Chapter 533： Katherine

"Saharan Raiders" failed. Even if Paramount wanted to ignore it, the truth is the truth.

Whether it's a big drop at the box office or the audience's poor reputation, it declares that the project has failed, and even the film critics don't like the film, which is full of ridicule.

It may be said that "Saharan Raiders" is almost bathed in criticism, and the box office is declining every day.

Because of this, a lot of bad things happened.

Every failure of a masterpiece requires someone to take responsibility, and this time, Paramount fired two production executives.

But this approach can hardly make up for it, it is just for the shareholders of the board of directors, they need an explanation.

On the other hand, the original author of the novel also jumped out, and the United Publishing House sued Paramount in the court together, because Paramount did not perform the adaptation contract well-because the project failed, the original author could not get the box office that belonged to him. Revenue is shared, but there is no provision in the contract that it is profit sharing, so as long as there is a box office, the profit should be shared, but Paramount believes that the loss part does not need to be shared - if you don't make money, what will you get?

The two insisted on their own opinions and quarreled for a long time, but this kind of lawsuit usually has no results. The court will let the two sides settle in private to a large extent, and delaying is not the way.

Of course, these are all small things. The real big thing is that for a project that is eager to make a box office hit and make a series of profits, "Saharan Raiders" has no future.

What is even more tragic is that in terms of stopping losses, Paramount has tried its best to not give filming bonuses to actors, directors and even the behind-the-scenes production team, but also to reduce publicity expenses, and to sell the copyright quickly. After calculation, The amount of loss will still be more than 120 million, which is a nightmare for Paramount, which is already embarrassed.

In other words, if Paramount only relied on the production business in the first half of the year, it would have lost more than 300 million yuan (7 films were produced in the first half of the year, 4 of which were unsuccessful). If there is no distribution business and other sources of profit, revenue and expenditure Can't keep the balance.

The fact is that Paramount is so weak now, let alone maintaining the decency of the Big Six, that even most second-tier studios can’t match it.

The fiasco of "Saharan Raiders" made Paramount pay more attention to the new project "Mrs. & Mrs. Smith". Shirley Lansing even called to urge Lyman to complete the preliminary preparations as soon as possible.

On April 22, when Lyman stepped out of the Paramount elevator, Director Tony greeted him with a smile, "Mr. Rust, the actors are all here."

Lehman followed Tony and asked casually, "Are the location, props, and costumes ready?"

"Well, it's all ready."

"Well, let's also determine the actors. Paramount is really pressing."

Tony smiled in agreement.

Afterwards, the two walked into a parlour, where a beautiful woman sat.

She has long black flowing hair, a pair of amber-like charming pupils, and she has the elegance of a British lady, beautiful and sexy...

This woman is Catherine Zeta-Jones, who was specially chosen by Lyman and fits the role of Jane Smith very well. She is 36 years old this year. Although she has practiced classical ballet since she was a child, she is still a woman, but she still maintains a good figure. Of course, she is the star The road is a little bleak, and I don't do well in Hollywood, and there are too few resources.

In the original time and space, after marrying the famous old **** Michael Douglas in the circle, he almost retired, and occasionally came out to pick up a few bad movies, but he was not famous.

Coincidentally, when the casting list for "Mrs & Mrs. Smith" was handed over to Lyman after two rounds of audition, he saw her at a glance, so he called her agent to inquire about the schedule.

Of course, Catherine, who has been semi-retired at home to take care of her children, is very busy. After receiving the project invitation, she quickly came to Hollywood.

Catherine heard about Lyman's deeds, and immediately stood up to say hello after the two came in.

After a few chats, Lyman exchanged roles with her, "Miss Catherine, I have seen your audition performance, and I think your image matches the role very well."

"thanks."

Today's Lehmann is very famous in the circle, and Catherine, as a British actor, is not popular, and she is not happy in Hollywood. This is the reason why she married early - if the actor has a successful career, she may not marry. So simple, I can't bring my children out at home. At this time, I heard that there is a possibility of becoming the heroine of "Mrs. Smith". Of course, I was very happy, "Thank you Mr. Rust for giving me this opportunity, I will work hard."

Lehman waved his hand, "Your role this time needs to be trained as soon as possible to adapt to firearms and fighting performances. There are a lot of such scenes in the filming."

Don't look at Catherine Zeta-Jones when she is quiet, she is very ladylike, but her dancing skills have never fallen, her toughness is very good, her skills are neat, and many difficult shapes can be easily made, not to mention her in "The Mask of Zorro" The fiery wild beauty in ' is more suitable for Jane Smith than Angelina Jolie.

"Okay, let's do it first, remember to ask your agent to come over and talk about the remuneration. Also, come over tomorrow to meet your partner and get familiar with the shooting." Lyman waved Catherine away and discussed with Tony again: "The male protagonist of "Mr & Mrs. Smith" Who do you like?"

"This role has to go well with Katherine, and it must have appeal and a positive image."

"Well, the combination of handsome men and beautiful women is definitely eye-catching, and the audience will accept it."

Tony personally hosted the role audition, and Lehman basically did not intervene except for a little intervention and the removal of Brad Pitt in advance.

Therefore, in terms of the familiarity of actors, Tony should be more familiar with the audition style.

He thought for a while before suggesting, "Pierce Brosnan? Bond is famous enough, do you want to identify him?"

"Pierce? Isn't he about to quit the 007 series?" Lyman seemed to be a little impressed by this.

"Yes, I heard that the 007 series is going to change the male lead. If he continues to act, his salary is too high and the shooting risk is too high, and his coming to audition this time may also mean that he has to quit."

Lehman thinks of this person and thinks it's okay. He has a reputation and a good audience. After all, he is a special agent "Bond", which can be regarded as a kind of feeling. Firearms are definitely not unfamiliar, and they can adapt to the role as soon as possible.

After thinking for a moment, Lyman instructed: "Then let him come over tomorrow."

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