American fame and fortune

"The most embarrassing moment in Oscar history!"

This was almost the headline of all entertainment media the next day.

Although everyone present gave the Academy face and no one revealed what happened on the scene to the media, various versions of speculation were still flying around.

This Oscar Awards ceremony has attracted unprecedented attention in the past decade.

It even gives people an illusion that the Oscars have returned to the 1990s.

The public opinion is hot, but the negative impact cannot be ignored.

The Academy held a press conference as soon as possible and announced the results of the internal investigation with PricewaterhouseCoopers: the accountant handed the wrong envelope to the award presenter Warren Beatty that night, resulting in the "oolong" of the best film.

Faced with the huge dispute, Academy President Tom Sherak solemnly apologized and vowed: "This was not a pre-prepared plan. We really made a serious mistake."

This seems to calm the controversy, but it falls into the ears of many people, how can it be like leading the public to speculate on conspiracy theories.

The Academy's press conference did not calm the controversy, but made it more intense. For a time, the North American media and the Internet were all discussing the Oscars.

The heat of the Oscars is finally back.

According to relevant statistics from major institutions, at the moment when the Best Picture made a mistake, the ratings of this awards ceremony reached the highest point since the new century.

The news and popularity after the awards ceremony reached a new high in the past 20 years!

The mistake stole the attention of many movie fans, but Martin's second Best Actor Oscar was also a hot topic in the media.

"The only well-deserved and undisputed winner of this year's Oscars is Martin Davis' Best Actor!"

"The award Martin won is one of the most undisputed winners in the past 30 years."

With the help of the Oscar-winning momentum, "Split" set off the last wave of movie-watching craze in theaters in North America and overseas, and then was completely taken offline.

This R-rated psychological thriller basically withdrew from theaters around the world two weeks later, and the North American box office remained at $266 million.

The global box office has accumulated to $534 million.

"The only problem with the project is whether to shoot a sequel?"

In the post-production room of Disney Studios, Louise raised a question: "Split has a very good reputation. Your character escaped the police's pursuit. Movie fans are very concerned about what will happen next."

Martin had just come out of the editing room, rubbing his forehead and said: "There will definitely be a sequel, but not now. Let's discuss the sequel after Joker is released."

Louise nodded slightly and asked: "The editing is not going well?"

Martin said: "It's okay. Joel Negron has completed the third version of the editing, but the length of the film is still as high as more than 200 minutes. I plan the length of the film to be within two hours."

Louise said: "This length also meets the needs of commercial screenings. Too long is not conducive to scheduling."

Martin looked at the time: "Let's go and see the soundtrack."

The two called assistant director Steve Downton and went to a nearby theater together.

The crew hired British composer Rachel Portman to compose the film. The latter has created many pieces of music and specially created special background music for clowns in different occasions.

For example, the Joker at the beginning is a small person at the bottom of society, and the background music is mainly decadent and sad.

At the climax of the ending, the music becomes passionate, in line with the characteristics of the Joker becoming a city hero.

The post-production of the film is quite cumbersome. Although Martin is still mainly in control of the overall situation, he is also following up on the specific work.

He has already gained some experience in the work of director, and naturally wants to continue to improve.

He discussed the soundtrack with Rachel Portman and asked for adjustments to several clips. Then he went to Warner Pictures and confirmed the specific schedule of "Joker" with Daniel.

Martin chose October this year from a series of schedules provided by Warner Pictures.

There is no other reason. This kind of screening and award-winning rhythm is very familiar to him, the studio, the agency, and the public relations team.

Because of the huge success of "Split", Warner Pictures is ready to invest more than $100 million in publicity and distribution costs for "Joker".

In the reception room, Daniel glanced at Martin and said, "We have to be prepared in advance. The project will not get support from DC."

Martin was mentally prepared and said, "It's okay as long as they don't hold us back."

Daniel said, "DC is busy with the filming and production of "Justice League" and has no time to mess around. The success or failure of this project is not only related to the DC Justice League movie universe plan, but also involves the future of Kevin Tsujihara and Hamada in Warner Bros."

