I am Hollywood

[Chapter 796: I Don't Have Such an Obligation]

During a break while filming Casino Royale, Eric took a week to read the scripts for the two sequels to The Matrix penned by the Wachowski brothers.

Although the new scripts contained some variations from the original plot, they still retained that elusive storytelling style that left people scratching their heads. In the original timeline, the Wachowski brothers had been granted enough production power during the sequel's development due to the first film's success, which allowed them to inject their personal touches into the two sequels.

The Matrix, with its impressive action sequences, innovative filming techniques, and profound philosophical themes, had stirred up a massive global response and amassed a legion of fans. The subsequent second installment, while beginning to unravel in terms of storyline, still managed to rake in over $700 million worldwide due to the box office clout of the first film and a plethora of special effects. However, the quality of the sequel fell significantly short of the original, rapidly depleting the franchise's accumulated popularity, which directly led to a box office disaster for the third film.

Many believed that the reason for The Matrix Reloaded's low box office performance was due to Warner Bros. scheduling the releases too close together, with less than six months between the two sequels. However, one could observe from Warner Bros.' methodical ten-year brand management of the Harry Potter series that they understood the reasoning behind spacing out sequels and its potential impact on box office sales. It was simply that The Matrix Revolutions had turned out so disappointingly mediocre that Warner Bros. dared not postpone its release. They decided to capitalize on whatever they could while the heat from The Matrix was still alive and arranged for an early premiere.

In fact, it proved to be the right move for Warner Bros.; had they delayed The Matrix Revolutions by a year or two, the impact of the first two films would likely have faded, and even hitting $300 million worldwide by that point would have been considered a success, making the $400 million break-even line unattainable.

Eric hoped for both sequels to be shot back-to-back to save on costs. However, in order to avoid the missteps that had plagued The Matrix series in the past, he dismissed that idea and, in his reply to the Wachowski brothers, rejected the back-to-back filming plan, insisting they rewrite the script.

Eric made it clear that if the scripts continued to fail to satisfy him, he would park the series for a long time. Firefly had already amassed sufficient rights over the years, and with the Marvel catalog alone, they had enough material to develop properties for the next thirty years. Therefore, the company did not heavily rely on these cash cow series and had enough confidence to pursue perfection.

...

Los Angeles.

The Matrix series had already entered its third week in theaters. With no strong new releases, the film saw only a minor 21% drop in its second week, bringing in $61.97 million, accumulating a total box office of $140 million over two weeks.

On that Saturday, Jeffrey Katzenberg wasn't taking a break. After receiving Eric's feedback on The Matrix scripts, he specially invited the Wachowski brothers to breakfast at Playa Vista Firefly Studios and communicated Eric's decision.

"Eric wants you to feel free to add your thoughts, but the sequels' scripts must be coherent, complete stories. The script you provided looks more like a collection of scenes. If there's no complete story, starting production will undoubtedly result in disaster, so the script must be rewritten. The specifics are all in this document," Katzenberg said as he passed a folder to the brothers sitting across from him. "Additionally, Eric has also vetoed the plan to shoot both sequels back-to-back; you'll need to do it one at a time."

The brothers seemed rather gloomy at Eric's request for a complete rewrite and even resentful. They both felt that the success of The Matrix was largely due to their diverse inputs. However, the rights to The Matrix were firmly held by Firefly, which also retained the power to replace directors. While the brothers had naturally gained some bargaining power after the film's box office success, Firefly was not likely to easily replace them. Ultimately, control rested with Firefly.

Andy Wachowski took the folder and flipped it open, recognizing the original script he had once penned, though it now bore several annotations.

After some thought, Andy cleared his throat and said, "Jeffrey, if we start completely from scratch, it might take a really long time, maybe a year or two to finish. By then, the film's excitement may have faded. So I believe we can modify this draft instead of starting over completely."

In Hollywood, unless a film has become a cultural phenomenon like Star Wars, where they can reboot years later and still have a robust fan base, sequels typically had a production gap of two to three years. If it took too long, the popularity of the original could diminish significantly, raising the risk of the sequel's box office performance.

Though the Wachowski brothers had not been in Hollywood long, they understood this principle. Thus, Andy's words carried an undercurrent of a threat: if the script was entirely scrapped, they couldn't guarantee the film would see production in the coming years.

Katzenberg understood the implicit warning. "Eric brought that point up too. If the script continues to fall short, Firefly will put this series on hold for a long time."

Larry Wachowski interjected, "What happens to our contract with Firefly if the project is shelved for an extended period?"

Initially, as a condition for obtaining the directing rights for The Matrix, the Wachowski brothers signed a three-film option agreement with Firefly. In other words, until they completed three movies with Firefly, they couldn't collaborate with any other studios, or it would be considered a breach of contract.

To ensure the completion of The Matrix trilogy, the first film, Bound, didn't count towards this agreement. That meant the brothers still owed Firefly two films.

Upon hearing Larry's concern, Katzenberg shrugged slightly. "So I suggest you both put your best effort into crafting the sequel's script."

Andy tentatively stated, "If the script takes too long to complete, can we work on other films or perhaps collaborate with... other studios?"

"Other films are possible, as long as the project is excellent," Katzenberg ambiguously replied. "However, collaborating with other studios is out of the question unless you complete your contract obligations. Firefly made you successful with The Matrix; we are not permitting you to leverage that fame for other companies' benefit. That's just not how Hollywood works."

Katzenberg's increasingly firm tone left the brothers feeling disgruntled, but sadly, they understood how difficult it would be to escape this contract.

