HOLLYWOOD WHAT IF

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 270


Kazir was born on September 9, 1968. He was named Kazir by his mother, something he knew. Although he and his mother were never close, he was indeed grateful that she gave birth to him.

Otherwise, Kazir would never have known this happiness. Sure, part of his life was filled with tragedy, but that was part of life. He knew that he would experience hardships along the way, but he was truly happy that he had experienced life.

His birthday party was fun and a lot of people from the industry attended. His family realized that Kazir's status in Hollywood was quite high. Aaron and Victor were happy to get autographs from Liam Neeson and others.

Kazir asked his family if they would like to stay at his house and spend some time with him. He already talked to them a few months ago and they agreed.

In fact, if they didn't agree, Kazir would do anything to make them agree. He has to beg them if he has to.

Aaron's apartment and most of their possessions were in Brooklyn, but it was better to be safe than sorry. What if Aaron decided to move his family to Manhattan on that particular day? Kazir would never forgive himself if he didn't stop that.

Kazir understood that he was only human. Just as he could not stop what happened to Princess Diana, he could not stop 9/11. This was a terrorist group we were talking about.

September 11, 2001.

Kazir invited his father and brother to play golf while Aaron's wife was with Angelina, spoiling baby Alissa, Kazir's niece.

Kazir admitted that he was not much of a golfer, unlike Victor and Aaron. The two loved to spend their weekends golfing or fishing. They even knew so many types of golf clubs that Kazir had never heard of in his entire life.

'I did the right thing by choosing golf to get their attention. Apparently, they want to play golf with me. A week's vacation is a good excuse.'

Kazir let the time pass. But he knew that tragedy had struck when Kazir saw Aaron's wife running towards them.

Aaron was confused, but when he saw the seriousness in his wife's teary eyes, Aaron knew that something had happened.

"Honey, you have to go back to the clubhouse."

Her eyes were red and she tried to stop herself from crying.

The three men returned to the clubhouse and the atmosphere was very cold. A lot of people were quiet, all looking at the television that was broadcasting the event.

"Huh? What happened?"

Aaron frowned, recognizing the building that had a huge hole in it and was belching smoke. It was one of the Twin Towers.

Even Victor could not comprehend the situation. The eldest Grey decided to contact his friends and ask them about the situation.

Suddenly, people were screaming and gasping as they saw another plane hit the second tower.

Some panicked, some fell silent, and some were shocked.

Aaron hugged his wife and their crying baby.

As for Angelina, she held Kazir's hand tightly.

.........

......

...

Kazir's family thanked him. Without him, they might have died. Apparently, Victor and Aaron had a business meeting near the Twin Towers today, but they postponed the meeting because they were both taking a week's vacation.

Unfortunately, they decided to cut their vacation short because they had to return to New York to assess the damage. If the building they were using was affected, they would have to move their business to another location or perhaps another state.

Their business was an advertising agency, they focused more on physical advertising such as creating and printing flyers, although they had recently done radio and television commercials. They were trying to expand their business into online services as well. Their company was doing well and they had a lot of clients in New York... From the looks of it, their business could be affected by this incident.

However, they were happy and blessed to be alive and well.

Victor and Aaron sincerely thanked Kazir. Without him, they might have been dead.

Kazir knew that wouldn't be the case since Aaron and Victor were alive in his past life. Victor had died of a heart attack a few years later, after 9/11.

Kazir talked to his father about healthy living and eating. Victor now went to a gym twice a week because of Kazir's perseverance.

Still, it was better to be safe than sorry. So he planned his birthday and a week's vacation for his family. In the end, it seemed to work.

Victor booked a flight for them, but another obvious result happened. The airport was banned from booking flights. A few hours after the incident, there were almost no planes in U.S. airspace except for military jets. They sometimes saw the jets circling Los Angeles.

Victor and the others decided to stay at Kazir's place for another day. If the airport still wasn't allowed to book flights, then they had no choice but to take a road trip. But New York was on the other side of the country. It could take days, Alissa was still a baby and it could take a toll on her if they traveled that long.

In the end, the family decided to spend the week with Kazir. Naturally, Victor and Aaron contacted their partners for information about the incident. The building they were using was intact, but they had to close their business for a while.

Apparently, the Pentagon was also attacked by the terrorists. Four planes were hijacked.

Two planes crashed into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York. The third plane crashed into the Pentagon just outside of Washington, DC. The fourth plane crashed in rural Pennsylvania after the passengers fought the hijackers and prevented the plane from reaching the White House.

After a long time, everyone in the United States of America helped each other to overcome this tragedy. The time when everyone supported their country.

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 271


The impact of 9/11 on the country was tremendous. The incident led to a massive increase in airport security. The idea that the strongest country could suffer such a massive act of terrorism struck a chord with so many people.

Hollywood expressed its deepest condolences to the people who lost loved ones in this tragedy. The President stood at the podium and delivered a speech on 9/11 from Sarasota School.

-- Terrorism against our nation will not stand.

This statement touched the hearts of many. Many young men joined the military, not because of the tuition assistance and other benefits, but because of their heartfelt desire to protect their country.

The aftermath of 9/11 also strengthened the security of other countries. It made it more difficult to travel overseas.

In Hollywood, movies continued to be released, but September and October were very cold months for theaters. People were still in mourning.

Spider-Man was already in its last month and would end its run before November. However, the film grossed $403.70 million at the North American box office.

The overseas box office was still climbing and currently stands at over $372 million. This brings the worldwide total to $775 million. Spider-Man is currently the highest grossing film of the year.

Lara Croft: Tomb Raider finished much earlier, before September. It grossed $131.16 million at the North American box office.

Fast and The Furious only opened in 150 theaters now. It has now grossed more than $215 million.

Legally Blonde has grossed $95.23 million. It still had a month or two left in its run.

John Wick Chapter 2 was slightly affected by 9/11, as the movie's box office dropped after the tragedy, just like other movies at the time. However, the movie had already grossed $137 million by that time.

Before November, John Wick Chapter 2 earned more than $176 million after two months in theaters.

Overall, all of Kazir's films did well. Kazir recommended Lara Croft to Angelina Jolie, saying she was the right person for the role. Her career blossomed after this movie and it seemed that his decision was right.

Gossip abounded that Kazir was a god when it came to picking scripts. After Kazir recommended his friends to audition for a role, each of them got a better career.

Suddenly, a lot of new actors and actresses were trying to befriend the guy. Unfortunately for them, they would never find the guy at parties and bars.

Even the bar Kazir usually visited became famous because so many actors hoped to meet Kazir in the bar. They waited in the quiet atmosphere of jazz. Too bad Kazir didn't feel like going to the bar lately.

He was thinking about which of the two scripts to adapt. Next year, he wants to make a movie that could compete at the Oscars.

His first choice was The Revenant. He has already bought the rights to adapt this novel/autobiography. The life of American frontiersman Hugh Glass in the Missouri Territory in 1823.

His second choice was Black Hawk Down. The moment the journalist published this book, Kazir immediately bought the rights to adapt it. The book was based on real life.

Both films were based on real life. Something the Academy Awards loved to see. The members of the Academy had a strong bias against fiction and blockbusters.

Both films had a good chance of winning Best Director and Best Picture if they were done right. Kazir was confident in his filmography, so this was not much of a problem. Besides, even if he wanted to deny it, his race was another assurance that he would win Best Director. Most of the old members of the Academy were Jewish.

Kazir already had the best formula to make sure he would win Best Director.

But since Kazir was already going for the Oscars, why not fight for more?

That is one of the reasons why he invited Tom Cruise. Because he wanted his friend to win his long dream of the Best Actor award.

He helped Liam Neeson win the Best Actor Award, maybe he could do it again.

Kazir planned to include perfect emotional scenes in his movies so that Tom Cruise would have a chance to be nominated. As for winning the Golden Statue, they both have to do a lot of PR to get it.

So, yes, they might be attending a lot of parties next year and in 2003. That was the life of people in this industry, making connections.

With two scripts in his hands, Kazir decided to make the best choice. He decided to sell Black Hawk Down to Ridley Scott. Ridley Scott had tried to buy the script, but Kazir stopped him. So the result was obvious, the release of Black Hawk Down would be delayed for a year or two.

The Revenant won the Best Director and Best Actor awards in the past life. To begin with, those two awards were the only things Kazir was looking for. He might as well take the safest bet.

Having made his decision, Kazir decided to call Tom Cruise. He had been giving signals to the actor and Tom Cruise had an idea about it. So both of them were not making any decisions about their next jobs at the moment, because both of them were playing the waiting game.

Now that the cold events of September and October were over, Hollywood returned to its usual schedule.

On November 2nd, Pixar released Monster, Inc. One of Pixar's most famous franchises. The first three days of Monster, Inc. grossed $62.58 million.

The Big Six realized and understood that the animation industry was another sector that they could profit from. So far, only Pixar and DreamWorks were doing well, but 20th Century Fox and Universal Pictures were creating their own animation studios.

While all this was going on, Tom and Kazir decided to meet and discuss their intentions.

+++++

[Author's Note]

Yeah, since it's already the middle of the month, I decided to promote my P@treon.

As of now, the latest chapter of HWI on my P@treon is chapter 441. Using calculation, you can read about 170 chapters on my P@treon... I won't lie, that's a bit overwhelming and I can only blame myself.

Also, for some readers who can't use P@treon, I have a Ko-fi account and have already posted all the advanced 170 chapters of HWI there. You can check it out, the minimum tip is $10 and you can see my posts for 30 days.

Honestly, I still recommend subscribing to P@treon instead of Ko-fi because all my advanced chapters and polls have been posted there. My P@treon also has all the advance chapters of my other novels that are currently on hiatus, such as TOFD and RDD.

P@treon Link: https://www.patreon.com/Puji_maki

Ko-fi Link: https://ko-fi.com/pujimaki

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 272


Two famous people sat across from each other and had a light conversation at first.

"The atmosphere in our country is very interesting. At first, we were at our lowest point after what happened in September, but now the government has started to spread propaganda. I saw on TV a lot of young men joining the military. Even Paramount Pictures got a message from one of the generals to make a sequel to Top Gun to encourage young men."

"What is their intention?" Kazir was quite curious because he knew there would be a sequel, but it would be at least 20 years before it happened. Unless Kazir caused another change in the timeline.

"No, Paramount Pictures is not interested. Besides, they need to hear my opinion on the matter. Unless they want to get rid of the whole cast and start a new franchise called 'Top Gun'. The government is just doing its best, even the economy is failing because of the bubble dot com burst".

"We will overcome this tragedy," Kazir muttered. At least for the next few decades, the United States would still stand and be recognized as the strongest country in the world.

"I hope so." Tom Cruise nodded.

A few seconds later, a maid approached the table and asked if Tom and Kazir wanted tea or coffee. Kazir went to Tom's house to talk to him about his plan.

Not surprisingly, Kazir did not see Nicole Kidman. He decided to keep his thoughts to himself and wait for Tom to tell the story. It was not his place to pry into his private life.

Tom sensed Kazir's curiosity and decided to admit it.

"If you're looking for Nicole, we're through. We divorced this year. Our agent is just waiting for the right time to announce it. You know, publicity and stuff."

In fact, Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman divorced in 2001. There were a lot of factors to this divorce such as their relationship turning cold, social status, and even religion. Tom Cruise was a member of Scientology, after all.

"I'm sorry to hear that."

"It's okay. Life is hard, but we have to move on and become a better person. Anyway, what's the reason why you want to come to my house all of a sudden? This is your second time here."

"Yes, my first time was when you invited me in 1995."

"That was a long time ago, six years."

The maid arrived and gave them their coffee and bread.

"We talked last time about the Academy Awards and our dreams of winning gold statues."

"Of course I remember. You want the Best Director Award, while I want the Best Actor Award."

"We both have our own desires, but our mission is basically the same, to get into the Oscars. So how about we work together this year?"

"Kazir, you know I was nominated for Best Supporting Actor at the Academy Awards last year, I don't think the Academy is interested in nominating me this time."

"But there's nothing wrong with trying. What do you think, are you in?"

"I want to see the script first."

Tom Cruise was confident in Kazir's decision regarding script selection and filming, but he had to be sure first. Frankly, Tom Cruise was thrilled when he realized that Kazir wanted to work with him.

God knows how long he waited for Kazir to invite him to star in his movie. They had been friends for a long time, but Kazir never invited him to be in any of his movies, not even for a cameo. Well, his salary was too high for Grey Pictures to afford, so that was another factor.

"Here."

Kazir handed the script to Tom Cruise, and the actor seriously turned every page.

"I have two scripts I'm considering adapting and I've decided to go with this one. The other one is a group play and there's no particular protagonist, so I know you won't like it."

Black Hawk Down was about a group of U.S. Special Forces stranded in the middle of heavy firefights after two of their helicopters were shot down, trying to find their way out.

It was an amazing movie and was nominated for so many awards, but Tom Cruise is not going to have his one-man show in that kind of movie.

"I guess I should be grateful, huh?"

"You're my friend, let's just say I want to see a future where you win an Oscar and change the future I've been thinking about."

"I have no idea what you're talking about, but I'm interested," Tom chuckled.

In his opinion, Kazir was one of the biggest factors in Liam Neeson winning the Best Actor award a few years ago. Taken had very few emotional scenes, yet Liam Neeson won the award because of the impact it had on society - showing the truth about human trafficking. Hell, Brianna Evans had a more compelling scene than Liam Neeson in that movie.

But who cares, if Kazir did it last time, he could do it again.

"I know you have a plan. Tell me about it." Tom grinned, knowing that the script Kazir gave him could give him the one-man show he needed.

"Okay, it's nice to hear you're interested."

"Minority Report wraps up next month and I can focus all my attention on this project."

The two shook hands.

As for salary and contract, that was up to their agents and the producer. It was enough that they were both interested in working on this project. They both have their reasons and are inclined to work together.

Although there were some problems that Kazir had to deal with. This project currently has no producer because Harold Witsend will have two projects to take care of next year. Kazir may have to find someone else to fill the position.

For next year, Grey Pictures plans to release three films.

1.) Mr. and Mrs. Smith

2.) Bourne Supremacy

3.) The Revenant.

Two movies were part of the Continental Cinematic Universe, while the last one was not.

Another problem was the distributor for his three movies.

Well, Tom has a close relationship with Paramount Pictures, so The Revenant could be distributed by Paramount.

+++++

[Author's note: I have promised that Mr. and Mrs. Smith will be part of the CCU. However, the female lead will no longer be Angelina Jolie for obvious reasons. I prefer Naomi Watts or Jennifer Connelly because I like them. I can't promise that I'll focus as much on Mr. and Mrs. Smith, since Kazir's interest is currently on The Revenant. I may write two or three about Mr. and Mrs. Smith].

[Yeah, so who do you like better? Naomi Watts or Jennifer Connelly?]

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 273


Both sides were represented by CAA and they started their negotiations.

The good thing was that both Kazir and Tom knew the intentions of this project and they already explained their thoughts to their respective agents.

Pat Kingsley and Salvatore Barlowe decided to start negotiations with the thought that this project would happen. There was no in-between. Now they just have to work to meet each side's terms.

Honestly, Pat Kingsley was against this project because Tom Cruise was nominated for Best Supporting Actor last year and they didn't win, even though they did their best PR.

Another thing was Nicole Kidman. You see, Nicole Kidman was striving for Best Actress in 2003 for her role in The Hours. Pat Kingsley was currently on Nicole Kidman's side regarding the split between the couple. However, she could not let go of Tom Cruise, her biggest client.

Unfortunately, The Revenant would also participating in the 2003 Academy Awards, so Pat Kingsley has a lot of things to do.

Both the agents and their clients were quiet about their plans to compete for Oscars. However, the veterans of the industry probably knew their intentions when they heard that Kazir Grey was going to make an autobiographical film instead of action or comedy films that the audience liked. They were not stupid.

There was only one reason why Kazir Grey would make such a movie: to win the Best Director Award. So yes, they were quiet about it...

With Salvatore Barlowe representing Grey Pictures, the terms and conditions slowly became whole. The result was that Tom Cruise's salary was $15 million without box office participation. This was the highest salary Grey Pictures had ever given to anyone except Kazir himself.

No one could guarantee the box office of this movie because it was different from the usual projects that Kazir did, so Tom's side fought for a bigger salary instead of getting a share of the box office.

As for Kazir, he decided to take a $5 million salary for this project. He could say he wanted a $1 salary just to improve the budget, but that would be disrespectful to the four agents who worked with him. They make money on commission.

Now that both sides had negotiated and agreed on the salary, the project officially began.

Kazir and Tom began to talk about the project. Kazir already expected that Tom would talk to him about his role, if he wanted more screen time or lines. Tom was a superstar and he acted based on his status, arrogant. However, as long as it was not outrageous, Kazir would agree.

While this was going on, Grey Pictures was looking for directors to take over their two projects. Fremont Smith had just finished John Wick Chapter 2 and wanted to take some time off. It seemed that Fremont Smith was the kind of director who made movies every two years.

Well, someone like Kazir who never took a vacation was an abomination in this industry.

Kazir already had people in mind to direct Mr. and Mrs. Smith and The Bourne Supremacy.

Doug Liman was the original director of The Bourne Identity, but Kazir directed the movie for three years, so it affected Doug Liman's filmography. To make up for it, Stella Willow invited Doug Liman to direct Mr. and Mrs. Smith this time. After all, Doug Liman was also the director of this movie in a past life.

As for The Bourne Supremacy, Kazir recommended Paul Greengrass to direct. Like Doug Liman, Paul Greengrass was also the director of The Bourne Franchise in Kazir's past life.

Kazir just recruited the original directors.

The two directors could be categorized as B-tier directors, if you want to call them that. They were professional directors and had made a few films, but they were not prominent.

Just like what Grey Pictures did with Justin Lin, the production studio gave Doug Liman and Paul Greengrass a three-picture deal. That means they were legally allowed to make three movies for Grey Pictures. As for the raise, that clause could be bent but not broken.

.........

......

...

November.

Two weeks after the release of Monster, Inc., which grossed over $133 million at the North American box office, a new series of films were released.

November 15, 2001. That was Thursday just before midnight. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone was released for the first time. The first installment of the fourth largest franchise in the history of cinema.

Note that the first biggest franchise was the MCU, the second was Spider-Man, and the third was Star Wars. This is based on the money the franchise generated.

Harry Potter(novels) was already famous all over the world and had many fans, from teenagers to adults. Many people were excited to see the movie.

Before 2001, J.K. Rowling had already produced four books of the series.

The first day (Friday) of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone made 32.33 million dollars. Very big amount of money, unfortunately the first day of Spider-Man was $39 million, so...

Anyway, on the second day (Saturday) the movie made $33.51 million.

