Back to 1997, I became the originator of online literature

Chapter 302 of "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" sold.

Why is Cheng Long calling me at this time?
Cao Sheng was a little surprised, smiled silently, and answered the call.

"Big brother?"

Because he was in a taxi, Cao Sheng simplified "Brother Cheng Long" to "Brother" to avoid attracting the driver's attention.

On a Pacific island, Jackie Chan, who is currently filming "The Hunger Games," beamed with joy upon hearing this title.

"Hey! It's me! What are you doing? Did I disturb your rest?"

"No! It's only a little past 10 o'clock, it's not my break time yet. Did you need something?"

"Well, I have some good news for you. One of the two scripts you asked me to help find a buyer for has caught the eye of Fox. They asked for your contact information, and someone should contact you soon to discuss the price and other details. How about that? Is this good news enough for you to buy me a drink? Haha..."

Has Fox taken a liking to him?
Cao Sheng: "Hehe, of course. Even without this incident, buying you a drink is just a matter of a word, isn't it? By the way, which script are they interested in?"

A while ago, with the popularity of "Ip Man" and "If You Are the One", his script value was further proven. As planned, he found someone to translate the scripts of "Twilight" and "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" into English and asked Jackie Chan to help submit them to several major Hollywood film companies.

More than half a month has passed since this incident, and news has finally come today.

Jackie Chan: "It's Rise of the Planet of the Apes!"

Cao Sheng responded with an "Oh," and then asked, "Big brother, is there still no news about Twilight?"

Jackie Chan: "Well, there's no news about the script yet. Don't worry, I'll ask around for you later."

Cao Sheng chuckled, "It's nothing, I'm not in a hurry, I was just asking casually."

As he expected, the script for "Twilight" was not so easy to sell.

The reason is probably similar to what he thought.

The vampire image in this script is so subversive.

Vampires in previous works of art were almost always depicted in a horror style, but the vampires in "Twilight" are all handsome men and beautiful women.

Moreover, this is a love story disguised as a vampire and werewolf tale.

The key issue is that this story has not been tested by the market.

Cao Sheng remembers that in the original timeline, the novel "Twilight" came first. The novel was a bestseller and loved by many young people, which attracted the attention of film companies, who then adapted it into a movie.

And now?

Although Cao Sheng wrote about the movie world of "Twilight" in his book "The Exquisite Pagoda of Heaven and Earth", there are many book fans in the Chinese-speaking world who like the plot of this movie world.

but……

His novels are primarily read by Chinese readers.

Hollywood film studios are predominantly white-owned companies, and their target audience is primarily viewers in Europe and America.

Moreover, Twilight is just one of the cinematic worlds in The Tower of Heaven and Earth.

……

Two days later.

After class at noon, Cao Sheng walked towards the school cafeteria while taking out his silent phone to check for missed calls or new text messages.

I actually found a number from the United States.

Was that a call from Fox?
He guessed so.

He immediately stopped, looked around, walked into a nearby pavilion, and dialed the number.

The number was dialed, but no one answered.

Cao Sheng estimated that the other party should have gone to eat by this time.

I didn't dial that number again.

After thinking for a moment, he sent the number to his assistant Wang Jing, who was in Shenzhen, and asked her to contact the other party to discuss the copyright issues of "Rise of the Planet of the Apes".

By the way, when he was looking for someone to translate the scripts for "Twilight" and "Rise of the Planet of the Apes," he also asked Wang Jing to find someone in Shenzhen to do it.

Shenzhen is, after all, a first-tier metropolis, full of elites fluent in English.

In contrast, it's not easy to find someone in Huizhou who is truly fluent in English, given that it's an inland second- or third-tier city.

Even though he was an English teacher at the school, Cao Sheng didn't really believe that the other party could translate the two scripts well.

"Boss! How much do you want for the script? Give me a bottom line!"

Over the phone, after listening to Cao Sheng's instructions, Wang Jing asked this question.

"It cannot be lower than the script fee for Pacific Rim."

Cao Sheng had already considered this issue.

Therefore, the answer was given very quickly.

"Well... okay! I understand."

Wang Jing felt the pressure.

Because the script fee for "Pacific Rim" was as high as 200 million US dollars, which is higher than the total investment of many films in mainland China.

But she still agreed.

Cao Sheng hung up the phone and continued walking towards the cafeteria.

