Chapter 106: Back to the Set

[Chapter 106: Back to the Set]

Robert Downey Jr. felt the weight of disappointment bearing down on him. After the release of his film, Chaplin, many had rallied behind him to promote it. Yet, it had been utterly crushed at the box office by that wretched movie, Buried. It was a source of shame, a festering wound.

But then Julia Roberts, that infuriating woman, had to mention it.

"Robert, don't take her seriously. She hasn't read much and doesn't know how to talk. It's not worth getting upset over her words," Kiefer Sutherland advised.

"Ha! You guys look down on others, acting all high and mighty with your supposed education. But how many of you have ever finished a book thicker than 100 pages or even written anything?

Link, for all his flaws, has written some high-quality screenplays and directed two films that went down in history. He churned out a sci-fi novel that sold 700,000 copies in three weeks, earning praise from a multitude of professors.

What have you done? Besides drinking, doing drugs, and envying Link? It's not like any of you have accomplished anything worth bragging about. I really don't understand how you can have the audacity to look down on him."

"Get lost! Julia, just get lost!" Kiefer erupted.

"Fine! I don't even care to have coffee with you," Julia Roberts shouted, swinging her handbag as she walked out without looking back.

Robert cursed under his breath, kicked over a chair, and shoved the coffee table aside before storming out of the cafe, his anger palpable.

Kiefer just shrugged and parted ways with the rest, the atmosphere tense and uncomfortable.

---

After the third week of sales came in for Interstellar, Link received not only congratulations but also a flurry of calls from various film companies and prominent producers.

The studios were eager to buy the film rights for several works tied to Interstellar, with offers reaching up to $10 million for three of the long-form adaptations. Link didn't give a firm yes, but he wasn't completely dismissive either, expressing a future interest in collaborating on several projects.

In the publishing world, while holding signings could boost novel sales, nothing increased a book's popularity like adapting it into film or TV series. Successful movie adaptations like the Harry Potter series, The Hunger Games, Twilight, and Fifty Shades of Grey had all thrived due to their cinematic renditions, enhancing their status as global IPs.

Link clearly saw the profit potential of adapting his work into film. However, the current level of special effects technology was not at par, making it difficult to visualize many of the scenes he had written.

Even if these studios secured the adaptation rights, it didn't guarantee they would produce a quality film right away or avoid releasing a subpar movie just to get a foothold on the rights.

This approach provided little advantage in promoting Interstellar. Link decided to wait a few years until Guess Pictures expanded before collaborating with more studios on big projects.

...

With Interstellar's sales soaring, the publishing companies were thrilled and decided to invest even more into marketing the book. Link's schedule intensified, with him flying to at least five cities each week for upward of ten signings.

After a grueling 20 days and over 40 signings, Link returned to Los Angeles at the end of the month and joined the crew of The Blair Witch Project to check on the film's progress.

After circling the country and spending nearly four weeks on the road, the crew for The Blair Witch Project still had not wrapped shooting.

...

The main issue was that Sofia Coppola had too many of her own ideas. The original plan had been to complete the shoot in ten days, based on Link's script. However, two days in, Sofia called to express her concerns. She insisted that following the script would yield a film lacking visual appeal, with shaky shots and weak storytelling.

She refused to produce a poorly made film and stepped up to demand changes to the script. Her revision included fleshing out the character of the witch Blair, showing her as a tragic figure twisted by unfortunate circumstances, ultimately seeking revenge, particularly against men.

Sofia also proposed a new ending.

In the original conclusion, three college students met their demise at the hands of Blair, only for their footage to later be found, cut together into a documentary-style film by the studio.

Sofia's revised version saw Blair using eerie methods to kill two of the male supporting characters, only to be thwarted at the last moment by the female lead, who injured her with a camera. Just prior to her death, Blair briefly regained clarity and spoke to the lead actress about her tragic past:

"Blair was a photographer who traveled with her boyfriend to Wilton Town for an adventure. After a conflict, the locals killed her boyfriend, and she was raped before being thrown into a deep cave, nearly dying. When she awoke, she sought vengeance."

Upon hearing this, Link instantly called for a halt.

The narrative struck him as oddly familiar; upon reflection, it bore a striking resemblance to the film, I Spit on Your Grave. This 1978 movie, written, directed, and produced by Meir Zarchi, told the story of a female writer brutalized by four men during her vacation and her relentless return for revenge. It has an unofficial sequel, Savage Vengeance in 1993, and had been remade in 2010 with three more sequels.

Link objected to Sofia's vision, insisting that her changes would fundamentally alter the film's essence. He also pointed out that with the film's budget of $50,000, following her plan would easily push costs to over $1 million.

He demanded that Sofia adhere to the original design; if she was unwilling, the directing duties would be handed over to assistant director Ed Merrick. The concept was straightforward enough that anyone with a basic understanding of filmmaking could accomplish it.

Reluctantly, Sofia agreed.

...

In the shooting that followed, as reported by Danny DeVito, while Sofia followed the script, her exacting standards for camera work, performances, and set design resulted in slow progress.

Link pressed Danny on why he didn't intervene. Danny claimed that following Sofia's vision would yield higher quality and guarantee box office success. Hearing this nearly made Link lose his composure.

He had no idea handing the project over to someone else would lead to all this chaos. He promised himself to wait until filming wrapped before attending any signing events.

Due to the sluggish pace of The Blair Witch Project, and the budget spiraling beyond control, he had to cancel his international signings and return to the set to handle the fallout.

"Link, come on, look at this. Isn't this better than what you originally designed?" Sofia brought him to view the footage on the director's monitor.

As he watched, veins in his forehead pulsed with frustration.

*****

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