On Sunday, the movie made another $24.44 million.

Combined, the first three days of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone grossed $90.29 million. An impressive performance.

Warner Bros. was happy and wanted to capitalize on this success. Their future investment in the franchise would be great.

But no matter how much they bragged about Harry Potter, it was true that the movie had lost out to Kazir's Spider-Man, which grossed $114 million in its first three days.

Now Warner Bros. wondered: WHAT IF Kazir Grey directed Harry Potter, would the movie do better?

Nobody knows the answer. After all, it was just a what if.

++++

[I've written six web novels and finished one. Of all of them, HWI is the most summarized. Usually when I add dialog to the chapters, the plot slows down. But I will try to slow it down now, since I have a lot of things to do for 2002: Mr. and Mrs. Smith, The Bourne Supremacy, The Hangover Part 3, Star Wars Episode 2, the failure of John Carter, and probably Jennifer Connelly... Yeah, I guess I'll add Jennifer Connelly to the poll. I have a crush on the actress, sorry].

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 274


Warner Bros. could not help but compare Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone to Spider-Man. After all, their first choice for director was Kazir Grey. Just like Sony-Columbia, Warner Bros was confident they could fulfill Kazir's contract, but the man ultimately chose Spider-Man.

It was sad, but Warner Bros. had to move on. The plan was already in motion. First of all, they are promoting J.K. Rowling and her books just for the upcoming movie.

Warner Bros. was looking for movie franchises to milk and they felt that Harry Potter was profitable. Lord of the Rings was different because it was acquired by New Line Cinema. The profits of the two companies never merged. Also, New Line Cinema had its own distribution. There was nothing Warner Bros could do about it.

In the last few years, Warner Bros. had two movies that they focused on, The Matrix and Harry Potter. They spent hundreds of millions on each movie.

The Matrix sequels were already in production and seemed promising.

If Harry Potter didn't do well, they would lose money. So the management at the time invited Kazir Grey, who had come out of CCU, to be the director.

Well, the result was obvious. Kazir turned it down and they went with Chris Columbus, the director of Home Alone.

Now, comparing the two movies hurt the management of Warner Bros. for many reasons.

To be fair, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone was an amazing movie. And it was an amazing success. It made $90 million in just three days. That was amazing, very few movies could do that.

But it was still bitter to think that Kazir Grey, who turned it down, did better with his Spider-Man movie.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone was an adaptation of the novel, and many scenes in the novel were obviously never shown in theaters, which caused some disappointment to fans of the novel. Perhaps if Kazir had been the director, he would have done a great job in this regard.

Unfortunately, they could never bring back the past. Regretting their decision was useless, especially when Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone was doing well.

After the release of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, no movie had a promising performance in November.

By the end of the month, only Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone had earned $202 million at the box office. The movie was only in theaters for 15 days and it already made that amount of money.

Hehe, too bad, but Spider-Man made over $252 million in 15 days.

Someone from Warner Bros. curiously did a comparison and was disappointed with the results.

It seems that some people at Warner Bros. were bitter about it. They couldn't help but compare the two.

December 7th and another batch of movies were released. Warner Bros. had another movie to promote and it was Ocean's Eleven.

For this movie, Warner Bros. invited so many big personalities. They invited George Clooney, Julia Roberts, Matt Damon and Brad Pitt. Yes, it was like a dream team. To accomplish this task, Warner Bros. invested $85 million in this project.

Ocean's Eleven was a heist movie about a group of people who stole money from a casino to get revenge.

Actually, Kazir was very interested in this movie, but he could not get the rights.

Ocean's Eleven was a remake of Ocean's Eleven (1960). Some things did not go according to his plan. Ocean's Eleven was not meant for him and Grey Pictures.

The one who bought the movie copyright was Warner Bros. Well, Grey Pictures would have to invest a lot of money to make this movie. Also, Ocean's Eleven was supposed to be a trilogy and Grey Pictures might have trouble casting famous actors. After all, they were not one of the Big Six.

Grey Pictures was at least a B-tier studio. For them to be an A-tier studio, they should have distribution. But from the looks of it, Kazir Grey, the owner of the company, has a different future for the company.

The first weekend of Ocean's Eleven was good, but not the best. It managed to make $38 million... Not at all comparable to Harry Potter or even Spider-Man.

But again, this performance was already amazing. Very few movies could do that in three days. People just couldn't help but compare it to the best. Just like basketball fans always compared players to Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant and Lebron James... These three were the common topics of who was the Greatest Of All Time (GOAT).

12 days after its release, Ocean's Eleven grossed $76 million. Again, an amazing feat... But nothing compared to Spider-Man and Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.

But that was about to change because on December 19, another movie was released that could rival Spider-Man and Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.

2001 was a terrible year for the United States, but it was true that these three movies had huge performances that year.

The third movie was none other than The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Rings.

The Lord Of The Rings had so many cast members but it was acknowledged that the protagonist was Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen).

Viggo already had a status in Hollywood with his role as John Wick. But after that, Viggo Mortensen would have another role to be proud of being written in his filmography.

Now the trio of 2001 was released and it would determine which would be the highest grossing movie of this year (2001).

Last year, the highest grossing movie was Wanted with $1.21 billion... Would Kazir Grey make a miracle and have a back-to-back championship?

+++++

[I was interested in Ocean Eleven at first, but I can't find the right time to include it in the CCU. In the end, I decided against it because Ocean's Eleven is never an action movie, but more of a heist movie. It can fit in well with CCU, but the timing just didn't feel right.]

[I have no idea what I'm doing writing this chapter.]

[Anyway, thank you for all of your support.]

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 275


"So you're going away for a while?" Angelina pouted as she cut her steak. To maintain her figure, Angelina made sure to eat as little as possible. It was the punishment she had to take to maintain her status in this industry.

People in Hollywood were very prejudiced against chubby women. They don't cast chubby women and they prefer skinny women. That was the preference at that time.

To keep up with the ideals, Angelina has to play by the book and keep her stomach as flat as possible. Honestly, there were times when she wanted to eat a whole pizza, but she couldn't because she had to shoot the next day and the director might nag her if she didn't look fit and sexy.

But when she was with Kazir, she didn't feel self-hatred. Instead, the man encouraged her to eat and stay healthy.

Women in the acting and modeling industries suffer from anorexia nervosa, an eating disorder and fear of gaining weight.

It was a sad notion that showbiz pushed on many women that being sexy meant not eating for a day or two.

Angelina was happy in her relationship with Kazir. The man was different from the men she usually dated, Kazir was sincere and serious. The type who didn't like to play games had a clear vision of his future. Besides, the guy was cute and good in bed... The last statement was the biggest reason why she liked him.

Their relationship was getting better and Angelina knew that Kazir was the best man out there... She had many rivals because of that.

Whenever they go out and have fun, there are times when a woman flirts with Kazir.

For the same reason, Angelina was a little upset that Kazir was leaving the country.

"I have three months before I go to Canada. We have plenty of time." Kazir assured her.

After calculating their budget, the production crew decided that it would be better to shoot the movie in real snow than to create artificial snow and do a green screen. Using a real natural background was cheaper than creating a snowy mountain and jungle.

"But you're also going to be gone for three or four months. I don't want that."

"I promised I'd come back every weekend."

Kazir was actually surprised that he had reached the point where he could ignore his work for something else. Damn, weekend rest, Kazir would actually do something like that? Really?

"Besides, Canada's not that far away. We can still call and text and stuff."

"Hm." Angelina nodded sadly after finishing her steak. Kazir encouraged her to have some fun and enjoy life, eating delicious food was one of the best things in the world.

Angelina had two projects this year, one was currently underway while the second was scheduled to start shooting in March, the same month Kazir would be going to Canada. Both of them would be busy then and Angelina was worried that they would lose interest in each other.

A long-distance relationship was not that easy, even if it was only for three or four months. A lot could happen in that time.

Angelina had two projects. The first was Life or Something Like It. Kazir read the script and was not impressed. However, the production team was willing to give Angelina a salary of $7 million, so Angelina's agent begged her to accept.

Then she received another script called How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days. This time Kazir had a good opinion of it, so Angelina decided to audition. Even though her salary for this movie was only $5 million, Angelina felt it was worth it.

It was important to keep her fame.

Coincidentally, the said project, How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days, would start shooting in March, just like The Revenant. How climatic...

Kazir felt that Angelina was sad. He took her hand and held it.

"Look, we'll spend our days together when I'm back. I promise you that."

"Promise?"

"Yes, I promise."

"Take me to a nice restaurant tomorrow, no, for a week."

"Babe, I'm doing that right now."

"So you're backing out?"

"Of course not." Kazir chuckled.

Kazir had already spent a week with his family back in September. Even though half of that vacation was pretty dark because of 9/11, he had still spent a week with them.

So now, on Christmas Eve, Kazir decided to spend it with Angelina. Just like two years ago.

"Remember our first Christmas Eve?" He asked.

Angelina didn't answer. Instead, she smiled and blushed. Of course she remembered. That night had been amazing and out of this world. God, she didn't regret making a move on Kazir back then.

"Actually, this is our third Christmas Eve together and our second anniversary. We should have fun."

"I love you." Angelina squeezed Kazir's hand.

"I love you too."

They smiled at each other. If they were not in public, they might already be kissing and undressing each other.

.........

......

...

"Director Grey! Director Grey!"

"Hm?"

Kazir frowned as he came out of the cafe near Grey Pictures. His eyes were puffy after "cuddling" with Angelina all night, and he loved every second of it.

"Director Grey!"

"Sorry, I don't have time for an interview."

As always, some paparazzi would show up and ruin his beautiful day. It was not the first time this had happened.

"I'm just here to ask a few questions. Harry Potter and The Lord of the Rings are doing well at the box office. Everyone thinks that one of them is going to be the champion of this year's box office." The paparazzi proceeded to ask more.

"But considering that Spider-Man has already grossed $800 million worldwide, your movie should be added to the list. Are you afraid that Harry Potter or The Lord of the Rings will overtake Spider-Man as the highest-grossing film of the year?"

This question got Kazir's attention, so he stopped walking and faced the paparazzi.

"If Harry Potter and The Lord Of The Rings fought Spider-Man, would you lose?"

Kazir grinned and said.

"Nah, I'd win."

+++++

[Author's note: this was very, very late.]

[Funny that I wrote a Christmas Eve chapter on Christmas Eve. Anyway, Merry Christmas to all! Thanks for all your support. I hope everyone has a blessed and abundant Christmas!]

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 276


The year 2002.

Just after the New Year, in an office.

"There are things that are easy to explain, but sometimes you have to hear it twice for the information to really sink in. So tell me again."

"Sir," the secretary swallowed hard. This folder had just been sent to her and she hadn't researched it at all. That was the job of the sales and accounting department: to calculate the box office.

But since the acting CEO Tom Rothman was late, and the guy from the accounting department had a stomach ache, so the secretary became the one responsible for delivering the news to Tom Rothman.

"Sir, the worldwide box office for John Wick Chapter 2 is currently at $621 million. Our accounting department believed that John Wick Chapter 2 could surpass $650 million..."

"What about The Fast and The Furious? Come on, say it."

Maybe Tom Rothman slept in the wrong position, the man was frowning. He seemed to be angry.

"The Fast and The Furious officially ended its worldwide run three days ago. Some countries were still calculating the box office. The movie has already grossed $502 million, excluding some countries that are still calculating the numbers..."

"Do you think that the box office of these movies is due to the success of the Continental Cinematic Universe? After Wanted, a lot of people became interested in the Continental Cinematic Universe. That is the effect of Wanted, a $1 billion movie."

Tom Rothman didn't sleep well last night because Rupert Murdoch told him to buy Grey Pictures and bring it into the "family."

The reason he could not sleep was the fact that negotiating with Kazir Grey would be the hardest thing to do.

And now two of his movies just happened to drop explosive numbers at the box office!

'What the fuck? That's basically $1 billion! Grey Pictures, a second-tier production studio, just made $1 billion this year! No, they did it last year too with a single movie! This is getting stupid. How is that even possible?' He gritted his teeth.

To be fair, the Big Six made over $7 billion at the box office last year.

20th Century Fox alone made over $1 billion last year with Big Momma's House, X-Men, Cast Away, and so many dozens more.

Still, it was painful to see that one or two movies could easily make their year's worth of hard work.

The only consolation was that Grey Pictures had no distribution channel.

'This means that Kazir is open to negotiations, but my initial statement of $1.5 billion is definitely out of the conversation. At the very least, 20th Century Fox will have to acquire Grey Pictures for $2 billion. Damn, I guess Kazir really is a billionaire now, huh?'

Companies that could make a billion a year were hard to come by. But Grey Pictures did it twice in a row.

"You can go now." Tom Rothman pinched his glabella as the secretary scurried out of the office like a mouse.

"I guess times are changing, well, we are at the beginning of a new century. Even DreamWorks is doing well. Fortunately, we managed to create cracks in the relationship between Jeffrey Katzenberg and Steven Spielberg. They're friends, but they can't overcome the terror of the Big Six. They will split, we will make sure of that."

His last statement would technically become reality a few years later. Inside DreamWorks, two dragons decided to lead their own armies. Jeffrey Katzenberg had the authority over DreamWorks Animation, while Steven Spielberg reigned over DreamWorks Pictures.

"Spider-Man's box office has already surpassed $830 million. Some countries are just starting to release the movie, and most believe that the movie will surpass $900 million. But after that, it will be a miracle. No one seems to think that Spider-Man will make $1 billion at the box office..."

But knowing Kazir, the idea was not impossible.

If Spider-Man indeed surpassed $1 billion, Kazir Grey would be the only director to have made two $1 billion movies, and to do it in two years. This was history. A world record that was impossible to beat.

Two movies.

$1 billion each.

In just two years.

"No, no, no, let's not jinx it. Let's not fucking jinx it."

He gritted his teeth.

The acquisition was his job, a responsibility given to him by Rupert Murdoch. It would be harder if Kazir made another miracle.

"... The first thing to do is to make contact with Kazir and Grey Pictures."

After only a minute of monologue, he called his secretary again.

"Tell Grey Pictures that 20th Century Fox will distribute their three films worldwide for 25% of the box office as a distribution fee. Tell them clearly."

"Yes, sir."

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone grossed $293 million on the first day of the year. It was still in theaters for 48 days.

As for The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, the film grossed $178 million after 15 days in theaters.

"Damn, Warner Brothers will have a festival this year! Harry Potter and The Lord of the Rings looks promising. If they do it right, they will have two strong franchises that will last a decade. 20th Century Fox really needs something like this." Tom Rothman groaned. His head was aching so much.

Everyone in Hollywood believed that Harry Potter, The Lord of the Rings and Spider-Man would dominate the 2001 rankings.

However, it was still a mystery as to which would top the list.

One thing was certain. Grey Pictures' two CCU movies were definitely part of the top 10.

John Wick Chapter 2 with $621 million.

The Fast and The Furious with $502 million.

From a business standpoint, Kazir's existence was dangerous for the Big Six. But there were always two sides to a coin. If Kazir was dangerous, he was also a godsend once he allied himself with one of them.

20th Century Fox found this out with Napoleon Dynamite.

Warner Brothers with The Hangover.

And Sony-Columbia with Spider-Man.

Clear examples that Kazir was a good weapon when used properly.

++++

[Author's note: I'm crazy.]

[Merry Christmas again, haha]

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 277


Jimmy Kimmel Live! A show that started on ABC last year and slowly gained fans all over the US.

It was a talk show with good ratings.

This time, New Line Cinema and Warner Brothers decided to work with the show to promote the movie The Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.

The audience in the studio clapped when Viggo Mortensen appeared.

Jimmy Kimmel and Viggo Mortensen began to talk, focusing on The Lord of the Rings. Viggo talked about his experience in New Zealand and how director Peter Jackson was a good director.

"By the way, I want to congratulate you on your other movie. John Wick Chapter 2 is a great movie, I love it. You look good in a suit with guns in your hands."

"Thanks," Viggo smiled modestly. His career was flourishing and he was now a certified superstar. Two of his movies last year did very well.

John Wick Chapter 2 grossed over $600 million worldwide. While Lord of the Rings is currently at $245 million at the North American box office. With that, his status in the industry has risen.

"Of course you also look good with a sword."

"Holding a sword is quite hard because it is real metal. Not sharp, but really heavy."

"Tell me, did you practice swordsmanship for this movie?" Jimmy Kimmel Live! and New Line Cinema had a partnership tonight and the talk show received money to promote the movie.

"Ah, yes, I trained for six months. Fortunately, I have a lot of experience with training before Lord of the Rings. I trained for my role as John Wick."

"Tell me, what was it like working with someone like Kazir Grey? Everyone is curious about him."

"He's a serious guy. Strict and always calm. He's an amazing director. Most of the time he just knew what scene to shoot and there was no time wasted on positioning the cameras and stuff like that. It was like he had already imagined everything about the movie."

"Yeah, I heard about that. Apparently he's very professional and never takes a vacation. Is that true?"

"I guess so. I mean, I have never seen the guy having fun, or rather working is fun for him. He spent most of his time at work."

Viggo explained.

The news regarding Spider-Man was quite positive for Sony-Columbia and Kazir. The film was close to $900 million after three weeks in January. The movie had already finished its run in the U.S., but it was doing well overseas.

The Spider-Man hype was still going strong. Merchandise related to the movie was selling like hotcakes. The factories had to work overtime just to keep up with the demand.

You see, Spider-Man was for all ages. Even 50 year old men like the movie. The character of Spider-Man was created in the 1960s and slowly gained fans. And now that Spider-Man is in theaters, the hype around the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man has just exploded.

Jimmy Kimmel and Viggo Mortensen chatted a few minutes before the end of the show.

"You're friends with Matt Damon, right?" Jimmy Kimmel asked.

"Ah, yes, we are friends. We worked together in Wanted two years ago." Viggo replied, knowing where this was going.

"Then can you please tell him that we are sorry and that the show is over, we ran out of time and he have to come back next time."

Viggo chuckled and nodded.

"Okay, I'll tell him about it."

The fake beef between Jimmy Kimmel and Matt Damon may have been the longest running gag in the history of television. It started with Jimmy Kimmel calling out Matt Damon as a joke, until Matt Damon himself decided to play along.

.........

......

...

Kazir stopped directing CCU movies, but that didn't mean he abandoned the project. Hell no, he is usually involved in the production when he has time.

He was the executive producer... Actually, his position was not so simple. After all, Kazir was the sole owner of Grey Pictures and he was the boss. Even Harold Witsend, the current producer of CCU, worked under him.

As executive producer, Kazir naturally attended the third round of auditions for the female lead of Mr. And Mrs. Smith.

This time, the crew had a list of actresses with strong box office appeal who were vying for the role.

