Jessica Chastain

Conference room.

"Hi, Zucker, my friend, we meet again." A middle-aged man gave Zucker a warm hug.

"Jordan, I'm very happy to see you again, too."

The man sitting in front of Zucker was none other than Jordan Dervelman, a representative from the Paramount distribution department, with whom he had previously collaborated on the overseas distribution of Run Lola Run.

Jordan looked at Zucker and smiled, "Zucker, I must congratulate you. You did a great job in London, earning 20 million pounds from ITV!"

"It was nothing special, certainly not comparable to the profits you made on a single film." Zucker said pointedly.

He was referring, of course, to Run Lola Run.

Those bastards at Paramount had only paid 2 million dollars for the overseas rights, yet they reaped 100 million dollars at the box office.

Jordan gave an awkward smile, clearly not expecting Zucker to bring up the past, and immediately said, "Zucker, as far as I know, the North American rights for Got Talent are still in your hands."

"Yes."

Zucker nodded; there was nothing to hide there.

Hearing this, Jordan said on the spot, "Then you might consider selling the North American rights for Got Talent to our parent company, Viacom Group. After all, we own the third-largest television network in North America."

Sell it to you?

Zucker nodded and said, "Sure, for the sake of our friendship, as long as you can come up with 70 million dollars, I'll definitely sell."

70 million dollars?

Jordan almost spat out a mouthful of blood right there!

Clearly, Zucker was asking for the moon.

Jordan teased, "Zucker, don't joke around. We are talking about serious business."

"Hahaha~ Alright Jordan, let's talk about the overseas rights for Hard Candy instead. You know, a rights acquisition like Got Talent isn't something you can decide on your own." Zucker laughed.

Jordan felt awkward once again.

That was true; a rights acquisition deal worth tens of millions of dollars was not something a small distribution department manager like Jordan could decide. The only reason he had brought it up was to test Zucker. Even the awkwardness he displayed was largely feigned.

They were both old hands; whose skin wouldn't be thick enough?

As if!

The Old Man has no intention of selling the North American rights to Got Talent right now. After all, once the British version of Got Talent airs, it will surely fetch a much higher price for the North American rights. Zucker thought to himself.

Yes, a price far higher than 20 million pounds!

The box office performance of Hard Candy in North America was a cut below that of Run Lola Run, so he shouldn't expect the overseas rights fee to be too high.

However.

Whenever Zucker thought about the 100 million dollars in overseas box office revenue from Run Lola Run, he felt a sense of resentment. Of course, he had to sell it for more money.

"Jordan, you damn bloodsucker!"

"1 million dollars?"

"You think you can take my Hard Candy for just 1 million? Don't even think about it, I'm telling you, keep dreaming!"

Negotiations between companies are entirely about interests.

As for friendship?

Heh, you're overthinking it.

In the overseas market for Run Lola Run, Paramount had indeed taken advantage of Wald Pictures, but one shouldn't expect them to remember that favor.

Take the current discussion about Hard Candy, for example; would a big company remember the previous film?

Clearly, they would not!

They have their own unique set of operating principles and would never treat anyone specially due to personal feelings or private connections.

In this regard, Zucker was the same.

In the end, the first round of negotiations for the overseas rights of Hard Candy failed.

"Victor, besides Paramount, are there any other big companies interested in our overseas rights?"

After Jordan from Paramount left, Zucker asked Victor directly.

"There are."

Victor said, "Currently, regarding the overseas rights for Hard Candy, the big companies that have contacted us, besides Paramount, also include Time Warner Group."

Warner?!

That was a massive company!

Well, compared to Paramount, Time Warner was even more powerful.

Its parent company, Time Inc., was in its prime. Especially with Time Magazine under the group, it was a prestigious entity. Currently, Warner Group seemed to be on par with Disney, vying for the title of industry leader.

Zucker was stunned for a moment, then reacted and said, "It seems that although the overseas performance of Run Lola Run didn't make us money, it certainly made our company famous."

Victor smiled, the meaning behind it self-evident.

Meanwhile, in an office at Time Warner, two people were discussing Hard Candy.

Richard Kidman, male, 45 years old, served as the head of the overseas distribution department at Warner Bros. Pictures and was considered a person of real power within the company.

"Reed, I just learned that Wald Pictures and Paramount have entered into negotiations regarding Hard Candy. Follow up on this immediately. As long as it doesn't exceed 2 million dollars, you must secure the overseas distribution rights for me," Richard Kidman said in a deep voice.

"Understood, I will go check on it right away."

The young man standing before Richard Kidman was his capable assistant, Reed.

