HOLLYWOOD WHAT IF

[Lillie Jones]

Thanks for the chapter

 

[Womgi]

It's nice to see that bit at the end. It shows that the films have started to really absorb into society when even this manager has started to think about being kidnapped like that

 

[Pujimaki]

It's nice to see that bit at the end. It shows that the films have started to really absorb into society when even this manager has started to think about being kidnapped like that

Click to shrink...

That's why in this timeline, Taken indeed deserved the Oscars Awards they won.

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 181


Stella Willow was pleased that Palenque Simone had a car for them to use. She didn't want to use a taxi, maybe her perception of traveling changed after watching Taken.

What happened two years ago made citizens understand the dangers of traveling abroad.

The news about kidnapping and sex trafficking was quite strong two years ago, almost every form of media joined in. It made people in North America aware of their surroundings. It spread awareness, which was a good thing.

In fact, before Stella Willow got into the car, she looked at the license plate.

Then she sent the plate number to her boyfriend, just to be sure. Maybe she was being paranoid, but it was better than being kidnapped, right?

Palenque Simone noticed that the woman had a solemn expression on her face, so he decided to talk to her to improve the atmosphere.

He knew that this woman was going to be the General Manager of Grey Pictures. In a way, her position was higher than his, so the woman was his boss.

'I want to make a movie and a connection with people is a good thing.'

Palenque Simone and Stella Willow were talking. Stella looked like a knowledgeable woman and her answers were informative and proud, almost as if Palenque was talking to a genius.

Maybe that was why Stella was hired.

A few minutes later they reached their destination.

In a wide alley, Stella got out of the car and looked around.

She secretly sighed as she confirmed that this was the filming location.

She could see the tents used by the film crew. The trailers that the actors used to relax and change their makeup and appearance.

A few meters away from them, Stella saw a number of cameras pointed in a certain direction.

She also saw Kazir Grey sitting in his chair, staring at the seven monitors. Each monitor showed different angles, but they were all pointed at the car with two people having a conversation.

As a veteran of the industry, Stella Willow was used to this sort of thing.

Shooting a scene is always quiet. No one on the crew talks unless they are far from the set.

The silence is deafening, very different from what people imagine.

In this situation, only the actors can speak.

Stella Willow silently approached the set to get a better view.

She adjusted her gold-rimmed glasses. She saw two people acting in front of the cameras.

Cameron Diaz and Matt Damon had a scene together.

After Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) arrived at the bank indicated by the bullet, he realized that his name was indeed Jason Bourne.

But his happiness quickly faded when he realized that he had so many identities and passports that he could not be sure which identity was real or fake. Or maybe all those identities were fake.

Nevertheless, Jason Bourne decided to use his "Jason Bourne" identity.

He wanted to go to the United States to find out more about himself. But he found that the police were looking for him. Moreover, even the people in the US embassy were looking for him. On top of that, a certain secret organization was also looking for him.

Jason Bourne felt as if the world was against him.

After escaping from his pursuers, Jason Bourne found Marie Kreutz (Cameron Diaz) and tried to convince her to help him get out of the place.

Marie Kreutz was reluctant at first, but Jason Bourne gave her ten thousand dollars to convince her to use her car to get out of town.

In the end, the woman could not say no. The two traveled together.

"Cut!"

Kazir announced and the shooting paused. The weather was a bit chilly. Matt and Cameron's assistants quickly came over and gave them warm towels.

Then the actors didn't have much interaction and went to their respective trailers. They were obviously strangers.

This was normal in the industry.

On The Fresh Prince Of Bel Air, Will Smith and Janet Hubert, the original Aunt Viv, didn't like each other despite their interactions on camera. At the end of season 3, Janet Hubert disappeared and another actress took over her role.

After all, actors and actresses were people. They could like or hate another person. That was nothing new.

Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams in The Notebook. They didn't have a good relationship during the making of the movie. In fact, they hated each other... But the thing was, during the release of The Notebook, they became a couple! Maybe this was a promotional method to hype the movie. It was a good move because The Notebook was a success.

There were many cases of actors having secret fights on the set.

Luckily, it seemed that Matt Damon and Cameron Diaz were just strangers and there was no obvious beef.

'Maybe Cameron Diaz is aware that her boyfriend is the one directing the movie.'

Stella Willow thought.

When the shooting stopped, assistant director Palenque Simone informed director Grey that the general manager they had hired had arrived.

Kazir Grey nodded and looked at Stella Willow. He rose from his seat and greeted the woman.

"Miss Stella Willow, we spoke on the phone."

"Indeed. You are my boss, so I should hear your thoughts first."

"Very well. Before we talk business, would you like some coffee?"

"I prefer tea." The woman shook her head.

"Then I must disturb the crew."

Kazir motioned for one of the crew to bring Stella a cup of tea.

"We have Lipton tea, I hope that's okay with you."

"No problem."

"Then let's get down to business. 20th Century Fox, Warner Bros and Paramount are trying to come to an agreement right now." Kazir became serious.

The two found a table they could use.

"Sometimes allies become enemies," Stella muttered after nudging her glasses.

"Hm." Kazir nodded, agreeing with her.

+++++

[You can visit my Patreon if you want to read more. I have 140 advanced chapters there for $10. Just think of it as a privilege for people who want to support me financially, thanks for all your support. My brother just finished his semester with tuition paid in full. Thank you so much, It means a lot to me.]

https://www.patreon.com/Puji_maki

 

[Lillie Jones]

Thanks for the chapter

 

[Espec22]

Just for the record, The Notebook hasn't been made yet.

 

[Pujimaki]

Just for the record, The Notebook hasn't been made yet.

Click to shrink...

Yeah, I just added that as an example.

 

[Pujimaki]

[Shout out to Петр Голдобин!]

Hollywood What If Chapter 182


After signing a distribution deal with Sony-Columbia, the two sides had an understanding. Grey Pictures expressed their thoughts that The Bourne Identity would be released in late July or early August.

Sony-Columbia didn't have a problem with that schedule and agreed. As long as they didn't have a movie coming out on that schedule, they would distribute The Bourne Identity within that timeframe.

With Kazir's fast shooting style, the movie would be finished before the beginning of June. Maybe June 4th. There would be no problem with the shooting schedule.

In fact, by the second week of May, they had already shot more than 2/3 of the movie.

As for Taken 2, Grey Pictures was planning to release it in September or November. It depends on Fremont Smith's ability how fast he can shoot the movie. Of course, his crew members were also responsible for the speed of the production.

Unfortunately, unlike Kazir's efficient crew, Fremont's crew was recently formed and they didn't have strong cooperation. They were still getting to know each other's strengths and weaknesses.

With the two films that Grey Pictures would release, the company was expanding and the Big Six were alarmed.

Warner Bros, 20th Century Fox and Paramount were three film companies that Kazir Grey worked with. Their relationship was good, at least from a business standpoint.

The three major studios made money on his projects, and Kazir Grey made money as well. They got along quite well.

But that didn't change the fact that they were also rivals. Knowing that Grey Pictures was getting better and better, the three film companies couldn't help but block its way.

If there was something good, the three movie companies were not so relentless about it. After all, they were in the process of forming an alliance to prevent Grey Pictures from growing.

Maybe it was a good thing for Grey Pictures to have no distribution channels. Because as soon as they announced their intention to acquire a distribution channel, not only the three movie companies would make a fuss. All of the Big Six would join forces to wipe out Grey Pictures. They would attack it from different directions until the company collapsed.

