Chapter 258:Harry Potter is in hand

"Tina? When did you arrive?"

As soon as he walked out of the VIP channel, Duke found that in addition to the people from Warner Asia Branch, his personal assistant Tina Fey was also waiting here.

"I got off the plane two hours earlier than you." Tina Fey stood beside him out of habit.

"I wanted to notify you, but your phone is no longer accessible."

Duke took out the latest Nokia from his briefcase, turned it on and followed the Warner people out of the airport.

Sitting in a Mercedes waiting outside, the man named Johnson said, "Director Rosenberg, we have booked a room for you and Miss Tina Fey at the Peninsula Hotel."

"Thank you." Duke nodded. "Then let's go to the hotel first."

After the car started, the other party said, "Mr. Phil and his deputy are negotiating with Mr. Yuan and Mr. Cheng respectively. They will not be able to come to see you until the afternoon."

Duke frowned, "They still won't give in?"

"Yes, they are determined to keep their promise on the price."

The specific matters will have to wait until he meets the head of Warner's Asia branch. Duke said nothing more. He looked at Tina Fey who was trying hard to stay awake beside him and shook his head.

"Tired?" he asked. "Take a nap."

Tina Fey knew Duke's temper, so she didn't refuse and said with a smile, "I'll close my eyes for a while. Call me when you get to the hotel."

Now that there were outsiders present, it was not appropriate to talk about the specific situation in London. Also, affected by the time difference, Tina Fey closed her eyes and fell asleep quickly.

When Tina Fey felt someone shaking her arm and opened her eyes, she found that the car had stopped at the entrance of a hotel. She quickly pushed the door open and got out of the car, helped Duke carry his briefcase, walked into the hotel elevator, and then came to the luxury suite area on the top few floors.

Entering the presidential suite, Duke sent Warner's people away with a few words, dragged the luggage into the master bedroom, and after coming out, pointed to the secondary bedroom and said to Tina Fey, "Let's go adjust to the jet lag first."

"Let's talk about work first."

Walking to the bar in the living room of the suite, Tina Fey skillfully brewed a pot of coffee, brought it over and poured a cup for Duke and herself, sat on the single sofa, smelled the strong aroma of coffee to refresh herself, and talked about her negotiations in London.

"The author, Joanna Rowling, is a single mother and a new writer. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone is her first official work."

Listening to Tina Fey's words, Duke took a sip from his coffee cup and said, "Keep it simple."

Tina Fey smiled at Duke and continued, "The sales of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone were not good. It did not bring any substantial changes to Rowling's difficult life. She herself lacked confidence and was not optimistic about the prospects of this work. In fact, she was the easiest to deal with. The negotiations have been delayed until now, mainly because of what I told you on the phone. Her book agent is a bit difficult to deal with, and she has completed the first draft of her second work and is currently revising it..."

"Tina, you did a great job." Duke recognized

Tina Fey's work. "If the movie is a big hit in the future, you will be the vice president of Duke Studios."

"A vice presidents for dozen of people?" Tina Fey muttered, and then said, "If it weren't for her book agent, we could get the movie and peripheral rights of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone for at most $200,000."

"You did a great job negotiating the price down to $240,000."

Duke remembered very clearly that Warner Bros had spent $250,000 to obtain these copyrights What's more, Tina Fey negotiated not only for "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone", but also bought the related copyrights of "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" at the same price. In addition, the two parties signed an agreement that Duke Studio has the right of first refusal for other subsequent works in this series.

"Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" has only been on the market for a short time. Just as Duke expected, without a huge publicity and promotion, the sales volume is very few. According to what Tina Fey has seen, Joanna Rowling has just gotten rid of government relief.

If he can't even take advantage of someone's misfortune at this moment, there's no point in him staying in Hollywood.

Thinking about how to deal with the Harry Potter series next, Duke and Tina Fey went back to their bedrooms to rest and adjust to the jet lag. By the afternoon, they had recovered a lot of their energy. After talking on the phone with someone from Warner's Asia branch, they met together at the Western restaurant of the Peninsula Hotel in the evening.

Warner has been contacting Yuen Woo-ping and Ching Siu-tung on behalf of Duke, and has made a lot of efforts, but there has been little progress.

"Phil, I didn't expect we would meet here."

Sitting in a booth in a western restaurant, Duke handed the phone to Tina Fey and greeted the host in a familiar manner. The man was a former deputy manager of Warner Bros. and had worked in Burbank, so the two were familiar with each other.

"I haven't seen you for a few years. You've become even more famous."

After Duke and the others finished ordering, Phil handed the menu to the waiter and pointed to the city outside the window, "Even here, you are a top director like Spielberg, known to everyone."

