HOLLYWOOD WHAT IF

[Pujimaki]

Will The Bourne Identity be part of the cinematic universe?

Click to shrink...

Yes.

 

[Pujimaki]

[Shout out to Thirdy D!]

Hollywood What If Chapter 160


"Haa..."

Kazir yawned after yesterday's tiring work. With the remaining money from the company, Kazir started the Bourne Identity project.

Their initial plan for the movie was $50 million, but they could adjust it depending on the situation.

Kazir wanted authentic scenes, so they had to fly to Italy, where Jason Bourne was first found. This increased the budget.

In his opinion, the movie could reach a budget of $60 million if they try to hire Matt Damon.

Matt was already a famous actor and his salary was between 3 and 7 million dollars. Depending on the negotiation.

Kazir Grey was willing to hire Matt Damon just to make sure that the movie would be successful. After all, Matt Damon was the original Jason Bourne.

"Did you sleep well?"

The woman lying next to Kazir whispered as she rubbed his chest. Cameron Diaz smiled and kissed him on the cheek.

"Good morning, Cam."

"Good morning, Kazir."

She giggled and stood up. She invited Kazir to her place for some fun, and she was not disappointed. Last night was very amazing.

"I have to go to training for Charlie's Angels... Thankfully, the training is not that harsh, or else my sore hips might collapse." She said, glaring playfully at Kazir.

"Let's go together." The chuckled.

Both of them were busy. Still, they had to maintain their relationship for the sake of promotion. Even if John Wick was over, they have another project that they might promote together.

Producer Harold Witsend was already contacting Paramount and Cinema Alliance to get the share of the pie.

40% for Cinema Alliance and 25% for Paramount.

In the end, Grey Pictures only received $36.08 million. The production cost of John Wick was $30 million... That means their profit was only $6 million.

The only good news was that the international box office was doing well. Maybe they could make about $20 million.

Then there were the videotapes.

'I remembered that John Wick was doing very well in the DVD and online movie rental market.'

The couple went into the bathroom together and stayed there for about an hour... They were both refreshed when they came out of the bathroom.

.........
.......
...

Grey Pictures planned to release two movies next year. They were The Bourne Identity and Taken 2.

The crew planned to shoot the Bourne Identity around January and then release it on the summer season.

As for Taken 2, they would release it on the September or November schedule.

"Our agenda for today is Liam Neeson."

At the long table the important people of Grey Pictures were talking.

"I've already spoken to Liam's agent, but they haven't responded."

Salvatore Barlowe told his story. Their current problem was Liam Neeson's opinion about these changes. It would be devastating if Liam Neeson cancelled Taken 2. That would affect the Continental Cinematic Universe.

"Um, I may be overstepping my bounds, but can I express my opinion?"

Harold Witsend joined the conversation.

"Harold, you are the producer. You have every right to speak."

"Then... Why don't we move Taken 2 to the year 2000? It will be hard for us to convince Liam Neeson that fast. We need time to convince him and his agent."

When Harold said this, everyone looked at Kazir Grey. He was the one who had pushed the plan to release two movies in one year.

"We can't do that. Otherwise our schedule will be slow."

Anyway, I only publish my novels on Webnovel, ScribbleHub, RoyalRoad and Questionable Questing, where you can read them for free. So if you're reading this on another site, it means this novel is being pirated.

"How about making John Wick: Chapter 2 first?"

"That's impossible, the plot should stay the same. Taken 2 has to be released before John Wick: Chapter 2." Kazir shook his head.

The room was silent for a while. Fremont listened to their conversation. He wanted to say something, but was afraid to open his mouth.

Suddenly Kazir told them something.

"I met Liam Neeson last week. He feels indebted to us after winning the Best Actor award. He said he could agree to our terms, but he had to meet the new director first."

This time everyone in the room looked at Fremont Smith.

"Fremont, you have to convince Liam Neeson. It's part of your job to make this movie a success."

"I understand."

Fremont nodded strongly, although he was nervous. This was his first project and it was a big movie for sure, he couldn't help but be nervous. Still, he wanted to take a chance.

"As for the salary negotiation... I think everyone here understands that Liam Neeson's team will do their best to get more money from us. Keep it within the expected budget."

"Alright, that's my job as a producer."

It seemed that Harold Witsend had already adjusted to his life as a producer.

The second round of auditions for The Bourne Identity had already been completed, and the crew was just filtering for the final audition.

So far, one role had already been filled by Cameron Diaz as Marie Kreutz.

When the meeting was over, Harold and Salvatore stood up to talk to Kazir about the situation with Matt Damon.

"Kazir, Matt Damon has enough training since he just did Saving Private Ryan. I think it will be no problem for him to do action stunts. But he is too skinny. Do you expect a man like him to bulk up in 2 to 3 months?"

Salvatore expressed his thoughts.

"Guys, we both know there's a way to get ripped fast."

Actors in Hollywood might try to hide it, but people were not stupid.

Anabolic steroids... Yes, many action stars use these drugs to enhance their physiques.

Fake Natties. Those hunk actors who had great physiques definitely used "medicine" to maintain their appearance. It was a well-known secret in Hollywood.

"I agree with Salvatore. I think Matt Damon's friend, Ben Affleck, is better suited for the role of Jason Bourne. At least that guy looks tougher."

"It will be fine. We contacted Matt Damon even before John Wick came out, which was four months ago. I think he's trying his best to put on weight within that time. The last time we saw him was four months ago, maybe he will look better when he attends the final audition."

Seeing that Kazir was adamant about his decision, Harold and Salvatore decided to trust him. They hoped that the young, skinny Matt Damon would have more muscles.

"As for his salary, keep it under 7, no, 5 million dollars and make sure he signs sequels and cameos."

"Alright."

+++++

[I found out that Matt Damon's salary for The Bourne Identity was a whopping $10 million and $26 million for the second movie. Of course, the current 1998 Matt Damon is not that super famous yet, and Grey Pictures can probably hire him for a lower salary. But still, now I'm wondering if it's worth it to hire Matt Damon. Should I hire him? And if not, do you know of any actors who fit the criteria of Jason Bourne? In my opinion there is no problem with Matt's acting, and I don't know anybody who can play the role of Jason Bourne except him].

 

[TheCenterAct]

[I found out that Matt Damon's salary for The Bourne Identity was a whopping $10 million and $26 million for the second movie. Of course, the current 1998 Matt Damon is not that super famous yet, and Grey Pictures can probably hire him for a lower salary. But still, now I'm wondering if it's worth it to hire Matt Damon. Should I hire him? And if not, do you know of any actors who fit the criteria of Jason Bourne? In my opinion there is no problem with Matt's acting, and I don't know anybody who can play the role of Jason Bourne except him].

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Yo, this shit is funny to read. You're 150+ chaps ahead already. Why copy this kinda AN lol?

 

[ArsMagna1337]

"Guys, we both know there's a way to get ripped fast."

Click to shrink...

