King of Hollywood
Chapter 405 - 127 The Weinstein Brothers’ Plan

Chapter 405: Chapter 127 The Weinstein Brothers’ Plan

The theater outside was still a sea of people. Despite the short distance from where cars dropped off to the entrance, Miramax had still laid out a red carpet. "Broken Arrow" definitely couldn’t compare to "Saving Private Ryan," and Miramax couldn’t outdo DreamWorks either. Although DreamWorks was established just two years ago and was even younger than AC Media, the capital it had at its start was incomparable to any new company.

But the Weinstein brothers had still prepared a grand premiere. It might not be as lively as that of "Saving Private Ryan," but it was still quite the attention-grabber. No other reason but the fact that "The Rock" had raked in a full pot for them last time, and naturally, they hoped "Broken Arrow" would yield the same bountiful harvest, especially since this movie was given to them by the Miracle Director.

Therefore, when it came to promotion, they made sure to employ every trick in the book, one of which naturally involved Dennis’s scandals. The love triangle between him, Winona, and Jennifer was still hot gossip for many tabloids, and the paparazzi hadn’t missed any opportunity to harass them. Just those juicy tidbits alone were enough to attract people’s attention.

As for any potential negative consequences, that wasn’t something the brothers needed to worry about. To them, making money was the most important thing. As long as it generated profits and allowed their business to flourish, they would not hesitate to do even the most outrageous things, which was a classic Jewish manner of thinking. Poor Dennis.

"Ah, it really makes one sigh. Just a single TV show can create such close bonds among them," Adrian said, standing in the corner of the lobby, looking over at the group of three men and three women chatting and laughing not far away; those six were the main cast of "Friends." Since Jennifer had taken on the leading female role in "Broken Arrow," she naturally invited her friends to the premiere. Even though there were little cliques among the six, such as Jennifer and Courteney being closer, and Matthew and Matt hitting it off better, the six were indeed close friends.

"Yes, it’s truly enviable," Dennis said, mustering a bitter smile beside him and seeming somewhat listless.

"You really don’t plan to go over there and say hello to them, Dan?" Adrian teased, looking at him, "It’s just a greeting. I think your Noni wouldn’t mind."

"I don’t know, Ed," Dennis sighed again, "honestly, there are already some cracks between me and Noni."

"How so?" Adrian lifted his eyebrow in surprise, "Haven’t you decided yet? Didn’t you say you’d resolve it after your trip to Japan to clear your mind?"

"Yes, I did say that, but..." Dennis made a gesture, "I want to make it as easy on Jenny as possible. I don’t want to hurt her anymore. Yes, I admit, I still have feelings for her, but Noni is my girlfriend, so I hope to resolve this matter in a more peaceful way..."

"You told Noni about this, didn’t you?" Adrian suddenly interjected.

Dennis hesitated, then nodded: "Yes, I told Noni about it. I hope to get her understanding."

"What am I going to do with you, Dan?" This time it was Adrian’s turn to sigh. Shaking his head with a look that said ’I can’t make steel out of clay’, he said, "You dare tell your already dissatisfied girlfriend this? God, Dan, I’ve told you more than once, what women need is a sense of security! When she’s already feeling vulnerable, you actually consider another woman, her romantic rival, no less. Do you think Noni would be happy?"

"But..." Dennis tried to defend himself.

"There’s no but, Dan. Even pretending to appease her while privately settling things with Jenny would be much better than telling her outright," Adrian interrupted him, then looked at him amusedly, "No wonder earlier outside, you two looked so intimate in front of the reporters, yet as soon as you came in, she disappeared. But her willingness to maintain intimacy in front of reporters shows she doesn’t really want to let you go, so if you still want to win her back, you’d better go find her now. No matter how she treats you, you need to stick to her side with a thick skin."

"Alright, I will... go find her now," Dennis said after a moment of thought, though he hesitated and glanced towards Jennifer as he spoke.

Seeing this, Adrian shook his head internally and then half-jokingly added, "Actually, you could do just as I said. Find a chance to get them both in bed, and after a few repeats, everything will naturally fall into line. Sometimes a bit of force can solve problems, and it might even make things turn out the way you hope."

Dennis immediately coughed a few times and rolled his eyes at Adrian, "Just forget it; there are not many people like you in Hollywood, and your experiences are not applicable to ordinary people."

After saying that, he immediately left to find Winona, while Adrian shrugged his shoulders and looked over at Jennifer. It was quite interesting—just now, the six actors from "Friends" who were chatting had also dispersed. He remembered that while he and Dennis were talking just moments ago, Jennifer couldn’t help but glance their way every now and then, although Dennis, preoccupied with other thoughts, hadn’t noticed, which made Adrian aware of it instead.

Clearly, the situation among the three of them was much more complicated than Dennis had described, but unless absolutely necessary, Adrian would not intervene, at most offering a few pointers from the sidelines. After all, it was Dennis’s family matter.

