Hollywood Director 1992

“North American box office is projected to be over 300 million, and overseas over 400 million. This movie is going to sell over 700 million, and that's in US dollars. Link is really sharp.”

At Jiahe Film in Hong Kong, Chan Long looked at the box office results of "Seven" in the newspaper and sighed in admiration.

In the Hong Kong area, the highest-grossing films only make fifty to sixty million Hong Kong dollars. Link's "Paranormal Activity" sold 600 million US dollars worldwide, which translates to four to five billion Hong Kong dollars, higher than Hong Kong's total annual box office.

This movie, "Seven," is even more amazing, projected to sell over 700 million US dollars worldwide.

Adding in "Speed," Guess Pictures' summer box office revenue will exceed 1 billion US dollars, seventy to eighty billion Hong Kong dollars, making more money than a Fortune 500 company.

Chan Long was so envious that he drooled.

“Don't just see him making money; you also need to see his difficulties. Look at this news. It says that the seven major film companies couldn't outsell Link, so they falsely accused Link of being a murderer, hoping to ruin him with this method. This also shows that it's not easy for Chinese people to gain a foothold in Hollywood.”

Raymond Chow, the president of Jiahe, sighed as he looked at the second-hand news reprinted by the British media.

“Will Link be okay?”

“No, Link is worth over a billion US dollars. People with this kind of wealth are the elite in America, surrounded by a large group of lawyers, and perhaps they also have friends in politics. It's difficult to do anything to him based on just these rumors.”

Raymond Chow shook the newspaper and said.

Chan Long nodded.

Raymond Chow said, "The post-production of 'Rumble in the Bronx' is complete. In September, I'll have someone take it to America for Link to take a look and give some guidance. If all goes well, it will be released in America in the first half of next year."

“Am I going too?”

“What else do you do in Hong Kong besides picking up girls? If you have nothing to do, go and take a look. Since you're planning to develop in Hollywood, you need to be determined. First, buy a property there and bring Phoebe and Jaycee over. Don't keep running back and messing around. You should interact with Link more in Hollywood and build a good relationship. If he has good film projects, wouldn't he bring you along?”

Raymond Chow was Chan Long's godfather, so he didn't need to be polite when speaking to him.

“Yes, Godfather, you're right.”

Chan Long touched his nose and chuckled.

Raymond Chow continued to read the newspaper and suddenly raised his head again, “By the way, Link chose Vivian Chow to play the female lead. Did you see them dating while filming?”

“I don't think so! Link came to the set once when 'Rumble in the Bronx' started filming and talked to Vivian Chow a few times, but he hasn't come back since. I heard he's filming a new movie and doesn't have time to come over. Godfather, why are you asking this?”

Chan Long asked.

“Does Vivian Chow have Link's contact information? Has she contacted Link?”

“I heard Link gave her a business card. I don't know if she's contacted him.”

Chan Long said.

“This is not easy to handle. If Link is interested in Vivian Chow, we can use her to befriend Link. Now that their relationship is unclear, we're missing a layer of insurance.”

“Hehe, Godfather, are you acting as a pimp for Link? Ouch!”

Before he could finish speaking, he was hit by the newspaper. Chan Long almost jumped up from the sofa.

Raymond Chow glared at him, “What pimping? This is paving the way for you. Do you know who Link is? A world-renowned director, the owner of the largest independent film company in Hollywood, and a billionaire ranked in the top 300 in America. If he likes you and is willing to promote you as the male lead in a Hollywood movie, you'll be able to earn US dollars in the future, and you'll be a big shot when you return to Hong Kong. Everyone will be fawning over you. Now I'm talking to you about serious matters, and you're being all smiles. Do you want to be a nobody in Hollywood?”

“Godfather! I know I'm wrong. I'll listen to you.”

Chan Long touched his big nose and said.

