America achieves both fame and fortune

Chapter 579 Even God isn't as crazy as him

On the sunny golf course at the Los Angeles Country Club.

After finishing a hole, Thomas drove his electric scooter back to the rest area with Martin and Daniel.

The latter ended the golf conversation and returned to the movie, picking up his drink and raising it to Martin: "Congratulations on another Best Actor nomination."

Martin raised his glass in response, saying, "I just won Best Supporting Actor last year. It would be difficult for Benjamin to win Best Actor. I didn't have an advantage to begin with, and the character used too much CG technology."

Daniel took a sip of his drink and said, "You're still young, and you'll have plenty of opportunities in the future. Warner Bros. will fully support you."

The other party spoke nicely, and Martin didn't mince words: "Warner has always been my source of confidence."

Daniel, quick to follow up, said, "Ever since you entered Hollywood, you've been working with Warner Bros. Our collaboration has been seamless, creating numerous box office miracles."

He smiled. "Martin, have you considered a closer collaboration with Warner Bros."

Martin, confused, didn't say anything rash and instead focused on the Oscars: "Warner Bros. is going to fully support my bid for Best Actor?"

Daniel was slightly taken aback by Martin's answer and replied, "With your acting skills and artistic expression, if you continue to work with Warner, the Best Actor award will definitely be yours."

Martin smiled. "I hope so."

Daniel found that he would unconsciously be led by Martin when they talked, so he simply said directly: "The closer collaboration with Warner Bros. that I mentioned earlier does not refer to the Oscars."

He asked sincerely, "Martin, would you be interested in joining the Warner family?"

Thomas, who had been silent all along, suddenly looked at Daniel.

Martin was also somewhat surprised, and slowly asked, "Aren't I now a member of the Warner family?"

Daniel said, "Warner Bros. is interested in acquiring your Davis Film Studio."

Martin nodded slightly and asked, "Like New Line Cinema and Legendary Pictures?"

“Yes,” Daniel said. “Davis Studios has become a subsidiary of Warner.”

Martin wasn't opposed to being acquired by Warner Bros. as long as the price was right. Since it was a business transaction, he directly asked about the price: "I'd like to know, how much is Warner Bros. willing to pay?"

Daniel was prepared when he arrived: "Warner conducted a systematic evaluation, and the estimate was $1.5 million."

He raised his hand to stop Martin from speaking, and said first, "Your studio has only been established for five years, and your film library, including the upcoming film 'Gone Girl,' only has the rights to four films. Apart from a publicity and marketing department, the other departments are basically negligible."

Martin was certainly not satisfied with the price.

Daniel wasn't finished speaking: "This includes the sequel rights to 'John Wick,' as well as your lead role contract for the trilogy. Of course, Warner Bros. will pay you your salary and profit share as promised! In addition, the rights to 'Prince of Thieves,' 'The Lonely Survivor,' and 'The Martian,' as well as the rights to other scripts you've purchased, are also included."

"I personally enjoy working with Warner very much and want to strengthen the ties between the two companies," Martin said directly. "If Warner offers the right price, I can sell the studio to you."

At this point, he couldn't help but shake his head: "1.5 million US dollars, in my eyes, can't even buy the sequel rights to 'John Wick,' let alone the adaptation rights to those three novels."

This is purely a business transaction. Daniel stated frankly, "The success or failure of those three novels being adapted into movies is completely unknown. Even the sequel to John Wick carries considerable risk. There are many examples of sequels to blockbuster movies that have had poor commercial results."

Martin nodded and said, "I have a way to avoid these risks. I'll take the rights to these three novels, the John Wick series, and other screenplays with me. To avoid severance pay after the acquisition, I'll find a way to get rid of the staff. The remaining assets of Davis Studios will be sold to Warner Bros. for $1.5 million."

Daniel laughed: "Martin, you know that's impossible."

Martin shrugged: "Our differences are too great."

Every product has a price tag, Daniel asked, "What's your price range?"

"$5 million!" Martin thought this price was very reasonable. In addition to the money, he also demanded: "The production of the sequel to John Wick will be entirely led by my team."

Daniel thought the price was outrageous, but neither he nor Warner would object to the latter condition.

Martin hadn't finished speaking: "I won't go into details about salaries and profit sharing, but I also have to take the lead in adapting the other films, from budget to directing, everything must be in the contract."

Daniel couldn't agree; the executives at Warner Bros. and related film companies would never agree. He said directly, "That's unrealistic, Martin. You know that's impossible in big companies."

Over the next decade, Warner Bros. executives will be jumping around more and more excitedly, and Martin, who still wants to star in his projects, is unlikely to relinquish control.

He said, "Let's not talk about that for now; $5 million is my bottom line."

Daniel shook his head: "Your asking price is too crazy, it's not in line with market rates."

