I am Hollywood

[Chapter 1033: Mental Constraints]

Ever since receiving a phone call from Firefly Group yesterday evening, Ted Elliott found himself in a state of uncontrollable excitement.

He woke up early that morning and, after just a brief word with his wife, hurriedly got ready and drove to a nearby cafe. Terry Rossio and their agent, Matt Gilson, were already waiting for him there. The moment Ted walked into the cafe and sat down across from them, Matt spoke up, "Ted, there's been a change of plans."

Ted's heart skipped a beat, but before he could reveal any concern, Matt quickly added, "It's not what you think. I just received a call; Firefly has informed us that the meeting place has been changed to Culver City, and the time is now pushed back to 11 AM."

Ted instantly sighed in relief. As long as Eric Williams was going to meet them, he was fine with going to Culver City, or even flying to the East Coast if necessary.

Without questioning why the meeting location was changed at the last minute, Ted ordered breakfast from the waiter who walked by, then turned to Terry and Matt, "Terry, Matt, I thought about this all night long, and I believe we should seize the opportunity to collaborate with Eric Williams rather than just focusing on how much we can sell this script for."

Terry and Matt were not shortsighted either. Otherwise, the three of them wouldn't have been able to withstand the financial pressures from major Hollywood studios during this time.

Hearing his friend's words, Terry nodded, "Ted, I just discussed this with Matt. Since this script caught Eric Williams' attention, although I hate to admit it, he likely has ideas on how the film should be produced, if the script needs changes, and which directors and actors should be chosen. Selling the script to another studio might get us a quick payday, but if the movie ends up underperforming at the box office, it won't help our careers."

Matt chimed in, "Also, we'd be better off asking Eric to direct this script himself. If Pirates of the Caribbean can be a blockbuster making a billion dollars worldwide, you'd both instantly rise to the top tier of Hollywood screenwriters."

Their comments let Ted relax. He nodded while adding a joke based on Matt's words, "And you could also become the agent for two top-notch screenwriters."

...

In the first half of the 20th century, American politics had seen two notable "Hoovers."

Herbert Clark Hoover, the 31st President of the United States, had a rather unfortunate presidency, coinciding with the Great Depression, the most renowned economic downturn in American history.

John Edgar Hoover, the founder of the FBI, in comparison, had a life that could only be described as tumultuous and influential. Serving as the first Director of the FBI for 48 years, he witnessed the tenure of eight presidents. Yet, due to his intrusive surveillance of North America's political figures, driven by the fear that his own vulnerabilities might be exposed, none of these presidents dared to propose removing him from his position. Those who opposed John Edgar Hoover invariably faced disgrace or imprisonment.

In essence, John Edgar Hoover amassed unprecedented power through his extensive intelligence network, making him an unchallengeable force in American politics for 48 years.

It wasn't until Hoover passed away in 1972 that someone finally dared to declare, "A sad and dangerous era has finally passed."

Immediately after Hoover's death, Congress acted by limiting the tenure of future FBI Directors to a maximum of ten years, a rule that soon applied to heads of other intelligence agencies as well.

However, while John Edgar Hoover, the unwitting kingpin, had died, he left behind a political legacy that proved irresistible to future politicians: surveillance.

The robust intelligence network he built with the FBI instilled both fear and awareness among subsequent political leaders. They realized that if they too possessed such a network, monitoring competitors and even partners, they could maintain an insurmountable advantage in political struggles.

Thus, over the years, there were Watergate, the Zippergate, Prismgate, and many more sprawling tales of covert eyes watching the world without the knowledge of ordinary citizens.

Although everyone knew that the federal government was constantly engaged in monitoring, practically all government departments avoided discussing it openly. Hollywood, however, never hesitated to explore these themes.

Enemy of the State delved into the repercussions of America's pervasive surveillance systems on society.

Robert Dean, a successful attorney in Los Angeles, was involved in a mob extortion case while preparing for the upcoming Christmas holiday. He managed to acquire a video of the mob boss from a friend and former lover, leveraging it to pressure the defendant into yielding in the case. On a shopping trip for Christmas gifts, he unexpectedly encountered an old acquaintance who discreetly slipped a box of tapes into his bag before hastily leaving.

Unbeknownst to Robert, this friend's actions would plunge his life into chaos.

After feeling a moment of sorrow for this friend, Robert quickly realized that trouble was brewing as his apartment was burglarized, his private moments with the former lover were leaked to the media, and he faced impending family collapse. He was dismissed from his job, his credit card was canceled, and soon, dark figures began pursuing him.

Caught with nowhere to turn, horror filled him as he discovered that the watch, pen, shoes, and even the buttons on his coat carried hidden listening devices. His every move was under constant surveillance.

All of this due to that accidentally recorded tape capturing a monumental assassination scandal.

...

Eric had planned a restful Saturday at home but changed his mind upon learning that the crew of Enemy of the State would be filming in Culver City that day.

The team was capturing some outdoor chase scenes, requiring the closure of two streets in Culver City for three days, and today was the third day. Shooting on closed streets in Los Angeles was no easy task. Thus, despite it being Saturday, the Enemy of the State crew was determined to pay sky-high overtime fees to keep filming.