"I hear rumors that Star Wars will be released in late July or early August. Not only that, but Matrix, which Warner Bros has invested in, will be released in September or November.

Kazir Grey told Stella Willow.

The woman nodded, realizing the intention of the three major movie studios.

She knew that if Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace was released on the same day as The Bourne Identity, the latter would immediately lose the box office. Not only that, but theatrical distribution would be against them.

After all, there were only over 11 thousand theaters in North America, and Star Wars Episode 1 might have the advantage. Star Wars is a huge IP and it's impossible to beat. At least not yet. Now that many Star Wars fans have been waiting for the movie for a decade.

The last Star Wars movie was Return Of The Jedi, which was released in 1983.

If Star Wars Episode 1 and The Bourne Identity had a fight, the outcome would be obvious. The Bourne Identity would be knocked out.

'However, I'm confused as to why Kazir is nervous about this so-called Matrix... I heard that this movie is rated R. Taken 2 can easily beat that movie if they are released at the same time.'

Taken 2 was a PG-13 movie and the expected box office for that movie was at least $400 million. Surely this Matrix from Warner Bros would be kicked out of the theaters, right?

Well, Stella Willow didn't know the future, so she was confident that Taken 2 wouldn't be bullied...

'The toughest enemy will be Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace.'

Indeed, she thought so.

As for Paramount, their attitude was unknown. They showed no intention of joining the alliance, but they weren't against it either.

Taken 2 would be distributed by them and they didn't want the movie to suffer. Of course, if things changed, Paramount would use their own means to sabotage Taken 2.

Even though the two sides had signed a contract, Paramount had many ways to ruin Taken 2. They could extend the payment, they could make the number of theaters low, or they would make a minimal investment in terms of promotion.

"The reason I'm telling you this is because I want to hear your opinion. When you return to the United States, you will be the official general manager of Grey Pictures."

'So this is like the last test or something?'

Stella Willow nodded.

"These are just rumors, and the three movie companies haven't made any official announcements about the release of their movies. That means they are still waiting. Waiting for your answer."

Kazir agreed. He also thought about it.

"If you don't do anything, the three movie companies will go ahead with the plan and sabotage The Bourne Identity and Taken 2."

"Based on my understanding. We have three things to consider." The woman nudged her gold-rimmed glasses.

"First, you can express your intention to work with them. The scripts you've written have shown positive results, and the three movie companies will surely want to work with you again."

"Second, be confident in your movies and let them collide with Star Wars Episode 1 and The Matrix."

Kazir didn't want to fight against these movies because he knew that the result would be bad for him.

"Third, we can end all cooperation with Warner Bros, 20th Century Fox, and Paramount Pictures. Instead, we will ally ourselves with Walt Disney, Universal Pictures and Sony-Columbia and ask them to protect us. Of course, we have to prove to them that we can be useful."

Hearing the woman's thoughts, Kazir Grey knew he hadn't made a mistake in choosing her.

"It is good that we met."

"Yes, President."

"Ah, I'm really not used to being called President. I prefer to be called Director."
Kazir scratched his head and chuckled.

"Hm, Director Grey."

"Then I think we both know what the best solution is."

"That's right."

They looked at each other and nodded.

"Maintaining the relationship with the three movie companies is important. I don't want to be their enemy."

"I understand."

Ah, the complicated life in Hollywood...

 

[Lillie Jones]

thanks for the chapter

 

[Pujimaki]

[Shout out to Abdulwahab A!]

Hollywood What If Chapter 183


"I have some scripts that we can negotiate. If you don't have a problem, you can send someone to talk to me."

Kazir had a good experience working with Big Three. He hadn't worked with Universal Pictures and Walt Disney, so he wasn't sure if they would protect Grey Pictures. Maybe they would join in the fun and tear the company apart.

'Besides, I don't like Universal Pictures and Walt Disney. They tried to cancel me...'

He was holding a grudge. Well, Kazir Grey was only human.

As for Sony-Columbia, he was on their side for the time being. They won't do anything bad.

"If they are not convinced. Remind them of the danger of DreamWorks. I'm sure they'll think about it."

"It's quite possible." Stella agreed with his decision.

Compared to Grey Pictures, DreamWorks was more dangerous. It had the trio of Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen. They are good at what they do.

Together with the connections they had made in their careers, they had successfully acquired a distribution channel in North America. Now they were free to release their films in North America without having to deal with the Big Six.

Unfortunately, their international distribution was still in its infancy, and it could take at least five to ten years to get a full international distribution that spans the globe.

With this information, Stella and Kazir knew that the Big Six would focus more on DreamWorks.

Last year, 1998, Saving Private Ryan was a massive worldwide success. Its impact was just beginning. In fact, last March's Academy Awards were dominated by Saving Private Ryan. The film won 11 awards. And even Steven Spielberg got his second Oscar statues for Best Director.

'Hm, Matt Damon is part of the cast of Saving Private Ryan and he said that working with Steven Spielberg gave him a good experience.'

For a director like Kazir Grey, someone like Steven Spielberg and James Cameron were the blockbuster directors, someone he would never reach in his entire life with his talent alone.

That is one of the reasons why the Big Six have to be aware of DreamWorks. Steven Spielberg can make good movies and he knows how the business works.

Not only that, but DreamWorks Animation did well with Antz and The Prince of Egypt. Antz was DreamWorks' first 3D animated feature, and the company slowly gained a foothold in computer animation.

'In my opinion, MGM (Metro Goldwyn Mayer) has already lost its status and DreamWorks can take its place in the top 7 of Hollywood.'

MGM was slowly going downhill in these days, with bankruptcy. They were only alive because of James Bond: 007.

After their conversation, Kazir decided to give the woman some time to rest. The only purpose of this meeting was to talk to Stella Willow before she started work.

She could leave tomorrow if she wished.

As Kazir stayed in the tent and watched the footage they shot today, he could not help but think of Star Wars and The Matrix.

'I know it sounds like I'm being arrogant, but I want to direct Star Wars and The Matrix...'

Unfortunately, all rights to Star Wars were owned by George Lucas and Lucasfilm. Also, Kazir was not close enough to George Lucas to work with him.

Kazir didn't like to leave the office, and his relationship with people in Hollywood was tenuous at best. He rarely attended parties and was usually quiet.

As for The Matrix, the Wachowski sisters registered the script before he could make his own version. Moreover, the Wachowski sisters were determined to direct the film.

'Well, I'm busy too, I have to say no even if they try to pitch the script to me.'

Maybe he would have a chance to direct Star Wars in the next decade...

He knew that Star Wars would expand its universe, from movies to comics to animation. However, his opinion of the franchise was complicated.

He felt that Disney was making the heroes of the past super depressed.

'Luke Skywalker died after fighting Kylo Ren and then became a ghost... I know it sounds stupid. '

His memories of the movie were pretty jumbled because he was a little old at the time.

'Oh, one more thing, Han Solo died too. He was killed by his son. Seriously, Disney really loves to make the heroes of the first Star Wars trilogy suffer.'

Well, the fans didn't like it. But who cares? As long as Disney wanted to, they would never listen to their audience.

'Hell, they can make Snow White Latina, the seven dwarfs would be normal people too. They can cast a black woman as the Little Mermaid and call it "innovation". Disney got too much Woked. Like, bro, I just want to watch movies and have some fun. Don't shove your ideologies down my throat.'

There was even a rumor that the founder of Disney, Walt Disney, was an anti-Semitic guy. People say he was a racist.

Shaking his head, Kazir decided to forget about these things. Star Wars had nothing to do with him anyway. He has to concentrate on his own projects.

