After the auditions wrapped up, Gilbert and the two producers closed the door for a small meeting. Charles Roven still firmly objected to Keanu Reeves playing the male lead, Jack. His reasoning was that Keanu Reeves couldn't always guarantee he'd be in good shape.
"I hear he has a history of drug addiction, and he's good friends with River Phoenix and Johnny Depp—everyone in Hollywood knows about those two!" Charles Roven said.
River Phoenix was known as a talented actor, but his openly messy personal life was also widely publicized. Johnny Depp had gradually risen to A-list status after Edward Scissorhands, but his eccentric style and personality were difficult for some to tolerate.
No matter how dirty Hollywood's internal workings were, full of various gray and black deals, and insider information, there was a basic consensus: everyone had to collectively maintain Hollywood's glamorous facade. In front of the public, they still had to pretend to be good people. But River Phoenix and Johnny Depp were the kind of people who didn't even bother to pretend, exposing the dirty side of Hollywood to the public.
North American society at that time wasn't like it would be decades later. Although influenced by hippie culture, the surface of North American society still tended to be conservative. Now, if you told the public that the movie stars they loved were actually short-tempered, drug addicts, had strange fetishes, and loved wild parties, how could the public accept that? Fortunately, the media at the time was controlled by large media corporations. As long as there was value, the media wouldn't report scandals about Hollywood stars. But once you lost your value, or offended a certain media group, just wait. Various tabloids would constantly expose your dirt, and mainstream media would continuously criticize you until your reputation was utterly ruined. No matter how many mouths you had, you wouldn't be able to say a word in your own defense; even if you didn't do it, it would become something you did. Michael Jackson and Tom Cruise in his past life were examples of how the media could manipulate things.
As someone who had experienced the era of online self-media, Gilbert had a clear understanding of the essence of media. In this era, controlling the power of speech was crucial. Who controlled the power of speech? Disney, and Warner Bros. behind Time Warner, were all large media groups that controlled the power of speech. You either became one of them or you did it yourself. However, the "do it yourself" path was more difficult. Gilbert decided to become one of them first, and then do it himself. After all, things were changing quickly, and he certainly didn't want to be praising a black mermaid decades later or end up on some island's list; that would disgust him...
Resolving the Keanu Reeves issue was also simple. Gilbert said, "Alright, when we sign the actor's contract, we'll directly stipulate no drinking, no marijuana, and no promiscuity. If the actor agrees, it's fine; if not, we'll find someone else." Since Gilbert said so, Charles Roven couldn't object anymore.
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Two days later, the production team officially contacted Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock to discuss their actor contracts. Sandra Bullock was easier to deal with since she had no bad habits. Although she was somewhat known, her salary wasn't high, and a $200,000 fee was easily secured.
Keanu Reeves, however, was more troublesome; he found some of the demands in the actor's contract a bit unacceptable. "This..." Keanu Reeves pointed to a few clauses in the contract and asked, "Can these be changed?" Cain Waxman, the producer responsible for contract negotiations, shook his head, "I'm afraid not. These are Director Gilbert's requirements." Charles Roven, standing nearby, smiled a bit like a movie villain: "If you don't agree, you don't have to sign, and we can find a replacement sooner."
Upon hearing about finding a replacement, Keanu Reeves signed his name on the actor's contract without hesitation. Charles Roven's latter half of the sentence was still stuck in his throat when Keanu Reeves had already finished signing. He asked in surprise, "You can meet all the requirements on this?" Keanu Reeves nodded confidently, "Of course, I can." Charles Roven looked disappointed; his chance with Tom Cruise was gone. How could Keanu Reeves be so agreeable?
Actually, this had something to do with Gilbert. After the meeting, he had his assistant, Anna, spread the word: that Keanu Reeves's audition performance had greatly pleased him, but his personal life and history of drug addiction worried him. If Keanu Reeves couldn't change, he would consider recasting. This news, after a few twists and turns, reached Keanu Reeves's agent and also River Phoenix and Johnny Depp. Keanu Reeves himself wasn't particularly bothered, but those around him grew anxious.
His agent painstakingly persuaded Keanu Reeves to quit drinking, drugs, and marijuana, at least until he secured the role. As for River Phoenix and Johnny Depp, they went even further. To help their good friend get the role, when the three went to a bar to drink together, River Phoenix and Johnny Depp actually ordered lemonade. Their usual alcohol, cigarettes, and marijuana were nowhere to be found, making Keanu Reeves feel uncomfortable all over. His two friends were also uncomfortable, but River Phoenix said, "Keanu, you go focus on filming, and we'll quit as long as you're filming." "Yeah," Johnny Depp added, "Once you finish filming, we'll throw a huge party with lots of beautiful women."
With his good friends going to such lengths, Keanu Reeves was deeply moved. For his buddies, Keanu Reeves was determined to secure the role. So, during the contract negotiations, he only struggled for a moment before signing directly when he saw there was no hope of changing the terms. Keanu Reeves was prepared; how could he let this opportunity go to someone else? Wouldn't that be letting his two good buddies down?
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The actors smoothly joined the production, but filming was still far off. Because this film would require significant physical exertion, and some action scenes would require Keanu Reeves to perform himself, he still needed training. For this, Gilbert specifically hired experts from the Los Angeles Police Department to serve as consultants for the production team. They would provide training on tactical movements, specialized police terminology, and more. The LAPD considered this good publicity for the image of local police, so they sent their most capable personnel to assist the film crew. Not only that, but they also lent their newly completed police headquarters for filming and provided various police equipment, including police helicopters, free of charge except for fuel.
With such a good opportunity, Gilbert naturally wouldn't refuse. He took several friendly photos with the Chief of the Los Angeles Police Department and invited them to attend the film's premiere. This would also be a beneficial publicity point during the film's promotion.
Another task was advertising bids. Inserting advertisements into movies was no longer a rare thing. Hamilton sponsored $200,000, and the film's male lead, Jack, would wear Hamilton's latest mechanical watch. All the costumes for the characters in the film were provided free of charge by a local Los Angeles clothing agency. To have their clothing agency's name appear in the film, they sponsored an additional $100,000. The Los Angeles Bus Operating Company provided several buses that were about to be scrapped for the production to use, and additionally sponsored $50,000. Other advertising revenues from things like shoes and sunglasses totaled $250,000. The film hadn't even started shooting yet, but it had already generated $600,000 in advertising revenue, enough to cover the salaries of Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock. And this wasn't the end; if the film performed well at the box office, these sponsors would provide additional bonuses.
Would the film succeed? Others might not have this confidence, but Gilbert was brimming with it.