RBCT Chapter 151 Evil Hollywood
Chapter 151 Evil Hollywood
Chapter 151 Evil Hollywood
At the premiere of "Titanic," when the end credits finally disappeared into the darkness, the breathing of nearly 500 audience members seemed to be held together by an invisible force. After three seconds of deathly silence, thunderous applause swept through the entire screening room like the raging waves of the Atlantic Ocean.
This movie-watching experience, which lasted for more than three hours, is redefining the boundaries of audiences' understanding of romance movies.
Jack's rough romance of teaching Rose to spit in third class, and Rose's resolute leap from the lifeboat onto the ship, are both the most ardent interpretations of love.
Variety film critic David Rooney drew three bold lines in his notebook.
"James Cameron proved with a production cost of $200 million that industrial films can also carry artistic merit."
Especially the scene where Rose and Jack meet at the bow of the ship, Rose stands by the railing, her face bathed in a cool blue light, as if reflecting her mood at that moment and her suffocating existence in the aristocratic circle.
In the background, Jack appears in a warm yellow hue under the ship's lights, as if suggesting that Jack is destined to be a guiding light on Rose's life path.
James Cameron demonstrated meticulous attention to detail in every aspect of the film, impressing many film critics at the event.
But amidst the applause and praise, a persistent business concern lingered.
When Disney CEO Michael Eisner, who had been invited to the event, lit a cigar in the lounge area, and smoke rings drifted under the crystal chandelier, he spoke to Paramount President Tom Jacobson, who was standing next to him.
"A three-hour runtime means a 20% reduction in screenings, and a $100 million budget would require a global box office of over $600 million to break even."
"It comes down to the same issue: this isn't a disaster film, but a romance, or rather, a satire. A film like this has never had such high box office returns; it's unprecedented in film history."
Tom Jacobson nodded in agreement, a hint of relief flashing across his face. "So when Paramount refused to invest anymore, I was prepared to lose money, but I didn't expect some idiot to come along and help me out."
Besides love, the themes of wealth inequality, gender inequality, and faith are also present throughout the story.
Tom Jacobson believes that such a film might do well at the box office. Given the quality of the film and James Cameron's box office appeal, no one would be surprised if it grossed two or three hundred million dollars.
However, compared to the film's production costs, its box office performance is clearly unsatisfactory.
Not only did the two of them have this thought, but many film critics at the scene also shook their heads in regret. The film is definitely a good film, a rare masterpiece of romance in Hollywood history.
But MGM was destined to lose money; they had already sentenced "Titanic" to death in their minds, and it was impossible for them to break even.
Considering the amount of money MGM spent on promoting this film, some people subconsciously turned their gaze to the figure in the corner.
Where, the owner of MGM, America’s most high-profile tycoon, is standing there having a private chat with MGM CEO Robert Iger.
Many people secretly smiled bitterly upon seeing Ernst's calm, even intrigued, expression.
They're really worrying about things that don't concern them. For them, losing tens or hundreds of millions of dollars on "Titanic" is an astronomical figure.
But for this tycoon, is this amount of money even a little?
Didn't you see there was a huge party at the Four Seasons Hotel after the movie ended?
They don't treat money like money at all; it might just be pocket money to them.
Even after the film ended, the creators were still being interviewed.
Ernst did not linger, but drove to the Four Seasons Hotel like the other guests.
Normally, he wouldn't attend such social events; Robert Iger's presence was sufficient.
But today is different. This premiere has invited many top figures from Hollywood, and most importantly, there are dozens of big stars and countless beautiful women in attendance. He is quite interested.
When we arrived at the banquet hall of the Four Seasons Hotel, there were already quite a few guests there.
The invited so-called celebrities, executives from other companies, Hollywood stars, and so on.
Apart from the main creative team who will be interviewed later, the rest of the guests have all arrived one after another.
As soon as Ernst arrived, everyone rushed forward to greet him, offer him a toast, and then compliment him, all trying to curry favor with this super tycoon.
Regardless of the success of "Titanic," MGM's status as one of the seven major Hollywood studios, and its continued growth, is undeniable.
Ernst is no longer the playboy who could go bankrupt at any moment and lose the entire MGM.
Given their current wealth and net worth, a loss of three to five hundred million US dollars for MGM would not cripple them at all.
It's fair to say that as long as he wants to run the media business and control MGM, no one can take this Hollywood giant away from him, at least not now.
The vast majority of the guests at the event were professionals in the entertainment industry, so they naturally wanted to curry favor with this top figure in Hollywood.