Filming resumed, and this time they would shoot the scene where Jason Bourne slowly climbed down the building.

The crew hired a professional climber to do the stunt. The climber was protected and safely tethered to a rope.

They would film the scene at an angle where the rope could not be seen.

While filming, Kazir saw out of the corner of his eye that Cameron Diaz was sulking at him, unhappy about something.

 

[Knived]

Wachowskis didnt change to sisters until after 2010 i think. Just a slight continuity issue

 

[Lillie Jones]

Thanks for the chapter

 

[Pujimaki]

[Shout out to Javier R and Akifuyuu!]

Hollywood What If Chapter 184


"Kazir~ Baby~"

Cameron Diaz snuggled up next to Kazir and kissed his neck. She was intoxicated by his scent and rubbed her skin against him.

The couple was naked under the sheets, quite steamy and sweaty.

Kazir chuckled. Then he looked at his phone on the table and realized that someone had contacted him.

Cameron Diaz pouted and decided to give him a hug.

"Let's stay in bed."

"Cam, I have to get the phone. Maybe it's important."

Kazir realized that Cameron Diaz had been acting strangely yesterday. Even her performance in the afternoon was bad. Kazir talked to her and the woman just clicked her tongue and glared at him.

Kazir had no choice but to stop filming for the day.

To make sure Cameron Diaz would have a good night, Kazir decided to "tease" her. They had a great night and Cameron Diaz returned to her bubbly self.

It was still early in the morning and they had two hours before the day's filming began... Actually, they only slept for a few hours because they had been 'exercising' for quite some time.

"Hm..."

Cameron nodded and decided to leave the phone to Kazir. As always, she was pleased with Kazir's performance.

Kazir made sure that his partner was satisfied after the session. Although Cameron Diaz knew that their relationship was only contractual, she knew that she would miss the man.

So while they were still an official couple, she decided to have some fun with Kazir.

However, she found that when it came to work, Kazir Grey was very professional. He didn't let his emotions get in the way of filming.

In fact, when the kissing scene with Matt Damon happened, almost everyone on the crew felt uncomfortable.

Even Cameron Diaz and Matt Damon were not sure what to do.

Only Kazir Grey was serious about it. He didn't care if his current girlfriend was kissing another guy. He was not immature. This was a job and they got paid for it.

Kazir's passion for filmmaking was strong. He didn't care what others thought.

In the end, Cameron Diaz and Matt Damon decided to do the kissing scene in one take. Kazir was so pleased with their performance that he didn't ask for a reshoot.

Everyone on the crew understood that Kazir would ask for another kissing scene if the first shot didn't satisfy him.

As for Cameron Diaz, she felt that Kazir Grey was not serious about her at all... Maybe she was right.

From Kazir's point of view, they were not a real couple. As long as Cameron Diaz didn't sabotage The Bourne Identity, the man would let her be.

Frankly, Cameron Diaz was hurt by this. Her pride as a woman was hurt.

Fortunately, Kazir gave her a great experience that same night, so she easily forgot about it.

'Yesterday, however, a beautiful, elegant woman appeared and spoke to Kazir. The woman seemed to be smart and she talked to Kazir about business. '

Although Cameron Diaz knew that the woman was just doing her job, she could not help but be jealous.

She knew she was becoming childish as well. Affected by this, her performance yesterday went down.

Again, after this incident, Kazir focused his attention on her. Cameron Diaz realized a way to get the man's attention.

'Unfortunately, he will easily realize my intention if I try to cause trouble.' She sighed in defeat.

Kazir Grey picked up the phone and realized that Salvatore Barlowe was calling him.

"Salvatore? Yes, I'm in the hotel room. I see... Thanks, I'll call you later."

Kazir grinned and hung up the phone.

"Why did your agent call you?"

Cameron Diaz was curious.

"If it's not important, you don't have to tell me." She added.

"It's okay. It's about a movie I tried to acquire. Unfortunately, someone bought the movie before I could get it."

Cameron Diaz raised her eyebrows. She was interested in the movie that had caught Kazir's attention.

"Hehe, it's actually not a good movie." Kazir felt the woman's gaze and explained further.

"It's shaky footage about college students who went into a forest and disappeared."

"Sounds interesting..." Cameron lied.

"No, it's actually quite boring. I didn't like it at all. My eyes almost went blind." Kazir said his opinion.

"If it wasn't for the amazing publicity, I might not be interested in the movie.

The Blair Witch Project was a huge success because of its viral publicity. It was the first successful "found footage" movie, paving the way for Paranormal Activity and Cloverfield at the box office.

Kazir was amazed by the hype surrounding the film. It was unique.

So when he remembered that The Blair Witch Project was coming out this year, he decided to try his luck and make the most of it.

"Salvatore said that The Blair Witch Project has been acquired by Miramax. However, it seems that they are going to contact another distributor to distribute the film."

Miramax had worldwide distribution, but they didn't dare distribute The Blair Witch Project. The answer was obvious.

'They are afraid of the backlash.'

He chuckled. Suddenly he thought of something funny.

"We still have two hours, how about we have some fun?"

"Fufu, Kazir~"

Cameron Diaz giggled as Kazir pounced on her. She didn't care about the glasses woman anymore. All she wanted to do was have some fun with Kazir.

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

A month after Stella Willow returned to the United States, the crew of The Bourne Identity finished filming and everyone was happy about it.

For the actors, the quicker the shooting was finished, the better. They were paid by the project, not by the day or the hour. Now that filming was over, they could focus on other things. Their salary was already paid. Although they still had to go to the studio to dub their lines.

Just like that, the month of June came and the summer schedule was full as always.

++++++

[I realized that the MC's first name is actually Kazir Gray instead of Kazir Grey! I hate myself for making a huge mistake... anyway, let's all forget about it, okay?]

 

[Lillie Jones]

It's poor Cameron Diaz is nearly, impossibly, jealous of Kazir Grey new COO , which is definitely funny because Stella Willow is the exact opposite of what Kazir Grey would do, but is funny thing though cause Kazir Grey was only the set of pre girlfriend Reese Witherspoon in Napoleon Dynamite"movie comedy, but she wasn't his girlfriend then. As new hire Stella Willow wasn't getting over harassment charges of her former boss, considering that Kazir Grey doesn't his employees either. But actresses , you see the dictumomy I' m going with here.
Although, This is first time Kazir had been seeing videoing his contract girlfriend Cameron Diaz in Bourne Identity series with CCU Universe. Cameron Diaz is right about his passion for filming is more than his discomfort, but come on Cameron your missing the point ,Cameron your kissing the guy on screen not going bed with him. But she thinks Kazir Grey is weird, but your going home with Kazir Grey, I guess it a guy thing, but otherwise people think Kazir Grey is immune to onscreen kissing that isn't is wife Cassandra.
Continue on
Cheers!

 

[Pujimaki]

It's poor Cameron Diaz is nearly, impossibly, jealous of Kazir Grey new COO , which is definitely funny because Stella Willow is the exact opposite of what Kazir Grey would do, but is funny thing though cause Kazir Grey was only the set of pre girlfriend Reese Witherspoon in Napoleon Dynamite"movie comedy, but she wasn't his girlfriend then. As new hire Stella Willow wasn't getting over harassment charges of her former boss, considering that Kazir Grey doesn't his employees either. But actresses , you see the dictumomy I' m going with here.
Although, This is first time Kazir had been seeing videoing his contract girlfriend Cameron Diaz in Bourne Identity series with CCU Universe. Cameron Diaz is right about his passion for filming is more than his discomfort, but come on Cameron your missing the point ,Cameron your kissing the guy on screen not going bed with him. But she thinks Kazir Grey is weird, but your going home with Kazir Grey, I guess it a guy thing, but otherwise people think Kazir Grey is immune to onscreen kissing that isn't is wife Cassandra.
Continue on
Cheers!