“Go ask Vivian Chow if she wants to develop in Hollywood. If she agrees, you can bring her along next time. Link chose her out of ten actresses, so he must be interested in her. It's better for her to have Link take care of her in Hollywood than to be entangled with the Ngai family in Hong Kong. If she doesn't want to go, don't worry about her. There are many beautiful women in the entertainment industry.

After you go to Hollywood, interact with Link more. You like picking up girls, and he likes it too. You have common topics. If you have the opportunity, you can introduce him to a few, and he will remember your favor. You'll also have a backer and a lot of resources in Hollywood, and you'll be able to gain a foothold earlier. Do you understand?”

Raymond Chow had once made Bruce Lee famous. He had more experience than his Hong Kong counterparts in promoting actors overseas and understood how important it was for a Chinese actor to have a strong backer when developing in Hollywood.

“Godfather, I understand. I'll call Link later and ask him what kind of girls he likes. I guarantee he'll be satisfied.”

Chan Long took out his big cell phone and laughed.

Raymond Chow shook his head and didn't stop him.

The American media said that Link was a playboy who liked to pick up all kinds of beautiful women. This was very similar to Chan Long. If the two became good friends because of this hobby, he would be happy to see it happen.

“Richard, I think we should change our attitude towards Link.”

Warner Bros. Pictures President Mig Gost looked at the report card in the newspaper and sighed to Production Executive Vice President Richard Fox.

Richard Fox pondered and nodded. During the summer, Guess Pictures' films were selling well, while Warner Bros.' "Wyatt Earp" was a big loss, and films like "The Client" and "Natural Born Killers" performed poorly.

As senior executives of the company, they were under a lot of pressure. If this continued, this group of managers might be fired early.

“Michael Ovitz probably won't give up.”

“Him?”

Mig Gost shook his head, "The competition between the seven major film companies and Guess Pictures is internal to the industry. Michael Ovitz, an outsider, insists on getting involved and acting as a vanguard in suppressing Guess Pictures. In fact, this is very unwise. He is probably blinded by the title of 'Hollywood's most powerful person' and thinks he is omnipotent.

However, after losing to Link twice in a row, his prestige in Hollywood has declined severely. Internal conflicts within CAA are constant. Next, he should consider how to stabilize CAA and maintain its competitiveness in the brokerage field, rather than continuing to interfere in the internal competition of the film industry.

If he is obsessed and continues to deal with Guess Pictures, given his abilities and record, cooperating with him is not a good thing either."

Richard Fox nodded, "What are your plans regarding Link?"

“I heard that your production department is not satisfied with Tim Burton as a director?” Mig Gost asked.

“Yes, Tim Burton is a good director with a strong personal style: Gothic, dark, and bizarre. But this style is too niche in Hollywood, especially for a popular topic like Batman. We suggest inviting a director with a style closer to the masses and the mainstream to direct 'Batman Sequel'."

Richard Fox said.

'Batman' is a superhero character developed by Warner Bros. Pictures.

Starting in 1989, Warner Bros. Pictures successively produced two Batman series films, "Batman" and "Batman Returns," both directed by Tim Burton. The first film grossed $410 million worldwide, and the second, released in 1992, grossed $265 million worldwide.

The results of these two films were not bad, but Warner Bros. Pictures was not very satisfied. They believed that the 'Batman' series should be closer to mainstream commercial films and achieve higher box office results. Therefore, when filming the third film, they decided to change directors.

“How about Link?”

Mig Gost pointed to the man on the magazine cover, young but full of momentum.

“Link?”

Richard Fox stroked his chin stubble, "'Seven' is a good level, combining artistry and commerciality. 'Final Destination' and 'Paranormal Activity' are also successful commercial films. Inviting him to direct is also a good idea, but Link's salary is very high, and there are conflicts with our company. It may not be easy to invite him."

“We can try. We invite him to direct the 'Batman' sequel, which also conveys the meaning of reconciliation. He is a smart man and should not want one more partner.”

Mig Gost said.

Richard Fox nodded.