Traveling Through the Tokyo Bubble Era

Chapter 1053 You have the right to refuse, but not the right to choose.
The appearance of Hideki Hanyu immediately excited the book fans at the scene.

Unlike fans of celebrities, these book lovers, even when excited, maintain a certain degree of restraint.

Of course, this is also related to the fact that many of the book fans are children.

Many of the adults I saw at the event were actually there to spend time with their children.

This is also the most important reason why Universal Pictures has high hopes for this film at the box office.

Family-friendly movies, especially those rated G (Good) and suitable for all ages, are the most likely to boost the box office, as they are often watched by the whole family.

During the joyous Christmas and New Year holidays, what could be more convenient, cheaper, and more appealing to children than taking them to see a movie?

Especially since this movie is adapted from a bestselling picture book, and the story is the type that children love most.

Since its release three years ago, Home Alone has sold over 12 million copies in North America alone.

Moreover, due to the long-tail sales effect of picture books, many picture books continue to sell well even many years after their release.

Therefore, even now, this picture book still occasionally makes it onto the North American children's book sales charts.

It's fair to say that the story of "Home Alone" has influenced all North American children of this era.

Universal Pictures' distribution department naturally hopes to convert readers into moviegoers to the greatest extent possible.

Similarly, academic publishers hope to leverage the collaboration with the film to help "Home Alone 2: Merry Christmas" replicate the sales success of the first installment.

This is precisely why Universal and Academic Publishers reached this joint marketing agreement.

As the central figure of the project, Hideki Hanyu naturally became the focus of the publicity, which is why so many book fans came to the premiere today.

Only a small portion of these people came on their own; the majority were actually winners selected by Universal Pictures and academic publishers through various events.

Those who can participate in this kind of event, even if they are not fans of Hideki Hanyu's books, are at least very fond of the picture book "Home Alone".

Therefore, it's not surprising that people show their liking for Hideki Hanyu.

Knowing all this in advance, Hideki Hanyu deliberately approached the area of ​​book fans after walking the red carpet at the premiere, interacting with the most enthusiastic young fans and giving them autographs.

After Hideki Hanyu appeared, the other invited celebrities wisely stopped and did not walk the red carpet to steal the spotlight from him.

Of course, you could also say they're worried about having their exposure stolen by Hideki Hanyu.

As soon as Hideki Hanyu appeared, all the media's attention was focused on him.

It can only be said that Hideki Hanyu has too much of a gimmick, and his identity is so complicated that it can be called "legendary". No matter which title he has, it can attract readers' attention.

After walking the red carpet and entering the Huaxia Theater, Hideki Hanyu was greeted by Alan Horn, the cast and crew of the movie "Home Alone," and other guests who had already arrived.

These people were stationed here, naturally to welcome the big shot, Hideki Hanyu, and to get acquainted with him.

After greeting Alan Horn, Hideki Hanyu then briefly greeted the others, as introduced by Horn.

His gaze then quickly fell on several people.

First up is the blond little boy standing among the main cast of "Home Alone," the film's absolute lead actor.

Macaulay Culkin.

Perhaps because the film director still chose Chris Columbus, in the final casting of the lead role, Chris Columbus still chose Macaulay Culkin, who was auditioning.

The little boy didn't seem nervous when he saw Hideki Hanyu; instead, he would occasionally steal glances at him.

With such a personality, it's no wonder she performs so well in movies.

In another timeline, Hideki Hanyu had heard a lot about Macaulay Culkin and knew that early fame was not a good thing for him.

Being treated as a cash cow by her father and subjected to both physical and mental abuse meant that this child's upbringing was not as healthy and happy as depicted in the movie.

However, even though Hideki Hanyu knew all this, he did not intend to interfere unnecessarily.

Upright officials can hardly break housework.

Since they were not related, he had no reason to meddle in other people's business.

Besides, countless child stars have been ruined by Hollywood's fame and fortune, and Macaulay Culkin is by no means the most tragic one.

He can't change Hollywood, so he can't change things like this.

Besides Macaulay Culkin, Hideki Hanyu also had his sights set on two other people.

To be precise, they were two beautiful women.

The first one, a beautiful woman in a fiery red dress that perfectly showcased her figure, was none other than Catherine Zeta-Jones, whom Hideki Hanyu brought from England to Hollywood.