So, having power is more important than anything else, Adrian murmured to himself. As long as one has enough power, such problems are not problems at all. Security is indeed a feeling, but it also needs to be materialized in reality.

Alright, it’s also time to prepare a better project for Dan to boost his popularity even more. Don’t say I didn’t help you, Dan. He chuckled to himself then. After all, Dennis was someone he had brought up.

"Hey, Ed," just as Adrian was about to head to the screening room, he heard a greeting and then Harvey Weinstein’s face, covered in stubble, appeared.

"Ha, you’re looking pretty good, Harvey," Adrian said, laughing as he shook hands with him. Usually, in such settings, Harvey Weinstein would handle the mingling, while Bob Weinstein preferred to stay behind the scenes.

Following that, he patted the shoulder of John Travolta, who had come alongside Harvey: "You too, John, have you already seen the rave reviews from critics praising your acting?"

After exchanging greetings with them, Adrian then turned his attention to the Asian face, and his smile instantly became fainter, taking on a bit of reserve with a slightly lifted chin, extending his hand, "Hello, Mr. John Wu, we meet again."

"Yes, I am very pleased to meet you, Mr. Adrian," the other man replied politely as they shook hands. Around fifty years old, with long narrow eyes and slightly overweight, Wu had a square face and a balding forehead. Without a doubt, it was the Director Wu who wouldn’t make films without his dove.

"I believe this will be a good project, sir," Adrian said reassuringly. Truth be told, he was not particularly fond of such courtesies, and while he didn’t particularly like Wu Bage, his early Hong Kong-style works were indeed very good.

However, when in a certain place, one must adhere to the rules of that place. If he now appeared overly friendly with Wu Bage, the people around may have looked upon him with some disdain and dissatisfaction. This place might be where power speaks, but some things lurking below the surface still need to be considered. Moreover, given Adrian’s current achievements and power, doing so would be akin to slapping the faces of the people around him.

These things cannot be changed even with power. Thus, being selectively courteous was appropriate for both himself and Wu Bage.

"I believe so too, as these are the words of the Miracle Director," Weinstein chimed in with a grin, pulling Travolta along, "Isn’t that right, John?"

"Of course, a movie Ed sets his sights on has never failed," Travolta replied, much more sincere than Weinstein.

"Okay, enough with the flattery. Tell me the truth, Harvey, what do you want to ask?" Adrian laughed as he cut right to the chase, very straightforward.

"Really, do I look like I have a strong agenda?" Weinstein complained, but then he quickly put on a smile, "To be frank, do you really not have any other plans?"

"Don’t rush, Harvey, some things need to be taken slowly. Moving too fast can lead to a crash. You need to consider where your strengths lie," Adrian said with a smile, fully aware of what Weinstein meant.

The brothers were single-minded in their ambition to grow Miramax into Hollywood’s leading film company. Although they started with independent films, they had always longed to invest in big-budget productions. However, big-budget films were not so easy to make, even United Artists, which had its time in the sun, was acquired by MGM due to poor management, and MGM nearly went bankrupt with "Heaven’s Gate." How much more so for a mid-sized film company like theirs?

Now, Adrian had given them a chance. The success of "The Rock" showed them a glimpse of dawn, and they naturally wanted to keep up the momentum.

Unfortunately, Adrian didn’t want to give them any more big productions. He already had a specific plan for the future of AC Media’s film production and was missing just one last piece of the puzzle. He certainly wouldn’t allow Miramax to become too powerful, even though it was already a wholly-owned subsidiary of AC Media. That’s why he responded to Weinstein this way.

However, Adrian didn’t shut them down entirely. Like dangling a carrot in front of a mule to make it run faster, he immediately put on an expression as if something had just occurred to him, "Oh, speaking of which, because of Wu I indeed came up with an idea."

Immediately, Weinstein and Travolta looked towards Wu Bage, who suddenly found himself at a loss. He was only supposed to be there as a guest, trying to make as good an impression as possible on these Hollywood big shots, but now Adrian had called him out directly, "Because of me?"

"Yes, I’ve seen quite a few of your movies, like ’A Better Tomorrow,’ ’The Killer,’ ’Hard Boiled,’ and so on," Adrian nodded, deliberately using Chinese when mentioning the film titles.

"You speak Mandarin?" Wu Bage showed a surprised look, instinctively asking in Cantonese.

"Uh... sorry, I’ve studied some Chinese. I have no problem with basic communication, but I don’t understand... um... those dialects," Adrian switched back to English, apologizing but laughing inwardly a few times.

"That’s alright, in Hong Kong... indeed not many people speak Mandarin," Wu Bage appeared embarrassed, switching back to English as well.

Luckily, Weinstein stepped in at that moment, "Hey, what are you guys talking about? Don’t use those languages we don’t understand, alright?"