Ah yes, the Otherworldly Path of GAINS.

Anyway, I only publish my novels on Webnovel, ScribbleHub, RoyalRoad and Questionable Questing, where you can read them for free. So if you're reading this on another site, it means this novel is being pirated.

Click to shrink...

It is incredibly jarring to see this here. Maybe you can put this on brackets and make it smol or put this on the start as a disclaimer...

 

[Pujimaki]

Yo, this shit is funny to read. You're 150+ chaps ahead already. Why copy this kinda AN lol?

Click to shrink...

Just want to hear someone's opinion. Although the outcome is obvious anyway, haha.

 

[Pujimaki]

Ah yes, the Otherworldly Path of GAINS.


It is incredibly jarring to see this here. Maybe you can put this on brackets and make it smol or put this on the start as a disclaimer...

Click to shrink...

This might be the last time I'll do this. I already accepted the fact that this novel got pirated in Qidian.

 

[JustAnotherFan217]

Anyway, I only publish my novels on Webnovel, ScribbleHub, RoyalRoad and Questionable Questing, where you can read them for free. So if you're reading this on another site, it means this novel is being pirated.

Click to shrink...

I understand author, but if I may be so bold, put this in an authors note at the beginning or end (or both.) Putting it in the middle of the story is incredibly odd, breaks the flow of the chapter, and generally just distracts from the story.

Hell, I'm here writing this reply, and I never even finished the chapter after this little bit, it broke me from my reading that violently. I'll have to go back and finish it now.

Edit: as much as I'd like to comment on the Matt Damon situation, I agree with the other reader in that there is zero reason for me to reply to that. As much as I enjoy this story, and understand that the author will prioritize his Pat where they get paid, then being 150 chapters ahead makes responding with anything more than the most superficial "good chapter bro!" entirely pointless.

 

[Lillie Jones]

Thanks for the chapter

 

[Midnightson41]

Yes.

Click to shrink...

Interesting however will the Author of The Bourne Novel Series Robert Ludlum allow it? I mean anything after The Bourne Ultimatum is possible but right as the Series is about to take off?

Also hope Kazir knows what he's doing in terms of his Image when he agreed to Date Cameron Diaz as I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one worried about Resse Witherspoon reaction.

 

[Pujimaki]

[Shout out to Tyrelle and L4kritz!]

Hollywood What If Chapter 161


November was a busy month for Kazir Grey. He had a lot on his plate, the Bourne Identity project was ongoing, and even Taken 2 was in the works.

Fremont Smith was busy convincing Liam Neeson and his team. He created storyboards to entice Liam. He promised that his image would be better for the second movie.

Luckily, Liam Neeson had a good relationship with the crew and he talked to Fremont Smith a few times when the first Taken was in filming. Still, the actor was skeptical about Fremont's ability to handle the project. He would be lying if he said he was not angry with Kazir for leaving Taken 2 to shoot The Bourne Identity instead.

In the end, the two sides came to an agreement. Fremont Smith would shoot some action scenes, if he could make a decent short movie, then Liam and his agent would think about it.

After that there would be the tug of war over salary, Harold Witsend had to take the position and make sure that the contract they signed last time would be honored. They could give Liam Neeson a bonus, but that would depend on the performance of Taken 2.

While Fremont and Harold were losing their hair over Taken 2, Kazir Grey attended the premiere of The Hangover Part 2.

At the TCL Chinese Theatre.

Wearing a tuxedo, he waved to the fans who whistled and shouted his name. Apparently he was pretty famous.

Since he was only a guest, he didn't have to steal the limelight and immediately entered the theater.

There he found the cast of The Hangover Part 2. Even Terry Semel, the CEO of Warner Bros, was talking to people.

Kazir looked around until he saw someone he was looking for.

Reese Witherspoon was wearing a dress and looking stunning as always. Kazir Grey hadn't seen Reese in almost half a year after her role in There's Something About Mary.

Reese Witherspoon was talking to someone when she spotted Kazir a few feet away.

The woman smiled nonchalantly and waved her hand in greeting.

Kazir sighed with relief when he realized that Reese was okay.

He approached the woman and tried to tell her his story.

"Reese..."

"Kazir, it's nice to meet you. I know you want to talk to me, how about we talk after the movie?"

Reese kept her sweet smile.

"That would be great."

Kazir agreed.

The two looked at each other and the awkwardness remained. In the end, they didn't know what to say.

Kazir's seat was a bit away from Reese's, so the two went their separate ways.

As usual, a successful director like him would be greeted by many actors. He was used to it anyway, but that didn't mean he liked it.

The Hangover Part 2 began. Kazir wrote the original version, but he knew that Warner Bros would try to "polish" the script. Either by adding some scenes or changing some scenes.

Fortunately, the overall plot of the movie was close to the original. Judging by the reaction of the audience, the movie was entertaining.

The theater was filled with laughter. Even Kazir could not help but laugh. The fact that Mike Tyson reprised his role as himself in the movie made it even better.

After the screening, the cast associated with the movie stayed to be interviewed by reporters and fans.

Reese Witherspoon invited Kazir to dinner and they went to a high-end restaurant with heavy security. No paparazzi could follow them.

The two sat down. Even though they were talking, you could feel the awkwardness between them.

Suddenly, Reese stopped and looked at Kazir, who was cutting a medium-rare steak.

"Kazir, I don't think we should see each other for a while."

Kazir clearly heard what she said. He carefully put down the utensils and stared at the woman.

"Why?"

Reese smiled and continued.

"I know your relationship with Cameron Diaz is fake and it's just to promote John Wick. Still, it would be bad if the media caught us together while you're having a relationship with Cameron Diaz. Your reputation will be tarnished.

"Is it because of me?"

"No. Of course not..."

Reese Witherspoon decided not to tell him all her feelings. She couldn't accept that Kazir had chosen Cameron Diaz over her. They know each other better than Cameron Diaz does.

If there was one thing she didn't like, it was that Kazir was helping Cameron Diaz and increasing her fame.

She remembered that 20th Century Fox tried to ask Kazir if he would be interested in having a relationship with Reese Witherspoon to promote the movie There's Something About Mary. Well, Kazir didn't agree.

Of course, Reese Witherspoon was on Kazir's side at the time. She didn't want a fake relationship and she didn't like that 20th Century Fox was using Kazir Grey to promote their movie.

Still, she could not help being angry. She was a person with feelings.

"Is this what you want?"

"Yes."

She nodded. Her decision was clear.

Kazir looked at his plate and agreed. He knew that he was the reason for this situation. He had no excuse, it would be disrespectful to Reese.

"Okay, I respect your decision."

The two continued their late dinner... But neither of them said a word.

.........
......
...

The first week of The Hangover Part 2 was terrifying. By Sunday, so many movie companies had contacted Grey Pictures to buy any script that Kazir Grey registered in the Writer's Guild.

And why is that? Simple, The Hangover Part 2 grossed a whopping $117.56 million! The movie was only in theaters for four days and it already broke the $100 million mark!