It was 2002 and Hollywood continued to grow. People all over the world now recognize many superstars from the USA.

'Charlize Theron, Naomi Watts, Cate Blanchett and Jennifer Connelly... Wow, so you're saying that these actresses are interested in being a part of CCU?' Kazir thought to himself.

Honestly, yes. Continental Cinematic Universe was no small project, not anymore. After the huge success of Wanted two years ago, so many actresses/actors in Hollywood became interested in this particular Cinematic Universe.

On top of that, The Fast and The Furious and John Wick Chapter 2 also made a lot of money at the box office. This showed that the influence of the Continental Cinematic Universe was getting stronger. At least a lot of fans were waiting for the next movie.

After so many movies that had mostly male protagonists, Mr. and Mrs. Smith was the only movie in the CCU that had an obvious female lead. Well, one of the leads was female, so they might as well take the opportunity.

Kazir didn't specify a look for Mrs. Smith. He just wanted the woman to be sexy and beautiful and know how to fight.

So it seemed that the role caught the attention of many actresses. The actresses who auditioned for the role are already well established in the industry. They could easily get a job every year.

Charlize Theron and Cate Blanchett have already auditioned and their performances were not bad. They seem healthy and it looks like they have already trained for the role.

Kazir loved the commitment, no lie.

He turned to Doug Liman, the current director of Mr. and Mrs. Smith. The man nodded and invited the next actress.

"Hi, I'm Naomi Watts. I worked on Mulholland Drive last year. I'm here for the part of Jane Smith."

As expected, Naomi Watts looked great. Beautiful and sexy, she already passed the appearance requirements.

The woman glanced at Kazir and smiled, they had known each other for a long time. Kazir nodded but kept his expression.

Naomi and Kazir first met at Tom Cruise's party in 1995. And yes, they almost had an affair if Carl Morin had not interrupted them. Since then, Kazir and Naomi have known each other, but they were not friends.

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 278


"Miss Watts, let's start your audition."

Doug Liman said as the cameraman started filming. They were recording the audition of the actresses.

Naomi Watts nodded. For this movie, she was given the chance to do a scene in the script that she liked.

As expected, Naomi chose the dinner scene. The part where the Smith couple met at the dinner table after realizing that the other person was actually an agent.

"How was Atlanta?"

"Big deal?"

Even though it was a solo performance, Naomi got the part right.

Solo performance, sometimes called a one-man show. Naomi said her lines like she was talking to her husband.

But a minute into her audition, Doug Liman raised his hand and stopped her.

"Your acting is great, but I want to see you act with another person."

The role of Mr. Smith was still open because the crew was still deciding between three actors, Hugh Grant, Russell Crowe and Brad Pitt. The crew was fine with casting Hugh Grant and Russell Crowe because their salaries were affordable. Producer Harold Witsend preferred these two.

But both Doug Liman and Kazir Grey preferred Brad Pitt. Grey Pictures was no longer a small production studio and they could afford to hire superstars. Heck, Kazir and Tom Cruise even have a collaboration this year.

Since Doug and Kazir were interested in casting Brad Pitt, negotiations began. Brad Pitt agreed to a trilogy and cameos, but the salary was still being negotiated.

Since there was no official Mr. Smith at the moment, someone had to step in to accompany Naomi to her audition.

"Kazir, um, would you mind?"

Doug spoke to Kazir who was standing next to him. In the audition room, Kazir was the only one with acting experience. He had been in so many movies... All cameos, of course.

Kazir nodded and agreed. He knew Doug had no hidden agenda. He had done this twice before, when Charlize Theron and Cate Blanchett showed up.

Kazir sat across from Naomi, who was poised and beautiful. The two began to act.

He was not a professional actor, so he could not keep up with Naomi. Just like in the dinner scene, Kazir and Naomi talked peacefully at first until the guns came out... Fake guns, of course.

They had a scuffle until they both admitted that they loved each other and didn't want to kill each other. Naomi was so close to Kazir, it was a miracle that Kazir kept his sanity.

"Too bad, this is just an audition and I can't kiss you... Unless you want me to."

Naomi whispered in his ear and Kazir blushed slightly. After that, the actress thanked Kazir and the acting ended.

"Miss Naomi, are you okay with the trilogy and the cameos?"

"Yes. I want to be part of the Continental Cinematic Universe."

A common response. All the actresses who auditioned had almost the same answer.

"You have to sign up for three to four months of training if you get the role, are you prepared for that?"

"I've been working out and I'm confident in my body."

Perhaps these questions were so obvious because CCU was all about action movies.

All the actresses who auditioned were fit and went to the gym to work out.

"That's good to hear."

Doug Liman ended the audition and told Naomi that she would get a call today or tomorrow with the results of her audition.

As Naomi left the room, people began to talk about her and share their thoughts on Naomi's audition.

'This is going to be tough. Each of them is amazing to work with. I prefer Charlize and Naomi in terms of looks, but I prefer Cate when it comes to acting.' Kazir was in dilemma.

Charlize Theron might be the first choice because her upcoming movies are Aeon Flux and Mad Max: Fury Road. But we can't be sure that she's fit for action movies right now.

However, the three actresses were all expensive to hire. They all already have a foothold in the industry and could demand a minimum of $2.5 million. This could be a problem because there would be trilogies and cameos. Also, they had already talked to Brad Pitt and he wanted at least $7 million for the first movie alone. It would be painful if the actress asked for more.

Even though Grey Pictures has a bigger budget and can afford big expenses, they have to be smart with their money.

Another truth was that there was a pay gap between actors and actresses. It didn't help that actors have longer peak careers than actresses.

Even if actors were over 50 years old, they could still get leading roles, but it was the opposite for actresses. If an actress reached the point of 50 years old, it would be hard for her to compete with younger actresses.

The crew wouldn't spend a lot of money on an actress unless she was Julia Roberts or Michelle Pfeiffer, those actresses had worldwide box office appeal.

Then Doug Liman called the last actress to audition for Mrs. Smith.

Kazir was not surprised to see Jennifer Connelly. She was beautiful, as always.

'She was born in 1970, so she's only two years younger than me, huh?' Kazir thought as he looked at Jennifer's information.

Yes, Kazir was 33 years old in 2002.

Jennifer looked at Kazir but kept her emotions under control. She was surprised that the guy she had seen panting in the gym and vomiting at a party was a superstar director.

Her first impression of the man was not positive, but rather negative. Her agent told her to audition for the role because the Cinematic Universe era was flourishing and Jennifer needed a steady role. Her career had not been steady lately... Well, it was going downhill and she needed a breaking point.

CCU could be her door to that. Since she was here, she might as well give it her best shot.

She kept her smile and started her audition... Only to find out that Kazir would be in the dinner scene. Yes, she chose the dinner scene as well. Maybe because it was one of the most compelling scenes in the movie.

+++++

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P@treon link: https://www.patreon.com/Puji_maki

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[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 279


"I-I'm sorry!"

Jennifer realized she had made a mistake. She had met Kazir twice, and the first impression the man made was not appealing.

However, when she met the man this time, she realized that Kazir was actually tall and fit. He was domineering. As the audition began, Jennifer began to lose her concentration and forgot her line. She couldn't help but be aware of the man in front of her.

"That's okay, Miss Connelly. We can wrap up the audition here."

Doug Liman announced and Jennifer immediately stepped back. She had a slight blushing face.

After the audition, Doug Liman began to ask Jennifer about the trilogy and cameo contract and her interest in physical training.

Jennifer said yes to everything and left the room... She realized that she probably won't get the part because she made mistakes. She sighed.

"... So who should we choose?"

The one who asked this was Harold Witsend. He had an artistic sense because he was once a prop master. In his opinion, all four actresses were beautiful and attractive. They were right for the part.

"Naomi Watts and Charlize Theron seem promising."

Doug Liman said, and Kazir agreed. Both directors had the same thought.

"Harold, who do you think we should cast?"

"Well, I think I'm going to go with Jennifer Connelly."

"Why?" Kazir asked curiously. Kazir had good impression of the actress but it won't affect his decision making.

"How should I put it... Her career is not that good compared to the other three. We can hire her for a cheap salary."

"..."

Kazir realized that Harold was starting to become a real producer. The guy was basing his opinion on the budget!

"She's beautiful, she can act, and her status is not that high. Definitely someone we can exploit."

'Woah woah woah, Harold, you're going too far. I take my opinion back, you're a real producer now.' Kazir touched his chin.

He disagreed with Harold's thought process, but it was true that Jennifer had a lower salary than the others.

'Naomi Watts' career would take off after the success of Mulholland Drive. She would be in King Kong, The Ring, Le Divorce and other films. If we cast her, her next salary could be at least $5 million.' He calculated.

Charlize Theron and Cate Blanchett were the same way.

Cate Blanchett would win Best Supporting Actress in 2004 and Best Actress in 2013.

Charlize Theron also won Best Actress for her role in Monster (2003). She would also star in many blockbusters like The Italian Job, Hancock, Snow White and the Huntsman and many more.

'... I guess it's a good thing I bought the rights to the Hulk movie from Universal Pictures. Otherwise, Jennifer Connelly might be back in Hulk (2003), which was a box office flop.'

Kazir's butterfly effect changed Jennifer's career slightly.

"I think we should cast her. What do you think, Doug?"

"I'm fine with it."

Doug was just starting his career in the industry and didn't have much authority over Kazir and Harold, so he agreed.

"Harold, get in touch with Jennifer and her agent. Get them to sign a contract as soon as possible because she needs to train."

"Alright."

The negotiations between the two sides would start again... However, Kazir forgot that Jennifer Connelly had actually been nominated for an Oscar this year for her role in A Beautiful Mind.

Anyway, they would tackle the problem when they got there.

.........

......

...

Unlike Mr. and Mrs. Smith, The Bourne Supremacy didn't spend much time casting. After all, it was a sequel and most of the cast was already in place.

Kazir knew this moment would come, so he decided to attend the script reading, and just as he expected, he met Cameron Diaz.

Cameron Diaz already has a good career and she could get out of her contract if she wanted to. She could probably afford to quit, but Cameron Diaz decided to keep her role.

The salary that Grey Pictures offered was $5 million because Cameron was not that simple anymore. Charlie's Angels, The Invisible Circus and Vanilla Sky with Tom Cruise. Cameron continued to grow as an actress.

She could ask for more, but Cameron decided to agree so that the production wouldn't be delayed... Maybe she had another reason.

She read the script and was shocked to find out that her character would actually die in the movie.

She contacted the writers and found out that Kazir and Robert Ludlum both agreed that her character should die to give Jason Bourne character development.

Of course, Cameron didn't like it at first, but she understood that the plot made sense... She hoped to stay on the project for a long time. Maybe she had another reason.

When Kazir attended the script reading, he saw Matt Damon talking to Paul Greengrass. Then his eyes were fixed on Cameron Diaz.

"..."

He expected to meet her today, but she didn't expect Cameron to be so beautiful. It was as if she had really prepared herself and picked out the best dress.

Her makeup, her slim figure, and her dress. Everything was perfect.

Kazir admitted that Cameron Diaz was the goddess of the '90s and early 2000s.

'I can't believe I broke up with her. Well, she's a nice woman, but I failed to open my heart to her. I was still scared back then.'

He swallowed hard for obvious reasons.

When Cameron noticed that Kazir had arrived, she rose from her seat and gave the most charming smile. She approached him and greeted him bubbly.

"Good morning director, I know it's late but congratulations on your latest movie Spider-Man. I hear it's going to top $900 million."

She reached for a handshake.

"Thanks, you too, Cam- Cameron, Charlie's Angels and Vanilla Sky did well. I hear Charlie's Angels is getting a sequel."

Kazir almost said "Cam," which was too endearing. He felt he should be formal since this was a job and they had been separated for almost four years. Besides, Kazir was currently dating Angelina.

He shook her hand. Kazir felt her firm yet soft hand gently squeeze him.

Cameron giggled.

"As expected, you're still serious. Maybe that's what I like about you."

She left after that, but Kazir felt like she was messing with him.

++++

[If you want to read more, you can subscribe to my P@treon or Ko-fi.]

P@treon Link: https://www.patreon.com/Puji_maki

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[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 280


Kazir's time with the cast of The Bourne Supremacy was uncomfortable. The actors were professional and they followed the standard procedure of reading the script...

However, Kazir could feel Cameron Diaz giving him flirtatious looks from time to time. Even Matt Damon and Paul Greengrass sensed it, but decided to keep quiet. As long as it did not interfere with their work, they would keep quiet.

Besides, Cameron and Kazir were dating once and they had a history. There would be an awkward atmosphere between them, that was for sure.

Kazir decided to leave the script reading earlier than the others. It was obvious to everyone else that Cameron was disappointed when Kazir left the set.

In Kazir's defense, he was busy, which was true. He had a lot on his plate even in the first month of the year. The production of Mr. and Mrs. Smith and The Bourne Supremacy were important and he couldn't just leave those two projects.

He was committed to the Continental Cinematic Universe, a successful cinematic universe that he was building from the ground up. Obviously he didn't want to see it fail.

It was true that he stepped away from the CCU for a while to expand his filmography, but he would never leave the project to anyone else. Grey Pictures could hire directors now, but his presence was also important.

"I have to meet with someone at 20th Century Fox to finalize the distribution deal."

It was a worldwide distribution deal with a 25% box office cut. This time, however, Grey Pictures would be responsible for advertising. That means they have to come up with money for promotion to pay 20th Century Fox.

Hollywood makes about 500-600 movies a year, but most of them never had a chance to be released worldwide. Only about 100 movies had a chance to be released abroad and most of them were distributed by the Big Six for obvious reasons.

The Big Six and MGM were the only ones currently able to distribute films worldwide. Although MGM would lose its international distribution in a few years due to bankruptcy.

In the near future, new studios like Lionsgate, EntertainmentOne, A24, Focus Features and Netflix would set up their own distribution, but that was another story.

Grey Pictures knew that the Big Six already tolerated them enough, and the company couldn't do business with them without bleeding.

News Corporation was a media giant and could promote their films well. The deal was already good and there was no reason to hesitate.

"Nice to work with you again, director."

"Me too."

The person on the other side of the table was James N. Gianopulos. This guy was not that simple. He was the President of 20th Century Fox International. It was rumored that he would become Chairman/CEO of 20th Century Fox when Tom Rothman's term ended. Unless Tom Rothman decided to keep his position by achieving something great that shareholders would want him to stay.

The two shook hands.

"I hope this will not be the last time we work together. 20th Century Fox is serious about Grey Pictures."

"I understand."

'... By the looks of it, 20th Century Fox is going to start moving this year. Probably because Tom Rothman's term is ending and they need some good news to reassure the shareholders.'

Well, 20th Century Fox was one of the best studios around. They made hundreds of blockbusters in the history of cinema. This company has been in the business since 1935, it has a long history and a strong foundation.

Kazir had no problem selling shares in his company. He was not suited for the role of a businessman. It would only cause him stress. But he wanted to sell the shares to someone he could trust.

He knew that unlike Disney, which would corrupt the franchise, 20th Century Fox would be a better option... Warner Brothers, Paramount and Sony-Columbia were all good too. Just not Walt Disney. Disney would have its heyday, but by the 2020s, people would be tired of all their shit.

So Kazir's had no reason to disagree, but the price should be worth it. The biggest weapon of Grey Pictures was the CCU movies and so far all the movies have been box office hits. Last year, two CCU films grossed $1 billion worldwide combined.

Even though the money that Grey Pictures got was only $350 million and after expenses, the company still had a profit of $120 million. Also, the DVDs sold a lot. People were already losing interest in VHS and loved using DVD players instead.

Also, the rentals were profitable as well, they made $62 million from the rentals of Blockbusters, Walmart and movie stores.

Anyway, Kazir wanted to sell at best 40% of the stock to one of the Big Six for protection and distribution security.

So far, 20th Century Fox has been the most honest.

'I'm interested in making Deadpool, so why not?' Kazir thought.

If Grey Pictures was indeed acquired by 20th Century Fox, and Kazir was working for 20th Century Fox, surely management would let him film one of the goofiest characters in X-Men.

'... I love the first trilogy of X-Men, but the later ones are meh. But Deadpool is another story, it's a masterpiece. Have you ever seen a character break the fourth wall?'

Maybe... If the writer of that novel wanted to. He could easily break the fourth wall, like I just did.

Negotiations for a multi-billion dollar company would take at least a year to complete. So far, 20th Century Fox was just in the beginning stages.

"If 20th Century Fox is really interested in Grey Pictures, I hope they are sincere."

Kazir muttered and rose from his seat.

"Yes. Wait, what?"

James replied casually, until he realized that Kazir had actually dropped a bomb.

Kazir Grey had never shown any interest in selling his shares in Grey Pictures, not until now.

His statement clearly showed that Kazir was not against it. He just needed something to entice him.

++++

[I don't have a clear picture of the profits from rentals, but I'm sure they're definitely in the millions annually. So I am just guessing the numbers].

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 281


James was surprised because he thought he would have to sit down with the director to convince him of a chance to prove 20th Century Fox.

This was one of their first moves. To become the distributor of Grey Pictures and build a solid cooperation to convince Grey Pictures to sell their shares.

But James didn't expect Kazir to actually see through their intentions and share his thoughts.

"Share swap is no problem either. You get authority over my company, I get authority over yours." Kazir chuckled. Money had never been a problem for him. Money was just a means for him to maintain his status, but it was not everything.

As long as Kazir could stay in the business and keep making movies, he would be alive. In fact, before his divorce from Cassandra, Kazir was earning quite well. He could afford to buy a house because of his share of the profits from the movies he made.

Actually, directors, actors, and producers had residuals from videotapes and such, but they were only relevant for the first five years. The sales of videotapes/DVDs slowed down after five years.

"... I understand."

James felt he had to take his job seriously.

By the looks of it... Kazir could get at least $1 billion from the upcoming transaction.

"Goodbye James."

Kazir didn't stay long and left. Tomorrow he has to talk to Tom Cruise about The Revenant.

Then, next week, Sony-Columbia would celebrate the success of Spider-Man. If their projections were correct, the film would cross the $900 million mark in the same week, the second week of January.

There was no time to rest... Actually, Kazir was very excited to start shooting The Revenant. He was always excited to do his job as a director. He felt alive doing his job. He loved the job more than ever.

.........

......

...

"So how's your reunion with Cameron?" The actor teased his friend.

"Tom, let's not talk about that." Kazir shook his head.

Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz worked together in Vanilla Sky. They knew each other and even shared a kissing scene in the movie.

"Why not? Cameron knows we're friends, so she asked me a lot about you. Which was a little interesting because you two were in a relationship for almost two years. Have you shown Cameron anything of your true self?"

"I have trust issues," Kazir muttered as he looked through the lists of actors and actresses.

