America achieves both fame and fortune

Chapter 890 Good Man Martin Helps DC Recommend Talent

"Try using a lens with a gauge of 2-18 in this area."

In the post-production editing room, Martin looked at the screen and kept giving instructions: "The shot is only 3 seconds long, end at the crazy part."

Joel Negroon personally took charge of editing.

Riding the wave of negative reviews surrounding "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice," Martin is preparing to release an early "Joker" movie.

The planned length of GG is around 30 seconds, and the footage is mostly about the Joker's madness.

These align with market and moviegoers' expectations for the film.

After Joel Negron finished editing, he said, "Cutting it down by another 0.5 seconds would have been even better."

Martin listened to the advice of these professionals and immediately said, "Give it a try."

Joel Negron made some adjustments, Martin took a look, and the effect was indeed good, so they continued with the next part of the editing.

After working all morning, he felt dizzy and lightheaded. Instead of going out to eat, he called Leonardo and Nicholson and asked the two bastards to go get their faces washed together.

Surprisingly, neither of those two bastards were in Los Angeles.

Going alone isn't very interesting, but if I don't wash my face, my work efficiency in the afternoon will be hard to guarantee.

Martin thought for a moment: among all his lovers, who had the best face-washing effect?

He dialed Alexandra Daddario's number.

Half an hour later, the two entered the top-floor suite of the Ritz-Carlton Hotel.

Alexandra's super cleanser is amazing; you'll know how good it is once you try it.

After a good rest at noon, Martin was full of energy and threw himself back into his work in the afternoon.

After editing the sample, the remaining retouching work was handed over to Joel Negroon. Martin left the studio before four o'clock and went next door.

Split is scheduled for release in North America this October and is currently undergoing final editing.

David Fincher, who has finished filming "House of Cards 2", has returned to the set to oversee the final editing.

Martin met David Fincher in the director's office and asked, "When will post-production be completely finished?"

David Fincher said, "By early August at the latest, the final editing and special effects will be in the final stages."

The film didn't use many special effects shots to begin with. After thinking for a moment, he specifically mentioned, "You plan to use this film to compete for your second Oscar for Best Actor. During post-production editing, I used a lot of shots that could highlight your acting skills and meet the aesthetic standards of the Oscars."

Martin was well aware that David Fincher had emphasized this aspect during filming, and said, "Thank you, David."

"There's a price to pay for doing this," David Fincher further stated. "The film's narrative may be somewhat weakened."

Martin laughed and said, "With your skill level, the quality of the plot is definitely guaranteed."

David Fincher is confident about this: "I guarantee that the plot of this film will not be worse than any of my films."

Soon, Louise arrived, and together with a Disney film distributor, the four of them held a meeting in the studio to discuss the film's upcoming promotion and distribution.

Although it hasn't been submitted to the MPAA for rating yet, this film is quite explicit and will definitely be rated R in the end.

This will have some impact on the number of theaters opening in North America.

The film's promotional materials highlight the main characteristic of the characters, namely, multiple personalities.

In addition, Billy Milligan passed away last year, and the production team will organize a memorial event for him.

The dead have always played a significant role in film promotion.

After the meeting, Martin accompanied Louise out of the studio and they walked together toward the studio entrance.

When Martin passed by Marvel Studios' Avengers studio, he noticed a large crowd gathered at the entrance, seemingly watching something interesting.

Everyone enjoys watching the drama unfold.

Martin was no exception; he pulled Louise to a stop and looked at the studio across the street.

A four-wheeled electric vehicle was parked at the entrance, with a dedicated driver waiting on it.

Someone is carrying things out of the workshop and loading them onto an electric scooter.

Soon, a familiar face walked out of the studio's main entrance.

Martin recognized the man; he was Joss Whedon, the director of the first two Avengers films.

The man looked tense and seemed to be in a bad mood, even scolding his assistant who was moving things next to him.

Joss Whedon, seeing the crowd gathered at the door, shouted angrily, "What are you looking at? Haven't you ever seen a move before?"

Within Hollywood, he is known as a director with a fiery temper, a violent style, and vulgar language.

The general public didn't care because Joss Whedon had been fired by Walt Disney.

Martin said, "He used to be surrounded by good people."