"It’s nothing, I was merely mentioning some of John’s works from his time in Hong Kong, they are not bad. Although they are not grand in scope, and they have shortcomings, there are also commendable aspects. My inspiration came from those films," said Adrian, pausing for effect before adding, "It’s a cop and robber film, asking what would happen if two mortal enemies, a cop and a robber, switched places."

"Switch places?" Weinstein frowned, looking puzzled as if he didn’t understand, "Can you elaborate?"

"Hey, Harvey, it’s just an idea; there isn’t even a preliminary outline. How do you expect me to explain it in detail?" Adrian spread his hands and then pointed to Wu Bage who was deep in thought, "Look, he’s already got some ideas."

"No, no, no, I am just trying to recall which of my works might have given you such... inspiration," Wu Bage quickly clarified.

"Alright, John, if you’re willing, maybe you could direct this movie. This is your forte, isn’t it?" Adrian said with a smile, "That’s actually why I decided—"

"You certainly understand me very well," Wu Bage laughed, "I am very willing, sir."

"Very well," Adrian nodded and then looked at Travolta, "So, the other John, you must be quite willing to play one of the lead roles too, right?"

"Me?" Travolta looked at him, surprised, but immediately smiled, "No problem, if I refused, I would definitely be the dumbest idiot."

"Don’t worry, I’ll find you a good opponent," Adrian said, slapping his shoulder firmly.

"So..." Weinstein immediately leaned in eagerly.

"Don’t rush, Harvey, let’s talk after the basic preparations are in place," Adrian laughed, and then pointed at the door of the projection room, "We should go inside, the movie is about to start."

Needless to say, the film Adrian referred to was none other than "Face/Off," which also marked the crowning moment of Wu Bage’s glory in Hollywood before he soon began to decline.

The land area of Hong Kong determined the scale of its film industry. If it were crime thrillers, kung fu, or delicately emotional movies, those filmmakers might still do quite well, plus the migrants who arrived in Hong Kong in the fifties also had some strength in historical themes. However, they fell short when it came to other genres.

Moreover, the system in Hollywood was different from Hong Kong; in Hong Kong, the director had the final say, while in Hollywood, besides famous directors, usually only producers and investors really held influence. The King of Sunglasses was notorious for making films without scripts, but in Hollywood, first and foremost, he had to write the screenplay.

Adrian had no intention of supporting Wu Bage; he just wanted to exploit him first and deal with the aftermath later. If Wu Bage changed for the better, that would be fine, but if he still relied only on those same three tricks, then he’d be left to sink or swim on his own.

Frankly speaking, Wu Bage’s three tricks were still quite attractive to those who saw them for the first time. Although there were no churches or white doves in "Broken Arrow," the sentimental slow-motion shots, the gun standoffs, and the never-ending bullets were all executed to perfection, especially those slow-motion scenes of gunfire, which were very impactful.

However, for Adrian, the biggest surprise was Jenny Fournier’s portrayal of the park policewoman. To be honest, when Dennis begged him to arrange a transitional role for Aniston, he wasn’t very confident. While playing roles opposite their usual image is a path many actors take to break through, not every actor succeeds in transitioning.

Because of his familiarity with "Friends," Adrian remembered vividly that Aniston, no matter how hard she tried, couldn’t break out of the shadow of the character "Rachel," a role from the most popular TV show that trapped her image. Of course, she hadn’t really tried all methods available; after all, there are always ways to break through if one is truly determined, but everyone has their own bottom line.

Nevertheless, in "Broken Arrow," she cut her hair short—very short, almost indistinguishable from an average male’s—which gave a completely different impression. If her long-haired appearance in "Friends" seemed sweet and cute, the short-haired policewoman in "Broken Arrow" could be described as valiant and spirited.

Even Adrian, who was very familiar with "Friends," couldn’t help but be startled when Aniston appeared on screen, let alone those audiences who had only watched two seasons of "Friends."

Even film critics didn’t skimp on their praise: "This should be Miss Jennifer Aniston’s first time taking on a leading role in a film, and it must be said that her performance is quite startling. Previously, our most familiar image of her was as Rachel Green in the hit NBC show ’Friends,’ where she vividly brought to life the goofy character who loved cheap thrills but adored life, to such an extent that many were initially skeptical when they heard she would be the leading lady in an action film.

However, the fact has proven that she is a remarkable actress, with an impression of fragile grace combined with a spirited charm in ’Broken Arrow.’ It’s particularly worth noting that Jennifer made a great effort for this film, taking on training and personally performing many of the dangerous stunts, and even going so far as to cut her long-cherished beautiful hair for the role—truly professional."

Indeed, during the simultaneous filming of the movie and the TV series, Aniston wore a wig for the TV studio shots.

However, such reviews were only fleeting; media coverage tended to focus on other matters. (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, you are welcome to vote for it with recommendation tickets and monthly tickets on Qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation.)