Exploiting Hollywood 1980

"Are you okay? I heard a lot of people talking about you. It seems that there are some problems with Malkovich." Ronald called Michelle Pfeiffer. It was not convenient for him to visit her. If he was involved in the scandal between Pfeiffer and Malkovich, it would be troublesome.

"Nothing, my agent has handled it for me. I just can't go out now."

Michelle Pfeiffer was curled up on the sofa at home. She was very happy to have friends care about her.

"You and Peter..." Ronald pretended to care for a while.

"We broke up peacefully. He helped me pack all my luggage, took it out of the house, and helped me load it into the car."

Well, if I can get the division of Kang Kai's property and the monthly alimony paid by the man before he finds a girlfriend, it will be like this. Ronald thought. "Then are you still in touch with John (Malkovich)?"

"Oh, this piece of shit, I don't want to mention this person anymore." Michelle Pfeiffer was furious when she heard the name.

Malkovich seemed to be possessed. After filming the movie and leaving the environment, he still entangled himself. Now he was followed by gossip reporters when he went to see a psychologist twice a week, so he couldn't go out.

"The script of that movie seemed to be possessed. I don't know how I fell in love with him. It seems that another young couple in the crew also..." Michelle Pfeiffer had no one to talk to, and Ronald was an insider, so she talked to him on the phone for a long time.

A movie about abnormal love, shot in Paris far away from home, not only Pfeiffer was obsessed. Another young actor, Uma Thurman, also had a good impression of Keanu Reeves, who played the tutor and bravely dueled with Count Valmont.

Ronald listened to Pfeiffer's complaints for a while. He called mainly to ask about the situation. If this situation continued, the movie "Steel Magnolias" would have to change the role. He found an opportunity to interrupt Pfeiffer. "Then you can still..."

"It's okay, Ronald. If you want to replace someone, I understand. I can't go anywhere now. If I go to shoot Steel Magnolias, I will be followed by reporters and will have to camp outside the shooting location. Just like now, they are setting up tents in front of my house. If that happens, you can't even shoot the movie."

Pfeiffer's biggest problem now is to deal with her personal marriage and emotional problems. Her agent Limato has explained other things to her clearly. For the time being, she should keep a low profile to prevent someone from taking the opportunity to cause trouble.

After agreeing with Pfeiffer, Ronald has solved half of the problem. He looked at the audition photos and resumes of several substitute actresses on the table and began to consider.

One resume is from William Morris' Limato, Pfeiffer's agent, who personally recommended a young actress to replace Michelle Pfeiffer. It is a client of his colleague Yin Lane Goldsmith, an equally young female agent.

The actress is Julia Roberts, just 21 years old, with a charming smile and a big but not annoying mouth. Ronald remembered that the aborted project of Anglee was to ask her to play the role of a prostitute who witnessed a murder, and he almost had the opportunity to direct her.

Another audition photo was recommended by Ovitz of CAA. This actress is already 24 years old, but she doesn't look old. She has no problem playing a newlywed girl and a mother of a child.

More importantly, she is Bridget Fonda, the niece of actress Jane Fonda, who originally bought Ronald's debut script, and the daughter of Jane's brother Peter Fonda. If the two can act together, then there will be a gimmick of aunt and niece co-starring to attract the attention of some fans.

After looking over and over for a long time, Ronald's eyes were still attracted by Julia Roberts. Julia Roberts in the audition photo has a fragile temperament, as if she will be broken by some hardship at any time. It fits well with the tragic fate of the heroine of Steel Magnolias.

There are always some mysterious similarities between siblings. Strangely enough, Julia's brother, Eric Roberts, who played the only movie that Cannon has been nominated for an Oscar for acting, "Runaway Train", also has this kind of fragile and persistent temperament. Just like Peter and Jane Fonda, both are suitable for playing characters on the margins of society.

Unlike when you are a director, you only need to focus on who is most suitable for the role and use one standard to select actors. When you are a producer, you have to pursue a balance between art and commerciality. Ronald picked up Bridget Fonda's resume again and weighed it...

...

A few days later, in the audition room, Ronald sat on the right, with screenwriter Robert Haring in the middle and director Herbert Ross on the left. He didn't watch the other auditions on the program, and mainly observed the performance of the two actual candidates.

"I've seen Julia Roberts' performance in Modern Cinderella (the English title is actually called Mystic Pizza), and no one is more suitable than her."

Director Herbert Ross had many complaints about Ronald, and his own production company wanted to invest in this movie and occupy a certain share. But Ronald was unwilling to withdraw some of the investment quota for him and insisted on the agreement he had reached with screenwriter Robert Haring.