"Did... Did you just say that?"

"Yes. Besides, Cameron and I are over."

"She's a great kisser, though."

"She is."

"Damn, I didn't expect you to react like that. I thought you would at least be angry. So you're really done with her."

Out of curiosity, Tom wanted to tease Kazir about his past relationship, but he didn't expect Kazir to be as stoic as an old tree. The guy didn't give a damn.

"All right, I'm sorry for what I said." He admitted his mistakes.

"It's okay."

Kazir knew that superstars usually had arrogant attitudes, and Tom's behavior was in line with what Kazir expected.

Many celebrities were arrogant, Gwyneth Paltrow, Will Smith, Lindsay Lohan, and even James Cameron. These people were quite known for having arrogant attitudes, some of this was because of the superstar syndrome. Where they think the world revolves around them.

Fortunately, even though Tom had that attitude, he knew when to apologize.

"Kazir, I have someone to recommend for Hugh Glass' wife."

As expected, Tom was going to recommend someone.

Kazir stopped reading the list. The female roles in this movie were basically non-existent, except for Hugh Glass's wife, but even that was a supporting role. In fact, the woman didn't even have a real name.

There were only four major characters in this movie, and they were all men.

"Tom, you know that Hugh Glass' wife is a supporting character. I have no intention of changing the script to accommodate anyone."

"Of course I understand that. I have no intention of doing that either. Just think of it as a cameo. She's a fan of yours, so I decided to give her a chance to work with you, even if the role is small."

"What's her name?"

"She's Penelope Cruz. I'm sure you know her."

'Of course she is.' Kazir thought.

Kazir knew Penelope Cruz, though he knew her only through her relationship with Tom.

Unless Kazir was mistaken, Tom met Penelope Cruz in Vanilla Sky, the same year Tom and Nicole Kidman divorced.

"If you're okay with it, I'll cast her. But you have to tell her it's a small part. Don't expect a big salary."

"We don't expect a salary at all, you can hire her for free if you want."

"We'll probably have to negotiate with her agent anyway, so let them decide."

"Okay."

The two agreed. This was just a small thing, no reason to take it seriously. They were both flexible and agreed with each other's decisions. The main reason they decided to work together was to win the Oscars.

Kazir already proved that he could make someone Best Actor after casting Liam Neeson. Tom Cruise had some regrets about Taken, but there was no reason to be depressed. He knew the movie was not for him.

Besides, Taken was the opening film of the CCU and Tom would probably not be invested in such a long term project.

Tom rarely does movies with sequels, except for the Mission Impossible franchise. Even Top Gun took more than three decades to get a sequel.

The Revenant was another chance for him to win the Best Actor Award. He read the script and was confident in Kazir's ability to bring it to the screen.

Tom Cruise even offered to invest at least 30% of the project, but Kazir and Grey Pictures never agreed. Anyway, small things, as long as their mission was the same, they would work it out.

"So these are the actors who auditioned for the second round, and I chose the actors who best fit their roles. Tom Hardy, Joaquin Phoenix and Shia Labeouf."

"Hm, seems reasonable. Joaquin is a great actor. I remember Tom Hardy in Black Hawk Down. But this Shia Labeouf is a new person for me."

Tom replied.

++++

[Author's Note: Don't mind the note below. This chapter was written ten months ago. I didn't delete it because I didn't want to... Don't be triggered, I want everyone to have fun and enjoy the novel.]

[It's officially January 1st here. And yes, as usual, I never saw The Revenant so I have no idea what I'm doing. Thanks guys for all your support. I hope we all have a blessed year!]

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 282


Joaquin Phoenix had a great filmography in recent years. Perhaps his best recent role was in Ridley Scott's Gladiator. He was nominated for Best Supporting Actor at the Academy Awards for his role as Commodus in Gladiator.

A few years later, he won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role as Joker/Arthur Fleck. He won many awards in his career and everyone knew that he was a talented actor.

Looking at the information thanks Kazir read, he knew that casting Joaquin Phoenix was not a problem.

The expected budget of The Revenant was at least $85 million and Kazir had no problem casting someone like Joaquin Phoenix.

For the same reason, Tom Hardy and Shia Labeouf were good choices.

Tom Hardy made his film debut in Black Hawk Down, but after that his career was unstable. He could not get any promising roles. If Kazir had not known about Tom Hardy's future, he might not have gotten a role in The Revenant.

Tom Hardy's usual roles were about buff, strong guys. This Means War, Mad Max: Fury Road, and The Dark Knight Rises were just a few of the movies he starred in. His role in these movies was the buff strong guy.

Out of interest, Kazir decided to give this up and coming actor a chance to work with him.

The same thing happened with Shia Labeouf. Shia Labeouf was a famous actor in the mid 2000s and early 2010s but his career was dying for some reasons after that.

At first his career was going well, at a young age he got roles in Constantine, I, Robot, the first trilogy of Transformers, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, Eagle Eye and Fury. It was amazing, he was part of so many blockbusters. Maybe one of the reasons he got steady jobs was because of his race, but that was debatable and probably not true.

Well, his presence in Hollywood slowly disappeared after accusation and controversy.

Kazir had heard some stories in his past life, but this and that were two different things.

The Shia Labeouf of 2002 was just an aspiring actor trying to find his way in the industry.

Shia's agent recommended that he audition for The Revenant and Constantine. So far, his role in Constantine was already set, but filming would start in September, which was 9 months later.

The main reason Kazir was interested in Shia Labeouf was to know his current attitude as a young actor. He also knew that Shia could act, his range as an actor was quite wide. As for the reason why Kazir was interested in Shia... It might because of Transformers.

For these reasons, Kazir felt that casting these three actors was not a problem.

One thing was for sure, Tom Cruise had no problem with the cast. None of the actors were more famous than him, and he was confident in his acting abilities as well. He had been in the industry since 1981. His experience was enough to face such talented actors.

Besides, Tom knew that Kazir would never betray him. He would definitely give Tom more screen time and let him showcase his acting skills.

... It was actually written in the contract. For this role, Tom decided to grow a beard for the first time. He even studied bears to understand them.

He might even go so far as to meet a real bear and possibly have a boxing match with it. Tom Cruise was a professional actor and he was known for his stunts. (Note: I'm still skeptical about this. If it's true, no insurance company is going to sign a contract with Tom Cruise. He probably only does stunts that are safe).

.........

......

...

"Nice to see you again, sir. I thought you had forgotten me." Vance Goodhood greeted Kazir after three years of no contact.

Kazir became busy and didn't have much time to return to the investment firm. However, when he contacted the company, he found that the investment firm had been hit hard by the bursting of the dot-com bubble and 9/11. As a result, they filed for bankruptcy.

So Vance Goodhood decided to apply to Goldman Sachs, and he was accepted. His credentials were good. Because of Kazir's warning, Vance pulled out his investment before the stock market crashed. He made millions and was very grateful for Kazir's opinion.

As expected, Kazir Grey was a genius. He was a genius director and even in the financial sector he was making money.

So Vance visited Grey Pictures because Kazir wanted to invest in tech/internet companies again.

This time Kazir was willing to invest $150 million. This was a huge amount, and Vance met with Kazir in person because of the seriousness of the situation.

"Are you sure you want to invest in these companies, sir?"

Kazir had three companies in mind: eBay, Apple and Amazon.

eBay and Amazon were both online sales services, and their growth was promising. Only Kazir knew the exact history of how these companies would become worth billions or trillions of dollars.

As for Apple, now that Steve Jobs had returned to Apple, Kazir knew that this company would usher in the era of smartphones. By the way, Steve Jobs was also a shareholder in Walt Disney because of Pixar.

Kazir would continue to invest in Apple and Amazon, while eBay was only short-term.

Actually, he wanted to get a piece of Google, but the company still showed no interest in his money. Google would not go public until 2004.

At the same time, Facebook did not exist until 2004.

'Maybe Mark Zuckerberg is open to investment.' Kazir thought to himself.

Vance Goodhood was not sure why Kazir was interested in Apple, but he decided to keep his mouth shut.

This was a $150 million deal and Vance didn't want to screw it up. He tried to offer Kazir alternatives, but the director was adamant. In the end, Vance Goodhood respected Kazir's decision and took care of the $150 million by investing $50 million in each company.

'As for Netflix... Meh. I'll only invest when their online streaming service happens. Right now, Netflix is still a small company trying to copy Blockbuster's business strategy. I don't want to disrupt and potentially change their trajectory, so I'll just wait until they're stable.'

Being in this industry, Kazir knew that Netflix was going to struggle for a long time. Kazir didn't want any of that part.

++++

[Author's note: I know this has nothing to do with the novel. But I want to say that we will miss you, Detective Amelia Watson of Hololive. Man, I'm sure going to miss your gremlin screams].

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 283


The cold breeze still lingered, but not as cold as in December. Last year's event was something that many people would never forget, and perhaps it affected people's perception of the weather.

Now that another year has come, it is time to move on and let go of the past. Suffering has always been a part of life, but that doesn't mean there's nothing to look forward to. New year, new life.

With that in mind, there was no promising movie in January. This was to be expected as January has never been a famous month for Hollywood to release movies.

Still, it was kind of disappointing that of all the movies that were released in January 2002, only one movie made more than $100 million.

It was Snow Dogs, released by Walt Disney. And yes, it was about dogs...

The fact that The Count Of Monte Cristo and A Walk To Remember were released in the same month and didn't cross $100 million was discouraging. Because those two movies were pretty good.

The Count Of Monte Cristo was based on a famous novel of the same name, and yet it didn't work at the box office.

A Walk To Remember was also based on a novel of the same name, but it didn't do well either.

While January was bleak for Hollywood, Kazir was very busy that month. He visited the production sets of Mr. and Mrs. Smith and The Bourne Supremacy. He also had his own project to work on.

Even though Kazir was still in the USA, he didn't have much time for himself. Much more about Angelina.

Kazir knew that love was important, but his love and passion for filmmaking was stronger than any kind of love. He left his home in the first place just to be a filmmaker. That alone was enough to show how much he loved movies.

Most of the time, Kazir spent more time at work than with Angelina. It caused a bit of a fight, but the couple was mature enough to understand each other.

Two bad, because in March, Kazir would leave the country to go to Canada and start filming The Revenant. Their relationship was a bit rocky and they only had a month to fix it.

How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days would also start shooting in March and Angelina would be busy as well. Both of them won't have time for each other after March.

So to make things better, Kazir and Angelina attended a party together. This party was none other than the celebration party for Spider-Man.

Angelina and Kazir entered the party hand in hand and were greeted by many people, mostly people related to Sony-Columbia.

People congratulated Kazir for his outstanding ability to create blockbuster after blockbuster. Just as they predicted, Spider-Man successfully surpassed $900 million in the first week of February.

To date, Spider-Man is the highest grossing film of 2001. John Wick Chapter 2 came in second with $621 million.

In third place was Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone with a current worldwide gross of $620 million. This was followed by The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring with $582 million.

2001 was a bad year and people used movies to escape reality and have fun. Many of the audience preferred these four movies mainly because of their special effects, magic or supernatural aspects and cool action stunts.

Hehe, it was also funny that the two currently highest grossing movies of 2001 were strongly related to Kazir Grey.

Kazir was the director of Spider-Man and he was also the writer/executive producer of John Wick Chapter 2.

However, with John Wick Chapter 2 already finished its run, there was no chance for the movie to increase its box office. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone would soon surpass this CCU movie.

"Congratulations Kazir!" Said Tobey Maguire, who was slightly tipsy.

"Congratulations, director." Producer Jezebel Salome was strict as always and didn't touch alcohol tonight.

"Yow, are money maker has arrived!" Willem Dafoe said jokingly and gave Kazir a big hug.

Angelina was happy to see her man doing well in his career. She was proud of him. At the party, Angelina decided to look around for someone.

Angelina was the type who loved to make fun of someone. It helped her boost her self-esteem and confidence. You see, she loved it when someone was jealous of her.

So yes, she was going to look for Kirsten Dunst. She knew that Kirsten had a crush on her boyfriend and she loved to jab Kirsten with that fact.

That was the reason why Angelina wanted to see Reese's reaction the last time. Too bad, it seemed that Reese had already moved on. Well, Angelina had a new target.

"Babe, I'll be right back. You can talk to your friends while I'm gone." Angelina told Kazir and the man nodded.

"Okay, take care."

Kazir said after kissing her hand. Angelina smiled and left her man to tease Kirsten.

Kazir and the others began to talk.

A few minutes into the party, two people approached Kazir. They were Stan Lee and Avi Arad.

Avi Arad was the current CEO/Chairman of Marvel Comics, while Stan Lee was the creator of many Marvel characters.

From the serious expressions on their faces, Kazir knew they were going to talk about the superhero copyrights that Grey Pictures owned.

After so many years in the industry, Grey Pictures has successfully acquired all of the MCU characters. Most notably the original Avengers: Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Hulk, Black Widow and Hawkeye. It was time-consuming, but Kazir knew their importance, so he acquired them.

Kazir excused himself and went to the garden to talk to the two of them. This was going to be a serious talk.

++++

[Author's note: Since it's the first day of the month, I want to promote my P@treon and Ko-fi for the nth time. If you subscribe to my P@treon, you can read 169 advance chapters of HWI plus 3 NSFW chapters (exclusive to Patreon only)].

[Second, there's an important poll on my P@treon that will determine Kazir's wife. So far there's a clear winner and I'm already writing about their relationship. However, if the result changes and the current winner is overthrown by landside votes, there could be a comeback. If you're interested, you can check it out. I respect your votes and I respect the outcome].

[One more thing, what do you think about Marvel movies? Should Kazir direct them? The winner of the poll last time was (redacted) and I think that company can acquire Marvel and Grey Pictures together so that the MCU will happen].

[My P@treon has a wider range of content compared to Ko-fi, so I recommend you subscribe to Patreon if possible. Although, don't use the iOS Patreon app because I will automatically lose half of the money if you subscribe using the app].

[If you can't use P@treon, then my Ko-fi is the alternative. Ko-fi doesn't have the 3 NSFW chapters, but it does have the poll regarding Kazir's possible wife and 169 advanced chapters].

[Again, thanks for all your support. I really appreciate it. Your subscriptions mean a lot to me because they help me pay our bills, put food on the table, fix up our house, and pay for my brother's college tuition. He's a sophomore now by the way, and his major is English Secondary Education.]

P@treon Link: https://www.patreon.com/Puji_maki

Ko-fi Link: https://ko-fi.com/pujimaki

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 284


Most people knew that Marvel Comics went bankrupt a few years ago. And while Marvel Comics was in their deepest shit hole, Grey Pictures approached them to buy some of their characters.

The bank owned the company at the time and they made the arrangements and sold the characters for a few million dollars.

Now, the characters that Grey Pictures bought were mostly small superheroes that were not famous. Marvel's famous characters were Spider-Man, Fantastic Four, and the X-Men.

The X-Men that 20th Century Fox made two years ago was successful. Marvel was impressed, but not enough to be excited or elated. After all, the film only grossed $296 million worldwide.

The impact of Spider-Man, however, was far greater. No, this was the most successful movie to come out of Marvel Comics.

Imagine a single character making $900 million at the box office. Because of this, Marvel Comics gained a little confidence in their characters.

The profits from comic books were getting smaller and smaller, and Marvel Comics would go out of business if they didn't solve the problem.

The solution they came up with? Create a Cinematic Universe. Which was the right decision because Marvel Studios is worth billions in original timeline.

Also, Marvel Comics had a good example to copy.

The Continental Cinematic Universe created by Grey Pictures was a huge success. Now every character in this Cinematic Universe has become well known, Bryan Mills, John Wick, Jason Bourne and Wesley Gibson.

There was nothing special about their appearance, but boys and men went crazy just to get their action figures.

In addition, Grey Pictures was negotiating with several publishers to produce novels and comic books about CCU. They were also talking about possible animated series.

It was still a rumor, but Stella Willow, the General Manager of Grey Pictures, was very busy because of these rumors.

One thing was for sure, Grey Pictures was doing well.

Marvel Comics wanted the same treatment, but they knew it would be difficult. Unless Marvel Comics got the same status as Grey Pictures.

A few weeks ago someone from Walt Disney contacted Avi Arad and said they were interested in buying some of the characters from Marvel Comics.

Perhaps Walt Disney was trying to copy the recent success of X-Men and Spider-Man... especially Spider-Man.

However, the characters Walt Disney was looking for were Iron Man, Captain America, Thor and Hulk, who were already owned by Grey Pictures.

Walt Disney was willing to pay tens of millions just to acquire their copyrights, which was shocking but expected.

Even Universal and Paramount were interested in their characters after the success of Spider-Man.

So now Marvel Comics was facing some problems. They need money.

'We need to acquire these characters and resell them, or we can...'

Avi Arad stopped thinking. He was not sure of the outcome of this conversation. First of all, he knew that this was just their first conversation and no promises would be made. Especially when Kazir Grey was known for his cunning behavior.

While Avi Arad was busy thinking about business, Stan Lee's thoughts were all about the hopes of Marvel characters having their own movies.

Stan worked with Kazir on Spider-Man and saw the director lay the groundwork for the movie to be released.

In his opinion, Kazir was the main reason for the film's success. His clear vision for the film and his strict but consistent shooting. His authority and the respect he got from the people. Despite his achievements, Kazir was perfect for his career.

'If we are really serious about making a Cinematic Universe, then Kazir is the best option we have. He has already proven himself, and his credentials are unparalleled in that regard.' the old comic creator thought.

Kazir could make another Cinematic Universe with a high chance of success. That was for sure.

So yes, the two higher-ups at Marvel Comics have their own opinions.

Avi Arad wanted the characters back, while Stan Lee hoped that Kazir would start working on Marvel characters as he had promised.

Note that for Grey Pictures to acquire the copyrights for a small amount, they made a contract that Grey Pictures has to make a Marvel movie within 10 years, or else the characters would naturally return to Marvel Comics.

In addition, Grey Pictures must invest at least $50 million in the Marvel movie or the contract would be void.

Grey Pictures acquired the copyrights in 1997 and the deadline was 2007. If the studio failed to make a Marvel movie, the characters would return to Marvel Comics.

The two executives followed Kazir nervously into the garden, but they hid their emotions well.

Kazir stopped in his tracks, and the others stopped as well.

"I already have an idea of what we're going to talk about. So I want to make it clear, I'm very interested in doing a Marvel movie. We can renegotiate the contract if you're interested."

"..."

Stan Lee sighed weakly with relief. He was the co-creator of many Marvel characters and he hoped to see them in theaters.

"Kazir, I think we can talk about this seriously."

