Chapter 121: Brain-Burning Films and No Bathroom Breaks from Start to Finish

North America, Summit Entertainment headquarters, inside an office.

"Hunter, did Leon agree?"

Wei Jin asked without looking up while flipping through this year's financial report.

After arranging the company's various affairs at the end of November, Wei Jin had rushed to North America once again; today was already the third day.

Wei Jin had not been idle these three days; besides giving William some instructions regarding investments, the matter concerning the shares of Summit Entertainment had already been settled.

Holding the copyrights to four successful film series gave Wei Jin the confidence to act without needing to be evasive; he went straight to the point.

In the end, the three shareholders sold a total of 20% of their shares. At this point, Wei Jin already held 60% of Summit Entertainment's shares, making him the majority shareholder in the absolute sense.

"Boss, it's a pity, Leon did not agree to our terms. The profit-sharing ratio he proposed is too high; we would essentially be working for him."

Hunter sounded somewhat angry when mentioning it.

Many Hollywood superstars or famous directors open their own independent film companies, and Leonardo DiCaprio was naturally no exception; he founded Appian Way Productions specifically to participate in investing in the films he starred in.

This time, he proposed 20 million USD plus a 10% box office share. That would have been one thing, but he also demanded that Appian Way Productions hold a 30% investment stake. If Wei Jin really agreed to that, wouldn't the entire project just be working for him? Of course, perhaps this was just Leon's negotiation tactic or a way of politely declining, but while it is true that Leon is a Hollywood superstar, Summit Entertainment is no longer a small, insignificant independent film company; if they couldn't reach an agreement, they would just part ways.

This year, Summit Entertainment's *The Conjuring* had a global box office of 253 million USD, and *Taken* had a global box office of 256 million USD. Even counting only the North American box office, the total was nearly 400 million USD, occupying 4.3% of the North American box office market. This was already higher than the leaders among independent film companies like Lionsgate and New Line Cinema, making it an entity second only to the Hollywood Six Majors.

It is no exaggeration to say that next year, Summit Entertainment's goal is to challenge the Hollywood Six Majors, and the entire company is full of confidence.

"Forget it, since that's the case, let the Actors Guild recommend someone."

Wei Jin did not force it; there are plenty of actors in Hollywood, and this film relies mainly on its plot to win.

The reason he sought to cooperate with Leon was also because Wei Jin lacked some confidence. In his past life, this film, *The Invisible Guest*, had super word-of-mouth, but the box office was not very ideal, so he intended to find actors with drawing power.

However, he had forgotten that his own drawing power in Hollywood was not bad either.

"Also, how is the matter with *Twilight* going?"

"Regarding this matter, I have to say, Boss, you are truly wise. You have no idea how ugly her expression was when she saw the agreement I took out."

Hunter looked excited when talking about this; it seemed Stephenie Meyer had been teased by him quite a bit.

"Alright, you should still show her some respect. After all, she is the author of the novel and the screenwriter for this film."

When Wei Jin originally had William buy the copyright, the price was very low. Now that there are more and more fans and it is being adapted into a film, Stephenie Meyer, as the author, was naturally somewhat unwilling and proposed the request to adapt the script herself.

"Moreover, the author's adaptation of the script can often make it more acceptable to fans. Don't say things like that in the future."

"Understood, Boss. I was just venting."

Hunter had become increasingly at ease after spending a long time with Wei Jin.

"Once her script is finished, let them start working. You need to keep an eye on this matter."

"No problem. For this kind of cheesy vampire youth romance film, I can handle them all by myself."

Hunter was very confident. The film industry in Hollywood is too developed; as a Producer, he was not worried at all about being unable to control the crew.

For this *Twilight*, the total investment was 30 million USD. He gave China Film Group a 20% share, valued at 50 million RMB, with almost no premium; it could be considered a big promotion gift from Wei Jin to Han Sanping, though it was limited to the first installment.

