1536 Pushing the envelope
Regarding Renly's salary negotiations for joining the "Jurassic Park" reboot project, Steven Spielberg and Frank Marshall officially expressed their stance, and Ron Meyer officially nodded, but Thomas Tull is still playing tricks and scheming. , started a head-to-head confrontation with Andy Rogers, and seemed to refuse to compromise until the last moment..
As the CEO of Legendary Pictures, Thomas is able to navigate among many elites on Wall Street with ease. Is he really just mindlessly messing around?？
Obviously not.
Now let’s look back at the reason why Legendary Pictures and Warner Bros. parted ways. It was not because of the uneven distribution of interests between the two parties, nor because of Kevin Tsujihara’s exclusion of dissidents, but because Thomas’ ambitious blueprint failed to convince Kevin. In the end, Thomas simply tore up the contract and turned around and ran away..
Thomas hopes to gain more real power.
It's not just about sitting behind the screen and making calculations and judgments about which works to invest in and which ones to reject; it's about being able to appear in front of the camera and truly become the producer of the crew, controlling the life and death of those top Hollywood actors, and walking the stage. On the top of Vanity Fair's pyramid.
Just like Frank Marshall.
To put it simply, Thomas is no longer satisfied with dealing with numbers. He needs to deal with people and win more attention and presence with more exposure. He needs to become a truly powerful figure, just like "The Truman Show" Directors in "World" generally control the lives of those actors.
The newly appointed Kevin Tsujihara refused to dilute his power because he knew that Thomas was an ambitious tycoon and would only interfere in more and more things in the future, and the last thing Kevin needed now was another thorn in his side. Challenge your own authority, even if you lose the support of Legendary Pictures.
Thomas, who was sharpening his skills, also refused to compromise again. He was tit-for-tat and never gave in. The turmoil in the top management of Warner Bros. was the best opportunity for him. If he missed it, he would no longer have it. Either he would get the job smoothly, or he would take the opportunity to anger Kevin. And to terminate the contract, no matter what the answer is, it is in line with his expectations..
In the end, the "breakup" between Legendary Pictures and Warner Bros. can be said to be a complete breakup, rather than a peaceful letting go that both parties reached a consensus on. The scene was very ugly, and the friendly forces directly turned into the enemy..
When choosing Universal Pictures, Thomas had already emphasized his position and requirements to Lang Meyer. Therefore, during the negotiation process of the "Jurassic Park" restart project, Thomas was always tough, while Lang Meyer always compromised. Because this is the first project that both parties have decided to cooperate on, and everything is based on peace..
Objectively speaking, Thomas had no intention of targeting Renly, but the timing was just right and he encountered an important turning point..
On the one hand, Thomas refuses to be the one to open the salary floodgates, which is definitely not a good start for his "producer" career; on the other hand, Thomas needs to have more say and initiative , officially establishing his image as a powerful producer, tough and ruthless, speaking his mind and never compromising easily or refusing to give in easily..
Although this description is not appropriate, Thomas does not mean to "kill the chicken to scare the monkey". Even facing Warner Brothers, Thomas dared to confront Warner Brothers, let alone Renly.？
Or maybe it’s explained from Thomas’s perspective, but Renly was unlucky and hit his own gun..
Therefore, even though Universal Pictures had held an internal meeting to determine the result, Thomas still did not give in easily. During the conversation with Andy, he clearly stated his position, further applied pressure, and showed his But the problem is that Thomas uses Wall Street methods to determine his prestige, which may not be popular in Hollywood..
At least Steven and Frank don't buy it.
As early as after the internal meeting at Universal Pictures, Steven sent an email to Renly, informing him of the ins and outs of the matter, and taking the initiative to advise him.：
“If you ultimately refuse to participate in this production, I will not blame you for your decision. In fact, I think Thomas lacks respect for you and you should raise the price even further. If there are negative rumors in the industry, I will personally defend you. Clarification. God, I'm really fed up with these Wall Street elites, always so self-righteous. Art is not numbers. They should learn that.”
At the beginning, Steven teamed up with two friends to co-found DreamWorks. At its peak, it was the seventh largest film company in Hollywood. However, it unfortunately ended up being split up and sold. A large part of the reason was because they rejected the offer of Wall Street giants. Funding and control.
