hunt hollywood

The meeting lasted until five o'clock, and everyone got off work.

Simon came to the parking lot from the side door of the office building with the records of the record company compiled by Jennifer, but saw the female assistant standing in front of her own car with the hood open, Neil Bennett was leaning over to help her check what.

Simon walked over, glanced at the car engine, and asked, "What's wrong?"

Neil Bennett withdrew his hand from the engine, and said to Simon: "It can't start, it should be a problem with the electronic control system."

Listening to Neil Bennett's explanation, Simon glanced at the engine again, felt Jennifer looking at him expectantly, smiled and said to the female assistant: "You don't think I can repair cars, do you? "

Jennifer felt that Simon was looking at her from a close distance, and shrank her neck slightly shyly, but said: "You should know everything."

Simon nodded sympathetically, and said, "It seems to be a little bit. However, if I fix your car at this time, will the EQ be too low?"

Jennifer was puzzled: "Huh?"

Simon pointed to his car and said, "Let's go, I'll take you home, and your car will be sent to the repair shop tomorrow."

Jennifer's fair cheeks turned red immediately, and she couldn't help but glance outside the parking lot, where paparazzi were already taking pictures with their cameras.Feeling dizzy in my head, I got into his SUV unknowingly. I didn't wake up until I heard the voice of him asking where I lived, and said quickly, "I'm still staying at my uncle's house for the time being."

Simon smiled and said, "George's house, I don't seem to have been there yet."

So he told him the address of his uncle's house, and when he realized it, he quickly explained it to Neil Bennett in the front row.

Like a restless fawn caught in a trap.

Noticing the smile on the corner of the man's mouth, he obviously enjoyed her abominable flustered state, and suddenly felt a little bit ashamed, and wanted to reach out and pinch him.

After being so embarrassed for a while, or just because she felt embarrassed for a while, seeing him lower his head and flip through the documents in his hand, he found another topic at random: "How is Miss Johnston doing?"

As soon as the words came out, I felt that I was really stupid.

Obviously know.

Also, the question is really stupid.

Simon did not turn his head, his eyes still fell on the document in front of him, and said: "She is still in New York, and I will go there to spend Christmas with her next week. By the way, we can go there together at that time, and you should also return to New York right?"

She nodded, quickly changed the subject, glanced at the record company information she had sorted out in his hand these days, and asked, "Are you planning to start a record company?"

Simon shook his head and said, "Let's have a look first, but it's best to buy one, it's too troublesome to start from scratch."

When I think of this incident, it is actually because of the song I wrote for Madonna.

Although it is an additional condition for lobbying Madonna to participate in "Pulp Fiction", the song cannot be written for nothing.

The specific contract was negotiated between Jonathan and Madonna's production company, with a basic salary of 10 US dollars, which is nothing to Simon.However, when the album sold well, Simon's personal income immediately multiplied.

Due to the high popularity of "Celebration", Madonna's current album sales are expected to exceed 1000 million copies worldwide.

As the songwriter of "Celebration", Simon's personal positioning is similar to that of a Hollywood screenwriter.Under the RIAA rules, songwriters receive a percentage of revenue from each album sale, a rule that has been in place since the early 2th century, long before the Writers Guild's video cut clause.The original share of songwriters was 7.5 cents per record, and after more than half a century of repeated negotiations and revisions, it has now risen to [-] cents.

then.

Based on the global sales volume of 1000 million copies of "You Can Dance", Simon expects to receive a share of US$75.

Just like film screenwriters share in TV broadcasting rights other than video tape income, in addition to pure album sales, Simon can continue to earn income from "Celebration" TV broadcasting, concert performances, film and television episode authorization and other channels. .

According to the industry's past statistics, this part of the income can at least be equal to the album sales.

Taken together, just one song in an album can bring Simon about $160 million in revenue in the next few years.

$160 million is a drop in the bucket for Simon's current net worth, but it made Simon realize how huge a fortune the countless songs in the memory of all thirteen people in his mind will be in the next 30 years.