With the help of Hideki Hanyu and her own efforts, this woman successfully won the role of the female lead in the TV series "Seinfeld".

With the show's immense popularity after its release, Catherine Zeta-Jones gained tremendous fame, becoming a star in North America even earlier than in the other timeline.

The second was a beautiful woman in a silver evening gown with flowing blonde hair, Naomi Watts.

In Castle Stone's 1989 film "When Harry Met Sally," Naomi Watts snatched the role from her friend Nicole Kidman, ultimately becoming the lead actress in a film that grossed over $100 million worldwide and earning a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress.

It can be said to be the most standard way to become famous.

She went from being completely unknown in Hollywood to becoming a near-second-tier actress.

This year, Naomi Watts continued to cling to Hideki Hanyu's coattails, and instead of rushing into big-budget commercial films, she took advantage of her position to participate in a low-to-medium budget art film produced by Cloud Pictures.

Although the film's box office performance was not as dazzling as that of "When Harry Met Sally" after its release this year, it still managed to make a profit.

Naomi Watts' performance in the film has also won the recognition of many professionals.

According to the latest information obtained by Hideki Hanyu, Naomi Watts is working hard to secure a new project from Universal Pictures.

The project is called "The New Father-in-Law," and it is not an original film, but a remake produced by Fred Webber.

The original was produced by Warner Bros. in 1950 and distributed by MGM.

In another timeline, the film was propelled by Disney executives who purchased the remake rights from Warner Bros.

Disney entrusts the production of its films to Touchstone Pictures, which finances the production, and then its subsidiary Buena Vista Pictures handles the distribution.

This reboot was released in North America in 1991, and ultimately grossed $90 million, ranking ninth on the box office charts that year.

However, in this timeline, Fred Webber snatched the film, buying the remake rights before Disney could, and has already received Universal Pictures' green light, officially entering the preparation stage.

To ensure the film's success, Fred Wilbert specifically hired the team of renowned Hollywood screenwriter Nancy Meyers to adapt the original film.

It must be said that Naomi Watts has excellent taste; for her first foray into Universal Pictures' commercial films, she chose this blockbuster production set in another time and space.

But as far as Hideki Hanyu knows, Naomi Watts isn't the only one with good taste.

Naomi Watts's old friend, the Australian beauty who bowed her head in apology to Hideki Hanyu, Nicole Kidman who recovered some of her fortunes with "Driving Miss Daisy." And Jennifer Connelly, who proved her commercial prowess this year by playing one of the two female leads in the $106 million box office hit "Anne & Alina."

There's also Brooke Shields, who, because of her association with Hideki Hanyu, caused Hanyu to keep his distance from her.

Everyone has their eyes on Universal Pictures' new project.

It's not accurate to say they specifically targeted this film; it's just that Hollywood is highly competitive, and there aren't many movies suitable for young women.

Family-themed comedy films, in particular, often have the potential to be big hits.

Therefore, even if she is not the leading female character in the drama, she is still worth fighting for with all these women.

As for Catherine Zeta-Jones, who is right in front of us, she has become a regular actress in the TV series, so even if she is interested in the project, she probably won't be able to find the time to film.

Hideki Hanyu had many thoughts in his mind, but in reality, it was all over in an instant.

After the two women noticed his gaze, their eyes immediately became intense as well.

However, in such a public setting, it was inconvenient for Hideki Hanyu to communicate with the two of them.

Moreover, there are more than just these two female celebrities invited tonight. If there are too many people later, even if Hideki Yuzuru wants to have a chat, he probably won't be able to keep up.

So after greeting everyone, Hideki Hanyu, accompanied by Alan Horn, sat down in the first row of the theater.

While waiting for the premiere to begin, Hideki Hanyu and Alan Horn naturally discussed company matters.

In the first year after Universal Pictures changed hands, Alan Horn, as the new CEO, delivered a near-perfect performance for the industry.

If "Home Alone" performs normally, it could easily take the top spot on the all-time box office charts.

In this situation, compared to Columbia Pictures, which also changed hands, the difference is simply enormous.

According to their financial reports, Sony suffered huge losses in its film production and distribution businesses in the first year after acquiring Columbia Pictures.