Even Universal Pictures, who had secret bad blood with Kazir Grey, dropped all pretense and contacted Kazir personally!

+++++

[I recently watched this year's League Of Legend Cinematic, which is "Still Here", I feel like I want to play League again... And now I decided to play Wild Rift, I'm going to be stuck in Hell Elo for a while].

 

[Lillie Jones]

thanks for the chapter

 

[TheCenterAct]

Suffering HEllo is based. You gotta get back Reese tho, I strike.

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 162


"You are...?"

"Hello, Director Grey. I'm Camille Green from Universal Pictures."

The woman wearing thick glasses sat down. The office had a good atmosphere, seems clean and tidy, although it was clear that Kazir Grey used the office as his own room. This rumor was basically a fact at this point.

There was another room where he could sleep. A complete set of TV, VHS and sound system in the corner.

'It seems that the rumor is true... Director Grey lives in his own office. I don't how a normal person can do that. Workplace and house are two different things.'

As a career woman, Camille Green took her job seriously, but she never like to sleep in the office. The atmosphere in the company was too stifling for her to fall asleep.

But the man in front of her had the courage to close his eyes in the dreadful place of endless work. Maybe that was the difference between an employee and an employer.

"Universal Pictures is interested in buying a script, no, three scripts from you."

Kazir nodded.

'We are talking about Universal Pictures, one of the Big Six, of course they have ways to get information about my scripts.'

In fact, Universal Pictures was not the first to express an interest in buying his scripts.

But Kazir Grey decided to play the long game. He had the upper hand anyway. And he also didn't like Universal Pictures.

"3 million dollars."

"Excuse me?"

Camille Green tilted her head. She didn't even say which script Universal Pictures wanted to buy.

"$3 million, for each script."

"You've got to be kidding me. Director Grey, that's too much. Is it because of what happened last time?"

"People have changed. I'm more mature now, I don't hate Universal Pictures. But I don't like them either. I hope my feelings towards Universal Pictures will change... You know what I mean, right?"

"I understand. But still..."

Camille probed. 3 million dollars for a script was too much. Unless it was an adaptation of a novel or a comic book, Universal Pictures wasn't going to open their pockets for that amount easily.

An original screenplay is a huge gamble because there is no fan base willing to spend money to see the movie.

Lately, Hollywood has been focusing more on buying the rights to adapt novels and comic books, as this type of genre has a safe profit model.

"Miss Camille. I think you heard that Walt Disney tried to buy Meet The Parents for $3 million."

"That's right, but I heard you sold it to Paramount for half a million."

"I bet you know why I did that."

"..."

'Indeed I do. Because of that transaction, Paramount decided to sign a three-movie distribution deal with Grey Pictures for a 25% share of the box office. In a way, Grey Pictures got more out of that negotiation.'

"I am not petty enough to interfere with Universal Pictures. If they want to buy it, they can buy it. But they can only buy it if the price is right."

"I need to contact my supervisor."

Camille Green was just a producer in production management. Her purchasing limit was $2 million at best, and anything more would require approval from higher-ups.

"I don't have a problem. But you have to be quick, the price goes up by the hour." Kazir smiled.

"Meet The Parents will be released in January. If the movie is a success, the price of my scripts will be more expensive."

"What if it flopped?"

Camille Green asked back.

"Then my price will go down. It depends on Universal Pictures' decision if they want to wait."

Kazir had the advantage. Meet The Parents was a successful movie in his past life, so the chances of it flopping were very small.

'If you want to wait and see the results of Meet The Parents, no problem. But you have to take responsibility for your actions.'

In fact, his opinion of Universal Pictures hasn't changed. He hates the company.

However, Grey Pictures was looking for another distributor because their contract with Paramount was going to expire when The Bourne Identity was released. If Universal Pictures reached out and gave him a good contract, Kazir Grey would be generous and offer them a very low price.

As of now, the Continental Cinematic Universe was more important to him than any other project. If the only way to be in good graces was to sell his non-action scripts cheap, then Kazir Grey would gladly do it.

'First of all, I have no intention of directing these projects. So they are free to buy them.'

"Is there any way to lower the price?" Camille Green crossed her legs.

"Miss, I'm sure you have an idea."

"..."

The two stared at each other before Camille Green stood up.

"I think I really need to talk to my supervisor."

The only way to buy the script cheaply was to sign a distribution deal with Grey Pictures. A deal that would make both parties happy.

"I hope to hear good news."

"Director Grey, first of all. Please reserve Bruce Almighty for Universal Pictures. We are interested in this movie."

"I can't promise anything."

The woman's lips twitched before she left. She was actually wearing a very nice office dress that showed off her cleavage, but Kazir Grey never showed any interest. As expected, he was difficult to talk to.

"Looks like Universal Pictures wants a piece of the cake."

When Camille Green was gone, Kazir Grey leaned back in his chair and sighed. He massaged his forehead, he was getting migraines these days.

"That's why I don't want to be a CEO or anything like that. It's too exhausting. It's not for me, I'm going to die slowly if I keep signing these documents. God, I want to make a movie!"

Maybe he should hire a professional manager. Someone who could take care of Grey Pictures while he was busy making movies.

"Right now, I'm really thinking about selling the company for a billion dollars."

He controlled his urge. At least not until the Continental Cinematic Universe was successful.

 

[TheCenterAct]

Waiting like a salted fish for Mass Releases lol.

 

[Pujimaki]

[Shout out to Julian!]

Hollywood What If Chapter 163


Just as Kazir expected, Universal Pictures went quiet after contacting him. Perhaps they were skeptical about the offer and felt like it was not worth it.

Maybe Universal Pictures was waiting for the results of Meet The Parents in January before making another move.

Or maybe they wanted to sign a distribution deal with Grey Pictures to get the script.

Bruce Almighty was a great movie starring Jim Carrey. If Kazir remembered correctly, the movie had a sequel called Evan Almighty.

'Although I don't remember the box office of the next movie, not that it matters. I'm getting busy and I don't know if I can write the sequel.'

Kazir Grey had a good stretch in the morning and started his day. His office was fully furnished.

Erica Mendez arrived at the office at 8 a.m. on the dot and saw that Kazir was already at work... Her boss was a workaholic freak.

"Erica, have you found a professional manager to take over some of the work?"

"Sir, you just announced it yesterday."

"Haha."

He sipped his bitter coffee, quite disappointed. Grey Pictures was becoming more and more successful, and it was slowly making him exhausted.

.........
......
...

Harold Witsend read the newspaper and nodded. Sometimes Kazir's creativity and imagination amazed him.

He had known Kazir for almost a decade. They met in June 4, in the year of 1989. He never forget that date.

He realized that Kazir was getting better every day. He watched him improve until people started to respect him.

The script of The Hangover Part 2 was not magical. It was very clichéd and simple. But by combining all the best elements, it produced terrific results.

