America: Starting with the acquisition of MGM

Chapter 44 They are coming (please collect it, please read it, please don’t keep books)

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 director Frank Darabont, who was nominated twice for Best Adapted Screenplay at the Oscars and once for Best Picture. He was the director of "The Shawshank Redemption" and "The Green Mile." He was reading a book in his hand. is the script for "The Walking Dead."

Eric gave this script an outline, and it took more than two months to polish it. It took longer than the script of "Transformers" to polish. Finally, I felt it was almost ready. The company also contacted Darabont. Today, the bald director Came to your door as promised.

After taking a long breath, Darabont took a big sip of coffee first. He didn't like sugar, and the bitter taste made his bald head look even more awkward.

"This is a good script. I like the human struggle in the post-apocalyptic world, but it seems it's not perfect enough."

"Frank, what do you want to do?"

"Is there a shooting plan? How is the start time set? I want to know if MGM is in a hurry to shoot."

"The sooner the better, this project has been delayed for a long time and I don't want to miss out on the Emmys next year."

If the Oscar is the highest award for movies, then the Emmy Award is 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 participate in the Emmy Awards, it must at least be on the air before May 31 next year.

It is now early November, and there are only 7 months left for MGM to make full plans. During this period, it still has to go through casting, filming, post-production, and the most important part of selling to a TV station, so time is still very tight.

Darabont pondered for a moment: "Then give me another week, I will change the script! No, enrich the script! It is 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 Greene, you have the final say on the other characters. I trust your vision."

Don’t be suspicious when you employ people, don’t use people when you are suspicious!

Darabont had a smile on his face. Who doesn't like this kind of investor and producer? It's perfect!

The two shook hands and looked 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 "Forgot Who I Am" last year. I originally planned to rely on it to win the Oscar. Jim Carrey also hopes to use this movie to transform into a drama.

But it's a pity that Jim Carrey has indeed had his fill of drama, but the film's reputation and box office success have been huge. Not to mention the Oscar, his face was almost scolded by film critics.

This defeat also cast a shadow on Darabont's resume, and some work was canceled. Hollywood is such a realistic place.

"Maybe it would be good to try a TV series. I hope it can help me open up a new world!"

By late November, "Red Dragon" had been put into production, and the final global box office was less than 310 million.

This is the end of the "Silence of the Lambs" trilogy. The total box office of the trilogy was 950 million US dollars. Although it did not reach 1 billion, which is a bit regretful, it can be regarded as a perfect ending.

The crew held a celebration party, which Eric also attended, during which they wanted to invite Anthony Hopkins to play the role of Secretary of Defense in "Transformers".

However, the old man was worried that the sudden transformation from an ogre to the Minister of Defense would make the audience unable to adapt, so he refused.

Eric really wanted to work with him, but Hopkins insisted on his own opinion.

I have no choice but to look for opportunities in the future. Anyway, this old man is an evergreen tree. He will still be in better health in 2023. There is still a lot of time.

"Barbershop" has been released for a week, and a movie starring all black people will naturally not worry about the box office. Although the trend of political correctness is not as strong as it was more than ten years ago, and it is not as exaggerated as in "Black Panther 2", but black brothers They still went into the cinema as friends, as black movies were rare.

With the help of the gangsters, "Barbershop" grossed nearly 30 million US dollars at the box office in its first weekend, and the production cost was more than 8 million US dollars, so it has already made a profit.

Moreover, this film has been minimally affected by the impact of blockbusters. If this trend continues, it will not be difficult to collect a global box office of 70 to 80 million. It is a typical example of making a big difference with a small amount.

"Die Another Day" also completed its opening weekend, and Eric attended the premiere on behalf of MGM.

This is the 20th film in the 007 series and the last one by Pierce Brosnan. Halle Berry, the Black Pearl, and Rosamund Pike, who is well-known to Chinese audiences for "Gone Girl," are both involved.

I am familiar with these three people, especially Pei Chunhua. She is only 23 years old now, the age when apples are just ripe.

Eric exchanged contact information with them and agreed to work together if there was an opportunity.

On the "Transformers" side, the Ministry of National Defense was very satisfied with the plan provided by MGM, and my father also gave a lot of gifts, so after just one discussion meeting, the military gave the green light.

MGM is allowed to enter military bases for real-life shooting, and can borrow necessary weapons and equipment such as current US military main battle tanks, fighter planes, and gunboats to help with filming.

At the same time, the army's internal training videos will be handed over to MGM to facilitate post-production synthesis of the movie. After all, you can't really fight a war just to make a movie.

MGM only had to pay 10 million US dollars for this. This price can be said to be so cheap that even a few parts of the F22 can't be purchased.

The only requirement of the Ministry of National Defense is that they need to review the film before it is completed, and they must ensure a positive image of the US military and there must be no stains.

Several sponsors have already signed contracts. For example, the mobile phone implant was won by Nokia. MGM promised to create a Transformers specifically for Nokia, and the appearance time will be no less than 5 minutes.

Nokia will have to pay US$7.5 million in advertising fees for this, which seems very expensive, but this is because Nokia will launch a new smartphone next year, and the combination of the two will create a hit.

The price of Weta Digital has also been negotiated. Peter Jackson agreed to reduce the price by US$50,000 per second. The price is that the release time of "Transformers" must not conflict with "Lord of the Rings 3", and the two releases should be staggered by at least three weeks.

At the same time, the special effects for subsequent works in the "Transformers" series will also be done by Weta Digital. Everyone will benefit from each other and make money together.

Peter Jackson's request is not excessive, and Eric does not want to compete head-on with the monster "Lord of the Rings 3". After the preparation of the first two films, everyone knows that "Lord of the Rings 3" is going to kill everyone.

Faced with the Hobbits, to be honest, Eric had little confidence in the Autobots.

While all preparations were underway at a rapid pace, the audition for the leading actor, which had been warmed up for a long time, also began.

In the MGM building, the front desk lady was already dazzled. Countless handsome guys, both familiar and unknown, passed by her eyes. All types of guys simply fulfilled all her fantasies on the boat.

Checked out the registration board: James Franco, Ryan Gosling, Jake Gyllenhaal, Heath Ledger, Chris Evans, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Ben Foster, Shia LaBeouf, Mai But Fassbender, James McAvoy, Tom Hardy