HWI 166

Hollywood What If Chapter 166

"Hello, I'm Chris Cooper. I'm here to audition for..."

Kazir was too out of this world to listen to the actor. He massaged his forehead because he was having some issues these days. 

In the end, Renner Hector and Harold Witsend took over the audition and gave Kazir some peace to relax. 

This was the last round of audition and most of the cast were already filled. Their main priority was only Matt Damon and his role as Jason Bourne. Except for that, Kazir Grey let the other people choose the cast. That was the privilege they could get from him. 

Of course, the actor they chose should know how to act. Kazir knew that some of the crew used a certain kind of transaction to cast some actors in small roles. As long as it didn't affect the filming, Kazir turned blind to this kind of thing. 

"Sir, here's the Monster Energy Drink that you said."

"Thanks, Erica..."

Perhaps drinking energy drink in his state was unhealthy but Kazir didn't have the time for that. 

Once the audition was done and all of the cast was filled, the training would start. The script reading would happen once a week so that the cast could adapt and act well. 

Obviously, Kazir Grey was getting busy. Unfortunately, he could not help but think about the conversation he had with Brad Grey from Paramount. 

Paramount Pictures decided to distribute Taken 2 instead of the Bourne Identity. They believe that the performance of Taken 2 would be better than The Bourne Identity. 

As for the reason... Well, the sequels of a successful movie had a safer profit. In a way, Paramount decided to distribute a safer movie than a movie that has an unknown future. 

'Even though the director of Taken 2 is Fremont Smith, they still decided to choose it. Without talking to me.'

Of course Kazir didn't expect that. Paramount promised that they would distribute his three movies. Unfortunately, they could choose which movie to distribute. Perhaps Kazir believed that everything would be fine. That there was no obstacle anymore. 

'Hah, I'm too confident. Now Paramount shot me in the back without knowing.'

Actually, Grey Pictures already contacted some film companies to distribute Taken 2 and their response was positive. 

Because of the box office of Taken, they believe that Taken 3 won't fall from grace either. They were ready to sign a 25% to 30% box office fee to distribute the movie. The reputation of Taken 2 was very good and the profit was obvious too. 

But if Paramount decided to distribute Taken 2, then Grey Pictures had to find a film company to distribute The Bourne Identity. 

And unlike Taken 2, The Bourne Identity had no clear profit to show. The film companies won't be confident to distribute the movie, believing that it would flop. First of all, The Bourne Identity was based on a novel, not written by Kazir Grey. Another factor that they have to be beware of. 

'If a film company agreed to distribute the movie, perhaps the box office fee will range from 35% to 45% which is not good for us.'

This was the reason why Kazir was having trouble these days. No one was confident in his current movie, a movie based on a novel. 

'Hehe, it's ironic that they prefer an original screenplay more than a movie adaptation of a novel.'

"There's only one thing to do-- Calm the fuck down and forgot this problem for now. I have to focus all of my mind on making sure that the movie will be successful. I have to entrust this problem to Harold and Salvatore..."

Was he holding a grudge against Paramount, yes, a little bit. Last month they already had an agreement that Paramount would distribute The Bourne Identity. Unfortunately, they were still trying to make the contract when Paramount decided to back out. Rats got them, and they became cowards. 

After a few hours of calming down, Kazir decided to return to the audition room. He drank the Monster Energy Drink in one sitting with no hesitation. 

When he returned, he realized that most of the cast was already chosen and the crew would contact them later or tomorrow to announce that they were hired. 

The crew decided that the pre-production would last 50 days before the start of filming. This includes the props preparation, script reading, and training. 

The props were not a big problem since their costumes were simple. Even the filming locations didn't need much. 

As for script reading and training, most of the actors were professionals. Furthermore, Cameron Diaz and Matt Damon had training lessons a few months ago. Heck, Matt Damon gained weight and currently learning boxing. They have enough experience. Still, proper training was needed, even for a duration of a month. 

Just like that, December arrived. Kazir's stock portfolio increased again. Now, his investment has become $48 million combined. Of course, Kazir was happy to see his money getting bigger. So he decided to invest another $15 million. As long as 2000 didn't arrive, he knew that he was safe from the dot.com bubble burst.

-- Hey, Kazir! When are you going to visit us? I know that you're busy but the Christmas is getting close! You have to take a vacation! Dad is looking for you.

"Aaron, you have to understand. I have a lot of things to do." Kazir muttered. 

-- I don't give a fuck! Come over and see your niece for the first time! 

"Aaron--"

-- Hey, I'm your brother."

"... Okay fine. I'll try to do what I can do.

-- Bruh, you're the boss of your company. You can do whatever you want. In the first place, you never like business management. That's the reason why you ran away. Because you want to pursue making movies!

[I might be gone tomorrow. My mother and I are going to the municipal hall to settle my grandma's documents.]

[Another thing, I didn't know that Matt Damon didn't participate in the Military training for Saving Private Ryan. Unfortunately, I can't edit the chapters because it will cause a big change if I do that. I apologize. Still, thank you to Drake who gave me that information.]