MGM Poaches Talent

At that moment, Kevin was like a gold mine, and everyone wanted a share of the profits.

Harvey Weinstein was no exception.

Two films in a row had made money. That meant Kevin had that kind of ability, and there was an 80 percent chance that his next film would be profitable as well.

As long as he kept making these low-budget horror films, he would never have to worry about funding.

Harvey Weinstein would have been lying if he said he was not envious of Warner Bros. and New Line Cinema raking in money hand over fist.

He had come to this party precisely to get on board Kevin's next film.

Kevin could not exactly slap Harvey Weinstein in the face after his friendly approach, so he merely returned the gesture.

"Thank you."

Kevin's distant manner did nothing to stop Harvey Weinstein from wanting to profit off him.

This was a business worth tens of millions of dollars at the slightest turn. Compared to that, what did saving face matter?

Harvey Weinstein forcibly crowded up beside Kevin and spoke earnestly, putting on an air of giving him advice for his own good.

"Kevin, you haven't been in Hollywood for long, so there are some things you don't understand."

"In Hollywood, the Oscars are the fastest route to becoming a great director."

Kevin nodded. Although he disliked Harvey Weinstein, he had to admit that the man had a point.

Without recognition from awards, becoming a great director required many classic works.

But with recognition from an award like the Oscars, two or three classics, and some media promotion, he could immediately become a renowned director.

No, that would only make him a famous director.

A great director also meant big productions.

At that thought, Kevin began considering his next project again.

He had made up his mind to make a mid-to-high-budget blockbuster.

Otherwise, if he kept making small films every day, even if they became massive hits, it would still be difficult to gain recognition from major awards.

Seeing the change in Kevin's expression, Harvey Weinstein's heart leaped with joy. He struck while the iron was hot.

"Work with me, Kevin."

"Miramax Films has extensive experience in awards campaigns. We can help you make the strongest possible bid for the Academy Award for Best Director."

"..."

Just as Harvey Weinstein was eloquently persuading Kevin, Rett, MGM's president, approached Kevin. He wore a sharp suit and had the polished look of a white-collar white executive.

"Hello, Kevin. I'm Rett, president of MGM!"

The white man wore a kindly expression, and his status in Hollywood was no less impressive.

Rett completely ignored Harvey Weinstein beside him and continued on his own.

"Whatever terms Miramax can offer you, we can offer as well. And we can offer terms they can't."

Although Kevin did not know Rett, he knew that MGM would change presidents after 1993.

In other words, the current president of MGM might be out of office as soon as next year.

So had he come to Kevin in hopes of salvaging MGM's performance?

Harvey Weinstein's face darkened as he watched MGM's president cut in and steal his prospect.

To be honest, he was furious about this, but MGM had foundations in Hollywood that he could not hope to match.

In its heyday, MGM's roaring lion logo had once been regarded as a symbol of the United States, and it had created countless classics.

Even though poor management had now plunged it into a massive financial crisis,

the connections and influence it had accumulated over the years were still not something Harvey could afford to offend.

To say nothing else, when it came to awards campaigns, Harvey Weinstein had to spend enormous sums, while MGM could simply call in favors.

Jolie, standing nearby, was thrilled just listening.

Whether it was Harvey or MGM, both were figures beyond her reach, yet people like them were seeking cooperation with Kevin.

That was the allure of being a director.

The status of stars in Hollywood was far below that of directors.

Even a superstar like Leo ranked far below a great director like Steven Spielberg, let alone ordinary minor stars.

Only by climbing to the very top could one gain a certain degree of autonomy.

And as long as directors achieved a certain level of success, they became honored guests of every major film company.

Most importantly, directors did not need to care about maintaining some public persona or any of that other nonsense.

Naturally, Kevin would not offend MGM's CEO after his show of goodwill.

"Being able to work with MGM would be an honor. However, I haven't found a project that interests me yet, so I may need to wait for a while."

Kevin replied politely.

After hearing Kevin's words, Harvey left in anger, firmly committing the matter to memory.

"Director Kevin, MGM can directly provide you with more than thirty million dollars in production funding, as long as you agree to let MGM invest in your next film."

Rett laid out his terms directly. An investment of thirty million dollars would leave even MGM badly hurt if it failed.

No Hollywood film company at the time could casually absorb a loss of one hundred million dollars.

As publicly traded companies, their films' successes and failures were closely tied to their stock prices.

If a single film lost more than one hundred million dollars, the next thing to follow would be a plunging stock price. The consequences would be severe.

Faced with MGM's sincerity, Kevin found it difficult to refuse.

But he truly had not decided on his next film.

The Ghost Rider he had originally planned was not suitable to make at the moment.

If he made it now, acquiring Marvel later would cost him an enormous additional price.

As for other projects, he still needed to think carefully.

He also needed to observe moviegoing habits over the past two years and see what kinds of films were the most popular.

"All right. Once I have my next film, if I need funding, I'll contact you."

Kevin's answer clearly did not satisfy him.

At this point, Rett finally presented his last offer.

"Kevin, if the first film you make with MGM succeeds and you are willing to continue signing film deals with MGM, MGM's shareholders can give you a portion of their shares for free."

MGM shares?

Kevin's eyes widened abruptly.

As someone in the film industry, he knew something about MGM's history.

Under the normal course of events, MGM would declare bankruptcy in 2010 and undergo asset restructuring.

Of course, it was not because nobody wanted to acquire it, but because they could not agree on a price.

MGM wanted to sell itself for five billion dollars, while the highest offer did not exceed three billion, and it was not even cash but a stock-swap arrangement.

But for Kevin, even three billion dollars was still an astronomical sum.

To be honest, at that moment, Kevin was tempted.