Furthermore, Wei Jin did not intend to interfere with the entire project. The director and actors were still the same people, but the contracts signed were 1+X series contracts to prevent the filming time from being too long and the actors' pay from rising too much. Since this *The Invisible Guest* did not have Leon's participation, Zhang Ziyi naturally did not take a fancy to it and could only continue to wait for Wei Jin's next project. She was actually very confident in Wei Jin and not at all worried that Wei Jin would go back on his word.

The Actors Guild recommended several actors to Wei Jin. When Wei Jin saw the name Matt Damon, he felt a surge of joy in his heart. He's the one.

Matt Damon is the lead actor of *The Bourne Identity* series. Two films have been released so far, giving him quite a bit of fame in Hollywood, and his current salary is only 8-10 million USD.

But Wei Jin knew that in a few months, the third installment would be released, and by then, he would become the star with the most box office potential in Hollywood, leaping into the 20 million salary club.

Securing his contract now is not only a bargain, but he can also ride the wave of popularity from *The Bourne Identity*; it's a huge profit.

As for the lead actress, Wei Jin personally invited Theron, and for the rest, he chose cheap and effective veteran actors.

If there is one thing about Hollywood, it is that the efficiency is truly high. In just one week, the pre-production of the film was all in place.

Wei Jin's first suspenseful brain-burning film, *The Invisible Guest*, officially began filming.

Unlike his usual low-key approach, this time Wei Jin organized a grand opening ceremony, and quite a few media outlets arrived at the scene.

"May I ask the director, what is this film mainly about?"

"The film tells the story of an entrepreneur who, at the height of his career, gets involved in a murder case. In order to clear his name, he hires a top-tier female lawyer to defend him, subsequently uncovering a series of truths."

"The plot sounds very simple. Do you have confidence in the box office?"

"Of course I do. I can guarantee that this is a suspenseful brain-burning film that everyone has never seen before, guaranteed to have no bathroom breaks from start to finish."

"Wei, I noticed you said 'brain-burning film'? What kind of genre is that?"

"It means burning your brain. The plot of this film has extreme reversals that will make your brain spin wildly, as if it were burning. Personally, I suggest that the audience can watch it twice; otherwise, they might not understand it."

"Oh, God, you are truly confident. Then what does 'no bathroom breaks from start to finish' mean?"

"It means the plot is too tight and brain-burning; it won't even give you a chance to go to the bathroom."

"Wei, I have to say, your introduction has piqued my great interest. You are a person who knows how to tell a story."

"Thank you."

Wei Jin was doing his utmost to promote the film. Although filming hadn't started yet, it was foreseeable that with the media reports, this film would become the best expectation for many suspense and mystery fans this year.

While Wei Jin was busy filming in North America, the smoke of the domestic New Year Slot had already begun to spread, and the promotion for *Ip Man* had long since started.

After more than a year of training, the promotion and distribution team of Wei Jin Company had seen a huge improvement in their promotional and distribution capabilities, and they were already able to complete the film's promotion and distribution work very well.

As early as half a month ago, the company's post-production team had edited many classic Kung Fu Hustle film clips, made them into videos, and uploaded them to the internet, attempting to slowly open up the audience's Kung Fu sentiment.

The effect was also very good, especially when paired with passionate and explosive music; the fast-paced fighting scenes made people's blood boil. Many netizens expressed that Kung Fu films had declined and hoped for new films to come out and save this genre.

Subsequently, they released high-energy fighting scenes from *Ip Man*. The classic clip of "I want to fight ten" was frantically reposted by netizens, and for a time, the film's popularity was unprecedentedly high.

Of course, the traditional promotional routes were not left behind either. The creative teams participated in several popular variety shows. Originally, Hong Kong and Taiwan stars were not accustomed to participating in roadshows, but Zhen Zidan knew the benefits of roadshows. This time, he was carrying the box office alone, so he was also full of energy, and his schedule was almost packed.

At the same time, the cinema chains also provided great convenience. In such a heated atmosphere, *Ip Man* was officially released on December 8th.

The third update today, I earnestly request all book friends to reward me with subscriptions, follow-up readings, and collections. You need to flip to the last page for the follow-up reading, thank you everyone! (End of chapter)