Avi Arad frowned. He had no problem with that, but he wanted the best for Marvel Comics. They had already sold the copyrights, but they could fight for the remaining benefits such as box office, DVD sales, and peripheral profits.

"I understand."

Kazir agreed.

At first, he only wanted the copyrights to the Marvel characters because he felt they would jeopardize the Cinematic Universe he envisioned.

But now that the CCU was successful and no one could compete with it, Kazir felt that creating the MCU was not a problem.

"Kazir, first of all, let me ask you this. Who's the first Marvel character you want to make a movie about?"

Since Kazir had already stated his intentions, Stan Lee decided to ask more.

"Hm, let's see... I'm interested in doing The Hulk and Iron Man. Although I prefer Iron Man first."

"Iron Man, huh..."

Honestly, Stan Lee thought Kazir would choose The Hulk because it was a famous character, on par with Spider-Man and X-Men.

Well, Kazir was a talented director, so he probably had a plan.

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 285


Was it enough to work with Grey Pictures?

Avi Arad was still skeptical about the idea. Sure, he knew that Kazir was one of the best, if not the best, director in this new genre, but Avi Arad was still not confident in working with the studio.

He needed at least some assurance. Walt Disney was very serious about acquiring their characters and they were willing to pay a lot.

Although there was a downside to that, because Marvel wouldn't start their own Cinematic Universe if they sold their characters to Walt Disney.

And that was the problem with Grey Pictures. Even though the studio bought the copyrights to many of the characters, it didn't mean that Grey Pictures intended to start a Cinematic Universe about Marvel.

Maybe they wanted to make a stand-alone movie like Spider-Man. That was not enough to revive Marvel Comics.

Since getting the copyrights back would be cumbersome, Avi Arad decided to go as far as he could.

"I want to renegotiate the contract," Avi said, and both Kazir and Stan looked at him.

Kazir nodded, already expecting this. Avi Arad was the CEO of Marvel Comics and he had to do his job as CEO for the sake of the company.

"I want to hear your thoughts."

"Cinematic Universe. I want to make sure that Grey Pictures is committed to a Marvel Cinematic Universe. With at least one Marvel movie a year."

Kazir was not surprised.

'Well, since MCU was a massive success in my past life, I have no problem with that. CCU has a steady performance and I can focus on MCU for a while. However...'

"... And what can I get?"

Kazir didn't forget that he had the upper hand in this negotiation.

"If you don't, we'll kill every character you acquired in the comics."

Kazir grinned. It seemed petty, but surely Avi had his intentions.

"So you want to kill the Hulk? He's one of your greatest superheroes."

"We can kill him or we can change his image. We can make him a villain, we can make him a killer, a thief, even a rapist."

Marvel Comics had the rights to all the characters and they do what they want with them.

Surely Grey Pictures would never make a Hulk movie if he became a rapist in the comics, which was the canon plot. So the copyrights would just be useless.

"We both lose if you do that."

If Marvel were serious about this, they would just destroy themselves.

Avi Arad knew this. It was just a threat, but a threat that would never happen unless they were backed into a corner.

They love every character and they didn't want to make them bad.

"Avi, I know your intentions and I assure you that I'm sincere."

"We will extend the copyrights up to 15 years if you agree with our terms." Avi said.n

"I guess you want to use some of your people for this project."

"That's right, the writers should be from Marvel Comics."

"No problem with that. That's my plan anyway."

"Marvel wants to increase the 13% profit share to 15%. We need money."

Marvel was in a near death situation.

"The numbers should be discussed by our agents and so on. But I also have my proposal."

"Tell me about it."

Looking at the grin on Kazir's face, Avi knew that it could affect them.

"Marvel will shoulder at least 30% of the production cost."

Now this condition could be a double-edged sword. It could be good or bad for them.

"I agree, but Marvel should increase its box office share to 20%"

"No, our original agreement is that Marvel Comics can only get 13% of the box office."

"Then investment could be a problem."

"Then there's no Cinematic Universe."

"..."

Avi Arad and Kazir had a stare-down.

As for Stan Lee, he just stood there. He was a creative person and a great artist, but business was never his strong suit.

Actually, it was impressive that Kazir could do business. He had a talent for business management, otherwise Grey Pictures would not have reached its current greatness.

Too bad, because Kazir disliked doing business. If he had a choice, he would have let his agent handle those kinds of negotiations.

But after the Big Six declined to invest in Taken, Kazir decided to strike out on his own and form a production company that would invest exclusively in his own films. It was a dangerous gamble, but one that paid off in the end.

"Exactly as you said, this negotiation of numbers should be given to our management and let them fight over it."

"Very well."

So in the end, there was no clear agreement except for the plan to make a Marvel Cinematic Universe.

For obvious reasons, Marvel Comics was actually on the bad side of this negotiation.

First of all, Marvel Comics could start their own studio and make their own movies.

However, they were not sure if their movies would be successful. On top of that, all of their famous characters had already been acquired by many studios, and they would have a hard time getting them back.

In this situation, Marvel Comics could only agree with Kazir's decision.

'If our situation is the same as DC's, then maybe one of the Big Six has already bought Marvel Comics.' Avi gritted his teeth.

Superman and Batman were basically the mascots of Warner Brothers and they were very famous all over the world. The main reason for that was the movie adaptations. Both superheroes had successful movies.

In fact, Avi Arad was hoping that one of the Big Six would acquire them... At least that would make their lives easier.

Suddenly, Avi Arad's fat cell phone in his pocket started ringing. The phones in 90s and early 2000s were thicc as fuck.

Avi excused himself and answered the call.

Kazir and Stan were left alone.

"S- So Kazir, what's your plan if you're going to make Iron Man?"

"I have some in mind, but I'm not sure yet, I'll tell you later, maybe when Spider-Man 2 starts production. I'll give you a clear plan. In the meantime, I'm going to focus on my current project."

Kazir lied. Of course he had thought about it. Hell, he even watched it.

"Of course." Stan Lee understood.

In fact, he was already grateful that Kazir was directing Spider-Man. He was the biggest safety net in this project, not the cast and not Sony-Columbia. Director Grey was the assurance that every studio wanted to acquire.

Stan Lee was the creator of Spider-Man and he was very happy to see his "son" have a successful run in Hollywood.

Now a lot of people around the world know about Spider-Man. That was enough for him.

Although Stan was hoping that Kazir would also make Spider-Man 3. That would be the biggest piece of good news he could get.

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 286


Kazir and Stan talked for a few minutes before Avi returned. When the two saw Avi's expression, they thought the guy was panting red.

"Kazir, let's talk about the negotiations next time, officially," Avi announced their departure.

"Okay." Kazir nodded and said goodbye. He was curious why Avi was acting like this, but he decided to let it go.

At first he thought that Avi and Stan would spend more time at the party, but it seemed that they had important things to do. The two executives left the party immediately.

"Avi, why are you acting like this? Did something happen? Who called you?"

Stan was not stupid. He knew that the reason Avi was acting strangely was because of the phone call.

"It's News Corporation."

"Huh?"

"Someone from News Corporation wants to talk to us. They are interested in buying Marvel Comics."

The current shares of Marvel Comics were in the hands of the bank because of the company's debt. If News Corporation was really serious about this acquisition, then the bank would be happy to have another company shoulder Marvel Comics' debt.

"Are you serious?" Stan was surprised. He hadn't expected this.

"This isn't a scam, is it?"

"I don't think so. They set up a meeting at 20th Century Fox headquarters in two days. If this is real, we need to contact management."

News Corporation was a media giant and had the ability to acquire Marvel Comics. However, it was still unknown why News Corporation contacted them after so many years. Perhaps the recent success of Spider-Man was the reason. After the success of Spider-Man, Marvel Comics had a new source of profit and their future was promising... Although they were still in debt at the time.

The two got serious. Both of them had shares in Marvel Comics, and if this acquisition really happened, it would be a good thing for them. At least they could face their old rival with confidence.

'If DC is under Warner Brothers, then Marvel Comics will be under News Corporation, uh, 20th Century Fox, I guess?' Avi Arad thought. Hoping that the company's future would be prosperous.

.........

......

...

Kazir was a little confused as to why the two left the party so quickly. They hadn't even had a glass of wine.

'Maybe their only reason for attending this party was to meet me.'

Knowing how big the MCU was going to be in the next decade, Kazir would never say no to Marvel Comics' terms. However, Grey Pictures would fight for better terms.

'It was a good thing that we acquired the copyrights to the MCU characters and can start at any moment. However, I'm still waiting for at least two or three years so that the CGI technology will be better and ready to take Iron-Man or The Incredible Hulk.'

Technically, the second movie in the MCU was The Incredible Hulk, but the contract with Edward Norton fell through. Luckily, Iron Man, the first movie of the MCU, was successful and kept the whole franchise alive.

Of course, Hulk was still in the Avengers, but it was very hard to connect him with the Incredible Hulk. The Incredible Hulk was connected to MCU, plot wise, but sort of not.

Since the original actor (Edward Norton) left and was replaced by Mark Ruffalo. People couldn't help but see the difference between the two.

So in this timeline, if Grey Pictures and Marvel (Studio) were serious about creating another Cinematic Universe, then Kazir would choose Mark Ruffalo from the very beginning so there wouldn't be any mishaps. Also, Mark Ruffalo was a great actor. He at least seemed more approachable than Edward Norton.

'Now that I think about it, The Incredible Hulk's box office was not bad. It made about $260 million at the box office. However, the production cost of the movie is $150 million, so I guess they didn't make a profit at all.'

Things happen and life has always been like that. Even in the 2020s, the influence of the MCU waned after the original Avengers disappeared.

'I also have to be careful about oversaturation. People will get tired of superhero movies, and the Continental Cinematic Universe can suffer the same thing.'

So far, action movies have done well, but that could change later. After all, the era of the 2010s was dominated by superheroes.

'Keeping two CCU movies a year is the best choice. That way, people will not get tired of our movies.'

Maybe another reason why the MCU was at its lowest point in the 2020s was because they were producing so many TV shows, all connected to the MCU. People just got tired of watching so many TV shows. Especially when every one of them was connected to the MCU and it would be detrimental if they didn't watch them.

If you don't watch WandaVision, then you have no idea what happened in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.

After thinking about the MCU that Kazir was interested in, he decided to look for Angelina.

He saw some of the cast of Spider-Man and they invited him for a drink, but Kazir humbly declined. Drinking too much would be bad for him, especially when he had a job to do tomorrow.

After looking around for a few minutes, Kazir found Angelina talking to someone. He almost called out to her, but stopped when he realized that Angelina was talking to Kirsten Dunst.

He looked at them and saw Kirsten crying. She walked away while wiping her tears and trying to act completely fine.

The woman walked towards Kazir, who tried to find a place to hide, but failed. Finally, Kirsten saw Kazir and she was stunned. She immediately greeted him as she wiped away her tears.

"G- Good evening director."

She did her best and smiled. She excused herself and left the place, embarrassed about her action.

"..."

Kazir just nodded and let the woman leave. Then, he turned to Angelina who was smirking.

"Aww, baby did you miss me?" Angelina said and hugged Kazir. Kazir hugged her back but was not that enthusiastic about it.

"Angelina, what happened? Why did I see Kirsten crying?"

Kirsten had an important role in the Spider-Man trilogy. If this matter affected Kirsten, then the woman might leave the project and that would endanger the franchise. Kazir was a director who hated that kind of thing.

So yeah, he was disappointed by what he witnessed. Spider-Man was important to him. Angelina might cause irreparable damage to the project, something that Kazir could not accept. This was his art, something that was very important to him.

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 287


He did his best to stay calm. He didn't want to judge Angelina without hearing the whole story, but he was certainly disappointed.

"I didn't do anything to her, okay."

Angelina giggled.

Kazir was still silent, waiting for more explanations.

"Well, I found her and decided to talk to her. I told her how great our relationship is and how much we love each other. She actually listens very seriously. I also talked to her about the watch you got for your birthday."

"What did you tell her?"

"I said it was missing and you can't find it."

"..."

Kazir sighed. This could be annoying. He knew that Angelina had a tendency to do such things. People in this business, especially famous people, were very arrogant.

Besides, Angelina had done the same thing to Reese a year ago and a year after that. Of course Kazkr knew about it, but he let it go because he loved her.

"Do you hear yourself right now?"

"Oh come on babe, it's nothing. I didn't expect her to cry like that. You're not mad, are you?"

"No, I'm not, I can't be mad at you. But I'm very disappointed. What if Kirsten announces that she is quitting Spider-Man? That would be very damaging."

"Look, I'm sorry, okay? I can make it up to you."

Realizing that Kazir meant it, Angelina apologized and promised that it would never happen again.

Kazir was silent for a while before nodding. In the end, he sided with Angelina. After all, she was his girlfriend. However, their relationship changed slightly after this incident.

Kazir and Angelina returned to Beverly Hills after leaving the party. They were both busy, but Kazir admitted that he was busier than Angelina. He wanted to make it up to her, but what had happened earlier affected his decision.

They returned to their respective jobs and saw each other once a week, but their enthusiasm for each other diminished with each passing week. Kazir and Angelina were still a loving couple, but there was already a rift.

.........

......

...

"I didn't expect you to show up at Grey Pictures with this intention."

"Kazir, don't be like that. I know you're smart. You already expected this to happen."

"Indeed."

Enrico Pucci came to Grey Pictures for a formal business meeting. The reason: Warner Brothers was interested in acquiring shares of Grey Pictures, which was solely owned by Kazir... Well, Stella Willow held 1.3% after working in the company for 3 years. She started working at Grey Pictures in 1999, around the time of the production of The Bourne Identity.

"Our initial proposal is $1 billion for 40% of the company, but that will probably not work..."

Enrico sighed. This was not his forte in the first place. He was a producer, not someone from Morgan Stanley or Goldman Sachs who was used to acquisition deals. Well, Warner Brothers was contacting J.P. Morgan for this job right now.

"Hm, you have to keep up with the numbers." Kazir smiled.

After the success of the Continental Cinematic Universe, the net worth of Grey Pictures rose to five billion dollars. Especially when there were rumors that Grey Pictures was going to start another Cinematic Universe based on Marvel superheroes.

"Yeah." That was all Enrico could say.

On February 10, 2002, Warner Brothers began their acquisition. It was a great move that seemed promising, after all, Grey Pictures was now the most sought after studio in Hollywood.

However, one week later, Sony-Columbia also started their acquisition! They announced that they were ready to buy 35% of the company for $2.1 billion. It seemed that Sony-Colombia was in desperate need of high quality movies that Kazir could provide. Especially after tasting the greatness of Spider-Man, which Kazir produced.

Now, Warner Brothers and Sony-Colombia had their battle over who would acquire Grey Pictures.

This could go on for months or even a year. Apparently, Grey Pictures didn't turn down the acquisition, but they weren't adamant either... It was as if Grey Pictures was waiting for something more.

The two studios that dominated Hollywood started their battle, even making deals with J.P. Morgan and Goldman Sachs for this acquisition.

This news was published in newspapers and some TV channels. The opinions of many people were divided.

People in Hollywood knew that the outcome of this acquisition would affect Hollywood tremendously. Once Grey Pictures worked with one of the Big Six, that company would have an advantage at the box office.

In fact, people knew that the answer to this question was none other than Kazir Grey. He was the one who was able to accomplish many things in this industry.

Some people thought of kidnapping the guy to take advantage of his talent, but they were not crazy enough to do that. Hollywood had a lot of crimes, but they wouldn't go as far as kidnapping a famous person... But it was different when the person in question was a nobody. After all, there were rumors that some establishments in Hollywood were involved in sex trafficking, which is technically kidnapping.

While people in Hollywood had complicated thoughts about this acquisition, normal people/moviegoers were cool about it. As long as the quality of the movies Grey Pictures made was amazing, they didn't care which company acquired it.

Just like that, two months passed and April arrived... In that month, Sony-Columbia happily announced that Spider-Man had crossed the $1 billion mark!

It just barely passed the mark at $1.01 billion, but it was a fact that happened!

Now people recognize that Spider-Man was the box office champion of 2001 (last year).

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone finished its run with $974 million. Coming in second

Third on the list was The Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring with $868 million.

In fourth place was John Wick Chapter 2 with $621 million.

In fifth place was Monster, Inc. with $528 million.

Sixth was The Fast and The Furious with $502 million.

Now Kazir was recognized as the only director to have made two $1 billion movies in consecutive years!

This made the takeover even more intense!

++++

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[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 288


No one could do what Kazir did. Two years ago, his movie "Wanted" made history, becoming the third movie to surpass $1 billion at the box office.

Everyone thought it would be the greatest achievement Kazir would ever achieve. After all, surpassing $1 billion at the box office was already a difficult thing to do. So far, only three directors have done it.

But who would have thought that the next year, Kazir would make another film that would surpass $1 billion at the box office?

Now, Spider-Man has become the fourth film to achieve this feat. People's opinions of Kazir deepened. Nobody took him for granted anymore. He became the most profitable director in the industry, not even Steven Spielberg or James Cameron could compare to him in terms of box office.

Spielberg and Cameron were indeed amazing and their movies were mostly profitable, but no one could consistently perform at the box office except Kazir.

All his films after 1995 were all amazing. All of his movies were low to mid budget and yet all of them were profitable. In fact, all of the films produced by Grey Pictures never exceeded a production budget of $100 million. Yet they all performed well and made money.

Only Spider-Man had a budget of over $100 million and it was produced by Sony-Colombia.

It was clear that no project Kazir touched ever lost money. They all made money in one way or another.

People were suddenly thinking about the future of this production studio, would it soar higher or would it fall to the ground and crash? Only time would tell.

One thing was for sure, Kazir Grey could be recognized as the most profitable director of this era. It was obvious why so many people wanted to work with him. This was also the reason why the Big Six wanted to acquire Kazir.

Sony-Columbia and Warner Brothers were not stupid. They know that the real money maker of Grey Pictures was Kazir Grey. If they acquired the company outright, the company would lose its value. Grey Pictures was only relevant as long as Kazir was there.

Since they are serious about this acquisition, they are only asking for 40% of the company at best. They would never go beyond that. Because if Kazir felt he was being bullied, he might leave the company altogether and work with another studio. That would be awkward.

You see, Kazir has already made two movies that did very well at the box office, $1 billion each.

Sony-Columbia and Warner Brothers knew this would not be the last time. They could sense that Kazir was still at the top of his game, or maybe he was climbing even higher, and his chances of failure were slim.

How could they not be tempted? Have you ever seen someone like Kazir who could make a billion dollars with one movie? Yes, two other people have done it, Spielberg and Cameron. But Spielberg worked mostly with Paramount and Universal.

As for Cameron, he worked with 20th Century Fox and Paramount, but he only makes movies every few years. In fact, James Cameron's next movie would be in 2009, 7 years from now. His art took a long time to create, unlike Kazir who consistently made one movie a year. That was the most salacious fact about this acquisition.