At this point, there wasn't much else to discuss. Andy, with a blank expression, closed the folder before him and stood up. "We've got the message. If there's nothing else, we'll take our leave."

Katzenberg stood as well, politely extending his hand. "Well then, goodbye."

...

After personally escorting the Wachowski brothers out of the restaurant, Katzenberg returned to his seat where Frank Wells had already settled in. He had been at the restaurant earlier but chose not to interrupt Katzenberg and the brothers during their discussion.

Once Katzenberg was seated, Frank said, "Jeffrey, you didn't need to be so hard on them. You could have been a bit gentler."

"That's your job -- to soothe ruffled feathers. I don't have that obligation," Katzenberg joked, flashing a smile.

Having seen the Wachowski brothers' Bound, along with the recently muddled script for The Matrix sequels, Katzenberg felt deep down that, aside from The Matrix, the duo's chances of achieving greatness in Hollywood were slim. They were too entrenched in their unique vision, and while such a strong personal style might win them an Oscar, it wouldn't translate well at the box office.

As for the Oscars, Katzenberg was equally indifferent. He believed the fundamental goal of a film company was to chase profits; accolades were merely icing on the cake. Back during his control of Disney Animation, whenever animators suggested adding more "artistic" value to their projects, Katzenberg would sarcastically ask, "You trying to win an Oscar?" That line even became a bit of a catchphrase for him.

"Alright, just say the word when you need me to smooth things over," Frank teased in response.

Since the Disney days, Frank had established his reputation as the peacemaking type. In the 1980s, the Disney board originally planned to have him and Eisner co-CEO the company. After considerable infighting, it was Frank who stepped up, offering to be Eisner's deputy, thus resolving the deadlock. During the Firefly era, due to Eric's emergence, Frank managed to dodge a life-threatening plane crash, which allowed Katzenberg to rise to power while Frank diligently remained Firefly's second-in-command. His accommodating nature earned him the respect of most management, including Katzenberg himself.

As they bantered over coffee, Frank leisurely handed a box office report to Katzenberg, saying, "It seems our box office numbers this week aren't looking too good."

According to Hollywood's box office tracking cycle, yesterday marked the start of a new week. Katzenberg hadn't yet had time to assess Friday's numbers, so he took the A4 sheet Frank offered him and glanced at the figures.

Upon his first look, Katzenberg raised an eyebrow.

The top daily box office for the new week wasn't Firefly's release, The Rock, but rather Universal Pictures' new comedy, The Nutty Professor, starring Eddie Murphy.

"Wait, is that Eddie Murphy's new movie?"

As head of Firefly, Katzenberg kept close tabs on significant summer contenders, but he hadn't previously focused on this particular comedy, hence his puzzled tone.

Since the underperformance of Beverly Hills Cop III, Eddie Murphy had been somewhat quiet for the past few years. Many, including Katzenberg, felt that with Firefly's strong momentum, The Rock would naturally dominate the opening day and week box office.

Yet, the results showed that The Nutty Professor amassed $7.9 million on opening day, whereas The Rock brought in just over $7.4 million. While the figures were close enough that they could potentially reverse over the weekend, The Rock ultimately lost out on the opening day.

When this unexpected box office data surfaced, Frank had called Katzenberg multiple times without success, prompting him to rush to see him.

"Yes," Frank nodded, concern creeping into his voice. "I don't think this is a good sign. And don't forget, Cameron is currently working on Titanic..."

Katzenberg sensed an anomaly as well, but he reassured Frank, "Let's gather the distribution team, including Brian, for a meeting to discuss this. However, Frank, it's just day one's data; we shouldn't be too alarmed. If we do encounter one or two flops, it's unlikely Firefly's stock will plummet by 10% because we're not even publicly traded, ha ha." He chuckled, continuing, "Plus, you've seen the recent revenue from television ad bidding."

"I just feel like Eric's approach to filmmaking over these past few years has been a bit too risky -- either it's new talent or it's high-profile productions. Sure, Michael Bay, David Fincher, and the Wachowskis have all proven their worth, but our luck might not hold out forever. I think we need to have a serious chat with Eric. He can't keep being so... reckless."

Katzenberg could feel Frank's sincerity in his tone; he genuinely cared for Firefly's well-being.

In truth, Katzenberg felt similarly. While he knew Eric wasn't obstinate, until now, the films Eric had headed hadn't faced absolute failure, which in Hollywood was almost a miraculous feat.

How strange it felt to tell someone who had yet to experience failure that their methods were incorrect, that the rules didn't work that way, that they should do this or that...

Katzenberg thought about it and concluded that those moments were indeed bizarre; the unyielding rule of Hollywood never changed -- winners took all. If your movie garnered high box office returns, rewarding investors with hefty profits, you were a Hollywood hero.

"I see your point," Katzenberg mused, "but now's not the time. Perhaps we should wait until the end of the year. By then, Eric should be more receptive to our feedback."

Clearly, Katzenberg also had doubts about Titanic's box office outlook.

Frank understood immediately, nodding, "Sure, we'll revisit this later. By the way, FFM has reported that Weinstein is interested in acquiring Brad Grey's production company. Did you get the report?"

"Yeah, Harvey is looking to establish a production division for FFM, and Brad Grey happens to be his former assistant. He's probably hoping for a familiar face. But I think acquiring Brad Grey's company feels unnecessary. Aside from the TV series Eric personally chose, which he has some investment rights in, I don't see much value there."

The conversation shifted seamlessly to FFM, diverting from the previous topic...

*****

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