Hollywood's Big Shots

"Lasseter, you're quite the busy man these days. Aside from the celebration party last time, I've asked you out for golf several times, but you never had time."

Zucker looked at Lasseter with a wounded expression.

"Haha, sorry. I've just been busy lately." Lasseter waved a hand apologetically.

They'd known each other for over a year, and thanks to Zucker's efforts to win him over, they'd become quite friendly. Zucker also knew that Lasseter really had been busy lately.

He was busy planning and producing Pixar's second feature-length computer-animated film, A Bug's Life.

Pixar had also benefited from its rising stock price and recently expanded its staff, growing from just a few dozen people to nearly 400.

"Heh, looks like you're really well-equipped now. You Pixar folks are a bunch of cheaters—you're only going to get more impressive from here!" Zucker exclaimed.

At that, Lasseter waved a hand and laughed. "It's not that bad."

Lasseter was modest, but the person beside him clearly wasn't.

"Hmph!"

Jobs shot Zucker a look and said, "Mr. Wald, Pixar was great in the past, it's great now, and it'll be even greater in the future. That's a given. We don't need you singing our praises."

Damn it!

What the hell!

I complimented you, so why are you criticizing me?!

Zucker was instantly annoyed.

The whole of America said Jobs was arrogant and looked down on everyone. Zucker hadn't thought it was that bad, but now he could see they were right.

After a little thought, Zucker understood.

When he'd met Jobs in 1995, Jobs had been at his lowest point, utterly destitute. Back then, he couldn't afford to act superior, so he'd had to play the humble man.

But now Toy Story had become a massive hit, raising Pixar's market value to over a billion dollars. Jobs had stopped playing humble and returned to his old, arrogant self.

And apparently, he might soon return to Apple.

That was exactly what had happened in the original timeline. Jobs would return to Apple in January 1997 and take over the company again.

"Jobs, our two companies have worked together before. You don't have to put it like that."

Zucker kept his anger in check as he spoke.

Jobs shook his head. "I don't have to, no. But whenever I think about how I sold you the merchandise rights to Toy Story for next to nothing, I get furious. I'm the one who takes advantage of others. Nobody gets to take advantage of me, Jobs."

Well!

Just hearing that was enough to make Zucker stop being angry.

"Heh, when it comes to taking advantage of people, I'm not worried."

"I'm happy to see you stew."

Zucker wasn't exactly a nice guy either. When it came to making cutting remarks, he didn't hold back at all.

"You...!"

Jobs glared angrily at Zucker, who was grinning at him. Realizing he couldn't do anything about it, he could only leave in a huff.

Lasseter pursed his lips and said helplessly, "Zucker, couldn't you cut him a little slack? You know he's just a big kid. He only likes to talk big."

Zucker replied, "Hey, I was only saying that. Who knew he'd still have such a foul temper? He's not at all magnanimous. He remembers every little thing."

Victor shook his head without saying anything.

Jobs wasn't known for his good temper.

Truthfully, Zucker wasn't much better. Whenever something rubbed him the wrong way, he'd let loose with a string of "fuck," "damn it," and "bastard."

"Lasseter, you just talked about your boss like that. Aren't you worried he'll flip the table?" Zucker asked curiously.

Lasseter laughed. "No. Like I said, he may be sharp-tongued, but he treats us Pixar employees really well."

Zucker nodded.

From what he knew, that was true.

After all, Pixar's working environment and atmosphere in the future really would be the best in America!

A freestanding villa-style office building, delicious food available at all times, expansive greenery, private drawing studios, all kinds of indoor activities, a soccer field and swimming pool right outside... What wasn't there to envy?

Pixar's outstanding benefits and working conditions were major reasons its people were such a talented bunch!

That showed just how well Jobs treated everyone at Pixar.

Before long, as the start of the party drew near, Hollywood's big shots began arriving one after another!

DreamWorks' three founders, Spielberg, Katzenberg, and David Geffen;

Acclaimed director James Cameron;

Barry Meyer, the future CEO of Warner Bros.;

Murdoch, the head of 20th Century Fox;

Redstone, the head of Paramount;

Two-time Oscar-winning actor Tom Hanks;

Renowned Hollywood producer Bruckheimer;

And plenty more big shots. Every one of them was a major figure known throughout North America.

Watching them bask in the limelight, Zucker turned to Victor and said, "Victor, don't envy them. In a few years, we'll be welcome at all the major parties too."

Then he added, "We'll be even more popular than they are."

Victor smiled. "Boss, whatever makes you happy."

Clearly, Victor didn't really believe Zucker.

Or rather, any normal person would have felt the same. After all, those guys were the Big Six Hollywood Studios! Could they really be surpassed just like that?

Actually, Zucker had some reason to be confident!

I'm a time traveler, and I've got a system that's always playing dead. Even if things go badly, as long as I take advantage of the Internet Bubble in the early 2000s and the 2008 global financial crisis, I'm guaranteed to make a fortune.

For the rest of the evening, Zucker and Victor shamelessly worked the room.

They networked like crazy, without a hint of shame.

"Hello!"

"Hi, Will Smith. I'm Zucker Wald, a director and the owner of a film company."

Will Smith was the first person Zucker approached.

Since Independence Day had come out a little while ago, Will Smith had become a global sensation. Of course, as Zucker knew, he'd become even more famous over the next decade.

Men in Black, Ali, I, Robot, The Pursuit of Happyness, I Am Legend... Every one of the films he starred in had grossed a fortune worldwide.

Getting to know him now was definitely worth it for Zucker!

His second target was DiCaprio.

"Mr. DiCaprio, it's a pleasure to meet you."

"It's true that I own a film company, but I also own a chain of merchandise stores. They're called SpongeBob House."

"Oh? You've heard of them? Even better."

"That's right. We only have seven locations in Los Angeles, but our reputation and sales are among the best in Los Angeles—and even across California."

"Oh, there'll definitely be chances to work together on films in the future."

"What I wanted to ask you today is whether you'd be interested in becoming the spokesperson for SpongeBob House."

"Don't worry. With your reputation, I'll definitely make you a generous offer!"

Zucker held his glass and chatted away with DiCaprio.

DiCaprio had made a name for himself at a young age. Ever since Growing Pains, he'd been a well-known child star across America. In 1993, he'd been nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for What's Eating Gilbert Grape. Then, in 1995, he'd won the Best Actor award at the Berlin International Film Festival.

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that even without Titanic making him a global sensation, he was already far from an ordinary film actor.

Of course, at this point, he was more of an arthouse heartthrob.

His commercial value wasn't very high.

Especially since he'd lost the child-star appeal, he didn't have many endorsements these days.

And his endorsement fees weren't that high!

Otherwise, Zucker would never have considered approaching him before 1997.

I'm so clever. If I sign him now, then when Titanic comes out, SpongeBob House will benefit too.

I'm a little genius!

The two-hour party soon came to an end.

Zucker and Victor felt the evening had been well worth it. They'd met a lot of important people, and even if they weren't close yet, they could build those relationships later.

After an excited Zucker got home, he received a phone call—and another piece of good news.

"Mr. Wald, we've finished developing ICQ. Would you like to come take a look tomorrow?"

When he heard the news, Zucker was so excited that, even though it was nearly eleven at night, he wasn't the least bit sleepy.