He saw the niece of Jane Fonda, who was close to Ronald, and was naturally opposed to this choice. In his opinion, filming is a zero-sum game where you have more and I have less. On the set, the more people Ronald has, the fewer people he has, and the less likely it is that the director's intention will be implemented.

"Let's talk about it after we have seen the candidates." Ronald did not comment. In addition to the personal factors, there is also the balance of several major agencies. Michelle Pfeiffer is a client of William Morris. If it is replaced by someone from CAA, the entire project may be dominated by CAA, and it is possible that its influence will exceed theirs.

"Hello, Bridget, I know your aunt very well, but whether you can get this role depends on your performance." Herbert Ross said this and glanced at Ronald. After the little girl Bridget came in, he spoke first and stated his standards.

Ronald frowned, but still smiled kindly at Bridget Fonda, don't scare her. Although she appeared in her father's movies when she was a few years old, she has not performed in any film and television dramas since then. "Do you need some time to prepare? Let's start when you are ready."

"I'm ready," Bridget smiled at Ronald. She is a talented woman, so she didn't debut in her teens like other actresses. She first got a diploma from Tisch College of New York University before turning to Hollywood.

"What do you think?" After the audition, Ronald asked screenwriter Robert Haring, who was sitting between him and Herbert Ross. Director Ross would definitely oppose his opinion, and the main creator of this movie was actually the screenwriter, so his ideas were also very important.

"I think she's good, her acting is excellent, and the scene where she met her fiancé was also the first time the audience was happy when the show was released on Broadway." Robert Haring knows acting, and he gave Bridget Fonda high marks.

"Please come in next." Herbert Ross didn't say anything. What happened to this damn screenwriter? He actually supported Ronald. He played a trick and didn't give Ronald a chance to comment. He called in Julia Roberts directly.

"Oh, God." As soon as the screenwriter saw Julia Roberts coming in, he blurted out in a low voice, "Too much like, too much like temperament..."

Looking at the look Ronald cast over, screenwriter Robert Haring just apologized, his eyes were on Roberts, looking up and down.

"If you're ready, you can start." Ronald also smiled and said to the actress with a small mole next to her nose.

Julia Roberts smiled. The screenwriter's reaction just now made her a little nervous. Was it because of her appearance? However, she was a girl who would become braver when faced with setbacks. Her unyielding character made her work harder...

"She acted very sincerely..." Herbert Ross thought for a long time after Julia Roberts' audition before he came up with a reason to praise her.

It was obvious that Roberts was a little too much. In terms of the acting skills taught by the academic school, she was not as good as Bridget Fonda before. Even the director who liked him could not deny this.

However...

Ronald asked screenwriter Robert Haring, "Do you want to have a special opinion on her performance?"

"Yes, when she first walked in, I felt that she was very similar to my sister's temperament. That kind of strength, that kind of stubbornness, desperate for love, and a fragile core. But her acting skills?"

Robert Haring also saw Julia Roberts' fragile character from her appearance and temperament, which made men want to protect her. Moreover, her face shape is suitable for movie lenses, and her smile is friendly. It is estimated that the audience will like the close-up of her smile.

"I said, Robert thinks so too. Movie casting originally requires an appearance that can be loved by the camera." Herbert Ross did not expect the screenwriter to stand on his side, and was a little overjoyed.

Taking out the video recorder used for the audition, several people watched the performance of the two in front of the camera in front of the TV.

This feeling is even more obvious!

Bridget Fonda's performance in the camera is worse than her real life. This niece of Jane Fonda inherited too much of her father Peter's square chin and her mother's round face, and did not inherit the small and delicate face of her grandfather and aunt.

Julia Roberts has a small face and a delicate chin, which is very suitable for movie lenses. In a way, she looks more like her aunt Jane than Bridget.

Ronald struggled in his heart and gave up the idea of ​​using Bridget Jones against his will, although he was sure he could do this. The opinion of screenwriter Robert Haring is very important. The heroine is his sister. The reason why this Broadway play is loved by the audience is mainly because of the touching family affection between his sister's role and many "mothers".

This first feeling is indeed the key to the success of this kind of movie without too much dramatic conflict. The audience must fall in love with the characters at first sight in order to be moved by them. The tragedy of the heroine's unfortunate death in the end can move the audience.

…

"Yes, Bridget is not very suitable for this role. The other girl's acting skills are not as good as hers, but her appeal is amazing. The most important thing is that she looks a lot like the screenwriter's sister, the prototype of the character. You know this kind of movie relies a lot on affinity and first impressions..."