This initial contact has now come to an end.

After leaving the country club, Thomas got into Martin's car and asked, "Are you really planning to sell the studio?"

Martin said, "If Warner Bros. agrees to my terms, selling the studio to them is not out of the question; we can just register another one."

Thomas had overheard their conversation and knew that Warner wanted the project Martin had.

Martin considered for a moment and said, "Warner Bros. will definitely continue to contact the studio. I don't want our relationship with Warner to change too much in the short term, so it's not appropriate for me to talk to Warner directly. Therefore, you will represent me in the talks with Warner Bros.."

Thomas asked, "What are the conditions?"

Martin vaguely recalls that Warner Bros. often made irrational decisions regarding production over the next decade or so: "The conditions for project control cannot be compromised."

He tapped the armrest of his seat lightly: "As for the price, we can lower it to $4.5 million."

Upon hearing these two conditions, Thomas knew that an agreement was impossible.

The two sides have different standards of measurement; Warner Bros. has its own set of standards, and so does Martin.

There are huge disagreements on this point.

Martin then joined the cast of "Gone Girl" to prepare for filming, occasionally training and discussing action scene design with Chad and Chen Hu, making his work very busy.

Thomas, representing Martin, held several talks with Warner Bros. personnel, but the differences between the two sides remained significant.

By the time the Oscars ceremony began, there was still no sign or possibility of reaching an agreement.

Warner Bros. also showed some sincerity, increasing the acquisition funds to $2 million.

But Thomas, representing Davis Studios, insisted on a minimum of $4.5 million.

Warner Bros. suspended the acquisition negotiations and shifted its focus to Castle Stone Pictures.

"Success can lead to more success, but it can also blind people to their own limitations."

In Kevin Tsujihara's office at Warner Bros. Building, Jon Berg, the newly appointed president of Warner Bros. who spearheaded the negotiations, said, "Martin Davis is overestimating himself. A $4.5 million asking price? Even God isn't crazy enough to justify that!"

Kevin Tsujihara was not happy that his first acquisition after taking office ended in failure: "I think the offer of $2 million was very sincere. Most Hollywood stars don't earn that much money in their entire lives."

Jon Berg, Kevin Tsujihara's brother-in-law, spoke without much restraint: "I think we should put some pressure on Martin Davis to help him understand himself."

Kevin Tsujihara doesn't readily express his opinions.

Jon Berg continued, "For the next film, the distribution company can put pressure on Davis Studios, for example, by demanding a higher distribution fee. The sequel to John Wick is quite explicit, making its marketing more sensitive..."

Kevin Tsujihara waved his hand: "Go and discuss it with Daniel."

He then moved on to today's main topic: "How's the progress of 'Pharaohs and Gods'?"

This is the first major film project that Kevin Tsujihara has truly spearheaded since taking office, and he is particularly concerned about it.

Jon Berg said, "Ridley Scott has already finished post-production on Robin Hood and his schedule is fine. We have reached an agreement with him, and he will begin preparing for this project after the Oscars."

Kevin Tsujihara then asked, "Is a 2012 release date okay?"

Jon Berger was confident: "Ridley is more efficient than other directors; he said his schedule is flexible enough."

"The censorship committee has given 'Green Lantern' the green light, so this project needs to be expedited. Keep in touch with Hamada at DC Films." The heads of Warner Bros.' key subsidiaries have all been replaced by Kevin Tsujihara's confidants: "This is a crucial step for the DC Extended Universe to catch up with Marvel; we can't afford to fail."

Jon Berg nodded and said, "Hamada has chosen a very good director, Martin Campbell, who has directed films such as GoldenEye, The Mask of Zorro and Casino Royale. The male lead is considered to be Ryan Reynolds, who received a very good response in Wolverine. As for the female lead, although the final choice has not been finalized, Blake Lively, who has become extremely popular in recent years, is among the candidates."

These all sound quite plausible. Kevin Tsujihara personally attended the project initiation meeting for "Green Lantern." In order to catch up with Marvel as soon as possible, Warner Bros. is preparing to raise $2 million for filming and production.

After leaving, Jon Berg immediately went to DC Films to discuss the specifics of the project with Hamada.

This film will be jointly developed by DC Films and Warner Bros.

The entire Warner Bros. team was very confident about the project.

With a complete cinematic universe plan, a substantial budget, a reliable management team and production crew, a director with extensive experience in success, more mature CGI technology, and a protagonist popular with the market, there are risks involved, but they are much smaller than those of Marvel's Iron Man.

In fact, Warner Bros.' management believes that Marvel Studios' upcoming "Captain America" ​​is much riskier than "Green Lantern."

My older brother back home died of a heart attack; he was only in his early fifties. I'll be back home for the next couple of days, so I can only write in my spare time. Please forgive me if updates are a little late.

(End of this chapter)