambs" trilogy has come to an end. The total box office of the trilogy is 950 million US dollars. Although it did not reach 1 billion, which is a bit regrettable, it is also a perfect ending.
The crew held a celebration party, and Eric also attended. During the party, he wanted to invite Anthony Hopkins to play the Secretary of Defense in "Transformers".
However, the old man was worried that the audience would not be able to adapt to his sudden transformation from an ogre to the Minister of Defense, so he refused.
Eric really wanted to work with him, but Hopkins insisted on his own opinion.
There is no other way, I can only look for another opportunity later. Anyway, this old man is an evergreen, and he will be in good health in 2023, so there is still a lot of time.
"Barbershop" has been released for a week, and a movie starring all black people naturally has no worries about box office. Although the trend of political correctness is not as strong as it will be more than ten years later, and not as exaggerated as "Black Panther 2", black guys still go to the cinema with their friends, and black movies are rare.
With the help of its black buddies, "Barbershop" grossed nearly $30 million in its first weekend, and the production cost was more than $8 million, so it already made a profit.
Moreover, this film has been minimally affected by the impact of blockbuster movies. If it continues on this trend, it will not be difficult to earn 70 to 80 million yuan at the global box office. It is a typical example of making a small profit with a big return.
"Die Another Day" also completed its first weekend of release, and Eric attended the premiere on behalf of MGM.
This is the twentieth film in the 007 series and the last one for Pierce Brosnan. Black Pearl Halle Berry and Rosamund Pike, who is well-known to Chinese audiences for "Gone Girl", both participated in the film.
I have become familiar with these three, especially Rosamund Pike. She is only 23 years old now, the age when an apple is just ripe.
Eric exchanged contact information with them and agreed to work together if possible.
On the "Transformers" side, the Department of Defense was very satisfied with the proposal put forward by MGM, and my father also gave a lot, so after only one discussion meeting, the military gave the green light.
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MGM is allowed to enter military bases for actual filming, and can borrow the U.S. military’s main battle tanks, fighter jets, gunboats and other necessary weapons and equipment to assist in filming.
At the same time, the army’s internal training videos will be handed over to MGM to facilitate post-production synthesis of the film. After all, a real war cannot be fought just to make a movie.
MGM only needs to pay 10 million US dollars for this, which is so cheap that you can't even buy a few parts of the F22.
The only requirement of the Ministry of Defense is that they need to review the film before it is released and must ensure a positive image of the US military without any stains.
Several sponsors have already signed contracts. For example, Nokia has won the mobile phone placement. MGM has promised to create a Transformer specifically for Nokia, and the appearance time will not be less than 5 minutes.
Nokia will pay $7.5 million in advertising fees for this, which seems expensive, but this is because Nokia is going to launch a new smartphone next year, and the combination of the two will create a hit.
Weta Digital also reached an agreement on the price. Peter Jackson agreed to reduce the price by $15,000 per second. The price was that the release time of "Transformers" must not conflict with "The Lord of the Rings 3", and the two must be released at least three weeks apart.
At the same time, the special effects of subsequent works in the "Transformers" series will also be handed over to Weta Digital. Everyone will benefit from it and make money together.
Peter Jackson's demands were not excessive, and Eric had no intention of confronting the monster "The Lord of the Rings 3" head-on. After the foreshadowing of the first two films, everyone knew that "The Lord of the Rings 3" was going to be a killer.
Facing the Hobbits, to be honest, Eric had little confidence in the Autobots.
While all the preparations were progressing at a rapid pace, the long-awaited auditions for the leading actor also began.
Inside the MGM building, the receptionist was already dazzled as countless handsome guys, both familiar and unfamiliar, passed by her. All types of guys satisfied all her fantasies on the ship.
I looked at the sign-in board: James Franco, Ryan Gosling, Jake Gyllenhaal, Heath Ledger, Chris Evans, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Ben Foster, Shia LaBeouf, Michael Fassbender, James McAvoy, Tom Hardy. (End of this chapter)