Even if they could only acquire 20-30% of Grey Pictures, it would still be a profit. And from the looks of it, Kazir was not interested in money. It was just a way for him to preserve his career.

... Because Kazir was not interested in money, the negotiations became a bit difficult. Kazir wanted a stock swap instead.

That is, Kazir would receive stock in Sony-Colombia or Warner Brothers in exchange for stock in Grey Pictures.

The current net worth of Warner Brothers was $27 billion while Sony-Colombia was around $21 billion.

As for Grey Pictures, the company's net worth has ballooned, or should I say increased, after the recent success of their many movies. Sitting around $7 billion.

After all, Grey Pictures grossed over $1 billion at the box office last year, and John Wick's Chapter 2 and Fast and The Furious together grossed over $1 billion. In addition, the profit from merchandise/DVDs sold by Grey Pictures last year was over $150 million. The estimated value of the company was not wrong at all.

To acquire 40% of the company, Sony-Columbia or Warner Brothers would have to bleed $3.4 billion. That could affect their business, but it was a risk they were willing to take. After all, both companies were backed by giant corporations. Sony and Time Warner were powerful companies in their respective industries.

So far, Sony-Colombia was interested in a 35% stake for $2.1 billion. It was a huge amount, but Kazir was not interested in that kind of money. He was not the type to spend money. He could invest in some companies, but he preferred to focus on Hollywood. Besides, Kazir could wait.

Kazir had a feeling that Sony-Columbia and Warner Brothers wouldn't be the only ones competing. One or two studios might also ask for a stake in Grey Pictures.

.........

......

...

Chairman Michael Eisner gritted his teeth as he read the paper. Almost all the publishers praised Kazir Grey for his talent. Well, he was the only one to make a billion dollars at the box office in a row. Of course people would praise him.

'If I knew about it... Sigh.'

Michael sighed, understanding that it was too late for regrets. All he could do was move on. He had many chances to work with Kazir, but he did not.

His position at Walt Disney was quite rocky, and even his friend Michael Ovits resigned because of it. It seemed that everyone at Walt Disney was turning their backs on him. He was losing influence.

One of the executives that really pissed him off was Robert Iger.

'That bastard...'

Robert Iger suggested that Michael Eisner should retire because he was getting too old. Of course, Michael didn't want to retire because he loves being in power.

Right now he has two options to keep his position. The first was to acquire Grey Pictures, a very promising studio. The second was the upcoming release of John Carter. Walt Disney put so much money into this project, hoping that they could follow the performance of CCU.

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 289


April came and went, and people in Hollywood began to feel the change in the atmosphere. People started seeing billboards with pictures of movies being promoted. Advertisements were everywhere, taxis had pictures of movies on them. Especially the TV networks, the big ones, were putting so much money into making sure that people knew about the summer movies.

Jane Kendall got out of her boyfriend's car and thanked him.

"Thanks, Wallace, I'm going to miss you."

"Babe, you're only going to Canada. It's not that far. We can call each other too."

"So you're saying you're not sad that I'm going, huh?" Jane narrowed her eyes and looked at her boyfriend.

"Of course not. You know I'm going to miss you, so much. So much!" He spread his arms to show how much he would miss her.

Jane pouted. After 9/11, airport security was tighter and airline travel was not easy. Jane wanted to go back to California every Sunday to spend time with Wallace, but airlines have different rules now. She might spend more time in the terminal than with Wallace.

Jane Kendall was the head of Grey Pictures' make-up team. Her position in the crew was quite good, especially when she was part of the original crew along with Renner Hector and Harold Witsend. The three were part of Kazir's crew long before the director became famous.

'When was that again? Ah, I think it was around 1989.'

She was well respected in the crew. Because she was part of the original team.

Jane and Wallace met two years ago in the premiere of Wanted. Wallace was the co-leader of Grey Fans and he was one of the guests who got tickets to the premiere. The two hit it off and decided to start a serious relationship.

Now they were 1 year and 4 months into the relationship.

The two knew that distance could affect their relationship, but they promised each other that they would remain stronger.

The two shared a light kiss before Jane entered the terminal. Grey Pictures never had their own private plane, so they used business flights instead. Maintaining a plane was very expensive and Kazir didn't find the novelty of having one... Even though he was making a lot of money.

Jane had heard that Tom Cruise flew to Canada in a private plane, but that was only natural since the actor was a true superstar.

The crew had to go to a snowy part of Canada to shoot the movie. Kazir first sent Renner Hector to check out the possible locations, and Renner already found suitable spots. He also talked to the communities and got permission to shoot.

Most of the scenes would be shot in Sudbury, Ontario. Renner already confirmed that even though summer was coming, the place was still cold and snowy white, an important aspect of their choice.

"I'll miss you."

"Me too."

Jane said goodbye to her lover, she would miss him. She went to the terminal area and found most of the crew. They greeted each other. Then Jane approached Kazir, who seemed busy as usual.

The man had always been like that since the first time they met, when Kazir was still a rookie director and had trouble doing his job, which made him busier. But now, the rookie director was nowhere to be seen.

Just a mature man who seemed to be engrossed in his reading.

"Good morning, Kazir."

"Oh, good morning, Jane. Wallace brought you here to the terminal?"

"That's right."

"Is he still here?"

"No, he has a job. So he left after he sent me here."

"Is that so? Too bad, I want him to contact some members of Grey Fans to visit our movie set to promote the movie. I think some of the members of Grey Fans are amateur movie bloggers."

Movie critics might be the right term, but movie bloggers were more focused on the Internet. Different from movie critics who mostly published their stuff in tabloids and newspapers.

"If you're talking about work, you can call him instead... Wait, so you're saying you want Wallace and the others to visit the crew?"

"Yeah, that's right? Is there anything wrong with what I said? Of course we have to set up a schedule for their visit."

"I'll call Wallace later."

Jane left the director excitedly.

It seems that Jane regained some of her energy after knowing that her boyfriend would be able to visit the filming set. Most of the time, visiting the set was off-limits to keep the content of the movies secret. Especially now that technology was improving and people could hide small cameras in their pockets.

In order to visit the set, you usually have to sign a non-disclosure agreement so that the movie doesn't leak.

In that sense, Kazir had no problem letting some fans visit the crew. This could give them positive impressions.

Kazir was feeling the pressure from the success of Spider-Man and Wanted. His last two films have grossed over $1 billion each. He wanted to work hard to make sure The Revenant got the same treatment, but Kazir knew that was impossible. He was not God, after all.

'Well, my name means God in another language, but that probably has nothing to do with my current predicament.'

... Or maybe his name was the reason why he returned to the past? Was this foreshadowing? Probably not. The author will not cook.

Kazir did not dream to much. Having another $1 billion movie at the box office would not be amazing. Instead, people might think he was a robot/alien or something.

If he remembered correctly, The Revenant exceeded $500 million at the worldwide box office, which was amazing by the way. Only a few select films could do that.

For this movie, Grey Pictures was willing to spend $100 million. Of course, Kazir knew how to spend the money, so there was probably some money left over for PR after the shoot.

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 290


Kazir continued to draw on his storyboard. He was not a fan of drawing, but his sketches were very recognisable.

If he did not become a director, perhaps he would work in comics or other hand-drawn related jobs such as animation. Too bad, because Walt Disney stopped their hand-drawn animation, while the other animation studios were not so good.

Anyway, Kazir was good at drawing... Just like that. After working in this position all his life, Kazir learned a lot.

"All of the crew are here."

He stopped drawing when he realised that most of the crew had arrived. Their flight numbers would be announced a few minutes later.

Kazir saw a stall selling newspapers and decided to buy one so he wouldn't be bored during the flight.

He saw something interesting and it reminded him of a certain future.

'... John Carter, huh?'

Kazir bought the newspaper with John Carter on the cover.

[John Carter! The next blockbuster! The future of cinema!]

The article was very confident in the movie.

Walt Disney had invested heavily in this project, and the film's budget was a whopping $250 million. Yes, that news came from someone who worked at Walt Disney. The budget was really huge, but this kind of thing would become the norm a few years later.

Films would become super expensive, especially the big ones that the Big Six were investing in.

Kazir read the article. It seemed that Walt Disney was very serious about this project and was promoting the film almost everywhere.

Last February, John Carter's first trailer was shown at Super Bowl XXXVI. Millions of people watched the trailer and it was well worth the money spent on advertising.

Kazir also watched the trailer and confirmed one thing... It was basically the same as his previous life. Even the cast was almost the same. Kazir had a premonition about this.

The premiere of John Carter was scheduled for the first Thursday in May, two weeks away. By that time, Kazir and the crew were already shooting The Revenant.

.........

......

...

In a dark, deep forest with little greenery and tall trees, a man walked quietly, aware of his surroundings.

The forest was almost silent, as if there were no life in it.

In his thick fur clothing, Hugh Glass sensed that something was wrong. He raised his old long rilfe as if danger were closing in.

He had unkempt hair around his face, showing how haggard he was. His thick beard was quite greasy.

Breathing slowly but deeply, Hugh Glass turned slowly to look around.

He saw two bear cubs walking. The bear cubs were just passing by, looking adorable.

He lowered his rifle and turned around, only to see a huge grizzly bear coming at him.

The bear pounced on him and knocked him to the ground. His gun flew out of his grasp. Hugh Glass grunted and struggled back.

The bear began to attack him on the ground without mercy.

"OK, cut!"

Suddenly the bear stopped moving and Tom stood up with a bit of dirt on his face. He wiped his face and looked at the bear.

"Sorry about that, Tom." The bear said. There was someone inside the bear, a real person. Kazir knew that the bear didn't look realistic, but they were going to use motion capture technology and edit it.

The technology was expensive, but Kazir was willing to spend money on it. The grizzly bear had to look realistic and scary. They need that wow factor.

"No, it's fine," Tom replied to the man in the costume. He knew this scene was going to be dirty. He didn't like dirt, but there was nothing he could do about it. He was an actor and he had to do his job.

Fortunately, the clothes he was wearing were clean and smelled good despite their dirty appearance. The costume design team should be thanked for that.

"Let's take a break." Tom said. He didn't have a problem with what was happening.

First of all, he liked his current appearance. He could feel that he was deep in the act, and for a few seconds he felt like he really was Hugh Glass.

Perhaps the atmosphere in the crew affected him in a good way.

He saw a strong camaraderie between them. They all worked together perfectly. The trust they had in Kazir Grey might be the reason.

It was a trust that had slowly built up over the years. They followed Kazir's orders without hesitation, knowing that Kazir could provide them with another masterpiece. Moreover... The bonus they received after the filming was completed and the film was successfully released at the box office motivated them to work hard.

It seemed that Grey Pictures was quite good to its crew.

"Kazir, what do you think?"

"Amazing, Tom. Your immersion in the role is getting better and better and your performance is perfect. I have nothing bad to say."

Kazir was serious. As expected, Tom Cruise was a great and dedicated actor. It was just that he had chosen to continue with almost the same roles throughout his career because he was afraid of losing his status.

Most of Tom's filmography was about him being handsome and cool... That was basically it.

But now the person in front of Kazir looked exhausted but alert, like a real warrior.

"This is just the first take and I feel like I can do better if we have another take." Tom replied.

"Take 2?"

"Take 2." Tom nodded.

After that, filming resumed and The Revenant continued.

.........

......

...

Meanwhile, Hollywood, just over a thousand miles away from Canada, had begun its usual summer release schedule.

On May 2, 2002, more than five films were released simultaneously. But only one film was promising.

Walt Disney had already announced that they would release John Carter in the first week of May, and the other studios decided to give them that date.

There was no reason to fight Walt Disney if they could find another week to release their films.

The result of John Carter's first weekend was quite... Meh.

The film was not bad, but it was not that good. It didn't have much of an audience appeal, despite the heavy promotion that Walt Disney did.

 

[Pujimaki]

[I know people are getting tired of me, but I just want to say that this novel is fiction and has nothing to do with reality. Don't take it seriously].

Hollywood What If Chapter 291


Cinematic Universe. A huge franchise that made billions at the box office and its influence around the world was astronomical. Even outside the box office, the money it generated was in the billions.

Back in Kazir's past life, there were only a few cinematic universes that could be considered successful. The MCU, the DCEU and the Monsterverse.

Star Trek and Star Wars could also be considered Cinematic Universe, but they were just one franchise with many sequels, in Kazir's opinion. There was a difference.

However, after Kazir introduced the CCU, he basically messed with the timeline and changed a lot of things.

Now, the CCU was the first official Cinematic Universe in this timeline, and Kazir was the founder of it.

There was no Continental Cinematic Universe in the original timeline. Kazir basically put action movies into one universe and created a unique version.

Kazir deserved a credit for that.

The money they made on that project was huge and Grey Pictures had a lot of money to invest in their own film promotion.

"If Kazir and Grey Pictures can do it, why not us? We are one of the Big Six, the biggest studio in the world, and we can produce more quality films than a second-tier studio like Grey Pictures."

That was Michael Eisner's view. He firmly believed that Walt Disney was capable of producing its own Cinematic Universe.

However, he also admitted that creating one was dangerous and they were unsure of the consequences. To begin with, this "genre" was new and Grey Pictures was pioneering it.

Michael Eisner felt that such an ambitious goal was impossible because of the cost and the situation. Nobody knew the future and they didn't know if this venture would be successful. It would be difficult to bring many of the protagonists of each franchise into one universe. But Grey Pictures did it and made a lot of money doing it.

This was the reason why Michael Eisner wanted Disney to start its own Cinematic Universe.

Michael Eisner didn't hesitate to acquire the Barsoom series as his playground. The novel was popular and the author was famous. Even though decades had passed, it could still attract the attention of many people.

They even invested another $100 million in promoting the film, bringing their total expenditure to $350 million.

$250 million production cost + $100 million for marketing.

The executives at Walt Disney knew that the investment was huge, but they agreed because of the promising future that the Cinematic Universe could bring.

The initial net worth of Grey Pictures was only $1-2 billion at best, but the success of Continental Cinematic Universe changed everything. The company's net worth skyrocketed last year, especially when John Wick Chapter 2 and The Fast and The Furious grossed more than $1 billion at the box office combined, giving Grey Pictures a higher status.

Despite the infighting at Walt Disney, executives and chairman Eisner agreed that John Carter should be taken seriously. Everyone wanted to make money.

After months of preparation, from buying a commercial slot on the Super Bowl to plastering the film's posters everywhere, Walt Disney did everything to make sure the film would be a success.

The plot was good.

The special effects were good.

The hype seemed promising.

If there was a downside, they cast an unknown actor... They copied what Grey Pictures had done and cast an unknown but young actor as John Carter. They originally wanted to cast someone like Matt Damon, but he was busy with Bourne Supremacy, which was coming out in July.

The executives also argued over the title of the film, but decided to go with Michael Eisner's. Chairman Eisner was a tyrant, but it was true that he was the one responsible for the current success of Walt Disney. In the end, they agreed to call the film John Carter instead of its original title, Princess On Mars.

So John Carter was born.

.........

......

...

The premiere of John Carter was quite lively, Walt Disney paid a lot of attention to this film.

The audience seemed excited and watched the film... Only to be left unsatisfied.

Why was that? Because the last part of the film was left unanswered.

Basically, Walt Disney focused too much on possible sequels instead of completing the plot of the film.

Did John Carter really return to Mars or not?

A question that would be impossible to answer because, surprise, surprise, the film didn't get a sequel!

Walt Disney screwed up. There were rumours that Michael Eisner was micromanaging almost everything about the film, and the executives blamed him.

At first, their expressions were full of excitement. Their faces lit up when they heard the good news. They waited 24 hours to hear the first day's results... And they were greeted with utter bullshit.

John Carter's first day box office was a paltry $9 million.

Sounds promising, right? After all, many films could hardly do that on their first day, right?

But John Carter was different... Or rather, the amount of money they invested in this shit was fucking huge.

350 million dollars! For a single film, they invest $350 million!

The executives were not stupid. They had been in the business a long time and knew that $9 million on the first day was not enough to recoup their investment.

The management did some calculations and predicted that the first weekend of John Carter would only be around $30 million at best.

Yeah... the shit hit the fan.

"N- No! Listen to me! This is just the beginning. The box office will be better in the next few days, I believe. We're still doing our best promotion, right?"

Michael Eisner faced the shareholders and executives. He tried his best to calm things down.

With his friend Michael Ovitz gone, Eisner was beginning to lose his authority.

He prayed that John Carter would never betray him...

"Box office my ass! Have you forgotten that Star Wars will be released two weeks from now? We are losing money because of your stubborn decisions!"

On 16th May 2002, Star Wars Episode 2: Attack of the Clones was going to be released.

This film certainly affected the performance of John Carter after its release. Star Wars had so many fans in the United States alone.

"No, this can't be happening..."

Michael Eisner felt he would be fired after this. He was sweating profusely.

Suddenly he remembered the time he had first negotiated with Kazir. If he agreed to kick Harvey Weinstein out of Disney and Miramax, perhaps his relationship with Kazir would change for the better. The director could have worked with Walt Disney. But alas, regret was of no use in the current situation.

He could only hope that John Carter wouldn't be his downfall.

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 292


Walt Disney thought that only Star Wars would be their problem and for the next two weeks they would have autonomy at the box office.

However, on the 8th of May, a mid-budget film produced by 20th Century Fox was released and John Carter's ticket sales were affected. The film was called Unfaithful. An erotic thriller film.

Erotic thriller films were quite popular in the late 90s and early 2000s. Fatal Attraction, Basic Instinct and Eyes Wide Shut were just some of the famous films of the genre. Of course, the genre continued to thrive in the decades that followed. The 50 Shades series was a successful franchise of the genre.

Perhaps because people were looking for something different, they decided to buy more tickets for Unfaithful than for John Carter, which was heavily invested.

John Carter grossed $53 million in its first ten days. As for Unfaithful, it grossed more than $7 million in its first three days.

Yes, for its genre, which was also rated R, Unfaithful was already doing well. Only a few R-rated films like John Wick, The Matrix and The Hangover have managed to make a lot of money at the box office.

But oh well, for obvious reasons, erotic thrillers and erotic films were quite popular on DVD and in video stores. You know, people like to watch this kind of stuff in their own homes, preferably alone... To appreciate the art, of course.

Another week went by and the executives' confidence in John Carter was waning. They watched, shitless, as the numbers kept dropping to dangerous levels.

They had already invested $350 million in this film... It was a huge slap in the face. The fact that they could never recoup their investment would be fatal to their future endeavours.

The 16th of May came and the most awaited sequel of Star Wars was released!

