Chapter 444: American Beauty
[Chapter 444: American Beauty]
After returning to the company, Link called a meeting with Jon Gordon, head of the publicity department, Remi Sklar, vice president of public relations, and Sean Tangney, head of legal affairs, to discuss the recent negative media reports attacking him.
"Link, these recent negative news stories are pretty stale, nothing new, not much impact. We're handling it and trying our best to prevent these rumors from affecting the movie's box office," Remi Sklar said.
Link nodded. After the release of The Rock, some media outlets started rehashing old stories from the Oscars in March, reporting on Michelle and other actresses' pregnancies, trying to paint Link as a womanizer who disrespects women's rights and urging the public not to support his films.
But since his messy private life was no secret, these stories didn't cause much of a stir after being published.
"Link, according to our investigation, those media outlets are closely connected with Miramax Films. This hype seems to be orchestrated by the Weinstein brothers, although we don't know if Michael Ovitz from Disney is involved," Jon Gordon said.
"Whether or not they are, treat it as if they are. Everyone in Hollywood is our enemy," Link said, crossing his arms.
"Link, I heard from the legal circle that Harvey Weinstein has been sued multiple times by women for workplace misconduct, but he settled every time with money. Should we use this against him?" Sean Tangney suggested.
"That's a good idea. Go gather as much evidence as possible. I'd love to see Harvey spend some time behind bars."
"Got it. I'll arrange it later."
After the meeting, Link continued working in his office.
...
After Guess Pictures' public relations team took action, negative media reports about Link and Guess Pictures quickly decreased. Instead, many positive stories appeared, including recent activities with the Diana Charity Foundation, Link's close and stable relationships with his girlfriends, painting Link as a responsible man, and Guess Pictures planning to invest $200 million to support independent films this year.
Although some media still stirred up scandals about Link, Guess Pictures had plenty of resources and invested several times more in the media than their competitors, making it impossible for rivals to keep up.
With the strong PR from Guess Pictures, public opinion gradually shifted in their favor.
---
In its second week, The Rock played in 2,914 theaters across North America, earning $44.51 million and totaling $95.64 million after two weeks. It was expected to surpass $100 million within 15 days in North America.
Judging from these numbers, the recent negative news had little impact on the movie.
However, from this week on, The Rock faced some competition at the box office because Universal Pictures released Jurassic Park 2 on Friday, which earned $42.97 million in its first three days across 3,281 theaters.
If The Rock hadn't premiered a few days earlier, it would have been difficult to maintain the top spot in weekly box office rankings.
Since both The Rock and Jurassic Park 2 earned high box office amounts, they almost split 80% of the market. Other film companies were afraid to release their movies at the same time, fearing they could not compete.
Thus, The Rock and Jurassic Park 2 remained hot topics.
Guess Pictures and Universal Pictures threw a lot of effort into promoting their films, using various methods to draw audiences into theaters.
These two films became the most talked-about movies in the media recently.
...
In the third week, The Rock earned $35.47 million, bringing its total box office to $131 million.
Jurassic Park 2 held the top spot in its opening week with $102 million.
This week, Guess Pictures also released another movie, Out of Sight, directed by Steven Soderbergh and starring George Clooney, Jennifer Lopez, and Vin Diesel.
The production cost was $25 million.
The story was about a thief named Jack and his partner Buddy attempting to break out of prison. Federal agent Karen initially wanted to stop their escape but developed romantic feelings for Jack during the pursuit, changing her perspective. However, once the police launched a full-scale manhunt for Jack, Karen resolved to capture him herself.
The movie opened in 2,016 theaters and earned $13.35 million, an average performance.
At present, the movie was expected to break even.
However, director Steven Soderbergh felt disappointed by the opening week numbers.
In recent years, he had made three films, and none performed significantly better at the box office, failing to match the success of Link's films.
Soderbergh began to doubt whether he had exhausted his talent after making Sex, Lies, and Videotape and if directing was still the right path for him.