Ronald called Jane Fonda to say hello. Although Jane's relationship with her brother Peter is average, she still takes good care of her niece.

Like other Hollywood superstars, she doesn't like her relatives and younger generations to join the entertainment industry and fight in this extremely competitive industry. But when the younger generation is still attracted by the "Choose Me" of Vanity Fair, after choosing to be an actor, she also tries to give some support.

"Ha, I know, her chin." Jane Fonda felt the same regret as Ronald about her niece's face shape. Although in real life, Brigitte's appearance is more in line with the public's aesthetics than Hollywood actresses, the distortion of the lens makes her face look big and round on the screen.

"Since Brigitte is not acting anymore, I have no obligation to do so. I'd better take a break now, Ronald, you know, my presence on the set now may not be good for your movie."

"I know, I know, I will find someone else to replace your role." Ronald knew that this was also as it should be. Jane Fonda came to play a supporting role, entirely to help her niece and because of her good relationship with Ronald.

She is now in similar trouble with Michelle Pfeiffer. The relationship with her husband Hayden of 15 years has gradually cooled, and the two are gradually in a state of separation. Not long ago, she was found dating Lorenzo Casillas, a player of the Hollywood Kickers in the West Coast Football League and a transfer from the Italian League, and is hiding from the limelight.

…

After deciding on the heroine, Ronald basically let it go. The heroine's mother finally chose Sally Field, who won two Oscars like Jane Fonda. Olympia Dukakis and Shirley MacLaine played two of Sally Field's old girlfriends.

The male lead was chosen by a handsome man named Dylan McDermott, who played Julia Roberts' husband. Tom Skerritt, the flight school instructor in Top Gun, was chosen to play Sally Field's husband and Julia Roberts' father.

Another young female character in the whole play, the girl who escaped from marriage and came to the small town and finally worked in a hair salon, was the quota reserved for Ronald's female friends.

This role requires some acting skills, and her image was a little sacrificed at the beginning. She wore big glasses and deliberately made herself ugly to stay away from violent men like her husband, so she didn't look very good.

She later got rid of her abusive husband and met and got married with a man in the town at Shelby's (Julia Roberts) wedding. It was not until the end of the film that she regained her good looks. In the end, she named her unborn child Shelby, giving the story a hopeful ending. This role is a bit like Tom Cruise's role in "Rain Man". It is the introduction to the whole story, and becomes the center of the story at the end. This woman who escaped from marriage in a foreign land is actually the twin shadow of the protagonist Shelby.

Shelby has a mother, friends and lover who love her. She only has a husband who abuses her and an indifferent family. In the entire drama structure, it is a character that turns from tragedy to a beautiful ending. It is a corresponding relationship with Shelby's wedding at the beginning and her unfortunate death after giving birth to a son in the end.

This kind of pleasing role, ugly at the beginning, can win the love of film critics, and several dramatic turns are drawn from her. Ronald of course let Diane Lane choose first. After all, among young female friends, only she has this kind of compound acting ability.

】

"Is this role reserved for me?" Diane had just finished filming the TV mini-series "Lonely Dove Town" and was resting in Los Angeles. Seeing Ronald coming to her with the script, she was overjoyed.

Sometimes, an actor's fate will be greatly different if he or she is just one or two roles short. After playing many uninteresting roles, this time, she can finally play an important role in a big production with a large number of female stars. This marks that Diane can return to the mainstream production of Hollywood.

Although Lonesome Dove is not bad, it is a TV series. Steel Magnolias is a movie after all, and there are two Oscar winners and one best supporting actress in it. This is a movie that is destined to be liked by film critics. There are so many old actors playing opposite each other, and her role is not less than Julia Roberts who plays Shelby. M..

Diane felt a sense of joy coming out directly from the bottom of her heart. After so many years since she played "The Urchin" in the past, she can finally appear in a big production in Hollywood. She hugged Ronald directly, closed her eyes, and waited for her lover to kiss her.

Ronald was also very happy to see Diane so happy. On the closed eyes, the long eyelashes were shaking gently, and Ronald felt that Diane's eyelids were shaking with excitement.

Before Diane could get a kiss, her trembling eyelids revealed her excitement. Suddenly, she felt a pang of sadness and couldn't help but burst into tears.

"What's wrong with you?" Ronald gently wiped her tears away.

"I'm just too excited." Diane simply hugged Ronald's body, and a warm feeling came over her, making her feel that she could rely on him.

