After having lunch with the Olsen Sisters and promising to take little Elizabeth to the MGM studio to play another day, Eric finally managed to get away.
The collaboration with the Olsen Sisters had officially begun. Giving them a taste of success first, by re-establishing their brand, would also benefit him.
More importantly, it would deepen the bond between Dual Star Entertainment and MGM. When products become unsellable or experience a significant drop in sales due to the lack of MGM's support, that's when the Olsen Sisters' dependence on Eric will be at its highest.
45% of the shares certainly couldn't satisfy Eric. Even if he wasn't aiming for complete control, he needed at least absolute control.
Otherwise, if Eric could use tactics to get rid of Robert Solney today, he himself might become the new Thorne tomorrow.
Eric was willing to only charge low royalty fees, of course, not because he enjoyed playing philanthropist. It was simply that the Olsen Sisters would have to pay a much higher price for this in the future.
The next day, MGM and Dual Star Entertainment simultaneously announced their collaboration on their official websites. At the same time, the production plan for "blue is the warmest color" was also announced, which avoided the term "lesbian" and instead used "reflecting the emotional lives of girls."
The Olsen Sisters also attended an event, taking the opportunity to promote the film, stating that it would be a transformative work for the two sisters.
They intended to use this film to tell everyone that the children had grown up and the sisters were no longer the little girls they once were. However, they also stated that if it failed, they would choose to retire from the industry and focus on managing their businesses.
The phrase "retire from the industry" was naturally highlighted by the media, attracting a lot of attention. The two sisters, who hadn't been in the entertainment section for a very long time, surprisingly made it to the front page, though not the headline, which was still a notable achievement.
There were also some online speculations about the film's plot and discussions about the two sisters. Their fans seemed to have come back to life, as if resurrected from the Impure World.
Meanwhile, "get out" had already started filming. Eric visited the set to show his respect, as he had a lot of trust in James Wan.
At this stage, although his directorial skills weren't very mature, as long as he wasn't given too much funding and the film's setting wasn't too grand, James Wan could completely handle it.
And "get out" was precisely a small-scale horror film, with the plot mainly revolving around a country villa, with other buildings in the small town rarely appearing.
In the original timeline, after James Wan directed "saw," he executive produced two more, and then Lionsgate invested 20 million US dollars for him to direct "dead silence."
From Lionsgate's perspective, if "saw" could gross over 100 million with a 1 million dollar budget, then a bigger investment this time would surely take off!
But facts proved they were wrong. James Wan, including himself, overestimated his directorial abilities. At that time, he couldn't control large scenes and hadn't evolved to the point of directing "the fast and the furious" and "Aquaman."
"dead silence" performed terribly in both ratings and box office.
The total box office was just over twenty million, and with the DVD market already in decline at the time, the copyright sales were also very poor, causing Lionsgate to lose at least 20 million US dollars, making it one of James Wan's rare failures in his film career.
However, the film had a very good reception in China, proving the saying "flowers bloom inside the wall, but their fragrance spreads outside."
But what was the point of that? Could it contribute a single cent to Lionsgate? It was also an era of rampant piracy online, and platforms like Youku and Tudou didn't buy copyrights, nor could they afford to.
There are many similar situations where cultural differences lead to significant taste gaps between Eastern and Western audiences.
For example, MGM's upcoming "a quiet place." This film was heavily criticized in China, with many people lambasting the plot as illogical, full of bugs, and the screenwriter's brain being completely muddled.
Even the Douban score lost its usual Hollywood halo, only reaching 3 points.
However, the film was very popular in the West. IMDb gave it a score of 5, and Rotten Tomatoes' fresh rating exceeded 90%. For a horror film, this rating is quite high, and the box office performance was even more impressive.
Why is the gap between East and West so large? Is it because European and American audiences don't understand appreciation? Is it because they are all fools?
Of course not. The bugs that Chinese audiences could spot, European and American audiences could also see. It's just that their focus wasn't on that aspect.