Take "You Can Dance" as an example, it is just pure record sales. According to the average selling price of 20 US dollars, the global sales of 1000 million copies means a total revenue of 2 million US dollars.

As a songwriter, Simon may only be able to get a share of 75 US dollars in album sales, but if he turns into a record company owner, just like he is now changing from a screenwriter to the owner of Daenerys Pictures, then the corresponding income will be 75. Well over $[-].

Of course, it is definitely not so easy to create a record that has sold more than 1000 million copies worldwide, otherwise Madonna would not be Madonna.

In fact, among all the records released by the major record companies in North America, even less than 5% of the platinum records can reach the million-level sales, and more than 95% of the other end in failure.However, for Simon, who neither lacks fame and strength but also knows the trend of the record industry in Europe and the United States in the next 30 years, it is definitely not easy to create several top pop singers and release some hot albums with countless hit singles in his mind. It's too difficult a thing.

Simon chatted with Jennifer casually while flipping through the documents in his hand.

The SUV unknowingly turned into the mountain road of the Bel Air community. Seeing that she was about to arrive home, Jennifer paused and said, "Simon, there is one more thing."

Simon felt that Jennifer suddenly became cautious, raised his head and said, "What?"

After hesitating for a while, Jennifer took out a newspaper from her satchel, unfolded it and handed it over, saying, "I think you should read it."

Simon took the newspaper handed over by Jennifer, and most of the page in front of him was a revelation of confession.

A couple in San Diego, southern California, lost a four-year-old boy in 1972. The newspaper published the boy’s photo, name, date of birth, case records, missing persons notice and other information. The couple felt that Simon is their long-lost son, and there was no result in contacting them privately, so they openly hoped that Simon would respond to them through the newspaper.

After simply glancing at the contents of the newspaper, Simon shook his head and said, "Fake."

Jennifer whispered: "The little boy in the newspaper is very similar to the photo published by the orphanage where you are."

"Maybe, but they are definitely not my parents." Simon closed the newspaper, felt Jennifer's probing eyes, frowned slightly and thought for a while, a certain emotion struck again, until he felt a little dizzy, he gave up and continued to go back to the past memory.However, in a year and a half, some vague fragments have been accumulated to some extent. At this time, he said: "Jenny, you know, I was 5 years old at the time, and I already have some memories. Although it is a bit vague now, I probably remember, I Parents, um, should not be Americans. Therefore, as long as these people who recognize their relatives are from North America, they must be fake."

Jennifer heard Simon talking intermittently as if nothing had happened, but she suddenly felt a strong pity, because she was surprised to see that when Simon said these words, tears flowed from his eyes unconsciously.

It turned out that he would cry too.

He is so powerful that it seems like a boy who can conquer the world.

just.

Seeing him cry, why do I feel so uncomfortable.

She raised her hand subconsciously, wanting to help him wipe away his tears, but Simon himself had noticed it, reached out and wiped it on his face, and found that he was crying again just now, so he just smiled awkwardly at Jennifer and said, "I'm sorry." , I don’t know what’s going on.”

She took out a tissue from her satchel and handed it to him, and said guiltily, "It's my fault, Simon, I shouldn't have shown you this newspaper."

Seeing him wiping the tears on his face, he couldn't help but think of the things mentioned in the newspaper.

He would rather be self-reliant from the age of 13 than accept adoption, obviously having an instinctive resistance to family.Then, his biological parents may not have even left him with even a warm memory.That being the case, there seems to be no need to look for those two people now.

She secretly made up her mind that she would never mention this matter in front of him in the future.

Entering the Bel Air community, the SUV quickly stopped in front of a villa. Simon glanced out the window and said, "I won't go down. See you tomorrow. Say hello to George and me."

Neil Bennett got out of the car, turned to the other side and opened the door.

She really wanted to hug him, but seeing the paparazzi who had already leaned over to take pictures of the front window of the SUV, she nodded and said, "See you tomorrow."

Chapter 131 Copyright!copyright!