After two weeks, The Hangover Part 2 had grossed $185 million. Everyone already thought that the movie was a success.

So people started congratulating Harold, even though he had nothing to do with the production of The Hangover Part 2. Enrico Pusi was the producer of the movie, not him.

"Kazir is indeed a talented guy."

He knew that Kazir was a hardworking person. Now that his talent was blossoming, Harold expected Kazir's filmography to be amazing in the next five years.

'If there's one thing I'm confused about... I don't know why he's so confident that Matt Damon is going to ask for $7 million. Matt Damon is still a newcomer to the industry. He only has two leading roles. The Rainmaker and Good Will Hunting.'

In a way, Matt Damon was not qualified to ask for $7 million.

Saving Private Ryan and Ocean's 11 have not been released yet, so Matt Damon's salary should be within $4 million at best. Well, it seems that Kazir Grey made a mistake. He is a human being after all.

"Good morning Harold."

"Oh, hello! Wilson!"

Harold realized that the person he had been waiting for had arrived. However, he was confused to see that Agent Wilson Marrera had a companion.

"I'm sorry, but this is...?"

He looked at Wilson and asked.

"I guess you never met him, this is Matt Damon."

"Nice to meet you Harold."

Matt Damon extended his hand for a handshake.

"It's nice to meet you..."

Harold kept his composure, but deep down he was shocked.

'Excuse me? Matt Damon? Nah, dude, you're not Matt Damon. Matt Damon is fucking skinny!'

The man in front of him had gained dozens of pounds. The innocence was gone and he looked mature and strong. Indeed, Matt Damon was serious about playing Jason Bourne!

To be honest, Harold didn't expect Matt Damon to show up. He also didn't expect the big changes.

'This is my second meeting with Wilson and we already have a baseline to discuss.'

"By the way, Harold. Congratulations on The Hangover Part 2! It's a great movie!"

"Thanks."

Harold's lips twitched. This was the fourth time this had happened today.

'Enrico Pusi could strangle me if he found out about this.'

After the introduction, Matt Damon left their table. The presence of the actor would affect the negotiations. Besides, his agent would not settle for less. Agent Wilson will fight for a better salary and better conditions.

After a few conversations here and there, Wilson and Harold began to talk about the most important thing.

"$4 million! I think my client has enough credibility to get that amount."

Agent Wilson dropped the first figure.

But Harold Witsend smiled instead.

'Kazir, you are damn wrong. Who said they were going to ask for $7 million? Four million dollars! They are only asking for a $4 million salary!'

Harold was glad that Kazir was wrong. Still, Harold Witsend won't let things go according to Wilson Merrera's plan.

"Wilson, your client has only had two leading roles in the last few years. He doesn't have strong box office appeal. He is still young, not an experienced actor. Even Good Will Hunting, his best film, didn't win at the Oscars."

"Who's the reason he didn't win?"

'Liam Neeson and Kazir Grey...'

Wilson gritted his teeth and muttered. Matt Damon lost Best Actor and Best Original Screenplay at the last Oscars. Maybe his age was a factor.

"Hehe, let's not talk about that. 2 million dollars! That's the best I can do."

"$3 million!"

"$2.1 million!"

The agent in charge of his client and the producer in charge of the project began to argue.

Both sides had a good impression of each other, but business is business.

Their second meeting ended with $2.8 million as the baseline.

As Harold left the building, he decided to call Kazir.

"Kazir? Yes, that's right. I already talked to him. Anyway, that's not why I wanted to call you. Maybe you need to meet Matt Damon before we decide to cast him. What? No, he just gained weight. Well, if you ask me, I think he looks tougher now."

 

[Lillie Jones]

thanks for the chapter

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 164


Matt Damon had mixed feelings about director Grey. He respected him for his accomplishments despite his young age.

Most of the directors around the industry were in their 30s and 40s. Someone like Kazir, who was 29 years old and had been a successful director for the past few years, was incredible.

'I can't believe he's only a year older than me...'

Matt Damon thought.

As an actor, Matt Damon wanted to work with Kazir. Of course, he could not deny that he was sad and perhaps held a grudge against director Grey.

The best actor award went to Liam Neeson for his role as Bryan Mills in Taken.

Best Original Screenplay was won by Kazir Grey, the director of Taken.

Matt was nominated in both categories but lost. The Oscars were the dream of every actor/actress in the industry. Some people were willing to trade their bodies just to get the golden statue...

Well, that was all in the past and Matt Damon was mature enough to understand that. There was no reason to hold a grudge against a director. Especially when that director expressed his intention to cast him as the protagonist of his action movie.

Action movie!

For a 28-year-old man, of course Matt likes action movies! Besides, this was different from the war movie he had starred in with director Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks.

'Filming Saving Private Ryan is quite tedious because we have to wear dirty uniforms and get our faces dirty. On top of that, I don't like the weather in Ireland, it's not for me. Another factor is the atmosphere in the film crew.'

He heard that Kazir Grey was easy to work with... A lot of actors who worked with Kazir Grey said that, but maybe it was just flattery and publicity.

Overall, his opinion of Kazir Grey was quite positive, except for the Academy Awards.

For this reason, Matt Damon agreed to meet Kazir Grey personally. This meeting was not serious and Kazir won't influence the negotiations between his agent and the producer.

Kazir just wanted to meet Matt Damon.

A few minutes later, Kazir showed up, getting out of a Honda car. They agreed to meet at a cafe to discuss the project.

Matt Damon stood up and greeted Kazir and shook his hand.

"Nice to meet you, Director Grey. Ah, congratulations, John Wick passed $200 million at the box office."

"Thank you." Kazir grinned.

The worldwide box office has already passed $200 million. To be exact, it was $213 million. The movie was still playing in some countries. Maybe Paramount would pay the money next month.

Grey Pictures has already contacted a videotape manufacturer to produce 10 million copies of John Wick for the first batch.

Luckily they have enough money. The money Taken brought in was pretty good and enough for Grey Pictures to relax for at least two years. The budget for The Bourne Identity and Taken 2 was no problem for Grey Pictures.

In addition, Kazir Grey had his personal bank account to invest in the two films if they ran out of money.

He had more than $30 million in his bank account. Maybe he wanted to invest in the stock market again. Microsoft and the other companies were doing well this year.

His least problem right now was money, he had a lot of it. He didn't like to spend extravagantly, he was very cheap with himself. He didn't like to buy things, his hobbies revolve around movies. He would buy old movies from time to time to fill up his library, but even that didn't exceed $1 million.

"Let's talk about your character. I know you have already read the script. I just have a few questions, have you read the novels?"

"Yes, Jason Bourne was supposed to be an old man..."

In the novel, Jason Bourne was in his 50s.

"I decided to change the age. Don't worry, Robert Ludlum agreed with that decision."

Robert Ludlum was the author of Jason Bourne series and Matt knew about it. Never met the guy though.

"I see..."

Matt Damon recalled that the two movies Taken and John Wick had old protagonists, between 40 and 50 years old.