Warner Tiantuan had conflicts with Martin several times. In addition to Jon Berg, who was forced to resign, Kevin Tsujihara also sent a woman to the crew to use a honey trap for Martin.

Martin has been looking for an opportunity to continue to mess with Warner Tiantuan and asked, "Batman v Superman has a bad reputation among the audience. Has it affected the "Justice League" crew?"

He also quietly let DC know about Joss Whedon through Louise, but he was recently busy with the award-winning "Split" and the post-production of "Joker", so he didn't pay much attention: "Is Zack Snyder's progress going smoothly?"

Daniel simply said: "You know the previous situation. The reputation of "Batman v Superman" was not ideal, and the box office and commercial revenue were far less than expected. Hamada and Kevin Tsujihara had considered replacing Zack Snyder, but the film was released. At that time, the preparations for "Justice League" were in the final stages, and the replacement might cause hundreds of millions of dollars in losses, so they chose to continue using Zack Snyder."

Martin nodded: "I've heard of these."

Daniel added: "But Zack Snyder's ability has been questioned, and his power on the crew has also been restricted. As a result, you can probably think of their old methods."

He smiled: "In addition to the producer Charles Rowan, DC sent a vice president to the crew, and Kevin Tsujihara also sent a representative."

Martin also laughed when he heard this: "It seems that this crew is very lively."

Daniel said: "Overall, it's okay. Kevin Tsujihara learned the lesson of Jon Berg's failure and let his agent Silverman fully take charge of the crew. Although Zach is very dissatisfied, he understands the rules of Hollywood. , but there wasn’t much of a conflict.”

Martin listened very carefully and asked again: "Is the film finished now?"

"The filming went very quickly. When "Batman v Superman" was released in July last year, the crew was almost finished with preparations." Daniel said roughly: "The filming started in August and was completed in less than October. Now we are in post-production. It’s almost all done.”

Because Warner Pictures is responsible for distribution, he understands the situation there: "Warner and DC are becoming more and more dissatisfied with Zack Snyder. The director's cut version he submitted has another 250 minutes."

Martin couldn't help but said: "Zack Snyder needs enough film length to tell a story clearly."

Daniel said: "Whether the specifics have been made clear, we will know in a few days. DC will soon hold the first internal preview of "Justice League", which is Zack Snyder's edited version."

Martin became interested: "Can we get an entry ticket?"

Daniel shook his head directly: "I am the representative of the publisher, and I will definitely attend. But you, you probably won't be able to get it, DC doesn't like you."

Martin sighed: "DC and Warner are experiencing an unprecedented adventure."

Daniel pondered for a while and continued: "But Warner and DC cannot accompany Zack Snyder to take risks. Once "Justice League" fails to meet expectations, it will be difficult for neither Hamada nor Kevin Tsujihara to sit in the current position. location."

Martin heard the hint from these words and deliberately said in a joking tone: "I will congratulate you then."

Daniel's face straightened: "Within Warner, my competition with them is almost open. If I were sitting in Kevin Tsujihara's position, Warner wouldn't be where it is today, and our cooperation can be normalized."

Many things are selective forgetting, or in the face of interests, competition and cooperation are changing all the time.

Martin looked at the time and said, "It's almost time to get off work. I'll treat you tonight. Let's continue chatting in another place."

Daniel understood that it was not convenient to say some things here, and he was also afraid that the walls had ears, so he immediately responded: "It's a rare treat for you, so I won't be polite."

The two left Warner Pictures and went straight to the restaurant Martin had chosen.

Later, Louise also rushed over.

The three of them ate and chatted until about nine o'clock in the evening.

…………

The strictest security measures were in place outside the Warner Building, a large conference room that served as a makeshift theater.

Those who have not accepted the invitation are strictly prohibited from entering.

This is also to prevent the risk of "Justice League" being leaked in advance.

Today, DC held an internal preview for Zack Snyder's cut version of "Justice League," including Kevin Tsujihara, Daniel, Hamada, and Silverman, all present in the conference room.

But Zack Snyder and his wife were not invited to the preview to discuss the fate of Zack Snyder's version.