By this time, John Carter had already grossed $62 million... Based on this increase alone, the film had already reached its end... In one week, the film only made $9 million. That was so fucking sad, no lie.

Plus, John Carter had only been out for two weeks and was already running out of gas at the box office.

But Walt Disney was still in denial, or maybe Michael Eisner was in denial.

They could not accept that John Carter was a box office flop, a tragedy. They still decided to promote the film for a week.

Furthermore, Walt Disney had international distribution. Maybe they could recoup their investment internationally.

So yes, Walt Disney continued to burn their money. Historically, this is probably the biggest box office flop that Disney has had in either timeline... Apart from The Lone Ranger, of course. Note that this film was also produced by Walt Disney and their investment was large. But just like John Carter, The Lone Ranger didn't have much to show for it, but that's another story.

As many expected, when Star Wars Episode 2: Attack Of The Clones was released, the first day box office was astounding.

On May 16, the first day of Star Wars Episode 2, it made over $30 million.

It was meant to be. This was a sign that the film would do well at the box office, unlike John Carter, which only made a mediocre $9 million on the first day.

Furthermore, the production cost of Star Wars Episode 2 was only $115 million. That was small compared to John Carter's $250 million. It even did better at the box office.

One thing was clear, there was something wrong with the film. Who would want to see a film that had no clear ending?

Walt Disney focused too much on possible sequels and this was the downfall of John Carter.

When Disney felt that their promotion was useless, they decided to keep a low profile... They hope that the reaction of foreigners to John Carter was worth it, or else...

In May, only one film dominated the month, and that was Star Wars Episode 2.

By the end of the month, Star Wars Episode 2 had already earned 216 million dollars. The film made back its investment in just one month and may have even put more profit.

As for John Carter and Walt Disney... Meh.

This was just the start of the summer season and more films would be released over the next few weeks.

June arrived and Kazir had no choice but to give the crew three days off as he was returning to Los Angeles to attend a premiere.

Filming of The Revenant was going well. In fact, Kazir could say they were ahead of schedule. The crew was happy to get a break and most of them returned to Los Angeles to see their friends and families.

As for Tom Cruise, the star of the project, he decided to spend his time in Canada with his current girlfriend, Penelope Cruz.

The couple didn't hide their relationship after Tom officially divorced Nicole Kidman.

Since Penelope was part of the cast, they could use their relationship to promote the film. They didn't have a problem with that. For Penelope, it could give her a better position in the industry, while Tom was ready to do anything as long as he could earn a golden statue.

Kazir also went through a divorce and his experience was not so good.

Although Tom had it worse. After his separation with Nicole Kidman, Tom was criticised by many people. Some newspapers believed that Tom had been brainwashed by Scientology. Which led to their divorce.

To be honest, Kazir had no idea what Scientology was. He didn't give a fuck either.

As a director, he knew that the industry was never a good place anyway. In fact, he believed that Hollywood itself was a giant cult.

Anyway, Kazir put on his suit and got ready for the limousine. He tried to call Angelina, but she didn't answer.

Kazir sighed, he had expected this. He knew his heart was not ready and he was afraid of getting hurt. So before things got serious, he decided to give it some thought.

He wanted to talk to Angelina, but the woman never answered...

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 293


The Hangover Part 3 was one of the most anticipated films of the year. Along with The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Star Wars Episode 2: Attack of the Clones and John Carter.

So far only Star Wars Episode 2 and John Carter have been released.

Star Wars Episode 2: Attack of the Clones did very well at the box office. As of June 6, the film has already grossed more than $241 million. It is currently the highest grossing film released this year.

As for John Carter, well, it was terrible. The film only made $68 million at the box office. Also, the film may be pulled from theatres a month after its release because ticket sales for the film were so minuscule. The film was only released for 40 days and only 300 theatres were left.

A bad move, that was what Walt Disney did this year. The executives and shareholders blamed Michael Eisner, of course. Even though they had all agreed to the project in the first place. Well, they had to blame someone, and Chairman Eisner was the best scapegoat.

While Walt Disney was busy trying to put a band-aid on the huge wound they have at the moment, Warner Brothers started the premiere of one of their biggest investments this year.

Their huge investments this year were Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets and The Hangover Part 3. They advertised the films almost everywhere, just like Walt Disney did.

However, Warner Brothers' confidence in their films was better than Walt Disney's. And frankly, the quality of the films that Warner Brothers produced was far better than Walt Disney's at that time.

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets was based on a novel, while The Hangover Part 3 was written by award-winning screenwriter Kazir Grey.

Yes, Kazir won the Academy's best screenplay award for Taken. He was an award-winning screenwriter.

So Warner Brothers knew that The Hangover Part 3 wouldn't get the same treatment as John Carter.

They were 80% sure.

Kazir fiddled with his Nokia phone, waiting for Angelina's response, but the woman never really answered. They were in a cold war and Kazir knew the relationship might be over.

The problem started when Angelina made Kirsten cry. After that, Kazir unconsciously distanced himself from Angelina. This situation continued until Kazir left for Canada. After that they stopped talking.

'... No time to think about it.'

Kazir thought as he realised that the limousine had stopped in front of the Westwood Village Theatre. The theatre where The Hangover Part 3 would have its premiere.

Kazir smiled as he got out of the limousine. With cameos in all the CCU movies, Kazir was already recognised as an "actor". People knew and recognised him.

So when he appeared on the red carpet, people immediately started shouting and cheering his name. There were even some female fans screaming his name like fanatics. Well, Kazir was a good-looking guy, so it was obvious why.

Kazir spent only a few minutes on the red carpet before entering the theatre. He didn't bother to talk to the reporter because he wasn't in a good mood. The fact that he could smile right now was amazing. Perhaps being an actor could suit him, if not for his love of filming and creating movies.

When he entered the theatre, he saw the actors, some sitting, some talking to people. These actors changed their future because of this franchise. Now most of them had promising careers and got annual projects with a salary of at least $1 million.

Of all of them, Reese had the best career at the time. Legally Blonde made her a superstar, earning more than $5 million per film.

The fact that The Hangover and The Hangover Part 2 are in the top 10 highest-grossing R-rated films of all time speaks volumes.

The Hangover Part 2 took the top spot with $586 million.

Second was Gladiator (2000) with $503 million.

Third was The Hangover with $502 million.

Fourth was Saving Private Ryan with $486 million.

Fifth, with a slightly lower gross, was The Matrix with $465.37 million.

Around 1996, The Hangover was the highest-grossing R-rated film, but a few years later new films were released. Now The Hangover was only third.

Still, The Hangover Part 2 was at the top... Although Kazir knew that once The Matrix Reloaded was released, a new film would be crowned as the highest grossing R-rated film of all time.

The Matrix Reloaded would be released the following year, so The Hangover Part 2's reign would not last much longer.

The cast of The Hangover Part 3 saw Kazir entering the cinema and some of them greeted him.

It was a fact that Kazir had given them careers. They were no longer unknown actors, they were real celebrities.

Kazir greeted them. They were happy to see him again after so many years. Kazir was not the party type and rarely went out so people didn't see him much.

"Enzo, looks like you're doing well too."

"Haha, just fine."

Enzo Park and Kazir were both clients of Salvatore. But their status was different.

Although Enzo became famous as Raizo in CCU, he still didn't get a leading role in any movie. All his roles have been supporting character.

"Don't worry, your moment will come. When I started out as a director, I didn't have much success either. Just work hard and you'll achieve your dream."

... Knowing that Kazir had returned from the future, he was basically lying. Hard work was not enough to succeed.

Nevertheless, Enzo accepted his advice. It was not wrong anyway. Actually, he was hoping to hear from Kazir that the film he had promised was going to happen. The film was about Raizo as the male lead and it was about him being a ninja.

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 294


Ninja Assassin was a film that Kazir wanted to add to the CCU. The Cinematic Universe already had a tiny bit of the supernatural in it since The Fraternity was added, and adding another group of assassins who could 'merge' in the dark seemed not too bad.

Enzo Park had heard a few things about the plot of the film, but he was still clueless about the whole story. Still, he was excited.

Kazir promised him that he would make the film directly. He would be the director. That alone was a strong assurance. It meant that the film had very little chance of failing.

Enzo tried his best to audition for many films, but the racism in Hollywood was still strong. His appearance was the reason why he couldn't get a big role, most of them were supporting roles.

He even auditioned for The Matrix in 1998, but Keanu Reeves got the part because he was more famous. Actually, Keanu is of Asian descent, but his looks passed the American aesthetic. Enzo also tried to get a part in Rush Hour, but the result was the same. Jackie Chan was more famous.

In a way, Enzo was still hanging out there. Trying to find his place in this industry... Maybe he would concentrate more on comedy if he failed.

The Korean actor stared at Kazir, waiting for an answer.

Kazir was no fool and understood the man. He patted him on the shoulder and said.

"Don't worry, as much as possible, I always keep my promises and make sure I never break them."

Hearing his answer, Enzo sighed and felt like he could breathe easy now. Even though Kazir hadn't said when, he had already said that he would do his best to keep his promise.

Enzo could not ask for more, knowing that the director was busy. Enzo thanked him once more before he left.

The rest of the cast of The Hangover Part 3 greeted Kazir. They may be famous, but Kazir Grey was a true superstar. Or rather, he was a superstar maker.

Kazir was the only director to make two films that grossed over $1 billion. And he did it back to back in two years.

He was amazing and probably nobody could do what he did. Ed Helms, Jack Black and Bradley Cooper greeted him with good evening.

Kazir also saw Reese in the corner of his vision, sitting a few meters away from him. The woman turned to him and smiled, Kazir smiled back and their interaction ended.

They were already over, and that was the right thing to do. Reese already had a boyfriend and it would be scandalous to talk to another man, especially if he was her ex-boyfriend... They weren't officially dating, though. Kazir and Reese didn't publicly announce if they were in relationship.

Kazir found his seat, which was in the front row of the theatre. Next to him was the current Chairman/CEO of Warner Brothers, Barry Mayer.

Terry Semel had already left Warner Brothers for Yahoo. He resigned last month and his tenure ended amicably.

The shuffle of authority and politics within the company continued, but so far Barry Mayer has done well.

On top of that, Time Warner also hired a COO (Chief Operating Officer) to help Barry Mayer execute orders in the studio. His name is Alan Frederick Horn.

By the way, as people expected, Barry Mayer was Jewish. People had another reason to hate this novel, let's go!

Because Barry Mayer and Kazir were of the same race, the President had a good impression of Kazir and was sincere in working with him... The main reason was Kazir's ability to make a blockbuster. A mega-hit film. Something that could bring them profits for decades...

So Warner Brothers wanted to buy Grey Pictures, or at least part of it. At first, Time Warner, the parent company of Warner Brothers, was interested in acquiring AOL, but a whopping $100 billion was too much for them. Besides, it was obvious that AOL was inflated and its real value was 10 times less than $100 billion.

So instead, what about buying a small company with a promising future like Grey Pictures? Warner Brothers could buy all of Grey Pictures for $10 billion... Although they would suffer for a few years. Besides, Kazir would definitely not agree.

If Grey Pictures were sold outright to Warner Brothers, Kazir might leave the company altogether. That would be detrimental, the real value of Grey Pictures was Kazir himself.

"Kazir, I assure you this film is going to be a big hit," Barry said to Kazir, who was sitting next to him.

So far, the acquisition job was still ongoing and J.P. Morgan was researching the real value of Grey Pictures and its divisions. They needed to understand how the company worked and how it would affect both companies.

Warner Brothers had no intention of merging, they wanted Grey Pictures to have autonomy and continue to make profitable films. That was the plan.

The two talked for a while before the theatre went dark as the premiere officially began. The Warner Brothers' logo, which was WB inside an upside-down triangle showed up.

On the 6th of June 2002, at midnight, The Hangover Part 3, started. This would be the last film in the franchise, as The Hangover was only meant to be a trilogy...

However, if the timing was right, perhaps Warner Brothers could revive the franchise after a decade to make another batch of money.

As long as the film was profitable, the Big Six would milk it dry. Just like Walt Disney did with Star Wars...

In the first 24 hours (7th of June) of its release, The Hangover Part 3 made $11.78 million at the box office. Not a bad start for an R-rated comedy.

On 8 June, the film earned another $14.49 million... The numbers just keep piling up.

If there was a downside, it would be the fact that The Hangover Part 3 cost more than $100 million to make. Hiring the cast was that expensive. One of the reasons why Warner Brothers wanted to end the franchise in a trilogy.

+++++

[Author's note: So yeah, here I am again, shamelessly promoting my P@treon. Maybe you hate me because I'm promoting my P@treon, well, I'm technically the breadwinner in the family so I have to make money.]

[I like writing and as it gives me purpose(I'm depressed), and since I can make money while I'm doing that, why not?]

[If you want to read more chapters of HWI, you can subscribe to my P@treon and Ko-fi. Thanks for the support guys, I really appreciate it.]

P@treon link: https://www.patreon.com/Puji_maki

Ko-fi link: https://ko-fi.com/pujimaki

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 295


June 9 arrived and it was Sunday, The Hangover Part 3 made another $14.62 million.

Combined, the first weekend of The Hangover Part 3 grossed $40.91 million.

If this trend continues, perhaps The Hangover Part 3 could recoup its investment in just one more week.

Warner Bros. was confident in this movie after all these years. Especially when the writer was Kazir Grey. You couldn't help but be confident when someone like Kazir wrote a script. Because all the scripts he wrote were successful.

So far this year, three big-budget movies have been released. Star Wars Episode 2, The Hangover Part 3 and of course John Carter.

As far as John Carter is concerned, the movie already ended its run in just 50 days. Cinema Alliance felt that it was useless for John Carter to have 300 theaters. It would be better if those theaters were allocated to other movies that seemed to be profitable, such as Star Wars Episode 2 and the newly released The Hangover Part 3.

After all, John Carter grossed $68 million at the North American box office. To make the situation even crazier, it seemed that Walt Disney was desperate to recoup its investment and was still adamant about an international release.

Michael Eisner found himself in a perilous situation where he could lose his job. The atmosphere at the Walt Disney was bleak and dark.

"Again, who said John Carter would be the start of a cinematic universe?"

Roy Disney gritted his teeth and muttered under his breath. The executives heard him despite his muttering.

"We need to understand and study this failure so it doesn't happen again." Robert "Bob" Iger was the one with the most influence in the company right now.

This guy started going head to head with the two Michaels, and he even kicked Michael Ovits out of his position as CEO.

Now Robert Iger was the CEO.

As for the chairman, Michael kept his expression and acted like this was not his fault.

"The times are changing and we need to innovate," Robert Iger began his plan.

"I say we make a live-action Snow White."

"..."

Simple, but it seems good. At least. The executives were listening.

"Of course, there's a catch. We're going to make Snow White Hispanic, and the seven dwarfs aren't dwarfs at all, they're just regular people." Robert Iger added.

"You're out of your mind if you think that will work. In the first place, Snow White is named Snow White because of her white, pale skin! What's your second idea? You want to make the Little Mermaid black?" Michael Eisner replied.

"I know, that's why we have to be innovative. By the way, your idea also seems to have merit. We can make a black Little Mermaid."

"The audience isn't stupid, Robert. We're just being racist at this point. They know we are making fun of them. Disney is making fun of them!"

"No, the audience are stupid. People are stupid, and they'll buy tickets just to see our stupid movies. Why is that? Because we are Walt Disney. We can make any kind of movie and we will call it revolutionary, no, woke is a better term. We will make woke movies." He paused to take a breath.

"Remember, the founder of Walt Disney is a racist and Nazi supporter."

"This is outrageous. This is not how Hollywood works!"

Robert was like a delusional man, believing that people were mindless creatures who would follow the will of the media.

"When it comes to 3D animation, I say we teach kids how to twerk. Damn, I suddenly want to see She-Hulk twerk."

Yes, Walt Disney is crazy, and they deserve all the backlash they are currently suffering.

"I have an idea," the unnamed executive said, raising his hand slightly to get the attention of the executives.

The man began to speak, and his plan was more pleasing.

"Since we're looking for a cinematic universe, why don't we just acquire Grey Pictures? They're the first in the industry to make one. I'm sure they can keep up a steady stream of movies. We can also hire director Grey to make movies for us."

When he said that, a lot of people nodded their heads and thought it was a great idea.

But one person didn't agree.

"Fuck no! I'd rather rape no-name actresses than agree to that!" A fat guy slammed his fists on the table in anger. His saliva flew around out of rage.

"Harvey, we all know you rape no-name actresses anyway, so your statement is stupid."

"My answer is still no."

Harvey Weinstein kept a low profile after what happened with the Blair Witch Project. He was still the CEO of Miramax, but he usually hid from the media because of the backlash from the Blair Witch Project.

"Let's do this, let's vote on this possible venture." Michael Eisner initiated.

He was also on the side of acquiring Grey Pictures. He hoped that the executives would focus more on the acquisition, rather than finding fault with his administration.

Acquiring shares of a billion dollar company was not that easy, so this vote was just an initial proposal.

A few minutes later, more than 70% of the executives agreed to the acquisition of Grey Pictures. Many of them believe that Grey Pictures could help Walt Disney in terms of its weakness, which was live action movies. After all, Walt Disney was focusing more on animation and children's movies.

After this meeting, the executives had one more thing to do. They have to do their own research regarding Grey Pictures.

.........

......

...

After the premiere of The Hangover Part 3, Kazir returned to Canada to continue filming The Revenant.

He was a little disappointed that he couldn't get in touch with Angelina at that time. He even went to the studio building where How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days was shot. However, the security guards didn't let him in because the scenes of the movie were supposed to be kept secret and unauthorized people weren't allowed inside.

Eventually, Kazir returned to Canada. It took another two months to complete all the shots, Tom Cruise and the cast were on fire because of their great performance. So the filming ended sooner.

+++++

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 296


Harold Witsend scratched his head in confusion after meeting director Grey a few days ago when he visited Canada, where The Revenant was in its final stages of filming.

The Revenant was supposed to be released in November or December, depending on the schedule that 20th Century Fox could provide. Well, 20th Century Fox were currently courting Grey Pictures, so they would probably give them a better schedule.

Anyway, Harold looked at the sketches that Kazir was doing in his spare time... The sketches were amazing, but Harold felt a looming danger as he stared at these papers.

Why? Because they were all sketches of wooden ships! Ships! Pirate ships, to be precise!

Harold and Kazir were close friends, and Harold had seen some of the scripts Kazir had submitted to the Writer's Guild.

One of them was about a pirate film... And it was a terrible idea. That kind of genre was doomed to fail in the first place.

There was a reason for that. The last pirate film was released in 1995 and it was terrible. The title of the film was Cutthroat Island. A film that cost $98 million to make, a huge investment. It was the last film that Carolco Pictures distributed before they went bankrupt.