Click to shrink...

I didn't see this part. So I guess I unintentionally wrote that Kazir actually didn't care about Cameron, because he didn't care about Cameron kissing another guy.

 

[Pujimaki]

[Shout out to AR3S, Mohamed, BS Entertainment, Scott D and Javier Rodríguez R!]


Hollywood What If Chapter 185


With Stella Willow's persistence, she convinced 20th Century Fox and Warner Bros to drop their bad blood with Grey Pictures and focus their attention on DreamWorks instead.

It was amazing how the woman convinced the two movie companies. She used a variety of means, luring them with scripts, promising cooperation, and telling them that DreamWorks was getting better these days. The woman was very good at her job.

Even Kazir Grey could never do what she did.

As a result, Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace was released in May. Even though the promotion was quite hectic, every fan was excited to see the iconic movie.

Companies were predicting that the film could surpass the $1 billion mark. With each passing year, Hollywood slowly understood that movies could indeed make $1 billion at the box office. Furthering the hatred of the European film industry.

The European film industry was the first of its kind, but it failed in globalization. Gradually, Hollywood movies influenced more and more countries until the European film industry could only release its movies in its own territory.

Of course, some European films made it to the United States, but they didn't have a strong reception. Also, most European directors have this fetish about sex in their movies. Their movies would be rated R and the tickets sold would be affected as well.

In the month of May 1999, only a few movies did well. Well, the summer schedule just started in that month.

The Mummy from Universal Pictures. It is estimated to make more than $400 million worldwide.

Notting Hill, a romantic comedy starring Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant. Estimated to make about $350 million worldwide.

Of course, the best movie of May was none other than Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace. If the predictions are correct, this will be the third $1 billion movie in history. The hype for this movie was very strong. Even Liam Neeson had a role in this movie and his salary was quite good.

In June, The Matrix, Austin Powers, Tarzan and Wild Wild West were the winners.

"Haaahh..."

Kazir yawned, stretching his body. He stood up and looked around. He was in a room where a bunch of monitors were set up.

He rubbed his face to wake himself from his stupor. His eyes were a little sore from not sleeping well.

After filming ended in May, Kazir immediately began post-production on The Bourne Identity. There was no rest in between. He spent his time editing the film with Rector and the other editors. With his good memory, they started with the skeleton of the movie before cutting out the unnecessary scenes.

Fortunately, The Bourne Identity was not full of CGI scenes. In fact, there was no CGI at all.

Kazir didn't have to waste his time hiring a special effects team to render some scenes.

That was a good thing. Because if there was a CGI scene, it would take Kazir at least two months to create the special effects.

Time was now his enemy. He had signed a contract with Sony-Columbia for his film to be released in late July or early August. If he missed that, he would have to pay the penalties.

Even though Kazir was good at his job and he was fast. He couldn't help but feel a sense of urgency. Time was pressuring him.

Editor Rector was suffering from the same thing.

Rector was sleeping on the keyboard. His drool was dripping and his face was emaciated. It seemed that proper rest did not exist in him.

"... We finally finished the editing."

June was a busy month for many, and Kazir spent the month in the editing room. Even Erica Mendez was free most of the time.

Kazir sighed when he knew his month of suffering was over. He had to apologize to Rector's wife for kidnapping Rector for a month.

'I have to give this guy a bonus.'

Kazir left the room to get some fresh air, he looked out into the hallway and noticed that there was no one around.

'It's still early.'

Kazir went upstairs and went into his office. His office had a bathroom he could use. To freshen up, he decided to take a bath.

'20th Century Fox showed their goodwill by rescheduling Star Wars. As for Warner Bros, The Matrix was released in June. It seems that Warner Bros never intended to be on our bad side. It's understandable because I'm still in the process of writing The Hangover Part 3.'

Even though his position was only screenwriter, no one belittled Kazir. He was good at his job and everyone accepted his credibility. As long as possible, Warner Bros didn't want to bother him.

'But once The Hangover Part 3 is over, they will definitely try to do something. Then maybe I can find a way to survive.'

A few hours later, the Grey Pictures building was bustling again.

Erica Mendez walked into Kazir's office.

"Sir, this is the newspaper you asked for.

"Thank you."

Kazir was still tired, but he had to work for the company.

'Normally I would take a few weeks off to rest, but I can't do that now that I have another job to do.'

If it were not for Stella Willow doing most of the work, Kazir might die of overwork.

Kazir looked at the newspaper. He smiled when he read something interesting.

"As expected... They really are trying to swindle the whole country." He chuckled.

In his past life, the company that acquired The Blair Witch Project was Artisan Entertainment.

However, perhaps because of Kazir's interference in the timeline, the one who got The Blair Witch Project this time was Miramax.

In the newspaper there was an article about a group of college students who went to Burkittsville, Maryland and went missing. They interviewed people about the mythical Blair Witch and decided to go to the Black Hills near Burkittsville.

"If I'm not mistaken, the news will cover this story."

 

[Midnightson41]

For those not that do not know what this means don't worry only a few people would but basically Miramax is currently owned by Disney which means the House of Mouse is going to Produce one of the Scariest Movies in the Early 2000s.

 

[Pujimaki]

[Shout out to Jacek T, Peter P and Zeke P!]

Hollywood What If Chapter 186


Just as he expected, that night, ABC news tackled The Blair Witch.

-- A group of college students went missing in Burkittsville, Maryland. The police tried to locate them but they failed to find them. Instead, the police only found a camera and films. We are still trying to fix the footage. For now, we only fixed a film worth of one minute video.'

The newscaster seriously explained, perhaps clueless about the truth as well.

Then, the news showed the footage.

The scene was quite dark and shaky. The audience realized that the one holding the camera was running away from something. Suddenly, a blood-curdling scream happened, then another person cried. The footage became pitch black after that.

-- Rest assured, our team will try its best to fix the footage to get more clues about the missing people.

The news went to another topic but the story about the Witch stirred the hearts of some people who believed in paranormal.

"... I call that bullshit."

Kazir Grey muttered after watching the program. He won't fall for that trick since he knows that this is nothing but a movie.

He grabbed the remote and turned off the television. He touched his chin and thought about it seriously.

The Blair Witch Project was an important movie in the history of cinema. It was the first of its kind that gained a good box office.

However, Kazir didn't like the fact that they deceived so many people into believing that a witch was real.

On top of that, Kazir didn't like Miramax. This film company was owned by the Weinstein brothers. Particularly, he hated Harvey Weinstein. That guy went to prison because of an obvious crime. To be honest, it was questionable why he was only imprisoned in 2018 even though his crimes started in the 1970s.

The man had sexual abuse allegations back in the 1970s but he was only reprimanded in 2018. Almost as if he was protected by the higher-ups of Hollywood. Almost as if everyone turned a blind eye to the crimes he did.

Note that over 80 women stood up about the allegations of sexual abuse and rape against Harvey Weinstein. This incident sparked the #MeToo movement in social media.

Obviously, everyone knows about Harvey Weinstein's crimes but they were just chill as fuck. Just like what they did to Jeffrey Epstein.