Although DreamWorks has produced countless popular and box-office hits, there are also many works that failed miserably at the box office. There were problems with the capital chain, and subsequent investment and operations gradually began to fail to keep up. As a result, the film department and animation department were in trouble in 2004. After the split in 2006, Paramount and Universal Pictures launched a rush to buy the film department in 2006, and Paramount came from behind to win..
Going around and around, Steven once again had a head-to-head confrontation with Thomas, who acted according to Wall Street. Naturally, he was also full of complaints and dissatisfaction..
In fact, Renly was not able to see the email in the first place - his habit has not changed. The email is simply used as a trash can. If Matthew hadn't learned the news when he helped sort out the email regularly, I'm afraid Renly would still be in the dark. in the dark; but even if Renly knew the situation immediately, he wouldn't care too much.
Renly has always maintained a relaxed and open mind about his salary and "Jurassic Park": if I gain it, I am lucky; if I lose it, I am destined. In terms of the mentality of commercial films and art films, Renly has made corresponding adjustments. adjustment——
He is now open to all possibilities and accepts different roles and scripts; at the same time, the sense of urgency and tension has been relatively relaxed. If he misses a role or a movie, there will always be a next time. There is no need to be too anxious. .Slowly, he is beginning to enjoy his career as an actor, one person has a thousand faces? This is a good challenge.
At this time, facing Andy's astonishment, Renly lightly shrugged, "Don't worry, I know it won't be long. Moreover, my news updates are not as timely as yours..”
Andy felt a dull pain in his forehead..
“So, what are the conditions Thomas is giving now? You just said that he has agreed to your request, right? "Renly changed the subject with a smile on his face and returned to business..
Andy took a long breath, calmed down his mind, and regained his composure, "Yes, he has nodded in agreement now, but I need to see more sincerity, otherwise I will not recommend you to star in this film. Works. After we actually start shooting in the future, we will inevitably encounter more problems. We must draw the bottom line now..”
“What's more, the protagonist of 'Jurassic Park' is originally a dinosaur. If it weren't for Steven's relationship, I don't think you have to participate at all. You are just a supporting role in the movie, just like Megan Fox and Shia- LaBeouf is the same as in 'Transformers', running and running, nothing special. I think you deserve a better choice.”
“Who still remembers the actors who starred in 'Jurassic Park'? All the images that come to my mind are of Tyrannosaurus rex, and I don’t remember the rest at all. Oh, yes, Julianne Moore once starred in the third film, but even she is such an excellent actor, she was also overwhelmed, Isn't it?？”
“Steven has said before that this time the narrative should still focus on the characters, but until now, the script has not been in our hands. How can we make a judgment? If they still go down the same old path and put all the focus on the dinosaurs, then there is no need for you to participate..”
“Wait, tell me, is it because of this reason that Thomas always thinks that such a salary is not worthwhile? The narrative focus of the movie must be on the dinosaurs. There is no need for them to use big-name actors. Just a second- or third-tier handsome guy is enough. Are there still few actors like this in Hollywood? You can find a lot of them casually, that's why Thomas was so dissatisfied and then acted so tough？”
“No. I need to find out more. If this is really the case, then we can reject Thomas immediately, I mean formally reject it.！”
Andy couldn't help but started to complain. It could be truly and truly felt that he was really resentful of Thomas's behavior. Even though Renly had repeatedly given in, Thomas was still pushing the envelope, which really made him feel uncomfortable. It's impossible to like people; not to mention that Renly is no longer the same now, he needs to be tougher.
But then Andy realized that it was only him who was speaking and no response at all, so he raised his head and cast his gaze, "Where are your opinions?"？”
Renly looked like he was thinking seriously, then nodded, "Okay..”
“……You weren't thinking at all just now, were you? "Andy was at the end of his tirade, but Renly was also unconvinced..
Andy shook his head helplessly and could only continue, "I understand. Leave everything to me. This is my job anyway. Your attention should have been transferred to 'Interstellar' now," The Jurassic Park project has to be put on the back burner, right? You're already getting ready for your next role, right?.”
“No, the most important thing now is publicity work." Renly said seriously..
Andy rolled his eyes in response, and the topic came to an end for the time being. Andy raised his head, looked around, and muttered in a low voice, "Why are the pick-up staff so slow? This isn't quite right, we all are. I have been here for nearly an hour, how long do I have to stay here? This kind of work arrangement is too amateurish..”
Before he finished speaking, Nathan walked over to him, followed by two unfamiliar faces, who looked like they should be local staff..
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