~： Five hundred and eighty-nine - "The Lord of the Rings" preparation

Of course, Warner Bros. never opened an orphanage. In fact, when the project plan for "The Lord of the Rings" and the accompanying detailed script were submitted, Warner Bros. had no less than three high-level meetings full of heated arguments.

The epic masterpiece "The Lord of the Rings" has no one can tell how many fans the world has. Even in Hollywood, there is no shortage of fans of this book, and there are also many good fans. The Hollywood movie has borrowed this masterpiece in its setting.

To put it simply, as long as the legendary elves are mentioned, the first reaction in people's minds is definitely the handsome face, the slender body, and the long ears. And this elf image that everyone will subconsciously think of comes from this magnificent novel.

But after so many years, the reason why this epic has not been put on the big screen by Hollywood is because it is too difficult. In the circle, this book is called the most difficult in history and the first film adaptation. .

But in the end, the reason why Warner Bros. passed the review of this project, Jeff Robinoff's speech, played a decisive role.

"Wayne said that if Warner Bros. didn't get involved in the project, Greenberg Studios would raise funds independently to make this epic independently!"

No one would be foolish enough to ask whether Greenberg Studios has this capability. With the name of Wayne Greenberg, there will be countless film funds, film investors, and even other giants in the Big Six. Participate with money.

Countless successes in the film industry in the past are Wayne's biggest source of confidence for Warner Bros. shareholders. Failure, that kind of thing seems to never find him. And this time, since he will invest in real money, it means that he is very optimistic about this project.

Coupled with "Batman: The Dark Knight", which is now ranked first in the box office of film history, naturally there are some people who would rather choose to follow Wayne's investment choices without thinking. There are many such people, and Warner Bros. No shortage.

Don't think they are superstitious, Los Angeles, or Hollywood, has always been the most superstitious North American circle, and the most superstitious in this circle will always be successful.

So, how can we guarantee that Greenberg Studio will invest in real money in the project of "The Lord of the Rings", after all, this is the confidence of many shareholders in favor of Warner Bros. investment. Give money, yes, just give money, a little in advance to pay Greenberg's studio sooner or later, as well as the big share Wayne himself deserves.

Once a decision was made, Warner Bros. acted very quickly. After the "Lord of the Rings" project was approved, it contacted Wayne's accountant Colin Howard for reconciliation. At an extremely fast speed, Warner Bros. financial department Put the money into the Greenberg studio account.

"The last production fund of "Charlie's Angels" is 30 million US dollars. After you sign it, it will be credited to the account of Merrill Lynch Insurance Company. Apart from this, there are no other major expenses in the near future."

When a large amount of money entered the Greenberg studio account, Nina checked the financial statements immediately, but for the various uses and directions of the money, Wayne's autograph was required. "The preparatory funds for "The Lord of the Rings" were US$150 million. According to the investment ratio, we and Warner Bros. each took US$75 million."

Glancing at Wayne, who was flipping through the documents, the assistant paused deliberately, and after he signed the signature, he continued: "Even if this part of the funds is deducted, there is still $130 million in the studio's account, and the follow-up investment in "The Lord of the Rings" , at least a year later, so this money..."

Anyone who is a qualified rich person knows clearly that holding a large amount of cash in hand is the stupidest way to manage money. In terms of the current depreciation rate of the US dollar, the interest rate in the bank may not keep up with the depreciation of money. speed.

Therefore, investment is always a topic that the rich in North America cannot get around. At this point, as Wayne's net worth is getting higher and higher, and he has no big spending habits, investment is also an unavoidable topic.

"Don't move the money, you should know what I'm thinking." Putting down the folder, Wayne smiled and pointed to Nina's glasses, shook his head, and said, "Pay attention to tax issues, I don't want to be caught by the IRS. Group of vampires entangled!"

"You don't have to worry about this. The accountant team led by Colin will keep an eye on every tax avoidance plan." The assistant lady pushed the glasses on her face, picked up the folder he just signed, and stuffed it into herself inside the briefcase.

"Ok, what time is the media reception?"

"6 o'clock, Peter Jackson has passed, and we have no time to leave the studio now." Nina neatly packed her desk and packed Wayne's personal belongings, then raised her head and said, "Warner Bros. There are a lot of media invited this time, they made a gimmick with a production cost of 350 million US dollars, and after the media reception, there will be a reception."