'But it seems that Kazir is trying to do something different...' For a second, Matt Damon was worried about this decision.

'No, to me it's a good thing. If Jason Bourne is 50 years old, then I don't have a chance of getting the role.'

He learned quickly.

"I heard you did some training for Saving Private Ryan."

"Yes, but it focuses more on military training. As for action stunts, I'm still learning."

"That's okay, we have plenty of time."

Kazir was confident because he has fast filming method. He thought it wouldn't be a problem to train Matt Damon and the other actors for three to four months. Also, most of the action stunts would be filmed using stunt doubles.

These stunt doubles are professionals and they can do the job.

'Harold wasn't lying, Matt Damon really put on weight. He didn't look like a teenager anymore. He looks his age, which is 28 years old.' Kazir slightly nodded.

Many actors decided to keep their youthful looks for the sake of their careers. It was difficult for them to get mature roles so they maintained their youthful appearance. The only appropriate roles for them were teenage roles.

But it seemed that Matt Damon was ready to change, which was the best thing to do.

'He's going to be 30 years old and it's time for him to do old, mature, serious roles.'

Putting on weight for The Bourne Identity was the first step in his transformation. Once successful, Matt Damon's career had more paths to choose from.

The two started talking about the movie. Surprisingly, they have a good conversation. Maybe because of their age...

Still, it didn't change the fact that Matt Damon looked younger than Kazir Grey, even though they were only a year apart in age.

'The beard... My beard is the reason...'

Kazir justified the difference, explaining that he was not old.

 

[Lillie Jones]

Thanks for the chapter

 

[Pujimaki]

[Shout out to thunderwalker123, Ok Ko, and garland g. jr!]

Hollywood What If Chapter 165


"Continental Cinematic Universe..."

Matt Damon muttered as he got out of the car. His conversation with Kazir Grey had been interesting and the director had been quite open about his idea.

It would be a lie to say that Matt Damon was not interested. Kazir Grey had a plan to create dozens of movies set in one universe! Moreover, Kazir didn't hide that the protagonists/characters would meet in some of the movies.

Well, Matt Damon signed a non-disclosure agreement with Grey Pictures from the moment he received the script for The Bourne Identity.

But that didn't stop Kazir Grey from telling him a big secret about the cinematic universe. Maybe it was his sincerity.

Suddenly, Matt Damon felt bad for thinking that Kazir Grey was a bad person.

'We are all artists and we want a stage to prove our talent. The Oscars choose the artist who is worthy of the golden statue. Besides, director Grey is more talented than me in terms of writing. All his scripts are box office hits!'

Now Matt was confident about this movie. Moreover, he wanted to be a part of this development that Kazir was planning. He believed that once the Continental Cinematic Universe was a success, it would go down in the history of cinema.

Perhaps the Big Six would follow suit and try this difficult yet novel idea.

"Matt, how's it going?"

Ben Affleck greeted his friend. Standing next to him was Matt Damon's agent, Wilson Merrera.

The two of them knew that Matt Damon was going to meet Kazir Grey to discuss the Bourne Identity project. Being close to Matt, they wanted to see his reaction after talking to Kazir Grey for the first time.

After all, Wilson Merrera and Ben Affleck were affected by the loss they suffered at the Oscars. So they were interested in this director named Kazir Grey.

"He's a nice person. Respectable..."

"Eh?"

Ben Affleck and Agent Wilson didn't expect Matt Damon to change his mind about the director after just one meeting.

"Is that so? Are you interested in working with him?" Agent Wilson saw the underlying intent.

"That's right. Wilson, I want the role. Please do your best."

"Don't worry, I will never put you at a disadvantage. We will get a better deal from them."

"No," Matt Damon shook his head. "What I mean is... I want to be part of the Cinematic Universe that Director Grey is creating. Sign a contract with lots of sequels."

Well, Matt Damon is a great actor, but he is best known as Jason Bourne. In fact, some people call him Jason Bourne instead of his real name...

"What?"

Agent Wilson was stunned. Signing such a contract would be detrimental to Matt Damon! You won't have a chance to negotiate the salary if that happens.

"Of course, leave the salary negotiation for later and don't put it in the contract. It's enough that we can sign a contract with many sequels of them. No, at least a trilogy."

He believed that Kazir Grey wasn't planning to make a trilogy for Jason Bourne, but more than that. At least four movies, Kazir Grey would make at least four Jason Bourne movies.

He felt that Kazir Grey wanted to use this character a lot to create the world-building of the Continental Cinematic Universe.

He didn't know that every Jason Bourne had a good box office, so that was why Kazir Grey wanted to make a lot of movies about the character. Added to that was the profit he could make from the videotape market.

.........
......
...

A week later, in the last month of November, Matt Damon signed a trilogy contract with Grey Pictures. Unfortunately for them, Harold Witsend was quite good at his job. In each sequel, Matt Damon's salary would increase by 65%. He also didn't have the power to negotiate his share of the box office.

After all, Matt Damon was not that famous yet. He was different from Liam Neeson, who was a veteran and had won a Best Actor award. His position in the industry was not strong.

Even his salary for The Bourne Identity was only 1.9 million dollars. That was within their expectations, so they didn't have a problem.

However, if the trilogy ended and Kazir Grey intended to make another sequel of Jason Bourne, of course Matt Damon and his side would fight for a better condition.

As for the cameo appearance, this side was still in negotiations.

For the first time Kazir Grey realized how eloquent Harold Witsend was. The fact that he had reduced the salary from $7 million to $1.9 million was amazing...

He didn't know that the starting salary Agent Wilson had negotiated was only $4 million. Less than he expected.

Well, more good news for Grey Pictures and the Bourne Identity project.

Now two amazing actors were part of the movie. One was Cameron Diaz and the other was Matt Damon.

While the problem with the protagonist was over, Kazir's hectic life intensified.

The success of The Hangover Part 2 affected him very much. The box office of The Hangover Part 2 was $239.89 million after 30 days. On top of that, the movie was to be released internationally. The cast of The Hangover Part 2 flew around the world to promote the movie.

Even Enzo Park was with them since his role in the movie was bigger this time.

However, that was not the problem. A news suddenly broke out and left Grey Pictures unexpectedly in the middle of the road. They were caught off guard by this.

Paramount announced that they would distribute Taken 2 instead of The Bourne Identity. Apparently, Paramount had more faith in Kazir's original film than in the novel adaptation of The Bourne Identity. So yeah, The Bourne Identity currently had no distributor.

Because of this, Kazir Grey had headaches. Migraines were killing him and he could not sleep even though he was exhausted.

++++

[I'll be honest, I never saw The Bourne Identity. I only saw The Bourne Ultimatum.]

[Edit: I've seen it and it's nice. Not that great, but not bad either].

 

[TheCenterAct]

[I'll be honest, I never saw The Bourne Identity. I only saw The Bourne Ultimatum.]

[Edit: I've seen it and it's nice. Not that great, but not bad either].