After seeing off Paramount CEO Tom Jacobson, Universal Pictures CEO Frank raised his glass and said, "Congratulations, Ernst, this will be a historic work."
The Rolex on his wrist gleamed under the light, creating a subtle contrast with the Patek Philippe peeking out from Ernst's cuff.
"Thank you, I think so too," Ernst replied with a smile.
He knew that these people were flattering him on the surface, but in reality they were all there to see him make a fool of himself.
Especially Frank, who is the last person who wants Titanic to achieve good results.
Because Universal Pictures' summer blockbusters, Jurassic Park 2 and Titanic, are direct competitors, the success of this film had the biggest impact on Universal.
The two engaged in a perfunctory conversation for a while before parting ways.
He drank glass after glass of alcohol, and during this time he rejected many actresses' overt and covert advances. He said that he would go to Robert Iger's side if he had the opportunity to guide acting in the future.
He now has a question in his mind, and that is Tom Cruise.
He walked the red carpet with Nicole Kidman, but here he's all alone.
Not far away, Tom Cruise was chatting and laughing with several producers. The Hollywood superstar was wearing a silver-gray suit tonight, and his left arm was naturally wrapped around the waist of a blonde model.
It wasn't his wife, Nicole Kidman.
"Nicole left early?" Ernst patted Robert Iger on the shoulder, his gaze sweeping across the room searching for that familiar figure, but he couldn't find her anywhere.
Robert Iger paused, his tone tinged with surprise, "You didn't greet me."
Logically speaking, if the other party leaves early, they should inform the host of the banquet.
"And Tom Cruise..." Ernst gestured to Tom Cruise, who was chatting with several people in the distance, his arm around his female companion's slender waist.
Cruise.
"You probably don't know this, but there have been rumors of marital discord among this seemingly perfect couple recently."
"A marital breakdown?" Ernst was somewhat surprised; the timing didn't seem right. "Why?"
"It's said to be related to Scientology, the religion Tom Cruise follows. See that middle-aged man in the black turtleneck to Tom Cruise's right? That's David Miskaveggie, the new leader of Scientology."
The light from the crystal chandelier reflected a cold gleam in David Miskevich's glasses as he spoke to Tom, who nodded repeatedly in unusual obedience.
As the waiter passed by with a tray, Robert Iger took two glasses of whiskey and continued speaking in a voice only the two of them could hear, "I heard that Tom Cruise has been having a lot of bad luck lately, and he almost died in a car accident. They interpreted it as being possessed by an evil spirit, and the culprit is Nicole Kidman."
Ernst swirled the amber liquid in his glass, the clinking of ice cubes masking his surprise. "Because Nicole..."
Kidman is not religious?
"That's not all." Robert's tone was one of utter disbelief. "They claim that Ni can pass on the bad luck of unbelievers to Tom through sexual intercourse."
"And there's also an interesting rumor."
Robert Iger chuckled, and Ernst glanced at him, giving him a look that said, "Come on, tell me!"
"It is said that in order to break the bad luck that Nicole Kidman brought on him, Scientology taught him to find several holy women and use sexual intercourse to help him get rid of the bad luck."
Ernst pursed his lips, thinking, "Isn't this just a honey trap?"
Robert Iger smiled mysteriously and said, "But do you know what rituals are involved in the process?"
Ernst was stunned. What kind of ritual was required? Did they expect him to insert it twice, pull it out, kneel down, and perform a ritual?
"I heard that after foreplay, before Tom Cruise goes inside, he cracks a raw egg inside the woman."
"This egg must be the first egg laid by the hen, as it is said to ward off evil spirits."
Ernst's eyes bulged slightly as he thought to himself that it was fortunate the Scientologist leader had never been to China, otherwise he wouldn't have been beaten with an egg, but rather stuffed with a black donkey hoof.
Hollywood, when it comes to all sorts of supernatural and heretical doctrines, you're the best. Religious fanaticism among Hollywood stars isn't new, but this absurd logic still exceeded his comprehension.
Ernst's gaze returned to Tom Cruise, who was raising his glass to clink glasses with David Miskaveggie, a relieved smile on his face. "So Tom Cruise believed it, and accepted it?"
This is ridiculous. How could the other party believe it?
Robert Iger shrugged, a hint of sarcasm in his voice. "Isn't it obvious?"
"It is said that the effect was remarkable, and it changed his luck in one go. He was able to get the script that he had always coveted but could not obtain before."
"So now this golden couple has a lot of conflict because of Scientology. If it weren't for their concern for their public image, they probably wouldn't even walk the red carpet."
"However, everyone in the industry knows that their marriage is already dead in all but name."
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