Unlike China, where supernatural beings were not allowed after the founding of the People's Republic, European and American horror films have always been a very popular genre, and with relatively low costs, they are naturally the type most favored by major film companies.
But with a large quantity, homogenization is inevitable. If you look through the history of European and American horror films, you can roughly see that the plots almost always focus on supernatural, bloody, violent, and erotic scenes.
Audiences have become aesthetically fatigued. No matter how much adrenaline surges, it can't surge for decades, can it?
So when a high-concept, innovatively set horror film like "a quiet place" appeared, it naturally garnered widespread praise. There were even scenes where the audience and the big screen simultaneously held their breath. The immersive experience brought by the audiovisuals was quite good, and the plot's bugs were instead overlooked.
At AK Films, the filming of "the purge" was more than halfway complete and would wrap up in about half a month. The release date was set for May 25th, hoping to achieve high box office numbers during the summer season.
Additionally, two more copycat films, "the lord of the rings" and "The Game of Rats and Foxes," had been completed. There's no need to say who they copied. They are currently in the sales phase.
Time flew by, and in a blink of an eye, it was April 15th.
Eric had been holed up in the editing room for four consecutive days. This editing work could only be done by him; if other editors took over, it was very likely to change the flavor of the film.
Fortunately, everything was in his head, and there weren't too many superfluous shots taken during filming. He almost edited according to the numbering, making the operation particularly smooth.
In just four days, the rough cut was already out.
There's no need to elaborate on how explosive this speed was. To give a simple data point, in Hollywood, for a blockbuster of the caliber of "transformers," the average editing time is about half a year.
180 days versus 4 days, the difference is just over 40 times.
Next, the rough cut version would be sent to Weta Digital, and then special effects would be added. This stage is the truly time-consuming and labor-intensive part.
In the evening, Eric drove to Gadot's apartment.
Today was the premiere of "the walking dead," and Eric had promised Gadot he would watch it with her.
Knock knock knock
A moment later, Bar Refaeli opened the door, and Gadot was seen holding a vacuum cleaner, vacuuming under the sofa.
"Why are you doing housework at night? Digesting after dinner?" Eric asked, a little strangely.
Bar Refaeli teased, "She not only wants to make the house spotless, but she also put on beautiful earrings. This style is really nice."
"Alright, but there's no need for this. It's not my first time here. If you make it too grand, I'll feel embarrassed."
Looking at the beer and snacks he was carrying, Eric chuckled.
"You're not the first to come, but you are the first to stay for more than ten minutes. Some people are extremely concerned about that."
Hearing Bar Refaeli's teasing, Gadot immediately felt embarrassed: "I'll be done soon. Wait, I need to wash up. I've sweated a lot. You sit down first, Eric."
With that, she dragged the vacuum cleaner into the bathroom.
Only the two of them were left in the room. Although they had known each other for some time, to be honest, Eric and Bar Refaeli weren't particularly close, and the two of them had never been alone together.
Seeing her looking at him with wide eyes, Eric still felt it was better to say something.
"Refaeli, 'the walking dead' is finally going to air. You're going to be a big star soon."
Bar Refaeli pouted: "It's still early. I don't have any scenes in the beginning. I don't know which episode I'll be cut into."
"The order of appearance isn't important. The key is character charm. Some characters appear at the beginning of the story but are never remembered, while others, even with only one scene, can be remembered by the audience."
"This argument is always brought up, but I don't think anyone would want to have fewer scenes, Eric. Do you think I belong to the former or the latter?"
"Of course, the latter. Maggie is inherently a charming character. In my conception, this character will live until the end of the series. She will have a complete character growth arc, which is why I gave this role to you. Moreover, you are a beautiful girl, which is a huge bonus."
"Beautiful? Do you think I'm beautiful?"
After a pause, Bar Refaeli suddenly asked.
She stared into Eric's eyes, her tone changed, and her gaze seemed to carry a hint of aggression and temptation.
Having spent more time with women, Eric became increasingly sensitive to this feeling. He had felt that look from many women.
"What is she doing? Seducing me?"