Not long after, Reed returned to Richard Kidman's office and said immediately, "Boss, I've asked around. The overseas rights for Hard Candy are still with Wald Pictures. However, I want to confirm again: are we really going to make a move?"

Clearly, Reed did not think highly of the overseas prospects for Hard Candy.

Richard Kidman nodded and said, "Reed, I know your concerns, and I trust your professional judgment. You're right; as a film, Hard Candy is a niche genre, and its overseas box office returns are not worth a 2 million dollar bid. But you need to take a longer view."

"Oh?" Reed became puzzled.

Looking at the young assistant before him, Richard Kidman felt no annoyance.

Instead, he patiently explained, "Although Wald Pictures is a new company, look at Run Lola Run, which they filmed, and Teletubbies, which became a hit after airing in the UK. Then look at the rights for Got Talent that caused such a stir a few days ago. Do you still think Wald Pictures is just a small film company?"

100 million in overseas box office for Run Lola Run;

Teletubbies, which broke viewership records on British children's channels the moment it aired;

The 20 million pound sky-high price tag for the Got Talent rights;

The young Reed felt a jolt the moment he thought of these things.

"I understand!"

"Thank you, boss, for making me realize that Wald Pictures is no longer a bottom-tier Hollywood film company. It is absolutely worth us courting them!"

Reed immediately began to speak eloquently.

Hearing this, Richard Kidman said with satisfaction, "It is very correct for you to think this way. In any case, it's only a matter of a million or so dollars. If we succeed, we gain a film company with potential. Why wouldn't we do it?"

If Zucker were here right now, he would surely be dumbfounded.

They are all old foxes, every last one of them!

However, Zucker was also happy to cozy up to more big companies.

Under Zucker's heavy investment, Wald Pictures had already shed its status as a bottom-tier Hollywood film company and had risen to third-tier; yet, it was still very weak and needed to continue growing under the wings of larger companies.

As for the concern of being backstabbed or swallowed up by big companies, Zucker was not worried at all.

Three years. Give me three more years, and I will have enough capital to operate. By then, even if I have a falling out with the big companies, I won't be without the strength to fight back, Zucker thought to himself.

The next day.

Zucker woke up early in the morning, finished washing up, and drove to the filming set of Juno.

That's right, the movie Juno had begun filming.

It had already been filming for half a month, but due to his busy schedule, Zucker, the producer, had never been there. Now that he had some free time, he naturally wanted to go take a look.

After all, this was Juno!

A global box office of over 200 million dollars was absolutely worth Zucker's attention!

As the boss and producer, Zucker had a 3% share of the net North American box office profits of Juno in his pocket. It was only natural to show some concern for the filming, if only to keep people from gossiping.

"Hi, Richard, you've worked hard during this time."

After arriving at the set, Zucker naturally sought out the film's director, Richard Linklater, first.

If nothing else, the title of Best Director at the Berlin International Film Festival alone was worth at least a modicum of respect from Zucker.

As soon as Richard saw Zucker, he laughed and scolded, "Mr. Wald, you are the producer of Juno, yet the film has been shooting for half a month and you only just remembered you're the producer. That is truly rare."

"Hahaha, sorry, sorry, I've just been busy."

Who was Zucker?

With a thick skin like his, how could he feel awkward? Instead, he asked in return, "Richard, are you about to start filming?"

"Yes, the lead actor and actress are currently in makeup, and we'll start shooting in a little while," Richard said.

Zucker nodded and didn't say anything further for the moment.

Not long after, the lead actor and actress emerged from the makeup room, and the film was ready to shoot.

"Huh? They both look a bit familiar."

Seeing the actors playing the leads, Zucker was stunned for a moment. Zucker actually knew these two from his previous life.

Jessica Chastain;

Ryan Reynolds.

The lead character of the movie Juno, Juno, was played by Jessica Chastain.

She is not yet the renowned actress who would go on to earn the title of "Hardworking Sister" and win a Golden Globe for Best Actress; right now, she is just a budding talent. After all, she is only 19 years old.

As for the actor playing the male lead, Zucker knows him all too well.

The actor who portrays "Deadpool" in the movie Deadpool is none other than Ryan Reynolds!

Setting aside his major box-office flop Green Lantern, his starring roles in films like Buried, R.I.P.D., and The Hitman's Bodyguard are more than enough to have made him famous.

Of course, he also holds an enviable status.

--The ex-husband of Black Widow, Scarlett Johansson!

After all, while the famous Durant couldn't even get a sip of Black Widow's bathwater, Ryan Reynolds was actually reluctant to drink that damn bathwater at all.