"The copyright of "Terminator" is in the hands of Helmdale, a film company backed by British tax haven capital, which has a distribution agreement with Orion. John Daly, the president of Helmdale, refused to sell the copyright of "Terminator" , but said it could work with Daenerys Films. I think this plan is feasible, and if there is a sequel, the funds provided by Helmdale can help us share the risk."

"Tolkien's Middle-earth series, the copyright of "The Lord of the Rings" is in the hands of Saul Zaentz, the same producer who produced the two Oscar-winning films "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" and "Mozart". The copyright of Bitman is in United Artists. The other party bought the permanent copyright of "The Hobbit" and "Lord of the Rings" for 1969 pounds in 1. The copyright in the hands of Saul Zaentz is also from United Artists. I got it. As for The Silmarillion, the copyright is in the hands of the Tolkien Heritage Foundation. I have contacted three parties, and they all said they could talk about it, but none of them accepted our offer. I think that in the absence of a specific production plan, It is very difficult to get the film and television copyrights of these three books, and a sky-high price must be paid."

"Dave Stevens, the creator of the comic "Rocketman," didn't accept my offer. He wants to talk to you in person. I asked, and the cartoonist has been looking for film studios since last year. He hoped to adapt this manga into a high-budget movie. After the box office failure of the manga adaptation film "Heman the Cosmic Giant" in the summer, the companies that were in contact with them all backed down."

"The copyright of "Charlie's Angels" is in Columbia Pictures, and this TV series was originally produced by Ronald Goldberg's production company. Before becoming the president of Fox Pictures, Ronald Goldberg took that company Sold to Columbia for $4000 million. From the time the series ended in 1981 until now, "Charlie's Angels" has basically been squeezed out of syndicated distribution and video sales. However, if we were to buy out the entire rights to the show , Columbia Pictures’ asking price is 1000 million US dollars. This price is too high. Although the TV series lasts for 6 seasons, there is not much replay value now, and the profit from video tape sales is also very small. We can just buy the film and television adaptation of the TV series. right."

""Mission: Impossible", the TV series is produced by Paramount Television. They have been trying to develop a movie version. Sidney Garnis said that if you are willing to direct it yourself, Paramount can consider working with Daenerys. industry cooperation."

""Bourne Shadow", this, Warner Bros. has also bought the copyright, I specifically called Terry Semel to chat, and his reply was similar to Sidney Gannis. By the way, Semel still He said he would call you when he was free this afternoon."

"Beyond these, what follows is good news."

"I got the copyright of "Spider-Man" from Canon Pictures, 20 US dollars, which is the original price when Canon obtained the copyright from Marvel. After the box office failure of "Superman 4" invested by Canon Pictures in the summer, plus this Due to the company's own business difficulties, Canon has completely abandoned the "Spider-Man" plan. However, the original 5-year copyright period is only 3 years, and if we do not make a movie within 3 years, the copyright will automatically return to Marvel."

"Phantom Studio's quotation for the film and television copyright of "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" is US$30. The TV animation version of this comic has a very good response this year, but it is very difficult to realize it. I talked about US$20, which is the same as "Spider" A five-year contract similar to "Xia Xia."

"Dead Poets Society, the screenplay price is $8."

"Steel Magnolia, I watched the videotape of the Broadway play, and it was very touching. The negotiated price for the adaptation rights is 10 US dollars."

"The Fast and the Furious, heh, I don't know how you came across this movie, Simon, it's from 1955, and it's a Roger Corman B-movie. $20, as you requested , Roger Corman sold us the entire copyright of this movie. I bargained with him for a long time, and he is indeed a shrewd man who never loses money. The shooting budget of "Fast and Furious" was only more than 6 US dollars. I watched the tape, and then I didn't have any interest in watching it a second time."

"As for the others, they are still in contact."

In the conference room of Daenerys Films.

Amy Pascal counted the results of the recent copyright negotiations one by one, then pointed to the thick stack of scripts on the desk, and said: "In addition, this week, I have accepted a total of The recommendation of 60 movie scripts, from which I selected 19 that I think are okay, and they are all here, you can watch them on weekends.”