For Kazir, this was a disgusting move. From the bottom of his heart, he felt like it was unfair that people would buy tickets for The Blair Witch only to get deceived by Harvey Weinstein and Miramax. It didn't sit well with him.

With a cold gaze at the ceiling, Kazir Grey decided to fuck the timeline more.

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

While people started talking about the missing students, another batch of movies were released in the theaters.

On July 9, seven movies were released simultaneously. However, only one movie got a good reception. It was none other than American Pie.

An R-rated comedy with strong sexuality and foul language. Yet this movie made $18 million in its first week at the box office. It seemed that Universal Pictures had a good comedy to milk this time. Perhaps they were salty that Grey Pictures had never sold them a comedy script.

The news networks realized that a lot of people were interested in the missing students and the mythical Blair Witch in Burkittsville, Maryland.

One news channel sent a team to interview the people of Burkittsville, Maryland, but they had no idea about the missing students. There were some stories about witches in their community, but no one really believed they were real. Even the police tried to investigate the hill, but they found none.

But now that the news about the Blair Witch was getting stronger, the people of Burkittsville, Maryland decided to stay in their homes just to be sure.

The news crew decided to enter the hill where the missing students were last found. However, as they walked deeper into the woods, the team felt strange and as if someone was looking at them... Uh, maybe it was a placebo effect. Their minds believed that there was indeed a witch hiding in the forest.

While traversing the deep, one of their members was injured. Suddenly, crows started flying around them, screeching!

The team got scared and started running out of the forest!

Everything was recorded by the cameraman... When this story was published in the media, the fear of the witch increased.

Stories about witches became the subject of many TV shows, just to join the hype.

In the 16th century, thousands of people died in witch hunts, mostly women. They were either hanged or burned. Many believed that European witches migrated to United States in the 1800s.

In the month of July, almost every topic on the street would be related to witches.

In addition, some people were interviewed by the media saying that their relatives had been killed by witches.

These small stories formed a trend until almost everyone was interested in the footage left in the woods by the missing students.

-- This is Wanda Rinn from ABC News, our team has recovered another segment of the footage. We are here to show you the video. We want to warn our viewers that the scene you are about to see may be inappropriate for some ages.

The video started broadcasting. This time the video showed a group of people talking around the campfire. They were the missing students. Suddenly, a screaming cawing of crows echoed. The students stood up and became alert.

The person in charge of the camera pointed the camera into the woods, and a shadow formed in the darkness, as if a person was there!

-- Unfortunately, our team only fixed that part. Rest assured, after we fix all the footage, we will release it in theaters for people to see.

Then the TV show ended, leaving people curious and scared!

 

[Lillie Jones]

Thanks for the chapter

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 187

[Author's note: I just want to remind you that this is fiction. Don't take it seriously].

[Another note: I never watch The Blair Witch Project, I don't like horror movies. To be honest, I never like watching movies in general. I'm more of a manga, anime, light novel, and webnovel consumer.]

[I don't feel well for more than a week, so I can't write and update].

+++++

People became interested in the witch and the missing students.

When the next clip was released, more people visited Burkittsville, Maryland. These brave people wanted to check out the hill where the students went missing, hoping to find more clues.

Of course, another reason they went to the site was their curiosity about the paranormal. They were excited.

Almost thousands of people went to the place, causing some trouble for the locals. Because of this, the local government decided to close the hill and let the police inspect the place for the third time.

But some people didn't care about the authorities. They wanted to infiltrate the place and that caused trouble. A group of thousands of people in a small place, a possible riot could happen... and it did.

A reasonable development.

A riot happened and four young people were killed. This may sound exaggerated, but it could really happen.

Just out of curiosity about the witch, these people visited Burkittsville, Maryland and formed a large group that caused a riot because they couldn't get into the hill. They believed that the local authorities were hiding something big.

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

"Look what you did."

Michael Ovitz placed the newspaper on Harvey Weinstein's table and glared at the fat man.

"ABC News is under Disney, you used that connection to promote your movie. But instead it causes an incident."

"Michael, you need to calm down. I'm innocent. I didn't know people were going to die because of this. This is my first time doing publicity like this!"

Harvey Weinstein was defending himself and he was indeed innocent. He never expected people to die. This project was actually an experiment and he could not believe it would work. But now a lot of people believe that witches are real!

Look at that! That's the power of the media! Media can hypnotize people. That's the truth.

Once the media thinks you are guilty, then you are basically guilty. Just like when the media made Michael Jackson out to be a predator and Johnny Depp out to be a wife beater. There was no clear evidence and they were never sent to jail, but the media deemed them guilty just because.

And now the media was telling people that witches might be real.

"..."

Michael Ovitz didn't talk about it anymore. He knew it was too late. A lot of people already believe that the Blair Witch was real.

"When are you going to end this farce? Release the movie this week and end this quickly."

"Relax, I have already contacted a distributor and they agree to distribute the movie."

Miramax used this method to get out of the mess.

"As for the actors and directors of The Blair Witch Project, they are in South Africa. No one can find them in the United States at this time."

"Alright."

Michael Ovitz nodded. Even though he didn't like this kind of publicity, he admitted that it was amazing. This publicity would trick the citizens into seeing the movie.

If this plan worked, it was possible for The Blair Witch Project to make over $100 million at the box office. The movie was worth $10,000, but the profit it could make was 10,000 times that!

"How much did you spend on this project?"

Michael Ovitz asked curiously. As president of Walt Disney, he had many sources of information.

"I signed a contract with Cinema Alliance two days ago and they agree that The Blair Witch Project will open in over 4000 theaters on day one." Harvey Weinstein smiled.

"4000 copies of the movie will cost me more than $3 million. Along with some advertising to help the media focus on The Blair Witch, I spent more than $10 million."

Harvey Weinstein laughed as he thought about the money he would make this time.

Unlike the Big Six, Miramax used the glory of the Oscars to turn a profit. They would pick movies that could win the Oscars and back them. Once the movie won the Oscars, people would be more interested in buying its videotapes and DVDs.

Recently, DVD sales were getting better and Miramax was adapting and selling DVD copies of their movies as well.

"Make sure that Miramax and Walt Disney are not affected by this project. I don't want people rioting in front of the headquarters."

"Don't worry, I know what to do."

"Sir..."

Suddenly, someone entered Harvey Weinstein's office, it was Harvey Weinstein's sexy secretary. The fat guy frowned because the secretary didn't knock. But he sensed something was wrong, so he waited for her to explain.

"Fox News and CNN have found the truth about The Blair Witch Project..."

"What the fuck did you say? You bitch, get out of the way or I will rape you!"

Considering that this fat guy allegedly sexually assaulted more than 80 women and was convicted for it, there was a good chance that he might do it.

Michael Ovitz frowned as he listened to Harvey's vulgarity. Michael Ovitz was a shameless person and used that talent to build CAA, but Harvey Weinstein was on another level.

"Y- Yes, sir."

The secretary stepped out of the way and let the fat man leave the office.

His office didn't have a TV, so he had to go down to the reception desk. He didn't have time to wait for the elevator to open, so he decided to take the stairs.

When he reached the reception area, he noticed that the TV was tuned to Fox News. His face was sweating pale.

-- "Oh, you mean The Blair Witch Project? Yeah, I saw that movie at the Sundance Film Festival in January. I'm telling you, it's boring as fuck! Oh? I can't swear on national TV, hehe, sorry about that. Anyway, when I realized that the story of the witch from Burkittsville, Maryland had similarities to the movie I watched, I decided to look into it. And then I realized I was right!"