"Batman v Superman" failed to meet expectations at the box office and word of mouth, leading to more serious consequences. The film's performance in the offline market was far from reaching the minimum expectations set by Warner Bros.

Movie fans have high expectations for "Justice League"

reduce.

To put it simply, this film caused Zack Snyder to lose the trust of Warner and DC.

Kevin Tsujihara arrived last, and his eyes swept over everyone in the conference room. In addition to the senior executives, there were also several film viewing experts specially hired by the company, headed by Blunt.

"Everyone is here?" Kevin Tsujihara sat down and gestured to Hamada.

Hamada turned off the lights and asked his assistant to play the movie.

The first preview screening of "Justice League" has begun.

This edited version is nearly 250 minutes long. Except for a few shots where special effects and soundtracks have not yet been added, the film is already very complete.

There's no doubting Zack Snyder's work efficiency and dedication.

But Kevin Tsujihara only watched about half of it and felt that the film was too long.

The length of "Batman v Superman" has been criticized and complained by countless fans, saying it is too long, boring and too slow.

In terms of business, it has also seriously affected the film arrangement.

Four hours was quite long, and the screening had to be paused once in the middle to allow the big guys to take a bathroom break.

After the test screening ended and the lights came back on, Kevin Tsujihara couldn't wait to say: "It's still the same problem. The film is too long and the pace is too slow. When can this shortcoming of Zach be corrected?"

Hamada responded: "I feel like half of the content of the film can be cut."

Daniel completely agreed: "With such a length, the distribution company cannot negotiate with the theater company to schedule the film. There are twice as many screenings as normal movies every day. Which theater company is willing to schedule more films?"

This is a very real problem. Kevin Tsujihara looked directly at Silverman and Charles Rowan: "The length of the feature film should not exceed two hours."

Hamada agreed: "120 minutes is most suitable."

The length of the film is only the most obvious problem. There are also many other aspects that Kevin Tsujihara found inappropriate.

He said directly: "It seems that Zack made the same mistake in the last "Batman v Superman" again."

Daniel said calmly: "Same style, same problems, he hasn't improved at all."

Everyone here has seen "Batman v Superman", and it is almost carved from the same mold as this "Justice League".

There is no need for Daniel to say exaggerated words or lies: "You can imagine what will happen in terms of word-of-mouth if it is released in this style."

Kevin Tsujihara's words can still be heard, mainly because of "Batman v Superman" as a comparison.

He looked at the film experts and asked Blunt: "Express your opinion."

Blunt thought for a while and said: "As you said, several points that caused a lot of bad reviews for "Batman v Superman" have appeared in large numbers in this "Justice League". First, the pace is too slow. The plot is unclear, too fan-oriented, the literary and action parts are severely separated, and it lacks the sense of social responsibility of a superhero!”

He had written an article before he came: "The second point is the abuse of slow motion. Almost all action scenes will have a lot of slow motion. I don't need to say more about this. The last movie was criticized by countless audiences when it was screened. !”

These words were recognized by Warner and DC executives.

Blunt's words continued: "The dark style and overly serious characters and plots are not suitable for a family-friendly movie-watching atmosphere. In the past few years, there have been so many superhero movies, except for Christopher Nolan's "Batman" III. "Which other superhero movie with a darker orientation has been successful? I think the key to success is that it is family-friendly."

Daniel glanced over there without any trace, but said nothing.

Executives at Warner and DC are mulling it over.

Blunt alone would not have such an effect.

These are all based on several points that Zack Snyder has been criticized for.

After careful consideration, Kevin Tsujihara said: "We had already anticipated these, and we reminded Zach repeatedly during filming and post-production, but he still made inherent mistakes."

Silverman responded: "Directors are stubborn guys who won't change even if they know they are wrong."

Kevin Tsujihara looked at Hamada: "What's your opinion?"

Hamada said: "I think the tone of the film can be lighter and not so serious and dark."

At this moment, he suddenly remembered that he had seen relevant news as early as last year. Joss Whedon, who single-handedly created "The Avengers", left Marvel Studios and Walt Disney.