The two of them snuggled up for a long time, and Ronald also felt that Diane's body gradually stopped shaking and returned to calm.

"I want to ask you something," Diane showed a rare embarrassment, "I'm not greedy, but why don't you let me audition for the role of Shelby?"

Ronald hugged Diane and said with a smile, "This role is the focus of the dispute between me and director Herbert. I originally wanted you to audition, but the screenwriter Robert Haring particularly likes Julia Roberts. If I insist, he may lean towards the director, and you may not get the role.

After all, this is not a project led by me personally. The production budget is 15 million, and there are so many actresses to find, which requires some balance."

"Well, I know. Anyway, if this role is played well, the depth will not be worse than Shelby." Diane has been studying acting recently, and there was an Off-Broadway troupe that invited her to perform in a new play. Of course, she knows what she is doing, and she can tell at a glance that this is the configuration of the shadow heroine, and maybe it will leave a better impression on the audience than the heroine in the open.

"Hey, hey... I'm glad you can understand. I haven't reached the point in Hollywood where no one objects to what I say." Ronald exhaled a breath and finally managed to deal with it.

He didn't let Diane play this Shelby, and he had another reason that he couldn't tell anyone.

The actor who plays with Shelby and plays his husband must be a handsome and earth-shaking man. Otherwise, it is difficult to explain why Shelby insisted on giving birth to a biological child for her husband despite the doctor's opposition.

In Shelby's parents' consent to his daughter and in his three pre-marital agreements, Shelby cannot have children, and they are going to adopt a child.

A man who has accomplished nothing can make Shelby, one of the richest families in a small southern town, turn against her mother in order to have a biological child for him. She must take the risk of having a child. He must be very handsome to make Shelby afraid of losing him and agree to such conditions.

Dylan McDermott, who was chosen to play this role, has a first-class appearance even among male actors.

Actresses are afraid that the fake will become real when acting. The plot of the movie is the kind of transcendental that you can't encounter in real life. When shooting such a romantic love scene, there are uncontrollable risks.

Even a beauty like Michelle Pfeiffer can fall in love with an ugly man like John Malkovich because of the plot. This handsome guy Ronald is even more worried.

"Ronald, you are a man of your word." After learning the good news about his daughter, Diane's father, Burt, also called to thank him.

At that time, Burt had entrusted his daughter's career in Hollywood to Ronald because his daughter's acting career was brought to a low point by Coppola. He knew that the big director route he arranged for his daughter had failed. How could he not see that this movie, where many actresses play supporting roles for two young women, was an opportunity Ronald specially arranged for his daughter?

"This is a good opportunity. Film critics will like this kind of complex and transformative role. I arranged a spoken language coach for Diane. During this period, she concentrated on learning the southern Dixie accent. I remember that her grandmother was from Tennessee, so it shouldn't be difficult for her." Ronald did a great job in this regard.

"Hey, Diane's mother still loves her very much. Before, she opposed her becoming an actress because she felt that Diane had paid too much in Hollywood and had no opportunities. Now their relationship is much better. This is also my fault. It was because I didn't find a good enough Hollywood opportunity for Diane's mother back then..."

Bert was very emotional. Ronald did what he couldn't do back then. If he hadn't given his wife the opportunity to be a movie star, she wouldn't have divorced him and left him to drive a taxi to raise his daughter.

...

"Ronald, you are really a man of your word." Another female star also praised Ronald.

Jane Fonda withdrew from the project, and several mother-level roles were re-assigned, so there was still one less female owner of a hair salon to play.

Ronald finally chose country singer Dolly Parton. She had worked with Jane Fonda in Nine to Five, and her hot body was impressive. When she starred in the brothel owner in "Chicken House in Texas", she was filming with Ronald in the next studio.

At that time, she joked and asked Ronald to give her a role. Unexpectedly, many years later, Ronald actually invited her to play this role that fits her personality very well. She ran away from marriage in her early years and came to the town to do hair for women, becoming a true friend of many women in the town. She was actually an early version of the role played by Diane. At that time, people's acceptance of hair salons was not as high as it is now, and this drama is full of such elaborate designs.

However, this casting made director Herbert Ross very unhappy.

He couldn't stand this female singer who had no acting skills at all to play an important supporting role. He found Ronald and started to spray.

"Dolly Parton, can she act? You know she can't? This is a Broadway adaptation, not your B-grade exploitation film! Does Dolly Parton have anything outstanding besides her breasts? Is there anything higher than others besides her high notes?