"If Avengers: Age of Ultron is as successful as the first one, Joss Whedon will still be surrounded by good people," Lois said bluntly. "Losers don't deserve to be surrounded by good people."

Martin deliberately asked, "I would have done the same if I were in that situation."

Louise pushed up her glasses and joked, "When you're no longer of any value, Kelly and I will tie you up in Sherman Oaks' villa and turn you into a juicer, completely draining you dry."

Martin watched Joss Way get on the four-wheeled scooter and suddenly remembered something: "Overall, both of his Avengers films were commercially successful."

"The problem with the second film is the same as with 'Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice'—the audience reviews were terrible." Lois had learned about the situation with Disney and Marvel: "They were worried about affecting Marvel's overall plans, and... how should I put it, Joss Whedon isn't what he used to be. The success of these two films gave him leverage, which led to conflicts with Kevin Feige."

She thought for a moment and added, "It's not a personal conflict, but a difference in the creative concept of the series. Personal conflicts are relatively easy to resolve, but ideological differences are often a life-or-death struggle."

Martin pondered for a moment and said, "Joss Whedon is a talent; he shouldn't just fade away like this."

Louise asked, "What, you're thinking of hiring Joss Whedon? Is there a suitable project for him? Is it that 'San Andreas' movie?"

"No, no, no." Martin, that hypocrite, was honest: "I'm a bad guy, how could I hire a director who was just fired by Disney? Given his current situation, there's a high probability that his next film will flop."

Louise thought about it carefully and realized that what he said made sense. From what she knew, Joss Whedon was unusually arrogant, to the point that it went beyond just being conceited.

On the set of the new season of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., the actors were reportedly put through horrific torture, and it wasn't even related to filming.

She asked curiously, "I remember you didn't get along with Kevin Feige, so why are you suddenly interested in Joss Whedon?"

Martin waved his hand: "This has nothing to do with Kevin Feige. I'm planning to recommend Joss Whedon to a more suitable place... Well, this might not be easy, it might take some time, and I'll need your help."

He planned to involve Louise in some trouble, but he wanted her to know something: "It's not complicated. Without implicating us, we'll get Joss Whedon into the Warner Bros. team, especially the DC executives' sights."

Some time ago, Warner Bros. member Hamada, along with several DC executives, attacked the Joker project. Lois Lane, who was involved in the investment and served as a producer, was furious and had nowhere to vent her anger. Upon hearing Martin's words, she immediately perked up.

She knows Martin: "As far as I know, DC has no plans to change directors for the Justice League project at the moment."

Martin said, "Warner Bros.' ideas are always unpredictable, especially Zack Snyder... I don't know what to say, just consider it a gift from us to Warner Bros. After all, Joss Whedon directed two Avengers movies."

Louise said, "No problem, I'll figure out a way to get someone like Joss Whedon into DC's sights. It's not difficult."

After a moment's thought, Martin added, "The reputation of Batman v Superman is still declining, and I will have people keep focusing on its dark and serious style."

Louise immediately understood Martin's meaning: "To make Warner Bros. think that the dark and serious style has serious problems and is unsuitable for the superhero movie market?"

Martin snapped his fingers: "Darling, you understand me best."

The four-wheeled electric vehicle carrying Joss Whedon left the Disney studio.

Louise took Martin's arm and pulled him along.

As Martin walked, he sighed to himself, "Sure enough, I'm a true fan of Warner Bros. and DC. Even though I've had a public falling out with the Warner Bros. team, I still haven't forgotten to help them find a director who's more suitable for Justice League."

Unfortunately, the Warner Music team is a bunch of ingrates; not only do they not appreciate it, they often repay kindness with enmity.

The audience reception of "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice" continued to decline without Martin Scorsese having to do much.

This film proves once again that relying solely on comic book fans is not enough to support a commercial blockbuster of this scale.

Even with Zack Snyder's fans relentlessly boosting the ratings, the film's score on IMDb still fell below the passing mark of 6 and continued to decline.

Based on past experience, once Zack Snyder's director's extended version is released, the rating might rise again, returning to above 6 points.

But now, this movie has really received terrible reviews.

Industry expectations for North American box office revenue have been lowered from $2.6 million to $2.5 million.