-- "Everybody listen, that video you saw on ABC News is fake! They are just deceiving you! I saw it with my own eyes and it was disappointing. I think somebody is manipulating the media and causing this. They fucking kill four people because of their greed!"

 

[Lillie Jones]

Get Wrecked, Harvey Weinstein ,good riddance
Welcome back Author
Get well soon
Cheers!

 

[Pujimaki]

[Shout out to average joe gaming, suleyman m, ChrisMasterSky and L4kritz!]

Hollywood What If Chapter 188


Several people testified that they had seen the movie.

-- "Me? Oh yeah, I saw the movie about the witch or something. I even had a picture of the movie with my friend. High-definition camera? Yes, my boyfriend is a photographer, so the pictures are always clear."

In the picture you could see a couple... Behind them was a fat guy with a serious look on his face. It was none other than Harvey Weinstein!

Harvey Weinstein actually attended the Sundance Film Festival and saw The Blair Witch Project!

"Harvey, did you just let someone take a picture of you? And the couple even showed the evidence to the media!"

Michael Ovitz was furious. He didn't care about Harvey Weinstein's predicament, but it could cause trouble for Disney. After all, ABC News was the one promoting the movie.

"I didn't know they were trying to take a picture! My eyesight was affected after seeing the movie!"

Harvey Weinstein explained.

"Then find a way to fix it!"

Michael Ovitz said coldly. This could implicate Disney.

Disney tried to project an image that they were family oriented. They didn't want that image to change as much as possible.

'If we had no choice, then Disney would put all the blame on Miramax and Harvey Weinstein. Me and Micheal don't like this fat guy anyway, Harvey's in alliance with Roy Disney. If we let them get more power, it will be a problem for Michael Eisner and me.'

He was looking at Harvey Weinstein like a dagger.

Harvey Weinstein just nodded, but his face was very ugly right now. He was in a bad mood.

"I'm going to try my best to fix this."

"You should."

Harvey Weinstein opened his phone to call his friends. Harvey Weinstein was Jewish and had many friends in show business. He knew someone at Fox News and CNN.

But before he could dial the numbers, the news changed.

-- "The fat guy you see in this picture is actually Harvey Weinstein, the founder of Miramax. Our team has discovered that he bought The Blair Witch Project. If our deduction is correct, he is the one responsible for the movie's publicity."

The news anchor explained.

Then another person was interviewed. This time it was a middle-aged woman. She was crying, sadness clearly in her eyes.

Suddenly, Harvey's chubby cheeks twitched uncomfortably.

-- "My son is a good man! He never did drugs! He never drank alcohol or smoked cigarettes! His friends are only interested in visiting Burkittsville, Maryland, and yet I can't believe this will be the last time I see him alive! All because of a movie! Just because of a fake witch!"

She cried at the top of her lungs and looked miserable on camera. It was very painful for a mother to lose a child.

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

July 14th, 1999. It was Wednesday and many people were lining up to enter the movie theater.

While they were peacefully trying to buy tickets, some protesters were causing trouble outside the theater.

"Justice for John, Meredith, Angelito and Roel!"

These were the slogans they kept repeating. Well, the moviegoers didn't care. They were only interested in the movie.

Two days ago, the truth was revealed that The Blair Witch Project was a movie and the witch and the missing students were not real.

But that didn't stop them from trying to see the movie. Maybe it would be an exciting experience? The hype could never be erased, even when the truth was revealed. People were easily persuaded by peer pressure or perhaps social pressure.

The Blair Witch Project had already made so many headlines and people were now interested, even though the movie was fake.

But when they entered the theater and spent at least 10 minutes watching the movie, their expectations were thrown into the dirty trash can.

The movie, The Blair Witch Project, was boring at best. The cinematography, the unfocused scenes, everything was so amateurish.

"I can't believe I spent more than 1 hour watching this movie. I thought something interesting was going to happen. Damn, I wasted my $7 on a ticket".

"You're damn right. Four people lost their lives because one crazy person tried to make this movie seem real."

The people who saw the movie realized that they had been scammed. They could not believe that anyone could be evil enough to do such a thing.

"What is the name of the owner of Miramax again?"

"I think it's Harvey Weinstein."

"Yeah, I think he needs to explain himself or a lot of people are going to come after him."

The first day of The Blair Witch Project was actually amazing, even though the truth was revealed.

The midnight premiere was $4 million, then the next day it was $8 million.

This trend continued until the first week of The Blair Witch Project grossed over $37 million.

Because of the unique publicity of the movie, many people were interested in seeing the movie.

Of course, the people who saw it realized that they had been scammed and became angry.

However, compared to the original timeline, people were not angry at the two directors and actors of The Blair Witch Project. After all, they were innocent too. After they sold the movie to Miramax, they had no power over it.

This time, people had a clear target to direct their anger at.

Thousands of people protested in front of the Miramax headquarters. But Harvey Weinstein didn't show his face.

'This kind of protest will easily dissipate once the matter is over.'

Being good at his job, Harvey Weinstein knew the best way to survive this incident was to remain silent. He was innocent anyway. He didn't intend to cause an uproar. His hands were clean.

Even though The Blair Witch Project did well and he recouped his investment, the damage it did to him was much worse.

+++++++

[Author's Note: There will be another chapter a few hours later. Tomorrow, I will also post two chapters.]

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 189


Two decades ago, Harvey Weinstein was accused of sexual harassment, even though he was "innocent".

He never did anything bad like that, according to him. He was innocent! He was free from the sin of sexual harassment. He had many "friends" who could testify against the accusations.

However, the "friends" he had began to distance themselves from him because of the incident he had instigated right now.

Harvey Weinstein was cleverly avoiding the media, but he knew he would still get a backlash.

The Miramax team predicted that The Blair Witch Project would exceed $100 million at the North American box office, but it would be difficult for it to exceed $200 million.

In this regard, Harvey Weinstein knew that the publicity he did was fruitful.

Still, there would be cuts before he could get his share of the pie.

Cinema Alliance would, of course, take 40% of the box office.

On top of that, the distributor of The Blair Witch Project would also take a 30% cut. Miramax didn't dare to distribute the film because of the danger it might pose... But their meticulous planning was useless anyway.

Well, the remaining box office share would be 30%, at least $30 million.

Harvey Weinstein invested about $10 million in advertising and movie prints, so the profit would be at least $20 million.

Unfortunately for the fat guy, it seemed that this movie would bring him zero profit.

The four families of the deceased wanted $10 million each!

Harvey Weinstein was the mastermind behind the promotion of The Blair Witch Project. This unique viral marketing caused four deaths after the riot that happened in Burkittsville, Maryland.

Knowing that Harvey Weinstein would be implicated, he decided to settle the matter out of court. With money, he hoped the four families would drop the lawsuits.

Initially, the four families asked for $20 million! But this amount was too damaging for Harvey Weinstein and Miramax.

Even though the profits from the videotapes were plentiful, most of the money would be used to invest in more movies.

The available cash that Harvey Weinstein could take out of the bank was only $50 million. That was already a generous amount.

It was a good thing that his talented attorney lowered the amount to $10 million, any less and the four families would have continued the lawsuit instead.

Harvey Weinstein gritted his teeth and accepted the deal. The situation could send him to prison, so he had no choice but to accept reality.

Obviously, the profit he made from The Blair Witch Project was non-existent. In fact, he might lose about $50 million instead. Truly a pathetic endeavor.

Another thing, the current situation has caused the women around him to make trouble again. Just like what happened in the 1970s, the women who had accused him were reappearing... He recognized most of them, but his lips were tightly sealed.