On the other side of the conference table, Simon was listening to Amy's report, but he was flipping through the "Spider-Man" contract in his hand.

"Spiderman" ah!

This is Spider-Man!

Just start a "Spider-Man" that can earn seven or eight billion dollars worldwide!

In the era before my rebirth, let alone "Spider-Man", even some second- and third-tier superheroes, Marvel couldn't easily transfer them.Now, for just $20, Simon has acquired the copyright of Marvel's most popular superhero, which is even unbelievable when you think about it.

But this is reality.

Constrained by special effects technology, in this era, the copyright of superheroes, which is very difficult to film and television, is far less popular than it was later.Although he has ambitions for the entire Marvel from New World Entertainment, Simon decisively bought the copyright of "Spider-Man" in advance.

At the same time, he also secretly made up his mind that no matter whether it can successfully win Marvel in the future, Daenerys Pictures will firmly hold the copyright of "Spider-Man" in its hands.

As for the remaining 3 years of the copyright period, this is not a problem at all.The big deal is to learn the method of Constantine Pictures to preserve the copyright of "Fantastic Four" in memory, and spend a million dollars to make a B-level movie, so that the contract period can be extended for another 5 years.

Thinking of this, after Amy's voice fell, Simon quickly pulled his thoughts back.

He earned more than one billion US dollars through the operation of the stock index futures market. During this period, Simon began to collect copyrights again, and he was no longer so secretive.After all, now is arguably Simon's best chance to buy a lot of rights easily.

Suddenly becoming a billionaire, or a billion-dollar 'fat sheep', many people are very happy to sell some copyrights to him at a high price.But in the future, if Daenerys Films produces more blockbuster works in a row, any project Simon fancy may cause competition. At that time, it will become very difficult for him to obtain some copyrights.

Amy just obtained the copyright in the report. Needless to say, "Spider-Man" and "Fast and Furious", "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles", "Dead Poets Society" and "Steel Magnolia" are all box office hits in the next few years in the original time and space. The best-selling works, and the "Rocket Scientist" that has not yet been obtained is a grain of 'sand' mixed in by Simon.

After the huge amount of wealth was exposed, Simon actually stopped doing this kind of sand-mixing thing too deliberately. Anyway, most of the copyrights he fancy belonged to very popular projects, and it is only natural that they will sell well at the box office in the future.

Closing the "Spider-Man" copyright contract in front of him, Simon said to Amy: "Continue to discuss the works of "Terminator" and Tolkien. As long as they ask for a price, we will buy it. As for "Rocket Expert", I will find time Talk to the cartoonist. You try to lower the price of the copyright of "Charlie's Angels", 1000 million US dollars is indeed too high, but you must make sure to take it. The last "Mission: Impossible" and "Bourne Shadow", Now that Paramount and Warner are already developing it, forget it for now."

Being able to win "Spider-Man" and "Fast and Furious", "Charlie's Angels" can be said to be one step away, and Simon is already very satisfied.For "Terminator" and Tolkien's Middle-earth series, we can only grind slowly. Both works have great reputations, and copyright holders will not let them go easily.

As for "Mission Impossible" and "Bourne Shadow", next year the screenwriters union will launch the longest strike in Hollywood history. Even if development has started, these two projects are likely to be stranded due to the strike. In the end, it was even dragged to ten years later like the original time and space.

Although the longer the delay, the more unfavorable it is to Simon, but he still has many opportunities.

Amy wrote down Simon's instructions in the memo, and said, "So, what should we do next with the copyrights we have obtained?"

""Dead Poets Society" and "Steel Magnolia" are included in the company's production list, and the others are temporarily put on hold," Simon rubbed the copyright contract of "Spider-Man" in front of him, suddenly remembered something, and asked: "Amy , DC's "Superman" and "Batman", do you think we can win?"

