America achieves both fame and fortune

Chapter 649 The Pit is Dig

Around noon, a tipsy Johnny Depp finally woke up and staggered downstairs, where his new girlfriend, Amber Heard, had already prepared breakfast and lunch.

She smelled a strange odor on Depp and pushed him towards the bathroom: "Go brush your teeth and wash your face!"

Once the door closed, the look of disgust on Amber's face vanished in an instant, but upon hearing the sounds inside, her face instantly returned to a beaming smile.

This couple is more like the male and female protagonists in "Gone Girl".

After dinner, the exceptional couple got into the car driven by their driver/bodyguard, ready to head to their agreed meeting.

The appointment was originally scheduled for 10 a.m., but Depp has absolutely no sense of time. Being hungover and late is normal for him; being punctual and sober is rare.

After "Pirates of the Caribbean," whether on set or in real life, anyone who interacts with Depp has to adapt to his pace.

The car entered the parking lot in front of a business club, and four or five henchmen escorted Depp into the club's gate, where he met up with his agent, Wheatham.

Even after years of working together, the agent couldn't help but say, "John, you're way too late."

Depp didn't care at all: "It's only a few o'clock, it's just a little while, it's no big deal."

Whigham led the way: "Come with me."

The group left the lobby and headed towards the office building. Whigham said something to the bodyguard, who then told Depp's entourage to go to the entertainment area to kill time.

Whigham then looked at Amber Heard, who was clinging tightly to Depp's arm.

Johnny Depp is known for being a hopeless romantic, so of course he wouldn't let Amber leave.

The four arrived at a meeting room in the office building and met Thomas Lane and Jessica, who had invited them.

Thomas first introduced Jessica: "This is the Business Director of Davis Film Studio."

Both sides quickly got down to business.

Jessica handed the information about "The Lone Ranger" to Depp: "Davis Studios wants to invite Johnny to join the project, which is expected to cost $1.6 million. If Johnny agrees to join, we will immediately reach an agreement with Disney and start preparations right away."

Depp looked at it and seemed to remember hearing someone mention it, but he couldn't recall who it was.

He drank too much last night, and the alcohol is still affecting his brain.

Wrigham, who was also watching, reminded him, "Jerry once wanted to adapt this project." He looked at Thomas and asked directly, "You guys?"

Thomas said, "We're here on behalf of Martin Davis, who believes Johnny is the perfect fit for the role of Donto."

Upon hearing Martin Davis's name, Amber's heart skipped a beat. She quietly took out her phone from her handbag, pretending to look at messages, but actually turned on the recording function.

Whigham asked, "Did you get the copyright?"

"We're in talks." Thomas didn't know the actual situation and thought that Martin really wanted to run the project and that poaching Depp was also a form of revenge against Annapurna Pictures.

He appeared particularly confident: "Martin and Alan Horn have been friends for many years and have reached a cooperation agreement. Once some details are settled, a written contract will be finalized immediately."

Amber leaned over to take a look: "Isn't 'The Lone Ranger' a classic TV series?"

Jessica said, "Yes, ABC's classic radio dramas and TV series have a certain audience base and are very promising for adaptation."

Wheatham asked, "You just said you'd start preparations soon? Filming's about to begin?"

Jessica replied, "Expected in May or June."

"This conflicts with Johnny's schedule." Wrigham's heart skipped a beat. He realized that the two men were representing Martin Davis and vaguely guessed what was going on: "Johnny has already signed with the Transcendence team, and he is not available during that period."

Jessica stated directly, "If possible, we hope Johnny will leave the project, and all expenses incurred during that time will be covered by Davis Studios."

She stated the key point: "We won't let Johnny suffer any losses in terms of salary. $3500 million plus up to 10% of the North American box office revenue, as well as corresponding offline revenue sharing, are all negotiable."

Depp seemed half asleep, and occasionally hiccuped from drinking.

Amber glanced at him, utterly disappointed. How could someone like him become so famous?

Jessica added, "Davis Studios, Pacific Films, and Disney Studios all want to work with Johnny."

Holding Depp's hand, Whigham felt he had grasped the key to this meeting and, instead of being in a hurry, said, "This is not a small matter; we need time to consider it."

After chatting for a while longer, Depp lost his patience, stood up, and left.

Whigham had no choice but to apologize to Thomas and Jessica before following them.

As soon as he stepped out of the club, Depp's group of friends surrounded him, trying to drag him along for drinks.

Depp shouted, "Black Mamba Bar, our party's starting today!"

Whigham knew that nothing could be discussed today.

Amber said, "I've made plans with my girlfriends to get a skin treatment, and I'll meet you at the bar afterwards."