If you mention Diane Lane, I agree. After all, she was a child star on Broadway and was mentored by George Royne Hill (director of Diane's debut film, Sunset Bridge), and was also chosen by Coppola. Her acting skills can't be too bad. Dolly Parton sang and danced to fill the roles in 9 to 5 and Texas Chicken House. You want me to let the female owner of the hair salon sing a song or dance in Steel Magnolias?"

Herbert Ross, who had been holding back his anger since the beginning of the project, had reached the peak and couldn't stand it anymore. Nothing about this project was as good as he wanted. I had no right to decide on the casting, no share in the investment, and my fiancée would put on airs from time to time and invite a lot of New York celebrities to the wedding.

If it weren't for the aura of being a film director, which allowed him to maintain a bit of dignity in front of his fiancée, it would still be a question whether their wedding could be held... Now Ronald actually wants to shoot this serious Broadway drama as a musical, which makes him furious...

"No, there will be no singing and dancing. I promise you, director to director." Ronald saw that the old director Herbert was angry and seemed to be about to give up, so he immediately promised sincerely, "This is purely an artistic and commercial consideration."

Ronald explained. Dolly Parton's recent album seems to be rejuvenated. After a long period of decline, country music has rebounded this year and has repeatedly entered the top ten on the charts.

Moreover, this kind of country music is the favorite of audiences in conservative areas of the South. Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer taught him that the audience represented by Oklahoma's parents like this tune.

Dolly Parton's participation will definitely attract a large number of southern audiences to the cinema. Moreover, this character is carefree, yearning for romance and very emotional, which is 70% similar to Dolly Parton herself. She has no children and has the same emotional experience as Dolly Parton herself.

Dolly Parton is not a talented actor like Cher. In fact, she is only a semi-amateur actor and can only play suitable roles in her true colors.

"I want the right to make decisions on the set." Herbert Ross gradually calmed down, but he didn't trust Dolly Parton, an idiot in acting. Thinking that he would be interfered with on the set, he simply took this opportunity to ask Ronald for power.

"Of course, you are the director. I will not go to the crew every day without your consent. Of course, if you agree, I also want to go to the set to learn. You know I am not an actor like you, and I have the opportunity to learn from the director on the spot."

Ronald still respected Herbert Ross's ability to complete the project. He may not be able to make a 100-point script of 80 points. But it can run smoothly and will never make a 60-point script of 80 points.

"In addition, the distributor TriStar Pictures has given very good conditions. They are willing to pay 6 million US dollars, but only occupy 5 million of the investment quota, and the remaining 1 million is your choice. You can use the director's salary to invest, or convert it into box office dividends."

Ronald then put out the bait. If you feel wronged in art, you have to make up for it in terms of remuneration.

This time, TriStar Pictures, like "Cesare", only talked about investment and did not ask for conditions for Ronald's project. They gave the best conditions in the industry, as if they were afraid that Ronald would be regarded as a failure if he did not choose them as the distributor.

They were willing to be in the third round of dividends. After screenwriter Robert Harlin's production company and Ronald's Daydream took the dividends, they used the profit minus the dividends of the two parties as the calculation basis for their dividends. In this way, if the domestic box office does not have a big hit and exceeds 50 million US dollars, TriStar Pictures may not make any money.

Ronald was very touched that the other party valued him so much, and also mobilized the strongest resources he could mobilize to do this project, and even the smallest supporting role was perfect. As a producer, he wanted to create an environment for artists to produce excellent works.

He had found a shooting location in Louisiana, equipped with the best facilities and team, to repay the trust of TriStar Pictures and all artists.

This star-studded masterpiece, which was shot for the first time by Daydream, Ronald wanted to make it a benchmark.

"This..." Herbert Ross didn't expect Ronald to give him an investment quota. He hesitated.

Originally, he wanted his production company to invest in the creation, but this was the last round of investment share after all. You want him to guarantee that the box office of the movie can reach more than 60 million to get more money than the salary. Herbert Ross didn't have the confidence to take the risk.

Moreover, after the filming of the movie, his wedding with the former president's sister-in-law will be held, so it's better to put the money in the bag.

"I'd better take the salary. How much dividend can I get?"

"Hahaha, a lot," Ronald smiled happily. Only a capable producer can take risks and enjoy this kind of excess profit. "If our box office is good enough, your salary plus dividends will not be less than Sidney Pollack in "Tootsie." "

"I believe you are a man of your word." Herbert Ross was satisfied, not only because he had money to take, but also because Ronald compared him with Sidney Pollack, who was regarded by critics as the second most capable Jewish director (the first is Spielberg).

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