"The copyright of "Superman" is in the hands of the European producer Alexander Salkind. I happen to know this. Alexander Salkind bought the film and television copyright of the "Superman" series for 15 years, and the same There is an automatic renewal clause, but after the box office failures of "Superman 1983" in 3 and "Supergirl" in 1984, Salkind has stopped the production of the "Superman" series, but still holds the copyright in his hands. The industry has only obtained shooting authorization before. Counting from the first "Superman" in 1978, there should be about 5 years of copyright left. If you want to shoot, just like Canon, we should also be able to get Authorization," Amy said while thinking, and then said: "As for "Batman", the copyright is still in the hands of DC, and Warner seems to have been brewing this project. At the beginning of the year, I heard that they planned to make a TV series version. Let Bill Murray play Bruce Wayne, I don't know the latest news."

Simon imagined Bill Murray, who is good at comedy, playing Batman, and it felt a little funny.

Due to later memories, Simon instinctively felt a natural sense of distance from superhero copyrights.But now, hearing that the copyright of "Superman" is not in the hands of DC, Warner also plans to make "Batman" into a TV comedy, and soon his heart was moved. He looked at his female executive across the conference table again, and said: "Ai Mi, do you think it is possible for me to buy DC from Warner?"

Chapter 132 Two Ghost Movies

Amy Pascal is no stranger to Simon's frequent sudden thoughts, thought for a while, and said: "I remember that three years ago, due to poor business conditions, Warner proposed to sell DC to Marvel, but it was rejected. I'm not sure about the current situation, but after the stock market crash, large companies are generally reorganizing their assets and reducing their debts. The comic industry has already begun to decline in the 70s. If you offer enough price, Warner will probably agree."

Simon tapped his fingers on the table, imagining the grand fusion of the Marvel DC superhero universe in his mind, and asked again: "You said Semel will call me in the afternoon?"

Amy nodded, and said: "I guess it's the awarding of "Run Lola Run". Orion should have mentioned it to you, right? If "Run Lola Run" can achieve something in the next awards season, it will be a big deal for the two of them." The copyright operation of everyone is very beneficial."

"Run Lola Run" was released in North America in August, and the three-month window period has now passed, and the video tape can be released at any time.After Simon packaged and sold the overseas copyrights to Warner Bros., relying on Warner's comprehensive international distribution network, the box office of "Run Lola Run" in the overseas market has also successfully exceeded 8 million US dollars in the past six months, and it will also enter the later stage of operation.

The "Run Lola Run" in my memory basically didn't get any honors in North America, but the situation is different now.

With a global box office of US$4 million, Warner Bros. Pictures, one of the top seven, has cooperated with Orion Pictures, which is already good at award public relations. Coupled with the undoubted excellent quality of the film itself, "Run Lola Run" will definitely become The big hits for the upcoming awards season.

Perhaps, Simon's only shortcoming is age.

Prior to this, the youngest Oscar winner for Best Director was also 32 years old.If Simon can be 30 years old, he is likely to break this record.But now, the possibility is almost zero, and the only thing Simon can hope for may be a nomination.

He raised his wrist and looked at his watch. It was already three o'clock in the afternoon.

No call yet, Terry Semel will probably call himself before get off work, maybe a dinner party invitation or something.However, Simon has already made arrangements for the evening, and he has other work to do next. The matter of buying DC can only be discussed on the weekend or next week.

While thinking about it, there was a knock on the door of the meeting room, and Amy's assistant Vanessa came in and said, "Mr. Westeros, Ms. Pascal, Mr. Craven is here."

Simon and Amy stood up together, and Wes Craven walked in with a middle-aged white man in his 40s wearing glasses.

Today is December 12th, Friday.

Simon took out the outline of the planned "Scream" yesterday. After Amy contacted Craven, although he has not agreed to direct, Wes Craven also proposed to hire a screenwriter to write the script first. to see the effect.

The middle-aged man wearing glasses should be the screenwriter recommended by Wes Craven.

After a brief greeting, Wes Craven introduced: "Simon, Amy, this is Bruce Joy Robin, he was the screenwriter of my "The Girl Next Door" last year, I think he can try Check out Scream."

When Simon heard the name of Bruce Joy Robin, he almost couldn't hide his surprised expression.