In fact, Cutthroat Island was the reason why Carolco Pictures disappeared from Hollywood.

The film was a disaster and since then no one in Hollywood has touched a live action pirate film.

The investment in Cutthroat Island was $98 million, but the box office was a meagre $10 million! To say it was a disaster was not enough. It destroyed a once mighty Hollywood studio.

Carolco Pictures was a famous studio in the 80s and early 90s. It produced the Rambo franchise, Total Recall, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Basic Instinct, Universal Soldier, Cliffhanger and Stargate.

Eventually, Carolco Pictures' library of films was acquired by Paramount Pictures.

So it was obvious why Harold was afraid of Kazir's idea. He hadn't read the script yet, but he was already against it. He thought it would be better to make films in safe genres like comedy and action. These were Kazir's strengths. Kazir could probably make a profit if he made comedy or action.

However, Harold also felt that if there was anyone who could make a successful pirate film, it would definitely be Kazir.

As Harold was only an employee and his salary was quite high, he decided to trust his friend. He watched as Kazir slowly made a name for himself.

Besides, one mistake is not enough for Kazir to lose face in Hollywood. That mistake can also humble him.

Kazir gave him just one job: to find a company that makes wooden ships. The pirate ships had to work and float in the water/ocean.

The sketches and designs were just the basic image, but they could be changed for future reference. Harold didn't know why Kazir insisted on starting this project.

As he thought about it, Harold felt his phone vibrate. When he opened it, he frowned and decided to reject the call. The person who kept calling him was very insistent and Harold was beginning to lose his patience.

'I've already given them projects to keep them busy, what do they want now?'

A few seconds later the phone vibrated again and Harold sighed. His position in the industry was quite high and some studios wanted to hire him, but Harold stayed with Grey Pictures.

After some thought he decided to answer the call. He controlled his emotions and tried his best to be calm.

"What do you want?"

.........

......

...

"I'm so happy to be working with someone as talented as you."

"No, I'm sure it's not that great. I also heard that you'll be working with Steven Spielberg for the second time. I think that's an honour. It means that director Spielberg likes your acting".

Tom Cruise's side made an agreement with DreamWorks that the actor would star in two of their films. The first film was Minority Report, based on a novel. The film was released on 21 June, two weeks ago. So far, Minority Report has grossed $84 million at the box office.

The second film was War of the Worlds. A film based on a science fiction novel written by H.G. Wells between 1895 and 1897. A century-old novel.

"No, Kazir, let's not joke around. You're a better director than Steven at the box office."

Kazir just shrugged. That may be true, but Steven Spielberg's storytelling and his talent for creating heartfelt films were far better than Kazir's.

The filming of The Revenant came to an end and it was time to part ways. Of course, Tom Cruise would still visit the editing suite to do his dubbing.

"Good luck with Minority Report."

"Are you sure you don't want to come back to Los Angeles with me? We can drink in the private plane while we wait for it to land."

"That's fine, I'll go with the crew."

Kazir knew that Tom and his current girlfriend, Penelope Cruz, were going back to Los Angeles and he didn't want to disturb them. He didn't want to be the third wheel, it would be stressful.

Tom Cruise said goodbye. He admitted that working on the set was quite good. He didn't feel any stress while working on this project. He immersed himself in the role and he could say that his mentality as an actor was good while in set.

"Um, director."

"Oh Shia, how are you?"

"Thank you for casting me in this film. This is my card and my agent's card, I hope I get a chance to work with you again."

The young Shia Labeouf was awkward and shy. He left immediately after giving his contact details.

+++++

[Speaking of Pirates Of The Caribbean, ahem... Anyway, I just want to be clear, I've written this chapter months ago so I don't remember much of it. You can check out my P@treon if you're interested.]

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 297


There were only a few actors in this film, and Kazir didn't spend much on their salaries. If there was one good thing, it was that they were all good at acting, despite their low salaries.

'Tom Hardy was good, but Joaquin Phoenix was great.' Kazir admits that the future Joker has what it takes to win an Oscar. Maybe he could be nominated for Best Supporting Actor in this film, it depends on the situation.

With that, The Revenant wrapped and the crew returned to Los Angeles.

Kazir had three films to attend before the summer was over... The films were The Bourne Supremacy, Meet The Fockers and Mr And Mrs Smith.

These three films were all connected to Kazir and it was his duty to attend the premieres to support them.

.........

......

...

The 4th of July was Independence Day and it was a holiday so people had free time to rest and relax. Some people decided to spend their holiday indoors, while others decided to attend the premiere of The Bourne Supremacy, the second film in the Jason Bourne franchise.

Kazir passed the baton to Paul Greengrass and became executive producer instead... Although he was not that present in filming set most of the time. Kazir was also busy with his other things. Kazir also avoided Cameron Diaz.

But now that the premiere had arrived, Kazir had no choice but to attend the premiere. The red carpet was supposed to focus on the cast, not on someone like him who was just a guest, so he didn't spend much time on the red carpet.

The usual procedure on the red carpet was always the same and Kazir was used to it.

Exit the limousine.

Step onto the red carpet.

Smile at the people.

Wave to the fans.

If he had a partner, they would be close. (Which he didn't, as he attended the premiere alone, as his relationship with Angelina was rather rocky).

Pose for the cameras, making sure he looks presentable.

The reporter will ask him a few questions.

Then Kazir would enter the theatre and wait for the screening.

There was nothing new, so Kazir didn't make any mistakes on the red carpet.

He entered the theatre with confidence. He was actually grateful that the reporter didn't ask him about Angelina, because Kazir didn't know the answer either.

He looked around, the lights were still on so he could see quite well.

"Hey, Kazir. It's nice to meet you tonight!"

Matt Damon saw him and greeted him with a smile. The two shook hands and Matt Damon assured him of something.

"Don't worry, I heard Cameron Diaz won't be here tonight."

Apparently, the woman was filming a perfume commercial.

"Huh? Where did you get the impression that I was avoiding Cam?"

"But I thought you didn't like her." Matt tilted his head.

"It's not that I don't like her. I just want to stay out of trouble. That's the best thing to do."

Kazir was afraid that Cameron had weak self-control and that she might do something wrong in public. He didn't hate her, he just wanted to be free of any stress.

"That's good then." Matt Damon looked around and realised that Kazir was at the premiere alone.

It seemed that Kazir and Angelina were over.

Kazir saw Paul Greengrass. The man was in his 40s and this was his first big film. He was sweating and nervous as he greeted Kazir.

They were both directors, but Kazir was his boss. He was also grateful that Kazir had given him the chance to direct The Bourne Supremacy. A nobody like him.

He did his best for the film. He did his best to convince Matt Damon and win his trust. He made an experimental short film just to show Matt that he was capable of making an action movie.

Fortunately, after months of negotiations, Matt Damon agreed.

Kazir was famously picky and never made a sequel. He always hired another director to make the sequel to his films. Only Spider-Man 2, which was in preparation, was the only sequel Kazir wanted to make.

Then Kazir saw an old man walking with a cane, with his son beside him. He was walking towards him. Kazir didn't let the old walk more and instead approached the old man and his son.

"Robert, you're doing well."

"Don't joke, I know... My health is falling." Robert Ludlum sighed. He was actually sick right now, but he was doing his best to attend the premiere of The Bourne Supremacy.

Jason Bourne was his creation and he wanted to see him in person.

Robert Ludlum was already 75 years old and he knew his time was coming. Money was no longer an issue. He just wanted to watch the movie in the cinema before he died.

Kazir smiled at the old man and talked to him, doing his best to make sure the old man was happy with the premiere.

"I was actually bitter when I found out you weren't going to direct The Bourne Supremacy, but oh well, I can let bygones be bygones. Just make sure Jason Bourne finds a home in the universe you're creating. "

"I will, I promise you, Robert."

After a few conversations and meeting some people and actors, the premiere of The Bourne Supremacy took place. The story continued after Jason Bourne helped to destroy The Fraternity.

This time his enemies were the remaining members of Treadstone and the CIA itself. Jason Bourne was a dangerous variable they didn't want to let go. They had to kill him before he revealed secrets that could endanger the CIA.

Jason and Marie tried their best to evade them, but sometimes life was hard. Marie died, shot by a sniper, and their car crashed into a river.

Jason tried to save Marie, but it was too late... He had no choice but to leave the woman he loved deep in the river.

Marie was the only thing that brought joy to his life, and now she was gone. He escaped and survived, but his heart didn't.

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 298


The audience applauded after the post-credits scene ended. The movie was good, judging by the audience's reaction.

Kazir smiled and admitted that Paul Greengrass had a great filmography. The way he does steady action scenes with a camera stabilizer was worth hiring.

The lights came back on in the theaters and the audience stayed in the theaters to listen to the question and answer session.

Kazir saw Robert Ludlum standing next to him, a bit away from the stage. He was a little confused because Robert seemed to be too sick to stay in the theater for long, yet he seemed to want to see the interview through to the end.

"Do you want to take a picture with the cast?" Kazir asked. You know, a selfie with celebrities was quite a flex.

"All right, I'll stay for a while."

The old man nodded.

The interview ended after half an hour and the cast had a photo shoot on stage. Some actors were missing because they were busy and couldn't make it to the premiere.

Kazir and Robert were in the front, next to Matt Damon and Paul Greengrass. Well, Kazir was part of the cast as he had a cameo in the movie.

From the pictures it looked like they were close friends.

Just like that, the midnight premiere of The Bourne Supremacy happened.

24 hours later, the results from each theater were tallied and collected. The first day box office for The Bourne Supremacy was $27.64 million.

Grey Pictures and 20th Century Fox were pleased with the results and continued to promote the film.

Grey Pictures had enough budget to promote the film on Jimmy Kimmel Live! A night-time Talk Show.

The program started with Cameron Diaz showing up and the two started talking about the movie and how it was working on the set of The Bourne Supremacy. Cameron Diaz was not at the premiere but she had a contract to promote the movie and that was part of the job.

After her was the new Hollywood director, Paul Greengrass. The director was quite modest and answered most of the questions with technicalities related to filming and stuff.

Last but not least was Matt Damon.

Matt Damon and Jimmy Kimmel shook hands and sat down.

"Matt, so how's it going? We really reserved a time slot for you this time."

"Oh yeah, I have been waiting for this moment for years, because clearly you never want me here."

The audience laughed at their banter. A few minutes into the conversation, a siren alarm echoes across the set and catches Matt's attention.

"Huh? What's that sound? What's happening?"

"Well, I'm sorry Matt, we've run out of time. It's time to end the show." Jimmy confirmed.

"What? I just got here. You can't just do that." Matt pretended to be angry and the audience laughed again.

"Come back next time."

"Come back, come back what? I've been waiting for this moment for two years and you're just going to leave it like that. You know what, go fuck yourself."

And with that, Jimmy Kimmel Live! ended. As the credits rolled, Matt Damon in the background was choking Jimmy Kimmel out of his seat...

The longest running joke on television was sailing. This episode was very funny and the people who watched it live on TV were more than 15 million people.

Because of this promotion, the next day (Saturday, July 6th) the box office for The Bourne Supremacy was $25.50 million.

On Sunday, The Bourne Supremacy added another $19.46 million in ticket sales. Combining the three days, The Bourne Supremacy's first weekend gross was $72.61 million.

The movie clearly did well.

But on Monday, while Kazir was busy editing The Revenant, he got a call from Robert Ludlum's son.

"... My condolences. I'm sure Robert was happy to see The Bourne Supremacy before he died."

Robert Ludlum died peacefully in his bed. He had a satisfied smile on his face when his family saw him.

The call ended shortly thereafter. Kazir knew it was unethical, but he knew both studios would take advantage of the situation.

Just as he expected, Stella Willow worked with 20th Century Fox to announce Robert's death and add it to the promotion of The Bourne Supremacy.

Suddenly, pictures of Robert and the cast appeared on the Internet and in newspapers. How the old man lived his life and his legacy.

Matt Damon was also interviewed and he was also sad about Robert's death. With tears in his eyes he told how great a person Robert was. People began to learn about the old man's life and his contribution to the Jason Bourne series.

Even though it was Monday, theaters were flooded with people wanting to see The Bourne Supremacy.

$8 million on Monday.

$9 million on Tuesday.

$6 million on Wednesday.

$5 million on Thursday.

$10 million on Friday.

$14 million on Saturday.

$11 million on Sunday.

Another week passed at the North American box office and The Bourne Supremacy grossed up to $139 million. And that was just ten days after its release.

The news of Robert Ludlum's death was a major factor in the film easily surpassing $100 million.

Kazir took a day off to attend Robert's funeral. He was not that close to the old man, but their time together was fun.

In a way, Robert achieved something that Kazir did not... To live a fulfilled life. To die with a smile on his face.

Kazir died because a truck hit him and he remembered how scared he was. He regretted many things and he knew he could never fix them.

In fact, despite returning to the past and completely changing his life, Kazir was still skeptical if this current life was just a dream. Nothing but a fake. A fantasy created by his brain before he died.

'But I can't deny that everything I experienced was real. If this is a dream, then it's very realistic. I don't know if my brain can even do that.'

He sadly stared at the new grave and placed the flowers. He would make sure that Jason Bourne would find a home in the Continental Cinematic Universe. He would see to it that the CCU remained relevant for the sake of Robert Ludlum's legacy.

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 299


Robert's funeral was extravagant with many famous people in attendance. Kazir, the crew, and the cast of The Bourne Supremacy attended the funeral.

Kazir saw a few people he recognized. He also saw Cameron Diaz at the funeral, but she didn't approach him. She knew it was not the right time to talk to Kazir.

Cameron Diaz was part of the cast of The Bourne Identity and Bourne Supremacy, the first and second installments of the Jason Bourne franchise. She knew that Kazir and Robert were friends, despite the huge age difference.

Besides, Cameron had already accepted the fact that Kazir was over her. The man saw their relationship as nothing more than business. They both got their deals and it was a win-win situation.

After that, she left quietly. On her way out, Cameron saw someone she didn't expect to see. A famous actress was wearing a black dress as she approached the newly planted grave.

Kazir also saw the woman.

The woman placed red roses and then walked in Kazir's direction.

"Angelina..."

"Kazir, can we talk?" Angelina was wearing sunglasses so Kazir could not see her emotions.

"I understand."

The two decided to leave the funeral and went to a cafe, they were both wearing black which attracted some attention. Fortunately, the cafe had a few customers.

"I tried to visit the set of How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days just to meet you." Kazir started the conversation.

"Yeah, I heard about that... I was there. I told the director that I didn't feel comfortable meeting you, so they didn't let you in the studio. Director Donald really wants to meet you, but he respects my decision."

"I understand." Kazir nodded.

As a professional director working in this industry for more than a decade, he knew that the mentality of the cast was important.

Director Donald prioritized the mentality of the cast to make sure there would be no mishaps.

"I didn't want to see you for a long time because I'm not sure about myself and my feelings. My feelings for you."

"..."

Kazir felt that the answer to the questions he kept asking himself would come today.

"I tried to avoid you, I know I'm quite childish. And I also know I'm arrogant. Maybe I didn't take this relationship very seriously, I thought you were just someone I would forget as soon as I was done with you. I thought I didn't love you." Angelina began to sniff, her nose red and congested as she sobbed.

"But when I heard that Robert Ludlum, a friend of yours, had died, my heart suddenly tightened and I felt like I couldn't breathe. I started thinking about you and how sad you will be. My heart can't take it." She cried and Kazir felt his chest grow warm.

He didn't know why, but he wanted to cry, too.

"I want to be there for you. It hurts me that you are in pain. So I took courage and came to the funeral to meet you and talk to you again."

Kazir hugged Angelina tightly as tears ran down his cheeks, both of them crying.

"I'm sorry that I hurt you. I'm sorry for avoiding you, I'm arrogant and proud, I thought you'd come back to me once you realized I was the best thing that ever happened to you."

"No, Angelina, don't look at it that way. Being with you is the best thing that has ever happened to me. I should be the one to apologize. I let you down."

Kazir was not lying. The woman was indeed one of the best things that had happened to him. His whole life had been lonely, but Angelina gave him warmth.

Maturity.

Admitting your mistakes and doing your best to fix them was a sign of maturity.

"I'm sorry I bullied Kirsten."

Honestly, Angelina was like a crybaby right now. Her snot even landed on Kazir's suit, but that didn't bother Kazir at all. He just wanted to keep hugging her.

"You can bully whoever you want, I will always be there for you. I want you to know that I love you and I don't want to leave you."

"I love you too."

The two looked at each other, their faces streaked with tears and snot. Kazir smiled weakly and kissed Angelina on the cheek.

The sunglasses that Angelina was wearing fell off and Kazir saw what she looked like.

Angelina's eyes were swollen, as if she had been crying all night. Kazir felt bad. He thought he was the only one suffering from their breakup.

No one was perfect and Kazir knew that they both had their faults.

Kazir gently rubbed Angelina's eyelid and murmured, "I miss you. Angelina, I miss you so much."

"I miss you too."

They made eye contact. The chemistry between them grew and they began to kiss. They were almost sucking on each other's tongues.

... As for the other customers, they were stunned by what they were witnessing.

The couple started to cry. Then hugging. Then kissing.

This was a make-up stage! And they were doing it in public.

"Look Mommy, they are kissing! Gross, that's so disgusting!"

Suddenly, a young girl screamed and pointed her finger at the couple.

Angelina and Kazir realized what they were doing and blushed. They looked at each other and giggled, still with tears in their eyes.

So yes, the two found the nearest motel and did the nasty...

Angelina was embarrassed because her eyes were swollen from crying too much, but Kazir reassured her and showed her how beautiful she was right now.

They didn't leave the motel for two days and Kazir and Angelina had to postpone some of their work just to rekindle their relationship.

+++++

[Author's Note: Aight, I want to hear your opinions about this. I'm really curious. Are you disappointed or happy? Do you hate this development or like it? Or maybe you feel nothing at all? Please, comment your thoughts because your comments makes me motivated.]

[Another note: Yes... I just want to say that there's a poll in my P@treon regarding Kazir's possible wife. So far, two actresses had the most votes and there's a possible comeback. It's a privilege I decided to give to my patrons. No matter what the result is, I'll respect it and I'll write it.]

[So I'm blind to Kazir's relationship since I don't hold the decision. Also, since it's a little obvious, I voted for Jennifer Connelly and Kate Beckinsale in the poll because they were my crushes when I was young... If you also have a crush on Jennifer Connelly and Kate Beckinsale, why don't you subscribe to my P@treon and vote? You can also vote on Ko-fi if you can't use P@treon, the votes on Ko-fi will be counted].

P@treon link: https://www.patreon.com/Puji_maki

Ko-fi link: https://ko-fi.com/pujimaki