The group split into three factions.

As Depp walked away, he told his friends, "It's my treat today, the best wine."

Someone asked, "Is there good news?"

Depp laughed and said, "You know Martin Davis? The media puts him on par with me, and today he came to me asking me to star in one of his projects."

Another person asked, "What project? Doesn't he act in it himself?"

"Lone Ranger!"

…………

In the VIP room on the third floor of the club, Nicholson watched the group of people split into three groups and walk away, then asked Martin, "What's the situation with Thomas?"

Martin put away his phone: "The terms have been set. Depp's agent has accepted the information, and they said they'll consider it."

This was expected, Nicholson said: "We've released the bait, now it's just a matter of whether the fish will bite."

Leonardo DiCaprio, who had been observing Depp's girlfriend through binoculars, remarked, "This girl is pretty; she's beautiful and has a great figure."

Martin said, "This is your type."

"No, no." Leonardo put down his binoculars and said, "There are rumors in the industry that Depp wants to get engaged to her. She's your type."

Martin ignored him and said to Nicholson, "If they make a move, they'll definitely contact Disney. We'll get the news immediately. Megan Ellison is just an outsider to Hollywood."

…………

Amber drove alone for a short distance before stopping on the side of the road.

She took out her phone and played the recording she had just heard; it was very clear.

A while ago, when I met with Depp and Megan Ellison, she said a few words to me.

Amber was quite tempted and, without much hesitation, picked up her phone and dialed the number Megan had given her. As soon as the call connected, she introduced herself and said, "Half an hour ago, Martin Davis's agent Thomas and his agent Jessica met with Depp, trying to poach him to play the male lead in his new project."

Megan said, "Come to my office."

Amber quickly arrived at Annapurna Studios, where an assistant led her into the office.

Megan was direct: "Tell me the specifics."

Amber had already prepared her thoughts on the way, quickly and in detail recounting what had happened, and even took out her phone to play the recording.

"You did a good job, that's thoughtful of you," Megan praised, then took out her checkbook, wrote a check, and placed it on her desk: "Here's your payment."

Amber wanted more, so she didn't take it: "It's what I should do."

Megan didn't even look up: "I trust you to keep an eye on Depp and prevent him from making a decision that I'm unhappy with."

Amber then went to get the check, and after seeing the amount, assured him, "He absolutely won't!"

"Very good!" Megan said almost commandingly: "Keep the recording on your phone."

An assistant came over, and Amber immediately copied the recording from her phone.

She didn't linger any longer and quickly left.

Megan opened a webpage and searched for "The Lone Ranger," and a lot of related content came up.

A classic TV series from the last century, featuring characters familiar to a generation, the rights to which Disney acquired ABC fell into Disney's hands after the acquisition.

Megan called Depp's agent directly.

Seeing that she had received the news so quickly, Whigham saw no need to keep it a secret and readily told her.

In this competition between the two companies, Depp benefits both of them.

Megan hung up the phone, and as she expected, Martin Davis had lost two projects and was now looking for other projects, and was even trying to steal her leading man.

This reminded Megan of what happened at the Oscar nominees' luncheon, where Martin snatched Jessica Chastain away in front of her, and now he's trying to do the same thing to steal Depp away.

Megan pressed the intercom: "Have Dreit and Wilson come over."

The two arrived quickly.

Megan explained the situation in detail and then played the recording that Amber had secretly made.

Wilson, a veteran Hollywood producer, said: "I've heard about this project. At the producers' union meeting a while ago, Jerry Bruckheimer discussed it with a few producers he was close to. He complained that the new president of Disney Studios, Alan Horn, was a megalomaniac who broke his predecessor's promises and held back his desire to adapt the 'Lone Ranger' project."

Megan asked, "Is it Jerry Bruckheimer, the acclaimed producer who made Bad Boys, The Rock, Con Air, Public Enemies, Pearl Harbor, Black Hawk Down, the Pirates of the Caribbean series, and the National Treasure series?"

Wilson said, "That's him."

That's incredibly convincing!

And then there's Martin Davis...

Megan was decisive, and things were going as she expected. She said, "Wilson, go find Jerry Bruckheimer and ask him about the project."

She then looked at Dreit: "Go find Depp's agent, Wrigham, and get a copy of the information about 'The Lone Ranger' from him. Find out what's going on inside Disney."

The two of them agreed one after the other.

Megan was still worried and specifically instructed, "Make sure to keep this a secret. Don't let Martin Davis find out anything, understand?"

"Understood." The two left the office and immediately got to work.

(End of this chapter)