Seeing Eric looking at her with a strange expression, and hearing the sound of water from the bathroom, Bar Refaeli smiled slightly.
She seemed to deliberately wiggle her hips, returning to her bedroom in a model-like walk. A moment later, she reappeared in a dress, with her smooth back exposed to the air.
Turning slightly, eyes half-closed, Bar Refaeli softly asked for help: "Eric, Gadot is taking a shower. Can you help me zip it up?"
"That's right, this woman is seducing me!"
With his thoughts confirmed, Eric chose to refuse directly and decisively.
Are you kidding? Although I'm not a good person and not too careful in my private life, my moral standards aren't high.
But my mind is clear!
Eric knew exactly which women he could sleep with and which he couldn't. Bar Refaeli clearly belonged to the latter category.
This woman was quite scheming, which was evident from their first meeting. She was the same type as Zhang Ziyi.
For his women, Eric had a minimum requirement: not necessarily to be well-behaved, you could throw small tantrums and make demands, but you absolutely could not stir up trouble.
He had a clear definition and scope in his mind for what constituted his women.
Liu Xiaoli and Niki Caro didn't count; they were purely for a quick hookup when the mood struck. He wouldn't give significant benefits just for sleeping with them once, at most a little something here and there. Free sex wasn't out of the question, after all, it was hard to say who was really losing out.
Like Chloë Sevigny and Eileenah Olsen, they were cooperative types, based on mutual benefit. Talking about feelings was a luxury. If their connection didn't break over the years, perhaps feelings would develop, but certainly not now.
Eric could naturally talk about other women in front of them, but he wouldn't expose these things to Gadot, because Gadot was someone he could have feelings for, so he cared about her feelings.
Nicole Kidman was the type that could be developed. Although they had a relationship, the feelings weren't too deep; it was more about passion.
Whether there would be a result later depended on whether Eric wanted to continue, and also on Nicole Kidman's wishes.
Their relationship tended towards equality. With Nicole's status and appeal, she didn't need Eric to provide resources. She had continuous film offers, which was different from Chloë Sevigny.
Then there were the Olsen Sisters and Liu Yifei, who belonged to the nurturing type. Eric could provide decisive help to them in their careers. The only difference was that the former were raised in captivity, while the latter were free-range.
After they were "fattened up," whether to consume them depended on his mood. If he was in a good mood, he'd devour them in one go. If not, he could still shear their wool for commercial value.
And then there were Bar Refaeli and Zhang Ziyi, who belonged to the sticky-candy type. Getting involved with these vixen-like women would definitely bring trouble. Absolutely do not touch them!
If it hadn't been for Judy, Eric wouldn't have bothered with her in the first place.
Seeing Eric refuse to zip up her dress, Bar Refaeli didn't have any extreme reaction. Instead, she smoothly zipped it up herself.
Then she poured a glass of water and handed it to Eric: "Thirsty?"
Eric was about to take it, but Refaeli hooked her hand, and the cup returned to her. Then, in front of him, she parted her red lips and took a sip first.
"Sorry, I'm a little thirsty too, Eric. You don't mind, do you?"
Seeing that this woman was still being provocative, Eric decided not to spare her any face.
Knock knock knock
Just as he was about to give her a harsh retort, the door inconveniently knocked.
"Refaeli, are you done getting ready? Come out quickly," Judy's voice came from outside the door.
"Forget it, it's not good to scold you in front of Judy. I'll spare your life this time!"
Eric thought as he opened the door.
Judy immediately punched him: "Eric, you haven't been to the company for days. Where have you been hiding?"
"I'm editing 'transformers.' I'll go tomorrow. You take Refaeli and go."
Hearing the sound of water from the bathroom, Judy whistled and beckoned to Bar Refaeli: "Come with me, baby. Let's leave some space for this little couple."
Then she winked, pulled a small box from her pocket, and slipped it into Eric's hand: "Prepared this for you. Remember to use it."
"What is it?"
Bang!
The door closed, and the two left.
Eric opened the box, only to see a small pill lying quietly inside.
"Fuck! This guy!"