Fortunately, this matter was overshadowed by the riot incident and The Blair Witch Project. The media focused more on The Blair Witch Project and the four families who lost their loved ones. Of course, the women who accused him were also interviewed in the media.

In those days, Harvey Weinstein felt like the world was against him. He wondered what he had done. If there was one good thing, it was that he was protected by his "loyal friends" for the time being. More specifically, his position in the industry protected him.

"Fuck the Blair Witch Project!"

Suddenly, Harvey Weinstein could not help but curse the film, blaming it for his own misdeeds.

This movie had brought him nothing but backlash. Now he had to lay low until the media forgot about it.

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

Coincidence was all Kazir Grey could say. Actually, he had no intention of exaggerating the situation. He just wanted to tell the truth about The Blair Witch Project.

That is why Kazir decided to contact the people who had seen the movie to testify. That was his real intention.

He then found a couple who took a picture while watching the movie as evidence... Kazir Grey didn't expect Harvey Weinstein to be caught on camera! He had no idea that the fat guy actually watched the movie personally!

Kazir wanted to use the picture as a way to make trouble for Harvey Weinstein. Use it to show that Harvey Weinstein was actually the mastermind.

Kazir had a grudge against the fat guy and it was the right time to get back at him.

However, Kazir didn't expect a riot to break out and four people to be killed.

Kazir's attitude changed after that. He felt that this was no longer about him. This was not about him taking revenge.

People need to know the truth about the Blair Witch.

Even though it might get him into trouble, Kazir Grey decided to do the right thing.

He used his connections and contacted 20th Century Fox and Warner Bros. These two giants had a close relationship with him and would likely cooperate.

The rest was history.

"I am sure that Harvey Weinstein has his own way of tracking down the leak. He will definitely know that I'm the one responsible for his problem. Heh, let's leave it at that. He fucked around, so he found out."

He was a little disheartened that Harvey didn't go to jail this time.

"He didn't kill the four people directly and he never incited violence. He just started a massive prank..."

As for the sexual harassment allegations, they were overshadowed.

Well, the feminist movement was still rising. As far as the #MeToo movement is concerned, it got a lot of recognition because of the internet, which was still in its infancy at the time.

Another fact was the people who protected Harvey Weinstein.

A lot of people in the industry knew what he did, they just kept quiet about it and act like nothing happened.

However, Kazir knew that Harvey Weinstein would go to jail in the future, and he would make sure that certain future was preserved.

++++

[Author's Note: See you tomorrow.]

 

[Lillie Jones]

Your better Run Harvey Weinstein, cause Kazir Grey is gonna make sure that particular events certainly comes to fruition in the future, HAHA!
Continue on
Cheers!

 

[Midnightson41]

Well seems like Miramax is going to be under a lot of heat for a while assuming Harvey will be able to escape being convicted yet again.

But now I'm curious as to how the Found Footage Genre will develop with the Backlash the Blair Witch received as now that the Hype and Controversy is gone it seems like it's not going to mainstay in the minds of Film goer's.

 

[TheShadowDeamon]

I'm wondering how the news company is going to be affected. This is before 'fake news' sites such as The Onion exist and at this point in time people have a much deeper trust in the papers/t.v. broardcasts. The internet is still developing and isn't anywhere near what we're used to. When the public realises that the company delibrately aired fake information in such a way as to deceive them they will start to question if they've been broardcasting other falsehoods and will also start wondering about other companies. It doesn't matter that it would eventually be revealed to be a trailer, the public has to be able to trust what they're being told. Otherwise they won't believe anything they are told. This is also going to be fueled by the deaths and cause even more anger. IMO one likely possibility is that the goverment reacts to the nationwide outrage by passing laws on news outlets where:

• Heavier requirements to check the facts and sources,
• Large fines for broardcasting deliberate falsehoods,
• A requirement to indicate when somthing is fiction not fact,
• Whenever new information invalidates previous information to print a retraction/air an update - and not hidden in tiny print right at the back or aired only once at 3am when virtually no-one will see it.

I predict all the other newsources being very pissed at them for the amnount of extra work and paperwork they'll all have to do now.

 

[Pujimaki]

I'm wondering how the news company is going to be affected. This is before 'fake news' sites such as The Onion exist and at this point in time people have a much deeper trust in the papers/t.v. broardcasts. The internet is still developing and isn't anywhere near what we're used to. When the public realises that the company delibrately aired fake information in such a way as to deceive them they will start to question if they've been broardcasting other falsehoods and will also start wondering about other companies. It doesn't matter that it would eventually be revealed to be a trailer, the public has to be able to trust what they're being told. Otherwise they won't believe anything they are told. This is also going to be fueled by the deaths and cause even more anger. IMO one likely possibility is that the goverment reacts to the nationwide outrage by passing laws on news outlets where:

• Heavier requirements to check the facts and sources,
• Large fines for broardcasting deliberate falsehoods,
• A requirement to indicate when somthing is fiction not fact,
• Whenever new information invalidates previous information to print a retraction/air an update - and not hidden in tiny print right at the back or aired only once at 3am when virtually no-one will see it.

I predict all the other newsources being very pissed at them for the amnount of extra work and paperwork they'll all have to do now.

Click to shrink...

An interesting and valid take... I didn't think about this at all.

 

[TheShadowDeamon]

Indeed under those circumstances, Miramax will be rapidly distancing themselves from all of this in reflex to survive the building storm. After all:
"HARVEY WEINSTIEN is the one who's responsible for all of this. We had no idea what he was planning, he didn't tell us until after he'd done it. We deeply regret this tragedy and Harvey has been fired for his actions ".

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 190


Two weeks after its release, The Blair Witch Project had grossed more than $84 million. Even though the hype was over, some people liked the uniqueness of the found footage movie and decided to see it again.

In this aspect, everyone in Hollywood realized the power of viral marketing. However, after studying this method, they learned that it is very hard to replicate this kind of performance. Maybe only The Blair Witch Project could do it.

If not for the fact that Harvey Weinstein was caught in a bind, this movie might have been classified as a successful film. Too bad for Miramax, they didn't make a profit even though the movie was a success.

The out-of-court settlement happened quickly because Harvey Weinstein wanted to end the scandal as soon as possible. He didn't want to stay in the spotlight.

In the end, the settlement was $11 million each. It was the best the lawyer could do. It was a miracle that Harvey Weinstein didn't go to jail this time. Maybe his influence was not that simple. Anyway, this was a big loss for Harvey Weinstein and Miramax. They have learned their lesson and will never try this marketing method again.

The news related to The Blair Witch Project slowly faded away as the matter was already over.

John F. Kennedy Junior, his wife and relatives were killed in a plane crash. This terrible news alleviated the matter of The Blair Witch Project and people gradually forgot about it.

There were still some people protesting in front of Miramax, but the media had already forgotten about them. Maybe next month these people would get tired of protesting as well.

Moviegoers started to see other movies after the truth about The Blair Witch Project came out.

Eyes Wide Shut was released on July 16, just two days after the release of The Blair Witch Project. This movie, starring Tom Cruise and his wife, Nicole Kidman-Cruise, was affected by The Blair Witch Project and only grossed $21 million in its first week.

Eyes Wide Shut was the last movie the couple appeared in together. 2 years later the couple filed for divorce.

A week after The Blair Witch Project, The Haunting starring Liam Neeson and Catherine Zeta-Jones was released. The influence of The Blair Witch Project on this horror movie was quite strong, considering that both were horror movies.