Click to shrink...

I've seen it once, a long time ago. And the impression was the same, nice, but no different from other action movies. Maybe here in your universe it'll be remembered as more, as part of the CCU. Who knows, the many chapters certainly do.

 

[Lillie Jones]

Thanks for the chapter

 

[JustAnotherFan217]

I agree, the problem with Bourne Identity is that it is a thriller novel more than any true action novel. Compared to other thrillers of the time (including the Departed with Matt Damon in a starring role) it just doesn't stack up. The movie adaptation tried too hard to stick to the realistic spy movie motif, instead of going the American James Bond route, so it just didn't have the appeal it could have.

Wonder what Kazir did to spice it up?

 

[Pujimaki]

[Shout out to Marcelo M!]

Hollywood What If Chapter 166


"Hi, I'm Chris Cooper. I'm here to audition for..."

Kazir was too out of this world to listen to the actor. He massaged his forehead because he was having some problems these days.

In the end, Renner Hector and Harold Witsend took over the audition and gave Kazir some peace to relax.

This was the last round of auditions and most of the cast was already filled. Their main priority was only Matt Damon and his role as Jason Bourne. Other than that, Kazir Grey let the other people choose the cast. That was the privilege they could get from him.

Of course, the actor they chose had to know how to act. Kazir knew that some of the crew used a certain kind of 'transaction' to cast some actors/actresses in small roles. As long as it didn't affect the filming, Kazir turned a blind eye to such things.

This was the norm in Hollywood and this kind of practices was impossible to stop.

"Sir, here's the Monster Energy Drink you asked for."

"Thank you, Erica..."

Maybe it was unhealthy to drink an energy drink in his condition, but Kazir didn't have time to worry for that.

Once the auditions were over and the cast was complete, training would begin. Script readings would be held once a week so that the cast could adapt and act well.

Obviously, Kazir Grey was busy. Unfortunately, he could not help but think about the conversation he had with CEO Brad Grey of Paramount.

Paramount Pictures decided to distribute Taken 2 instead of The Bourne Identity. They believe that the performance of Taken 2 would be better than that of The Bourne Identity.

As for the reason... Well, the sequels of a successful movie had a safer profit. In a way, Paramount decided to distribute a safer movie than a movie with an unknown future. So they chose Taken 2 because the money they could get from it was better.

'Even though the director of Taken 2 is Fremont Smith, they still chose it. Without talking to me.'

Of course, Kazir wasn't expecting this. Paramount promised to distribute his three movies. Unfortunately, they could choose which one they wanted to distribute. Maybe Kazir believed that everything would be fine. That there were no more obstacles.

'Hah, I was too confident. Now Paramount has shot me in the back without knowing it.'

In fact, Grey Pictures had already contacted a number of film companies about distributing Taken 2, and their response was positive.

Based on the box office success of Taken, they believe that Taken 2 will not be a disappointment. They were willing to sign a 25% to 30% box office fee to distribute the movie. The reputation of Taken 2 was very good and the profit was obvious.

But if Paramount decided to distribute Taken 2, then Grey Pictures had to find a movie company to distribute The Bourne Identity.

And unlike Taken 2, The Bourne Identity had no clear profit. The movie companies won't be confident in distributing it because they think it will flop. First of all, The Bourne Identity was based on a novel, not written by Kazir Grey. Another factor they have to be aware of.

'If a movie company agrees to distribute The Bourne Identity, the box office fee might be 35% to 45%, which is not good for us.'

This was the reason why Kazir was having trouble these days. No one had confidence in his current movie, a movie based on a novel.

'Hehe, it's ironic that they prefer an original script more than an adaptation of a novel.'

"There is only one thing to do - calm down and forget about this problem for now. I have to focus all my mind on making sure that the movie will be successful. I have to leave this problem to Harold and Salvatore..."

Was he holding a grudge against Paramount? Yes, a little bit. Last month they already had an agreement that Paramount would distribute The Bourne Identity. Unfortunately, they were still trying to close the deal when Paramount decided to back out. The rats got them and they became cowards.

After a few hours of calming down, Kazir decided to return to the audition room. He drank the Monster energy drink in one sitting without hesitation.

When he returned, he realized that most of the cast had already been chosen and the crew would contact them later or tomorrow to announce that they were hired.

The crew decided that pre-production would last 60 days before shooting began. This would include preparation of props, script readings, and training.

The props were not a big problem as their costumes were simple. Even the locations were already planned.

As for the script reading and training, most of the actors were professionals. In addition, Cameron Diaz and Matt Damon had taken training classes a few months ago. Heck, Matt Damon has gained weight and is currently learning boxing. They have enough experience. Still, proper training was needed, even for a month.

Just like that, December came. Kazir's stock portfolio grew again. Now his investment has become 48 million dollars. Of course, Kazir was happy to see his money growing. So he decided to invest another 15 million dollars. He knew that as long as the year 2000 didn't come, he would be safe from the bursting of the dot.com bubble.

-- Hey, Kazir! When are you coming to visit? I know you're busy, but Christmas is coming! You need to take a vacation! Dad is looking for you.

"Aaron, you have to understand. I have a lot of things to do." Kazir muttered.

-- I don't give a damn! Come and see your niece for the first time!

"Aaron--"

-- Hey, I'm your brother."

"... Okay, fine. I'll try to do what I can.

-- Bruh, you're the boss of your company. You can do whatever you want. In the first place, you never like business management. That's why you ran away from the house. Because you want to pursue making movies!

++++++
++++
++

[I want to thank all the readers who continue to support this novel, I love you guys, no homo though. As long as you read my novel, it counts as supporting me.]

[By the way, I didn't know that Matt Damon didn't do the military training for Saving Private Ryan. Unfortunately, I can't edit the chapters because it would cause a big change. I apologize for that. However, thanks to patron Drake for giving me this information].

 

[Lillie Jones]

thanks for the chapter

 

[Pujimaki]

[Shout out to Herylle Ian G, laxus and Cherif D!]

Hollywood What If Chapter 167


"Abubububu!"

Kazir made funny faces in front his baby niece, who kicked her feet in the air and giggled innocently.

The baby was cute and Kazir obviously liked his niece. He was happy to see an innocent baby, untainted by the world.

He felt as if all the stress of the past few days had disappeared as he played with his niece.

"How is Alissa?"

Aaron appeared and checked on them.

"She's cute."

"Of course, she's a baby. What do you expect? A gremlin?"

Aaron handed him a bottle of beer.

"Something like that."

"You bastard..."

Aaron's wife looked at him as he cursed. It would be bad for the baby girl to hear bad words at such a young age.

"Aaron, help me with the turkey."

"Okay, honey~"

Like a bee serving its queen, Aaron got up and went into the kitchen.

"Goo Goo, ga ga."

Kazir looked at his niece lying on her crib. The baby waved her hands at the door. She was smiling, very cute.

"Oh, you want this teddy bear?" Kazir thought.