In the designated break area for the crew, producer Jerry Bruckheimer was briefing Eric on the film's progress, "We've completed about half of the shoot. At this rate, we should wrap by the end of October. With three months for post-production, although it's tight, we shouldn't miss the Easter release next year. We'll overlap the marketing and production, so there will be plenty of promotion time."

Since the film was set to release next Easter, Enemy of the State was one of Firefly Group's mega green-light projects, further expedited by years of preparatory work.

Eric wasn't entirely satisfied with the script. There were too many subplots, and it was more suited for a series than a Hollywood blockbuster.

However, on the other hand, the story's completeness was impressive. Despite its messy subplots, everything connected, with very few redundant details. In Hollywood, scripts of such high quality were rare, which is why he had initially green-lighted the project.

Although Jerry Bruckheimer's films tended to be extravagant, they generally assured quality under normal circumstances.

After assessing the shooting setup down the street and listening to Jerry's brief overview, Eric said, "Next year's Easter release is crucial for Firefly Group's pre-marketing. So if any issues arise, feel free to reach out to me or Jeffrey. Also, Jerry, did you get a chance to read that pirate script I sent you?"

"Of course, I had actually read it before you sent it to me," Jerry responded with a chuckle. "With all the buzz lately, how could I miss it? I was just about to ask you what's going on with that project. But from my perspective, I think the risks for an old-fashioned pirate film might be a bit high."

"Let's not talk about the risks," Eric adjusted his position in the folding chair to face Jerry. "Are you interested in this project?"

Jerry didn't respond immediately, instead, he shot back, "Did you get the script already?"

"The screenwriter will be arriving shortly," Eric replied. "It shouldn't be too hard to get the script. But I want you to take charge of the movie."

Jerry's expression turned serious as he recalled what he had read of the script. "There are some highlights, but overall, it still feels somewhat mediocre."

"I'm mainly focused on the fantastical elements in it," Eric said. "I will personally handle the major revisions to the script."

Jerry crossed his legs and tapped his fingers on his knees for a moment before saying, "In that case, what about Michael? If his next project clashes with this film, I'm worried he'll have trouble managing both."

"Not for a while," Eric shook his head. "This project should take about a year to prep, and we won't officially start filming until next year, so the timelines should work out."

Jerry nodded with a smile, "Then I'm on board. By the way, Michael's currently discussing an idea with some writers about a comet colliding with Earth."

Eric recognized this as Michael Bay's upcoming Armageddon.

Finally, American oil workers would be stepping up to save the world.

Noticing the odd look on Eric's face, Jerry explained, "I know this idea overlaps somewhat with Firefly's earlier film Deep Impact, but Michael claims he intends to use a different filmmaking style and perspective. In fact, we've provided him with a bunch of scripts to choose from, and he hasn't liked any of them. So, Eric, if you don't want to green-light this script, he might just take it elsewhere."

After completing the three-film contract he signed with Firefly following The Day After Tomorrow, Michael Bay had ascended to become a top director in Hollywood. Their ongoing collaboration had been built on the momentum generated by previous successful films, so any project Michael had was still perceived as significant.

If Firefly were to veto Michael's project, given his recent successful streak, other studios would undoubtedly line up to scoop it up.

"If the script is suitable, then let's go for it," Eric finally decided after some thought. "Hollywood can't possibly only have one disaster film involving a comet colliding with Earth."

"I think so too," Jerry nodded. "Plus, it has been five years since Deep Impact's release, and for Hollywood, five years is enough time to mitigate the impact of a similar genre.

Speaking of which, Eric, there's actually something else. Recently, a German film company reached out to me for help connecting them, inquiring about the potential to acquire the rights to produce a Terminator sequel."

Eric didn't refuse outright. Instead, he asked, "Do they have any ideas for the script?"

"Not yet," Jerry replied. "They probably don't have high hopes. After all, Cameron has publicly stated that the Terminator series is over. And even if it were to be rebooted, I can't imagine you'd allow anyone else to invest in it, would you?"

For box office hits in Hollywood, declaring a series over was often seen as a joke. As long as there was profit to be made, Hollywood would have no qualms about making a hundred sequels.

However, unless a refreshing script emerged that captured Eric's attention, he certainly didn't plan to reboot the Terminator series anytime soon.

Once Cameron directed the first two films of the original Terminator series, it fell into a repetitive cycle of traversing time to rescue people -- saving Sarah Connor, John Connor, and then, having saved young John, coming back to save adult John. The first two films directed by Cameron were adequate, but the subsequent sequels constantly tried to replicate his formula without his expertise, ultimately resulting in mediocrity.

Additionally, costs posed a significant problem.

From what he recalled, Schwarzenegger earned a fixed salary of $30 million for Terminator 3, reportedly with backend profits. The film's total cost ballooned to a staggering $200 million, but Terminator 3 barely grossed just over $400 million worldwide. The production company incurred absolutely heavy losses at the box office, and could only marginally recover costs from subsequent video and merchandise sales, making it a laborious effort to merely break even.

One could say that Terminator 3 exemplified how movie studios often found themselves working for Hollywood heavyweights.

Given Firefly's own plethora of high-quality projects that were struggling to be developed, Eric certainly had no inclination to become a fool for such ventures.

*****

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