Three Movies Start Filming Simultaneously

Two more days passed.

"Juno, quite an interesting film, it suits my taste," Richard Linklater said, holding the script in his hand.

Hearing this, Zucker couldn't help but feel delighted. "Does that mean you're accepting our invitation?"

"That's right, I'm in," Richard Linklater smiled.

This man was no small fry.

He was no newcomer to Hollywood.

As early as 1995, Richard Linklater had been crowned Best Director at the 45th Berlin International Film Festival. In the 21st century, he was even hailed as the most successful independent filmmaker in the current American film industry.

He was a classic case of a self-taught talent; having no academic background or family ties to the industry made him all the more admirable.

Although the films he directed were relatively niche, such as Slacker, Dazed and Confused, and Boyhood, Zucker hadn't seen a single one of them.

However, Zucker understood his directorial style.

He was the type who excelled at focusing on rebellious youth, using humor, vivid language, poetic cinematography, and ethereal music to showcase people's insights and reflections on love during their growth, all while offering rare sympathy and understanding.

Juno, a campus comedy about an underage girl dealing with an unplanned pregnancy, was exactly the type of genre Richard Linklater excelled at.

Of course, his directing fee was also quite high. To avoid giving him a share of the box office, Zucker painfully paid out a directing fee of $1.2 million. Well, he was worth that price.

With that, the three films—Wrong Turn 1, Hard Candy, and Juno—all entered the pre-production stage.

Zucker did not serve as director, choosing instead to be the producer for all three films.

A few more days passed.

Zucker came to Wald Pictures again and shared his idea of knocking off popular films with CEO Victor.

However.

He was met with Victor's rebuttal: "Boss, your idea is great, but have you considered one problem?"

"What problem?" Zucker asked curiously.

If it can make money, isn't that a good thing?

"Boss, if you only want to make money through Wald Pictures, then specializing in knock-off films is no problem at all, and the result would surely be as you envisioned: a guaranteed profit. But this move would inevitably deal a massive blow to the company, namely the loss of original capability and creativity!"

"Furthermore, the company will lose a large group of young people with ambitions to develop in Hollywood. In the end, under this vicious cycle, Wald Pictures will surely remain at the bottom of the Hollywood barrel forever."

"Additionally, even if the knock-off films we produce can make money, they will inevitably offend a large group of people, especially the major studios!"

As he spoke, Victor's face turned ashen, and he couldn't bring himself to continue.

"Uh..."

In an instant, Zucker was also rendered speechless.

Damn it!

I almost did something incredibly stupid!

Producing knock-off films would disgust the major studios, but on that point, Zucker wasn't afraid at all. As long as he could make money, he was a man who didn't care about the bottom line.

Isn't it just going head-to-head?

In a few years, when I have money, it's hard to say who will be tougher.

However, Victor was right; a company isn't made up of just one person. Ambitious young people in Hollywood would certainly not be content with being stuck in a small company that only makes knock-offs. There would be absolutely no room for advancement! In this way, Wald Pictures would lose its momentum and remain at the very bottom of Hollywood forever.

Without talent, what's the point of doing anything!

On this point, Zucker found it completely unacceptable.

"Alright, Victor, I apologize to you."

Zucker apologized to Victor very sincerely, expressed his gratitude for the reminder on the spot, and stated that he would never bring up the subject of knock-off films again.

"Knock-off films won't work, but I'm a transmigrator! Stealing films they haven't shot yet and snatching up the rights to future Hollywood hits first—that should be fine, right?"

I have to say, Zucker was cunning enough.

A few days later.

Zucker set aside his trivial tasks and threw himself fully into the preparations for the three films.

Among the three films in preparation, Wrong Turn required scouting filming locations and preparing many murder props; Juno had the highest production cost, and director Richard Linklater had high demands, so the script hadn't even been finalized yet.

Therefore, Zucker's main work at the moment was Hard Candy.

Today happened to be the casting day for the Hard Candy crew. Zucker, CEO Victor, and director Zack Snyder formed the casting director team responsible for today's auditions.

And it was for the lead actor and actress.

"Introduce yourself," Victor said, looking at a girl in front of him.

"Okay, sir."

The first young girl to audition for the lead role was only 16, but she seemed a bit nervous, and her performance was disastrous, leading to an immediate rejection by the three of them.

The first interviewee, failed.

Immediately following, a dozen or so young actresses auditioning for the lead role were all rejected.

"I'm sorry, I don't see a shred of charisma in you at all."

"You're a bit too old; you're too mature."

"I'm sorry, you don't meet our requirements."

"Oh, kiddo, you're a bit too young. Why don't you come back in a few years?"

The continuous string of failed auditions couldn't help but make the trio of Zucker, Victor, and Zack Snyder feel a bit annoyed.

"Hard Candy tells the story of Little Red Riding Hood turning the tables on a perverted Big Bad Wolf. Not only does the actress need to be under 16, but she also needs to be brimming with charisma. Such actresses are truly rare," Zack Snyder lamented.

In truth, such actresses did exist, and there were quite a few of them.

However, they had all started out early shooting commercials, television series, and films, and their asking prices were too high, which didn't fit the low-budget concept of Hard Candy.

As this was Zack's first time serving as a film director, he had very high requirements for the lead actors. Because if the film failed, he would have no choice but to slink back to shooting music videos.

"Next!" Victor spoke up.

The person who walked in next was also a young girl, blonde and very pretty.

"Hello everyone, my name is Jessica Alba. I'm 15 years old this year. I have appeared in films such as Camp Nowhere and Venus Rising, and..."

However, before she could finish her sentence, she was interrupted by Victor: "We already have your resume on file."

"Huh?"

Zucker, who had been feeling bored, suddenly saw a familiar face and couldn't help but become interested.

Jessica Alba, isn't that the future Invisible Woman Susan from Fantastic Four? Zucker couldn't help but feel a stir in his heart.

For a moment, Zucker felt a sense of anticipation.

But.

In the performance that followed, she completely disappointed Zucker.

The protagonist Hailey in Hard Candy is a young girl who looks harmless and sweet, yet she must be able to exude a temperament that makes people feel chilled beneath her innocent exterior during the process of "castrating" the Big Bad Wolf.

Clearly, Jessica Alba did not meet the requirements for the character. She was essentially a "silly sweet" image; how could she play the high-IQ Hailey?

Rejected!

There were no surprises!

If she couldn't make money for Zucker, she wouldn't pass even if she were Audrey Hepburn!

Although the casting process was full of setbacks at the beginning, by the end of the day, they had finally selected satisfactory candidates.

Protagonist Hailey: played by Scarlett Johansson;

Protagonist Jeff: played by Mark Ruffalo.

"This is getting interesting."

Seeing the final list, Zucker couldn't help but chuckle.

He also felt the peculiarity of fate.

The 13-year-old Scarlett Johansson is none other than the future Black Widow of Marvel; at the same time, Mark Ruffalo, who will play the lead role of Jeff, will also go on to play the role of the Hulk in The Avengers series in the future.

The Minister hasn't written a book on Qidian for a long time. I only found out today that there is an "investment for recommendation" feature on the Qidian app. The Minister shamelessly asks for your support, thank you all!