He doesn't remember how much the box office revenue for the movie "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" was in the original timeline.

But he knew that the movie had been made three or four times.

It seems that only two Pacific Rim movies were ever made.

What does this mean?
He felt this should explain why "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" grossed more than "Pacific Rim".

The logic is simple: only profitable movies will have multiple sequels. For movies that don't make money, except for some patriotic films that aren't made for profit, normal film companies won't have multiple sequels.

Therefore, he demanded that the script fee for "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" be no less than that for "Pacific Rim".

……

Pengcheng.

Wang Jing put down her phone and gave a wry smile.

Cao Sheng was initially happy that her script could be sold to a major Hollywood company, but she couldn't be happy anymore when asked to negotiate the script fee to be over 200 million US dollars.

That's too difficult.

The main problem is that other screenwriters in Chinese-language films are not up to par. If there were more Chinese screenwriters who could sell their scripts for more than $200 million in Hollywood, her job wouldn't have been so difficult to complete.

But she still has some confidence.

Her confidence stemmed from the fact that Cao Sheng's previous film, "Pacific Rim," sold for $200 million.

How do we negotiate with Fox?

She frowned in thought.

The sound of a carpenter using a nail gun to hammer cabinets in the next room kept reaching her ears, somewhat disrupting her train of thought.

She frowned and turned to look at the carpenter in that room.

This is the building that Cao Sheng bought before.

She's currently in charge of the renovations here.

“Puff…Puff…”

The sound of the nail gun continued to come, a repetitive and rhythmic sound.

As she listened, a sudden inspiration flashed through her mind.

Then, she hurried downstairs.

When she got to the flower bed downstairs, she dialed the US number Cao Sheng had given her. She was lucky; the number that Cao Sheng had just dialed but no one answered, she got answered on her first try.

Hello? May I ask who you are?

To Wang Jing's surprise, the voice on the other end of the phone was in Chinese. Wang Jing instinctively held the phone up to her eyes, looked at the number she had just dialed, and wondered if she had dialed the wrong number.

"Hello? May I ask who you are?"

The same question came through on my phone again.

Wang Jing suspiciously held the phone back to her ear. "I'm Zhongyuan Yidianhui's assistant. You dialed his number today. May I ask who you are?"

"Oh, hello! This is the copyright department of 20th Century Fox. The person you mentioned, Nakahara Ichijin, recently submitted two scripts to us, and we've taken a liking to one of them. Is Mr. Nakahara Ichijin here? I'd like to speak with him on behalf of Fox about a potential collaboration."

Wang Jing frowned. "Really? You're speaking Chinese. Are you really from Fox?"

"Oh, haha, I'm of Chinese descent! Because of Zhongyuan Yidianhui's nationality, I was assigned to communicate with him here. My Chinese name is Lin Xiang. If you have any doubts, you can check my information on our Fox official website. By the way, is Zhongyuan Yidianhui next to you right now? Can I communicate with him directly?"

Wang Jing was skeptical. "I'm sorry, he's not here. He entrusted this matter to me. You can talk to me."

Lin Xiang: "..."

Lin Xiang paused for a few seconds, then smiled and said, "Okay, we've taken a liking to the script for 'Rise of the Planet of the Apes,' but we can only offer a maximum of $50 for the script. If you have no objections to this, we can continue to discuss other terms; otherwise, there's no need to continue this discussion."

Wang Jing: "???"

She hadn't expected the other person to be so definitive.

Is the maximum you can offer $50? Anything over that is off the table?
At that moment, many thoughts flashed through her mind, ultimately culminating in one sentence: "Did you know that Zhongyuan Yidianhui's script for 'Pacific Rim' cost 200 million US dollars?"

Lin Xiang: "Yes, we know about this. However, the value of each script is different. My boss said that the script for 'Rise of the Planet of the Apes' is worth at most $50, and no more. Do you understand what I mean?"

Wang Jing emphasized, "The script fee for 'Pacific Rim' was 200 million US dollars!"

Lin Xiang: "Yes! We know, as I just said, but we can only offer a maximum of $50!"

Wang Jing emphasized again, "The script fee for 'Pacific Rim' was 200 million US dollars!"

Lin Xiang: "..."

After a moment of silence, Lin Xiang said, "I'm sorry! If you insist on this price, then there's no point in discussing it further. Do you understand what I mean?"

