Chapter 23: Miramax's Attention

[Chapter 23: Miramax's Attention]

Early in the morning, at the Century City Fox building, the executives were in high spirits, busy tallying up the box office numbers from yesterday's Independence Day. In reality, they were only making predictions because the final calculations were still underway.

Benjamin happily held up the report, "Seventeen million, folks, we're breaking records! Remember, yesterday was a Tuesday."

"Haha, fantastic! I bet our opening weekend will surpass last year's record holder, Batman Forever, which made fifty-two million!"

"What are we waiting for? Let's boost the marketing budget and spread the good news worldwide!"

Someone frowned, rubbing the newspaper in their hands. "Damn critics, including Roger Ebert, they're all slamming us. That guy took more than a hundred thousand from us!"

"That doesn't matter. They can't affect Independence Day's box office!" McCarny said with a grin, scanning the room. "No one can stop this kind of success. Don't forget, we have follow-up promotional plans. How are those coming along?"

Benjamin answered, "Everything's ready. A Harvard psychology professor has written an article about Stockholm syndrome. Plus, we're liaising with some feminist and African-American organizations. I have a feeling the opening weekend record might climb to sixty million!"

"Even better! This is a great miracle," McCarny dreamed aloud. "Looks like that Godfather guy really helped us a lot?"

"Yes!" the publicity executive nodded. "We have to admit, that shameless bastard Godfather is a very mature marketing expert. The total profits brought in from the film's theatrical and ancillary channels probably reached a hundred million, conservatively speaking."

The production director said, "Of course, it's also because of 20th Century Fox's powerful resources. I just saw that guy's Fifty Shades of Gray sold very well, too. It might even hit the New York Times bestseller list!"

"Really?" McCarny said, surprised.

"Did he really write a novel?"

"Exactly. I thought he was just trying to hype a project," Benjamin said.

McCarny took the newspaper, reading about Don Lewis, and sighed. "So, Mr. Godfather, not only does he have flexible tricks, but his book actually has selling points? Does that mean the film project...

Has anyone read that book? Don't you think this whole thing is worth tracking? This is a very powerful project operation plan, including the project itself."

Everyone exchanged glances, shaking their heads. Who had time to read the book?

At first, everyone thought Charlie was just a guy robbing with his smarts.

Later, when they learned the movie project was officially underway and financed under Fox's name, they realized he had bigger ambitions.

But nobody cared much about the project's story quality.

The production manager suddenly said, "I remember Godfather tried to invest in another project earlier but was directly rejected by the team."

McCarny quickly said, "Find that project immediately. I think we need to take this Godfather guy more seriously. Everything shows he's not just crafty but also has real content-producing skills."

The executives sprang into action.

...

Meanwhile, in a two-story wooden house in Santa Monica, Raymond sat on the sofa holding a newspaper with a complex expression.

I've read that book!

That book really has key selling points -- not just salacious details but the emotional chase after fantasies.

Yes, this former top star at Chris Book House and Charlie's rival was the only one who seriously read Fifty Shades of Gray.

Besides him and a few others, most people were dazzled by Charlie's Fox heist tactics and didn't seriously evaluate the quality of the content under all the scheming.

...

A mix of crafty moves and solid ability made Charlie once again capture the attention of Hollywood insiders.

Talent agencies like CAA, some independent production companies, and distributors were extremely curious about Charlie, though most didn't take action.

Miramax was one of the most enthusiastic companies.

Inside their office, the absolute tyrant Harvey was squinting and smiling. "This Godfather fellow is just like me -- no limits on promotion tactics, sharp project insight. Now he's showing he can create strong content himself."

His brother Bob Weinstein said, "Exactly, I asked Messick. That guy already showed his magic on the set of Scream. He beat up the director-producer but walked away unscathed."

"How did he pull that off?" Harvey asked, curious.

Jill Messick looked a little uncomfortable, shrugged, "Sir, I don't think you want to know. Honestly, it felt pretty bad at the time. Me, one of the top executives in the business, was easily controlled by him."

"Well, I like this guy," Harvey laughed and squinted again. "But I've got my eyes on Good Will Hunting first. Michael Eisner might screw me, but a small-time guy trying to steal my meal?"

"What do we do? He's hot now, not short of production and distribution resources. Fox will clearly be showing goodwill toward him," Bob frowned.

Harvey said, "I have experience dealing with guys like this. Obviously, Godfather's ambitious like me. Why not be friends? He won't want to be tied to Fox when he's weak. If we help with production and distribution, I doubt he'd say no."

Messick frowned, "At least, I can't handle him. This guy's a total bastard!"

"I'll go negotiate with him myself!" Harvey was confident, showing his boss swagger, and then grimaced, "Michael Eisner is the worst. He wants me to be a slave. I want to grow the company and increase our clout!"

...

Charlie had no idea that the sales of Fifty Shades of Gray had brought him back into some companies' attention.

But he was well aware he had basically secured a foothold in Hollywood.

As long as the movie project succeeded, his reputation would increase.

He had not only packaged and hyped the project but also packaged himself. Talent is one thing; fame is another.

...

After not resting at home in the Sinai community for several days, Charlie slept until nine in the morning.

After washing up and eating the breakfast Judy made, he hurried out.

His mom walked him to the door, worrying a bit, "Don't overwork yourself. Try to come home at night. And remember to mow the lawn this afternoon if you get time."

Charlie waved, "I'm a big boss now, Mom. It's just a bit of labor pay. I'll transfer money to your account!"

"You haven't even made money yet, but you sure know how to spend!" Judy smiled helplessly.

"Haha, making money is easy, knowing how to spend it is the hard part!"

Charlie hit the gas on his Mercedes and waved goodbye to Judy.

...

On the way, he picked up Rachel.

The woman in love was very attentive and immediately started chattering about the book's sales performance.

"Oh my god, you're going to be a famous author soon, Charlie."

*****

https://www.patreon.com/Sayonara816.