...
Link and Quentin Tarantino comforted him, telling him not to be discouraged by current struggles. Although Out of Sight, The Underneath, and Grey's Anatomy had average box office results, their quality and reputation were above average, just not aligned with current market trends.
As long as he persisted and made more films, eventually, he would achieve both critical and commercial success.
"Link, is that really possible?" Soderbergh asked worriedly at a bar. "Why can you make a hit every time from '92 until now, but all my films except my debut have never been box office hits? What's the difference between us?"
Link laughed, "Maybe I just have a better grasp of the market and only make films that audiences like. Your films have more artistic flavor, which makes them harder to watch, so naturally, their box office isn't as good."
"Steven, don't think about it. I've seen through it. We're ordinary directors, but Link is a genius director. Comparing ourselves to him only leads to breakdowns," Quentin mumbled with an unhappy look, shaking a beer can while glancing at Link.
"Quentin is right, Steven. Compared to Link, we're not very successful, but compared to other directors in the circle, we're quite good. You don't need to be discouraged," Robert Rodriguez said with a smile. "Besides, with a big boss like Link backing you, even if you lose a hundred million, you won't have to worry."
Steven Soderbergh sighed, rubbing his bald head. "I'm not comparing myself to Link, I'm comparing myself to myself. When I started in '89 with Sex, Lies, and Videotape, that film was a hit. Now, after working seriously on three films, none has succeeded. This makes me anxious. I don't know what attitude to take when making films. Should I just film casually?"
"You can try. With Link's support, you don't have to worry about lack of investment," Rodriguez suggested.
Soderbergh shook his head, "Making films costs too much, so you have to be cautious during production."
Quentin took a sip of his beer. "Link, are you making three films again this year?"
"That's the plan."
Quentin smirked, "A guy like you, working yourself to death making movies, constantly dating, and switching pretty assistants, I bet you'll collapse one day."
"I won't," Link said, holding a beer and smiling.
---
After the gathering, Link returned to the company to continue preparations for his new movie American Beauty.
The film portrayed various problems faced by a middle-class American family.
The protagonist Lester was a middle-aged advertising executive with mediocre social status, oppressed by his gold-digging wife and scorned by his daughter, living a life of emptiness and repression.
Later, Lester became infatuated with his daughter's classmate Angela, and this desire pushed him to rebel against his mundane life. He quit his job, started working out, and smoked marijuana to regain youthful passion.
Meanwhile, their teenage neighbor Ricky started secretly filming their daughter Jane with a camcorder and fell in love with her. Their romance reignited Lester's zest for life and reminded him of his youth.
Before Lester could truly "wake up," Ricky's father accused Lester of having an inappropriate relationship with Ricky and broke into Lester's home one rainy night, shooting and killing him.
In his final moments, Lester realized the beauty and absurdity of life.
The film used the collapse of an ordinary American middle-class family to expose the hypocrisy and alienation of the "American Dream," showing how material success, social norms, and false appearances twist human nature.
It also criticized rampant consumerism and the ugliness of a utilitarian society, calling for stripping off false facades to confront one's true self and desires.
The central conflict was that while humans sought freedom and happiness, they were always trapped by societal rules.
The story had profound themes and deeply analyzed the spiritual dilemma of the American middle class, along with a certain dark humor. Link decided to make the film as soon as he read the script last year.
The male lead was Kevin Spacey; his wife's role was given to Diane Lane, who excelled in such parts.
Their daughter was played by newcomer Amy Adams; the blonde popular classmate was played by Charlize Theron; Ricky was played by Casey Affleck; and the irritable neighbor was played by Chris Cooper.
Filming would begin in early June and was expected to wrap up by the end of August.
Before shooting, Link traveled to Seattle and Paris to check on his girlfriends' health status and prepare for their upcoming deliveries.
However, their due dates were all after July, so there was no immediate urgency.
*****
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