Wang Jing gritted her teeth and repeated, "The script fee for 'Pacific Rim' is 200 million US dollars!"

Lin Xiang: "..."

This time, his silence lasted even longer.

After a long pause, he said regretfully, "In that case, never mind. I hope we'll have the chance to work together again in the future! Goodbye!"

After saying that, he hung up the phone.

Wang Jing was a little discouraged, her shoulders slumped, and she gave a bitter smile.

She was gambling just now.

It seems like we lost the bet.

But the price of $50 was far below the bottom line Cao Sheng had set for her.

Therefore, she couldn't possibly agree.

After thinking for a moment, she sent Cao Sheng a message, reporting what had just happened to him.

……

Huizhou Teachers College.

canteen.

Cao Sheng was eating. Today he ordered a plate of Mapo Tofu, a plate of Twice-Cooked Pork, and Stir-fried Lettuce with Stinky Tofu. All three dishes were his favorites.

Therefore, they ate with great relish.

Hearing his phone ring once, he casually took it out.

After reading the message Wang Jing had just sent, his expression remained unchanged. He thought to himself: If Fox really can only offer $50 for the script, then it's not a big deal if this deal falls through.

In his memory, Rise of the Planet of the Apes was a rather strange movie.

In this movie, the protagonist is an ape, and the humans are the villains.

So, he felt something was off when he watched the movie.

But reason told him—this is a very creative and good movie.

Many people probably feel the same way he does.

Otherwise, it would have been impossible for this movie to have several sequels.

Now that he's been reborn, and he's written the script for this movie, he's going to make a killing. If the other party is too stingy and doesn't let him get a good deal, he'd rather let the script rot in his own hands than let the other party benefit from it.

Moreover, there's more than just Fox in Hollywood. If Fox can't offer a higher price, he can wait for offers from other companies.

With this mindset, he replied to Wang Jing: "Hold firm to your bottom line! Absolutely no sale below $200 million!"

Wang Jing replied with an "ok".

……

America.

Fox Copyright Department.

It's around 2 p.m.

Lin Xiang went to the person in charge's office and reported to his superior the results of the negotiations he had with Zhongyuan Yidianhui's assistant at noon that day.

After listening to Lin Xiang's report, the foreign boss frowned and considered for a moment before saying, "You handled it very well! Don't rush! Let's see who has the more patience. They might call and agree to the price before the end of the day, or maybe tomorrow or the day after. In any case, don't rush! We must be more patient than them!"

The foreigners were speaking English, of course.

After listening, Lin Xiang nodded repeatedly, showering the foreigner with compliments.

only……

A day passed, two days passed, three days passed, and Wang Jing didn't call again.

On the morning of the fourth day, the foreign boss called Lin Xiang into his office, frowned, and asked, "Hasn't the assistant of that Chinese screenwriter contacted us yet?"

Lin Xiang shrugged. "Yes! They seem very patient."

The foreign boss looked rather displeased.

After a moment's hesitation, he spoke: "Lin! Make a concession! We can't wait any longer. Let's try to finalize the contract today. Do you understand what I mean?"

Lin Xiang was a little surprised. His foreign boss was not the type to give in so easily. What was going on this time?
"Sir! Why? If they insist on $200 million, are we going to agree to it?"

His foreign boss looked at him coldly.

After a moment, he said with a dark face, "I received news that a rival company has also taken a liking to this script, so we can't delay any longer! If we delay any longer, this S-level script will be snatched away by our rival, do you understand what I mean?"

Lin Xiang's expression changed slightly.

There are very few companies in Hollywood that can be called rivals by their foreign bosses.

None of those companies were easy to deal with.

"Okay, sir! I understand, I'll contact them right away."

Realizing the urgency, he finished speaking and quickly turned to leave.

……

only……

A moment later, he returned to his foreign boss's office with a grim expression and weakly reported, "Sir! I have some bad news for you. The script for 'Rise of the Planet of the Apes'... the script has already been sold. We contacted them too late."

After he finished speaking, he didn't dare to breathe loudly, and he didn't even dare to look directly at his foreign boss, only daring to steal glances at his foreign boss's expression.

The foreign boss's expression indeed turned ugly, and he asked in a cold voice, "Did Disney buy this S-level script?"

Lin Xiang nodded cautiously.

Foreign boss: "What price did Disney offer?"

(End of this chapter)