Turning his head and looking at the pedestrians passing by outside, Duke's eyes returned to the opposite side, "Phil, let's talk about the specific situation."

"Although Hong Kong films have declined, people working in the film industry still maintain their inherent shrewdness." Phil said directly without beating around the bush, "They know we need their help, and kung fu is not something that Hollywood can handle, so they offered a sky-high price. Cheng and Yuan must have reached a tacit understanding and both insisted on $2 million."

"No room for bargaining?" Duke frowned.

"The first price they offered was $5 million."

Phil smiled helplessly. "This is the result of negotiations. It should be their psychological bottom line."

2 million U.S. dollars is at best the salary of a second-tier Hollywood actor. It may not seem too much, but action directors are definitely not worth this price, even if they have skills that Hollywood does not have.

Duke knew very well that these people in Hong Kong wanted to slaughter him like a fat sheep.

But are fat sheep really so easy to slaughter?

Yes, with his yellow skin, black eyes and black hair, he looked very friendly, but he would not be stupid enough to bring such emotions into business negotiations.

Besides, would the other party regard him as a fellow countryman? Even if he regarded him as a fellow countryman, he would not show mercy when he was stabbed.

He will not forget it either. What are the people working in the film industry in this city actually like...

"So there's no room for negotiation?" Duke asked.

Phil sighed, "At this price, I have had three rounds of talks with them, but there has been no progress. They are confident enough. The gap between them and other action guidance teams here is obvious."

Duke nodded, "I see."

If it really doesn't work, then just give up on Kung Fu. Program conflict is not the only way to show it. Other fighting styles can also be designed to be cool enough.

Duke has never been a rigid person, and he never thinks anyone is indispensable, even if that person is himself.

However, for a company like Warner that has entered the Hong Kong market a long time ago, the means are not just open negotiations.

Phil suddenly said, "Duke, you may not know. Cheng and Yuan were able to succeed not only because of themselves, but also because they had a mature team under them. The importance of those people is like that of assistant directors and photographers to directors. Although the two of them are unwilling to give in, the people under them may not be. Warner is looking for someone to contact their team privately. This city is undergoing a dramatic change. I understand the mentality of many people. There must be many people who like to develop in Hollywood and want to earn US dollars."

After looking at this guy, Duke was sure that it was still Phil, but there seemed to be some yellow stuff under the white skin. It was obvious that he had been inspired and influenced a lot in Hong Kong in the past few years

"There are other aspects as well."

Obviously, Phil represents the attitude of the entire Warner. They are doing their best. "Warner has business dealings with some of Yuan's friends and partners, and can always influence him from the side."

Like all Hollywood negotiations, the talks never end at the negotiating table.

Phil went on to assure that these private measures had made progress and would soon give Duke a result.

Since Warner was so enthusiastic and proactive, Duke had no reason to refuse. This was his first time in Asia, so he simply took Tina Fey around the city.

It is now April 1997, and the city is about to undergo drastic changes. Duke and his companions are not interested in sightseeing. They just wander around a few famous attractions and continue to communicate with Warner to understand the progress of the incident.

His time is limited and he cannot wait here indefinitely. If there is no ideal result in the near future, it is better to give up and choose other fighting methods.

Perhaps it was the upcoming changes in the city that aroused people's interest.

According to the news from Warner, after several rounds of contacts and a certain price was offered, some people from Yuen Woo-ping's team soon expressed their desire to develop in Hollywood. Even with the deliberate instigation of Warner and some profit-seeking people, these people connected with more people.

Anyone with a little vision can easily find that Hong Kong films have already declined and that Hollywood is the world's film center. From the outside, the salaries there are higher, there are more opportunities, and there are precedents such as John Woo and Jack Chan who have gained fame and fortune worldwide after their success. How many people are truly not tempted by fame and fortune?

The strongest fortresses always collapse from within, just like what happened to Duke in the initial stage of this incident. Some things cannot develop entirely according to one's wishes. Duke wanted to use a bargaining chip of about 500,000 US dollars to invite Yuan Heping's team, but the other party insisted on 2 million US dollars.

When his heavyweight members expressed their desire to change jobs one after another, and a few showed signs of wanting to go to Hollywood even if they had a falling out, and even after many partners stood up to persuade or analyze the interests, even Yuen Woo-ping had to compromise. Just like the director's production team, the action director cannot be handled by one person. In a new round of negotiations with Phil, the two sides finally found a balance and reached an agreement on the remuneration issue.

Yuen Woo-ping and his team will serve as action directors for "The Matrix" with a total salary of US$800,000.

Because of this series of events, Duke was too lazy to meet with Yuan Heping again, leaving Tina Fey to complete the final negotiations with the other party, leaving the city and returning to North America. He has lived in this world for more than 20 years and is very clear about where his roots are now.

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