Strictly speaking, the total production budget of "The Lord of the Rings" is indeed 350 million US dollars. Warner Bros. will definitely not give up this publicity stunt. Although the relevant contracts have been signed in advance, they still invited the media to hold a press conference. to announce the news.

You must know that the book "The Lord of the Rings" has a huge fan base, and they are all potential audiences for the movie. The reason why Warner Bros. announced the project preparation through the media is to remind this huge group that your favorite literary epic is Coming soon to the big screen.

Don't look at the total investment budget of this project is 350 million US dollars, but after all, this is a trilogy series, so looking at it separately, in fact, the funds are not abundant at all. The only good news is that most of the investment in this project will definitely be For film production, the proportion of personnel compensation is not too high.

Peter Jackson, the director, actually signed a salary of only $2 million for the director and screenwriter. Wayne, the nominal producer, also only received a nominal salary of $200,000. After all, he was really nominal this time. There is also no energy to stare at the preparation of the film at all.

The power of the crew is definitely impossible to hold in the hands of Peter Jackson. Whether in terms of qualifications or trust, this matter is completely impossible. For this reason, the preparatory period for "The Lord of the Rings" has been more than a year. For the project, there must be a producer that both parties can trust.

So, John Gray, the guy who worked with Wayne and is now an executive of Warner Bros. film and television production department, will once again become the project production manager. He will partner with Peter Jackson to work on "The Lord of the Rings" for thousands of dollars. preparatory work.

At 6 o'clock in the evening, Wayne walked into the press room of the Four Seasons Hotel Beverly in a low-key manner. His arrival immediately attracted the long guns and short guns of all the media. The reporters directly ignored Peter Jackson and John Gray who were sitting in the middle. et al.

"Mr. Greenberg, it is reported that you are the copyright owner of "The Lord of the Rings" and also participated in the investment in this project..."

"Wayne, Wayne, have you considered directing this project yourself?"

"Can you talk about your thoughts on the filming of The Lord of the Rings?"

He didn't even wait for the host to announce the start. All kinds of questions were thrown in front of him. Facing the flashing camera flash and the large group of media reporters, Wayne raised his hands and pressed down, and did not choose to answer any questions. , instead, with a smile, he signaled the host to start as planned.

"The total investment of "The Lord of the Rings" will reach 350 million US dollars. It will be jointly invested and produced by Greenberg Studios and Warner Bros., and the film will be directed by Peter Jackson..."

Following the host's narration, the live media were also surprised.

"$350 million! mygod!"

"Whatthef**k! Are Warner Bros. kidding? Such a big investment for a rookie director..."

In the face of the reporter's whispered comments, the host did not stop his work. After introducing the film information step by step, he immediately announced that he would enter the media questioning session.

Throughout the press conference, Wayne was like a mascot, sitting opposite to the side with a smile on his face. No matter how many questions the reporters asked him, the audience hardly answered any questions, completely giving up the stage to Peter. - Jackson and John Gray.

To put it bluntly, he is only an investor in this film, and even if he has the title of producer, he will not personally intervene in the specific work of the project. The bearded New Zealander in the middle has paid enough for this day, and he certainly knows what this guy can do well enough.

After the press conference, Wayne left the press room in a low-key way ahead of schedule. After meeting with the assistant, he took the elevator to the banquet hall on the fourth floor where the reception was held.

"The guy appeared again Nina took advantage of the only two of them in the elevator, and whispered: "This is the ninth high-end party in the circle that the guy has attended this year. "

Nodding silently, Wayne didn't say anything else, just silently thinking about the timing of the shot. With the sound of "ding", he had just left the elevator, and two unexpected greetings interrupted his thinking.

"Hello, Director Greenberg."

"Hi Wayne."

Not far from the elevator, stood two men with wine glasses, one of them was Townsend Rothman, the CEO of Twentieth Century Fox, and the other was a gray-haired old man, although these years They have met more than once, but have not formally greeted each other.

"Hi, Townsend."

With a smile on his face, Wayne took a few steps forward to the two of them, first nodding to Townsend Rothman. Then he squinted slightly at the gray-haired old man, and took the initiative to stretch out his right hand. "Good evening, Mr. Murdoch, long time no see."

At the same time, I was also wondering, this guy should not appear on this occasion. Although this is a relatively high-end reception, it was also held in the name of Warner Bros. for "The Lord of the Rings".