Kazir held a teddy bear and gave it to the little baby. Allisa bit the toy's ear before throwing it on the floor. The baby waved her hands at the door again.

Kazir giggled at her cuteness.

Kazir smiled at her. He had a chance to be a father, but fate was cruel to him.

Yet now that he was a successful director, Kazir was still afraid to start a family. He knew that he was a busy person and he was not sure if he could make his family happy.

In the first place, the reason why Cassandra cheated on him was because he was always busy.

After all, he was not sure about that part of his life. Well, he was living happily, and having a baby might bring him another source of stress.

He felt that looking at a cute baby and taking care of a baby were two different things.

Suddenly, baby Alissa burped and white saliva flew onto her baby dress.

"Um, guys, I think your baby spit up on her dress."

"Is that so? Kazir, can you help her burp?"

"I don't know how to do that," Kazir replied honestly.

"Sigh, you insignificant guy who only knows how to make movies! You don't even know how to help a baby burp?"

"Yes." Kazir nodded. To be honest, he was afraid to carry the baby.

"Honey, just do it yourself."

Aaron stopped what he was doing after his wife looked at him. He approached the baby and held her in his arms, against his chest. Then he gently patted the baby's back.

A few seconds later, the baby burped, and both her mother and father celebrated because she burped... Even Kazir was happy. In a way, Alissa was like an animal adored by large adult monkeys.

While in her father's arms, Alissa waved her hands at the door for the third time.

Just then, someone knocked on the door. The three adults paused.

Kazir was the least busy, so he got up and opened the door. He found his father standing in the doorway.

"Dad!"

"Kazir!"

The two hugged each other. Then his father put his things down. Most of the things he brought were toys for the little girl. He obviously loves his granddaughter very much.

This Christmas was simple but healthy.

Kazir spent the whole week in New York. He was interested in buying some real estate there, but decided to wait until the dot-com bubble burst.

He was not a heartless man and the employees of Grey Pictures had a holiday just like him. The company was working at a minimum state to keep it going since most of the employees were on vacation.

On New Year's Eve, Kazir decided to talk about his meeting with his mother.

"I see... So your mother really showed up."

Their father grew quiet and sighed. Perhaps he blamed himself for what had happened to his family.

"Dad, it's not your fault," Aaron tried to make things better, but Kazir's father, Victor Grey, shook his head.

"No, it's my fault too. I was busy at the time... Your mother was very depressed when she was pregnant with Kazir. When she was about to give birth, I was at a business meeting overseas, and when I returned, it was already too late. Maybe that was the beginning of the breakdown of our relationship..."

He could not help smiling bitterly. In truth, he wanted to keep his family, but Eliza Cohen thought it was over.

"I'm just trying to give you a better future..."

"..."

His two sons grew quiet. They were under the influence of alcohol and very emotional.

"I don't blame you for hating your mother. But just remember that she is the one who gave birth to you. You should be grateful, just like I'm grateful to have you as my children."

The fireworks began to explode in the sky, signaling the arrival of the New Year.

The three Greys watched the fireworks in the sky, hoping that this year would be a prosperous year for everyone.

Just like that, 1999 arrived.

Kazir returned to Los Angeles to continue the project. The crew had to fly to France to shoot the first part of the film. In fact, Renner Hector and his team were already there, scouting the locations they were going to use. Some of them collected some background shots and sent them to Kazir for him to choose from.

Before leaving for France, Kazir had one more thing to do - watch the premiere of Meet The Parents. The movie will be released in the 3rd week of January.

Not only Paramount, but also other movie companies were interested in this movie. Disney tried to buy this particular film and everyone knew it. The outcome of this film would determine Kazir's future as a screenwriter.

 

[Lillie Jones]

thanks for the chapter

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 168


Kazir entered the theater after walking down the red carpet. He took a deep breath and recalled what happened. He noticed that people started screaming when they saw him. Especially women, they were screaming his name with fever. Like they met their first love.

In addition, the female reporter who was interviewing him was giving him a flirtatious look, a clean signal. The reporter this time was not Abella Boham who had interviewed him last time. Maybe that was the reason.

"I'm kind of glad you shaved your beard."

"Hm?"

Kazir looked to his side and saw Cameron Diaz pouting.

"I just feel like shaving it."

"I know... But it makes other bitches go crazy for you. I didn't like the way that reporter looked at you." She whispered the last sentence. She felt indignant.

"Cam, did you say something?"

"Nothing." She rolled her eyes and gripped his arm.

Since they were in a relationship, they had to show people that they were close.

Of course, Kazir wanted to see the movie because it was based on his script. He was interested in the outcome. Especially when there was a massive change in the cast.

Despite their original plan, Paramount decided to cast Brianna Evans as the female lead of the movie. Salvatore was so pleased that he even invited Kazir out for an expensive bottle of wine.

With Kazir as the screenwriter, Salvatore Barlowe was confident that the movie would be a success. This meant that Brianna's salary would increase after the release of Meet The Parents! Definitely good news for Salvatore.

Kazir was greeted by important people from Paramount.

"I can't believe you look really young!"

Brad Grey laughed and shook Kazir's hand. He was surprised to see that Kazir had shaved his beard. Besides, he looks good! With his looks, he could be a model or an actor.

"Brad, I'm 29 years old. Of course I'm young."

"Haha, I thought you were in your 40s. I'm sorry, you look more mature with a beard."

He nodded and left the couple. He had more people to greet at this premiere. Even the higher ups from Viacom were there and Brad Grey had to suck up to them.

Maybe the reason the Viacom executives were here was because they believed the profitability of this movie would be impressive. Well, no one could tell.

Anyway, Kazir saw Brianna Evans and talked to her for a few minutes. The woman was different from the first time he met her. The woman was alive and vibrant. It was like she was a different person.

Kazir admitted that Brianna was a talented actress, but he felt that the way she did things was dangerous.

'... Should I talk to Salvatore about hiring a psychiatrist?'

He joked. He didn't feel anything bad about the woman anyway.

After the critics and the rest of the audience sat down, the movie started.

Meet The Parents is a comedy in which a man named Gaylord "Greg" Focker (Ben Stiller) plans to propose to his girlfriend Pam Byrnes (Brianna Evans). However, things go hilariously wrong when he meets her overprotective and intimidating father, Jack Byrnes (Robert De Niro).

Greg attempts to impress Jack and gain his approval leading to a series of hilarious and embarrassing situations, misunderstandings and mishaps that put their relationship to the test.

Paramount did the right thing by hiring Ben Stiller and Robert De Niro. They were the original cast of the movie, which made it authentic in Kazir's eyes.

As for how much they paid to cast them, Kazir Grey has no idea.

'The budget for Meet The Parents is $55 million. So I don't think they went overboard. Still, $55 million is a mid-range movie budget.'

Still, their investment was nothing compared to James Cameron's Titanic, which cost more than $200 million! By comparison, Meet The Parents was very mild.