While the film's popularity was still high, Disney Studios took the opportunity to release the first "GG" trailer for "Joker".

Although it was only 30 seconds long, with the terrible "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice" as a negative example, the internet was almost entirely filled with praise.

"Look at the Joker, this is what a DC movie should look like."

"DC's management doesn't know anything about DC; the one who truly understands DC is Martin!"

"How do you shoot a dark film? It's not just about making the screen completely black. Look at the Joker, that's what a dark film is all about!"

Among the spontaneous comments from movie fans, there were also some articles with ulterior motives.

"It's obvious that Zack Snyder isn't suited to directing DC movies. DC either needs to go for a truly dark style, or it needs to learn from Marvel and make light and fun monster-fighting movies."

…………

Warner Building, Chairman's Office.

Kevin Tsujihara's face was so dark it could drip water. Even though he was used to all sorts of things, he was still furious at the terrible audience reviews of "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice".

He looked at Hamada: "The overseas response isn't very good either?"

Hamada said, "The box office is pretty good; the overseas box office has surpassed that in North America."

Kevin Tsujihara asked the crucial question: "What about reputation?"

Overseas audiences know even less about DC Comics, and the films' influence far surpasses that of the comics. Hamada couldn't deny this, so he reluctantly admitted, "The film's reception overseas is even worse than in North America, but I'm confident I can turn things around. With the release of this film, audiences have generally become more familiar with DC's superheroes and will have a basic understanding of them. The next one…"

Kevin Tsujihara raised his hand to interrupt Hamada: "Haven't you noticed? Most moviegoers have absolutely no interest in manga. They just want to watch a movie they can understand, not do their homework before it's released. Is watching a movie for leisure and entertainment, or for work or school?"

"Chairman," Hamada glanced furtively at Kevin Tsujihara, "Fortunately, the film's box office performance is decent, and it has a large enough audience..."

Kevin Tsujihara interrupted Hamada again, asking, "Would it be feasible to replace Zack Snyder as director?"

These words brought Hamada to tears. He said, "The preparation for Justice League is almost finished. We've invested over a hundred million dollars. Changing the director, screenwriter, and producer now would be a huge loss."

He didn't want to give up: "Zack Snyder also has a large number of supporters. His style does have some problems. If we intervene and let Zach adjust his style appropriately, I think it's entirely feasible."

In the current situation, changing directors might be even more damaging. Kevin Tsujihara pondered for a moment and said, "In addition to Charles Roven, we need to send a new producer to be specifically responsible for the film's style. He should keep a close eye on Zack. 'Batman v Superman' didn't work out with its dark and serious style. 'Justice League' must learn from this experience."

Hamada said, "I will assign a dedicated person to oversee this project and I will personally supervise it."

The two discussed the project at a long time.

Although audience reviews have been somewhat negative, the film is sure to be a commercial success, and the amount of profit is just a matter of how much. It will satisfy the group company and prevent the company from having to take the blame.

Hamada left the chairman's office and quickly returned to DC.

After sitting down in the office, I reviewed a batch of documents. During my break, I picked up a newspaper and read the latest news about "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice".

Aside from the box office, which was barely acceptable, everything else was a disaster.

Hamada was puzzled as to why the more serious and dark style of "The Dark Knight" was not only accepted by movie fans and the market, but also received high scores, while the reputation of "Batman v Superman" collapsed.

Is a dark and serious style really no longer suitable for the market?

wrong!

Hamada immediately dismissed the idea, because he had seen a report about Joker in The Hollywood Reporter, which he read every day, and Martin Davis's new film was also dark and serious.

That bastard has an exceptionally keen sense for the market.

Hamada, as usual, glanced at the TMZ homepage, where a short gay porn clip of "Joker" was displayed.

He discovered that Joker was not only dark, but also insane, and that insaneness seemed to dilute the oppressive feeling of darkness.

Right below the GG video was another news item and video.

Joss Whedon has ended his collaboration with Marvel!

Hamada remembers very clearly that this director single-handedly created the huge success of "The Avengers," truly integrating six seemingly mismatched and uncoordinated superheroes into a team.

Whether intentionally or unintentionally, Joss Whedon's name was etched into Hamada's mind.

(End of this chapter)