Departure

"This is the answer I have confirmed repeatedly, and it is the reply I received after Mr. Robert Smith made a personal phone call. By the way, he has now been removed from his position as head of the marketing department on charges of bribery and corruption."

Hearing this, Irene believed that they had completely lost the necessity of cooperating with MGM. It was clear that these charges were aimed at her, as their partnership had been orchestrated entirely by Mr. Robert Smith.

"Have we ever offended this new executive at MGM?" Aside from this, she couldn't think of any other reason for MGM to act this way.

"I thought of that point as well, so I went and conducted a thorough investigation afterward." As he spoke, he took a file out of his bag and handed it to Irene.

Irene took it with one hand and pulled out a resume and several photographs.

"This new executive is named Ulysses Mayer, one of the younger relatives of Mr. Louis Mayer. Five years ago, he pursued Julia Roberts. Although he failed, the two have maintained a friendship, and they have been meeting up frequently lately."

"Wait, are you saying that Ms. Julia Roberts wants to sabotage our partnership so that my film can't find a company to invest in or distribute it?" This made even less sense to Irene. Although their films had some minor friction due to being released in the same period, with the newspapers pitting them against each other, these were just standard tactics for film studios. It shouldn't go this far, right? The other party was Julia Roberts, the number one actress in Hollywood right now. Was it really necessary to target small fries like them?

Furthermore, the fact that the company's top management listened to Julia Roberts's arrangements without hesitation was shocking. One had to realize that her film's North American box office had already exceeded 100 million dollars! It brought MGM tens of millions in revenue! To give that up just like that—was this new executive brainless?

"Clearly, Ms. Julia Roberts is not as magnanimous as you think. You must realize that as comedy films in the same summer season, you will naturally be compared to one another.

What's more, looking at the box office trends, the North American box office for Legally Blonde is not much different from Runaway Bride. Although your investment cost is stated as 15 million dollars externally, insiders know it only cost about 10 million. However, the pre-production cost of Runaway Bride alone was as high as 78 million dollars, and post-production marketing pushed the cost to over 100 million.

With such a high investment, the final result is on par with your box office. Do you think she can accept that fact?"

Shelly's words caused a sudden realization for Irene. Open spears are easy to dodge, but hidden arrows are hard to guard against. Since she now knew who the opponent was, and she couldn't afford to provoke her yet, she would have to keep a low profile and develop her strength.

"What is your advice?" Irene's wings were not yet fully grown, and she knew it was easier to find shelter under a big tree. She decided to accept the CAA package deal.

"As a fellow client under CAA, with us here, she won't dare to take things too far. That is why I suggest you accept the package; we can help you block a lot of the wind and rain from the outside," Shelly Ovitz said with a sincere and firm tone.

Irene didn't struggle with the decision anymore. Although she felt great sympathy and regret for Lindsay Lohan's situation, there had always been a saying in Hollywood: "No role in a film is irreplaceable." She would find a way to help her later.

"In principle, I agree, but I require an audition, and I must have the final say on other important roles."

"No problem."

"I imagine Britney is in a hurry to go back and choose songs. We will return to Los Angeles tomorrow, and the auditions will be scheduled for seven days from now. By the way, there is no need to arrange auditions for the male lead, Aaron Samuels. He's just a pretty face anyway; Edward's acting skills should be enough."

"Yes sir! I will work hard! I'm going to arrange the flight right now!" Upon hearing that he had somehow landed the male lead role, Edward Nelson jumped three meters high, his level of joy rivaling that of Britney.

"While you're at it, go and invite some Asian faces. I want to add Asian characters to the main female roles. Aside from the members of the Plastics and Cady's friends, you can handle the other unimportant roles yourselves at CAA. I trust you have plenty of members under your agency who meet the criteria." Irene delegated authority very decisively; she didn't need to keep the appointment of every actor in her own hands.

"Understood. I will send an email to the company now to have them prepare for the auditions." After saying this, Shelly Ovitz stood up and left the living room.

"What will you do about Henry when you leave tomorrow?" Irene was just about to stand up when she slowed down upon hearing Britney's words.

She took paper and pen from the living room drawer, scribbled two lines, and handed them to the butler. "Tomorrow morning at nine, please go to the main pier of the Glenvaria Hotel and give this to Mr. Henry. If nothing goes wrong, he should be the most handsome one at the scene."

"Very well, Miss Irene." The butler took it with both hands and placed the note into the cabinet by the door.

After Irene returned to her room, Britney ignored Edward's protests and quietly went to the door, wanting to open the drawer to see what Irene had written.

"The boss will definitely be angry if she finds out." Edward pushed the drawer back into its original position.

"Don't worry, I know her. If she could hand the note directly to the butler, it means she isn't afraid of people knowing what's inside, so she won't be angry if I look at it."

Opening the drawer, the note lay spread out inside; they didn't even need to pick it up to clearly see the content.

"My dear Henry, I am setting off once again to pursue my dreams. The moments we shared these past few days are the most tender treasures in the depths of my heart.

No matter how beautiful an encounter is, it cannot escape the fate of parting, but my longing will follow like a shadow, staying by your side. May every day ahead of you be filled with sunshine and laughter.

Always missing you, Irene Coppola"

The next day, just as the sun stretched above the horizon, Irene and the others left the small island carrying the various gifts prepared by the butler.

The plane flew across the sky, leaving only a few faint traces behind. As the sun completely detached itself from the water, those faint traces were also completely blown away and vanished by the breeze.

Upon returning to Los Angeles, Irene first formally signed the film package agreement with CAA, and then CAA stepped in to help her sign an investment and distribution agreement with 20th Century Fox, with distribution fees set at the standard 15%.

As for the investment ratio, after multiple rounds of negotiations, the result was that Irene would cover one-third of the film's production costs, while 20th Century Fox would cover the remaining two-thirds.

Back in the office Irene had rented, "Help me find an assistant. I don't want to attend unnecessary occasions in the future and waste my time." This negotiation had left Irene physically and mentally exhausted; every bit of haggling made her want to give up, and each time she was persuaded by Shelly Ovitz just in time.

"I told you long ago that your company also needs staff. What are you going to do about the 6 million dollars for the investment? Fox has stipulated that the funds must be in the account before the film officially starts shooting, otherwise your investment ratio will be automatically canceled."

Shelly Ovitz took two bottles of mineral water from the corner of the office, acting as naturally as if he were in his own home.

"I originally intended to wait for the money from MGM to arrive, which would have been just enough to invest in the new film." Irene took the water bottle and spread her hands, her tone filled with helplessness. "But now that they have canceled our cooperation, the box office profit sharing feels like a distant prospect."

"If Legally Blonde were your own work alone, it would be perfectly normal for MGM to drag out the profit sharing for two years given their current attitude toward you. But fortunately, you are not alone."

"Do you mean that out of respect for my father, they won't go too far?"

"Irene Coppola does not have the qualifications to negotiate with MGM, but the weight of Francis Coppola is enough to make them settle the profit sharing at a normal pace."