In comparison, even though Alan Horn knew that Universal Pictures' profits mostly came from projects that Hideki Hanyu had scouted for Cloud Pictures, he couldn't help but feel a little smug.

Hideki Hanyu praised it highly.

In addition to praise, monetary rewards are also indispensable.

For Hideki Hanyu, any problem that can be solved with money is not a problem.

As the two continued their conversation, the premiere quickly began.

As the CEO of Universal Pictures, Alan Horn was naturally invited to the stage by the host.

Needless to say, Hideki Hanyu is the absolute star of the day, so he naturally has to participate in the entire premiere according to the schedule.

He gave an interview, chatted with book fans, and talked about the upcoming release of "Home Alone 2"...

The premiere was a joyful experience for the audience, but for Hideki Hanyu, it was just a routine process.

Hideki Hanyu is much more looking forward to watching movies than doing these things.

Once the film started playing, it did not disappoint Hideki Hanyu. With his picture book setting the tone, and the work presented by almost the original production team, it was virtually indistinguishable from another timeline.

Listening to the laughter and cheers of the audience in the theater, the children's exclamations, and the applause at the end of the screening, Hideki Hanyu knew that this movie, like the one in another time and space, was destined to be a success.

However, after the joy of watching the movie ended, when Hideki Hanyu was about to leave the Huaxia Theater, he found that he had encountered a problem.

Besides Catherine Zeta-Jones and Naomi Watts, who were seen upon arrival, Jennifer Connelly, Nicole Kidman, and Sheryl Finn also arrived later.

If we also include Higuchi Kanako, who came from Japan with Hideki Hanyu, and Aoyama Chikako.

At this moment, there were seven beautiful women waiting for Hideki Yuzuru to take them away from the Huaxia Theater.

Although Hideki Hanyu doesn't mind a 1v7 situation, these beauties probably wouldn't agree.

So who should we choose?

It might be a problem for others, after all, you have to consider what other women think.

But for a scumbag like Hideki Hanyu, such concerns are completely irrelevant.

He can choose whomever he wants, and he doesn't care at all if other women have opinions.

After only a brief moment of consideration, the scumbag decided to try something new, then ignored the resentful looks from the other women and left with Jennifer Connelly.

The main reason was Jennifer Connelly's low-cut evening gown tonight, which perfectly showcased her stunning figure, making Hideki Hanyu's heart flutter. He had to take advantage of her youth and the peak of her beauty to savor her.

In Humphrey Hills, Los Angeles, at one of Hideki Hanyu's rabbit-nest mansions, after arriving with Jennifer Connelly, the details of their first encounter need not be elaborated.

However, after everything calmed down, Jennifer Connelly, who was lying on top of him, suddenly said something to him.

"I want a role."

Upon hearing Jennifer Connelly's words, Hideki Yuzuru thought to himself, "She's a true American girl. She's so straightforward. Once she's given a sweet treat, she immediately asks for a reward. She has no sense of restraint whatsoever."

If it were a Japanese girl, she would probably go around in circles, and might even wait for Hideki Hanyu to speak first.

However, Hideki Hanyu also likes Jennifer Connelly's approach, which emphasizes fair exchange and mutual consent, rewarding effort.

However, Hideki Hanyu knew exactly what Jennifer Connelly wanted, so he asked her directly.

"Is it the remake project that Fred was in charge of?"

Jennifer Connelly nodded. "Yes, just the second female lead. Could you talk to Director Fred and ask him to give me that role?"

“This project is very important to Universal Pictures, and I don’t want to interfere with Fred’s decision on this matter.”

And you should know very well that there are many people who want this role.

For projects that are likely to be among the top ten at the box office, Hideki Hanyu would not easily interfere with the casting process.

"But we..."

Jennifer Connelly's implication is quite clear.

After all, they were being completely honest with each other at that moment, so their relationship was self-evident.

However, Hideki Hanyu interrupted Jennifer Connelly before she could finish speaking.

“These are two different things. I am very satisfied with your performance, and I can give you other rewards, such as this house as a gift.”

Jennifer Connelly seemed about to say something.

Hideki Hanyu offered a blunt reminder.

"You have the right to refuse, but you don't have the right to choose."

(End of this chapter)