After laughing and seeing a happy ending, the audience was satisfied with the movie and clapped their hands when the credits rolled.

The cast and director of the movie have to stay to be interviewed later for publicity.

This was standard procedure for movies, and the contract the cast signed included this. Paramount cared about this movie, so they would do their best to promote it.

Kazir didn't bother to stay and left the theater afterwards. He spent the night with Cameron, naked.

.........
......
...

Three days after the premiere of Meet The Parents, the box office of the movie was already $28.62 million.

Based on that, they concluded that Meet The Parents wouldn't do badly. No, it would be a great run.

Unfortunately, the movie didn't win this week's box office champion because of The Sixth Sense.

Even though it was released last week, the movie made more than $38 million this week. Still, the result was within expectations and everyone believed that Meet The Parents would generate a good amount of money for Paramount in the long run.

To make things even better, the second week of Meet The Parents also had a good result. The total box office was $58.82 million. This means that Meet The Parents has already exceeded its budget of $55 million.

If it were not for The Sixth Sense, which earned more than $107 million, the presence of Meet The Parents would be greater.

Perhaps Meet The Parents was overshadowed by The Sixth Sense.

Kazir expected this outcome because The Sixth Sense was the second highest grossing film of 1999, second only to Star Wars: Episode 1 - The Phantom Menace.

But the result of Meet The Parents was enough for the movie studios to believe that Kazir Grey had outstanding creativity and that his scripts could make hundreds of millions!

 

[TheCenterAct]

Stopping Alerts for a while, let's stock up on these short chaps. Toodle-oo ~

 

[Lillie Jones]

Thanks for the chapter

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 169


Kazir spent all his time in his office early in the morning. He had a hot cup of coffee with him. The training for The Bourne Identity was still going on, so Kazir was not very busy. He had some time to himself.

But early in the morning, his assistant Erica Mendez greeted him with a set of work.

"Sir, Enrico Pusi from Warner Bros wants to see you."

"Okay, make an appointment for him," Kazir replied. This was nothing new. Some people would contact him about his scripts. He was expecting it.

"Sir, about that... Enrico Pusi is waiting for you downstairs in the lobby."

"Okay. Give me five minutes, I'll meet him." Kazir nodded and stood up. He looked in the mirror and confirmed that his appearance was fine. In fact, he looked young and handsome now that he had shaved his beard.

He even saw a few women on the street giving him flirtatious looks.

"Sir, about that... Shirley Lansing from Paramount is also waiting for you in the lobby. She's sitting a few feet away from Enrico Pusi, and I don't think they like each other."

"Okay. I'm going to meet her now."

"Sir, about that..."

"Erica, tell me everything."

"All right. Nancy Utley from 20th Century Fox also wants to meet you, she is also in the lobby. Even Camille Green is in the lobby, she is wearing, um, a very nice dress. It seems that Universal Pictures is interested in working with Grey Pictures. Another thing is that Colin Dacopps from Walt Disney is with them... The lobby almost melts with their presence".

Of course, the last sentence was metaphorical, since it would be impossible for people to melt a concrete wall with their presence. Still, Kazir noticed the possible atmosphere in the lobby.

He suddenly felt that it would be bad if he showed up. Unfortunately, he had to do his job.

He sighed and decided to mediate the war. He imagined each of the producers holding a blade, attacking and parrying each other.

The lobby wasn't that big, only 10 meters wide, and it couldn't hold the producers.

As Kazir went down, he saw the producers glaring at each other. He even saw Enrico Pusi holding a fucking vase!

"Enrico? Why are you holding a vase? What are you doing?"

Kazir Grey frowned. The vase cost 300 dollars and for a cheapskate like him that was already expensive.

"Me? I'm just interested in the vase. It looks good. What do you think of me, a maniac? Of course, I won't use it to attack these bastards, that would be barbaric."

"Phew. That's good to hear..."

"I have my own fists to use. I will smash their faces with my bare hands!"

"..."

Looking at the situation, it seemed that something had happened while Erica was away.

Kazir looked at Erica and his assistant shook her head. She had no idea what was going on.

"Okay, calm down. Let's talk about this. Like civilized people."

"Civilized? Kazir, they are ready to pounce on you just to get your scripts. I think being civilized is not an option. Look at that bitchy producer, she's wearing an office blazer, but she's obviously accentuating her cleavage by unbuttoning her blazer!"

Camille Green just giggled. There was nothing wrong with her dress code, she firmly believed...

Seeing the situation, Kazir sighed. He thought his expectations were exaggerated, but this was much worse than he expected.

"Let's all sit down first. Enrico, drop the vase. It cost 450 dollars with the flowers."

"That's okay, I can pay."

'Of course you can! I heard you got a 7-figure bonus from Warner Bros for The Hangover Part 2! The Hangover Part 2 has already grossed $254 million in North America!'

Kazir replied in his head. That should be at least $1 million. Maybe that was the reason why Enrico Pusi was willing to fight for a contract with Kazir Grey. Because his script is a sure way to make money.

'Unfortunately, Grey Pictures is too small to film these projects. Even two films in one year is difficult. All I can do is sell these scripts and negotiate a better deal with the Big Six.'

The Big Six were the Big Six because of their ability to distribute movies worldwide. One of the best reasons why they were better than any other movie company in Hollywood.

There were hundreds of production companies in this industry, but only six could monopolize the market, it was impossible to be equal next to them.

Not even the old Metro Goldwyn Mayer or the blossoming DreamWorks. Not even Lionsgate of the future.

Once everyone was seated, Kazir decided to speak.

"I'm going to sell three scripts and possible scripts for their sequels."

The Big Six producers listened intently.

"Bruce Almighty, Anchorman and Horrible Bosses. I think you already know what I want, right?"

Kazir looked for his coffee, but remembered that he had left it in the office. By the time he got back to his office, the coffee might be already cold.

He sighed... The outcome of Meet The Parents was already affecting him.

"Director Grey! Paramount has decided to continue working with you! As long as we maintain the contract of a 25% box office distribution fee, I believe we will have no problem!"

"Thank you, Shirley."

Kazir smiled. This contract was already sincere. Very sincere, to be honest.

But Kazir Grey was being shameless right now. Instead of showing approval, he looked at the others.

"I think you have better conditions, right?"

The producers gritted their teeth at Kazir's toothy grin. He was like the devil tempting them to sin!

Anything less than 25% box office fee would affect their production. Basically, bleed them to possible death!

However, the producers and higher-ups gave them the green light to negotiate with Kazir. Believing that Kazir Grey would be their money maker!

Shameless! Impudent! You don't deserve to be a director! You should be an agent instead!

Kazir reminds them of talent agents who would suck the budget out of movies to satisfy their greed.

+++++

[Which company do you think will Kazir work with next? Paramount, Walt Disney, Universal Pictures, Warner Bros or 20th Century Fox? Sony-Columbia is also allowed, I just didn't include them in the chapter because they didn't have much of a relationship with Grey Pictures].