Nevertheless, perhaps because of Liam Neeson's performance over the past few years, The Haunting grossed $33 million in its first week. Liam Neeson was now a famous actor who had an Oscar statue among his achievements. In this case, even his performances were better than Tom Cruise, who never won an Oscar statue.

Next was Deep Blue Sea. This movie was kind of a Jaws rip-off about smart sharks eating people. If there was anything interesting about this movie, it was that Samuel L. Jackson got eaten by a shark while giving a Ted talk. A great moment indeed...

In the month of July, the biggest winner was none other than The Runaway Bride starring Richard Gere and Brianna Evans. Because of the recommendation Kazir made to Paramount, Julia Roberts did not get the part. Instead, it was Brianna Evans who became the female lead in Runaway Bride.

Runaway Bride grossed $35 million in its first week at the box office. The difference between The Blair Witch Project and Runaway Bride was the production value. Unlike horror movies that were rated R, Runaway Bride was a PG-13 movie and it had a better audience than The Blair Witch Project.

In the long run, Runaway Bride would make more money than The Blair Witch Project.

Kazir's interference in the timeline caused changes such as Liam Neeson's status and Brianna Evans' appearance. One thing was for sure, it would not be the last time.

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

August was the least popular month in the summer schedule. The Big Six usually didn't release their profitable movies in this month, just like in September.

Sony-Columbia didn't have any major movies to release this month. They agreed to release The Bourne Identity in the second week of the month and put their resources behind the movie.

The initial promotion for The Bourne Identity began a month ago and intensified throughout August.

Billboards of Matt Damon and Cameron Diaz on many buildings. The Bourne Identity flyers plastered on walls. Movie commercials on television.

Even though The Bourne Identity was not owned by Sony-Columbia, they cared about the movie and did their job faithfully.

It was crazy how Sony-Columbia agreed to this decision. Maybe they were desperate to keep their position, afraid of losing their edge. Afraid that DreamWorks would take over their position as one of the Big Six.

The Bruce Almighty would be released the following year. The movie needed more time in post-production because it had many special effects.

Perhaps the bleak August schedule was a good thing because The Bourne Identity had no competition. There was no big movie to compete with. This meant that most of the tickets would be acquired by The Bourne Identity.

Unfortunately, some of the universities had already started their school days, and that might affect the box office of The Bourne Identity.

"Are you ready?"

"Yes!"

A group of people shouted in unison. They wore suits for this movie, even the women wore suits.

After the success of Matrix a few months ago, the fashion sense of young people was affected. They were wearing black tuxedos, black pants. They look like professional office workers...

Knowing that The Bourne Identity was related to Taken and John Wick, these people decided to wear a suit that resembled John Wick's appearance.

These people were loyal fans who supported Kazir Grey. Napoleon Dynamite, The Hangover, Taken, and John Wick. These people have seen at least one of Kazir's movies and decided to join this group.

Um, they call their group the Grey Fans...

+++++

[I'll post another chapter a few minutes later. Let me have a dinner first.]

 

[Pujimaki]

Hollywood What If Chapter 191


Billy and Wallace nodded in agreement as they looked at each other wearing tuxedos. After watching John Wick, the two decided to form a group that would be loyal to Kazir Grey's movies. Their intention was simple, they just wanted to find people to talk to about Kazir's movies.

They visited IMDb and Yahoo and realized that they were not the only people who were in love with Kazir's filmography. Especially on IMDb, they found so many avid fans who supported the movies.

Then these people slowly formed and some of them created a website for them to talk about Kazir's movies.

Since The Bourne Identity, Kazir's upcoming movie, was about to be released. The group decided to meet and watch the movie together. Many of them were excited.

Billy and Wallace said that to make things interesting, they should wear similar clothes. They chose a suit that looked like John Wick. Having a black suit was not that new, but having a group of people wearing the same outfit was definitely eye-catching.

Some of them were literally cosplaying John Wick, with shoulder-length hair and a beard. From a distance, they resemble John Wick quite a bit.

This group of John Wick, men and women, were waiting for the premiere of The Bourne Identity. The moviegoers couldn't help but look at them, and the Grey fans were happy to see their reactions.

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

At the other theater, Regal Cinema in Los Angeles, the red carpet was already rolled out and people were excited.

Most of the people attending the premiere were Sony-Columbia executives, the Grey Pictures crew, film critics and the lucky fans who got tickets.

The actors and important people walked on the red carpet and photographers started to take pictures of them.

Some actors related to the Continental Cinematic Universe attended the premiere. Even the protagonists of the last two movies were there.

Liam Neeson smiled and kept his composure under the eyes of many people. After the success of Taken and winning the Best Actor award, Liam Neeson's life improved and almost everyone knew him.

Now he was no longer known as "the guy in Schindler's List". He was recognized as Liam Neeson, the actor.

After him came the appearance of Viggo Mortensen. It was none other than John Wick.

Even though Viggo Mortensen didn't become super famous after John Wick, his status was much better. Back then, almost no one knew about him.

But now some people would look at him and call him John Wick, and some of them would ask for autographs. That was the moment Viggo Mortensen knew he had made it.

The production of The Lord Of The Rings was still going on and he spent most of his time in New Zealand. The production of The Lord Of The Rings was actually longer than that of John Wick, which only lasted three months.

Maybe the difference in genre was one of the reasons. The preparation for The Lord Of The Rings was more complicated than John Wick.

Another factor was Kazir Grey's shooting style. His crew was consistent and they could finish a scene very quickly. He knew what he wanted to shoot, so there was no waste in the middle.

The two protagonists were invited because of their roles. Taken 2 would be released in November or December of this year, and attending the premiere of The Bourne Identity was also a kind of promotion for Liam Neeson.

Almost the entire cast of The Bourne Identity attended the premiere.

The last people to walk the red carpet were none other than Robert Ludlum and his son. The author of the Jason Bourne series.

Sony-Columbia and Grey Pictures agreed to promote the movie with nostalgia. They remind people that the movie is based on bestselling books from the 80s.

Of course, they also used Robert Ludlum as a means of publicity. Even though Robert Ludlum was old, he did his best to participate in the movie. He felt young again.

Robert Ludlum felt the excitement of the people around him as he waved his hands. It seemed the publicity had been worth it, at least people knew about him.

When Robert Ludlum entered the theater, he found Kazir Grey sitting next to Cameron Diaz.

"Director Grey, I want to express my sincere gratitude. Thank you for making my dream come true."

"My pleasure, I'm glad you gave me the chance to direct this movie."

Kazir replied. He knew the profitability of this franchise and was happy to have acquired it.

"I believe this movie will be a success."

"Indeed."

The two agreed. They were confident about the movie.

Robert Ludlum saw the movie before the premiere. It was a small screening where people from Sony-Columbia watched the movie to determine the strength of the movie. They would come up with a promotional plan after they saw the movie. Robert Ludlum watched the small screening with his family.

He was happy and satisfied as he watched. Of course, he was skeptical about another part of the plot. Fortunately, he had seen Taken and John Wick, so he had an idea about Kazir's intentions.

It was written in the contract that Robert Ludlum would let the director choose the plot as long as the character of Jason Bourne was not bamboozled. Of course, the script had to be approved by him, the creator of Jason Bourne.

He was the executive producer of the movie, although his presence wasn't strong because he was already old and couldn't participate that much. Even though he was not active, Grey Pictures still paid him a salary of $300 thousand.

On top of that, Robert Ludlum would get a 3% cut of the revenues of The Bourne Identity, from the box office to the peripherals.