Director of Photography Department of Huayu

Chapter 274 Replacement
As the weekdays began, the box office for "Black Peony" dropped to around seven or eight million yuan, but this result was still daunting for many.

Yinchuan, the film crew of "Painted Skin".

The last rays of the setting sun bathed the film set, giving the yellow sand a pale golden hue.

"Director Wu is a real pervert!" Zhou Xun said with a serious face, while Pang Hong, who had just taken a sip of tea, almost spat it out.

“Speak properly. It’s only because Director Wu isn’t here that he would definitely be yelling at you.” He laughed and coughed at the same time.

"Director Lu, do you think 'Black Peony' will break 100 million at the box office?"

Yuan Quan couldn't help but ask.

After the question was raised, everyone fell silent for a few seconds.

Everyone knows that art films are always critically acclaimed but commercially unsuccessful.

Although "Black Peony" had the boost from the Cannes awards, no one expected the box office to be much higher than anticipated.

Lu Yang pondered for a moment, but he still wasn't sure.

"It seems to depend on the piracy situation, but I heard that China Film Group and Enlight Media are taking very strict measures against piracy this time. If they can delay it for a week, and take advantage of the positive word-of-mouth, there is still a good chance," Huang Xiaoming thought for a moment and gave a reply.

Meanwhile, thousands of miles away in Dunhuang, the "Kung Fu King" crew was no less shocked than the crew of "Painted Skin."

"My domestic box office hasn't even reached 100 million yet."

Jackie Chan, who had just finished filming an action scene, sat down to rest. Hearing the discussions about "Black Peony," he sighed with emotion.

His movies are pirated too quickly, but now there's an art film that, following this trend, even if it doesn't break 100 million, will most likely reach the same box office as his commercial films.

"Director Wu is amazing!" Jing Tian, ​​who was covered in dust and dirt, couldn't help but exclaim in a low voice.

Li Binbin was even more envious, but upon hearing Jing Tian's tone, she asked in surprise, "Tian Tian, ​​do you know Director Wu?"

Jing Tian paused for a moment, then nodded subconsciously.

Immediately, Li Lianjie and Cheng Long both looked over.

The domestic situation was excellent, and "Black Peony" was given ample time to dominate the screen for a full two weeks. Only "Pirates of the Caribbean" at the end of its run could share the box office with "Black Peony" during that period.

Everyone in the industry knows this is preferential treatment from China Film Group, but there's nothing they can do about it.

Who can blame them when they not only have an excellent reputation but also outstanding box office results?

Meanwhile, inside the villa, Wu Chen, who was writing the script for "The Martian," suddenly felt his phone on the table buzzing.

He looked down and saw it was a call from Linda Aubus.

"Wu".

Linda Aubus's voice was as capable and gentle as ever, "I discussed your note and ideas with Professor Kip a few days ago."

He had just been conducting related experiments two months prior.

Wu Chen paused slightly, his gaze hardening.

This is the signal.

Generally, when a potential partner explains certain reasons to you, it proves that they are interested in collaborating.

"Your idea is fantastic. To be honest, I was amazed when I first read it, and Professor Kip was no exception. We're very curious to see what kind of story you'll write."

Linda Obbs said with a laugh, "But I need to mention one thing: Paramount signed a 'letter of intent to develop' with us, so they currently have nominal initial control over the development."

So if you can't solve this, we can help you reach a cooperation agreement with Paramount! Wu Chen's eyes lit up.

This proves that the other party is also willing to entrust him with directing, provided that the script is satisfactory.

However, upon hearing the following sentence, Wu Chen also felt a headache coming on. Although he had a solution, he still wanted to complain about Hollywood's copyright mechanism.

In Hollywood, once a "development agreement" is signed, the production company gains "partial control of the project," even before the script has been written.

“I’ll communicate with Paramount,” Wu Chen replied immediately.

There was a pause on the other end of the phone.

Linda Aubus was slightly surprised; she had originally thought that Wu Chen would need her as a communication intermediary.

"Okay, we'll wait for your good news."

"By the way, I'll be making a science fiction film before Interstellar," Wu Chen added.

“This is definitely better news.” Linda Obst became interested immediately. If Wu Chen had the experience of making a science fiction film, he might be able to make the story even better.

She hesitated before because the other party hadn't made that many movies.

However, Wu Chen truly surprised her. His understanding of humanities and science, as well as his success at the Cannes Film Festival last month, were undeniable.

Moreover, Kip Thorne was extremely interested in Wu Chen's humanistic philosophy, which made her change her mind.

After hanging up with Linda Aubus, Wu Chen dialed Jason Blum without hesitation.

“Wu, are you sure you want to use the North American rights to ‘Black Peony’ and the script for ‘Black Swan’ as bargaining chips to exchange?” Jason Blum asked again.

Although he had long guessed Wu Chen's plan, he was still somewhat surprised to hear this change of plans.

After all, the success of "Black Peony" has made the script for "Black Swan" extremely valuable for development. It can be said that as long as the director chosen is good enough, it is almost guaranteed to win some Oscars.

Moreover, it has great potential for box office success.

"Well, I still want a share of the profits from the script of 'Black Swan,' and I also want authorship. As for the bonus, let's discuss it. Pass the message on to them."
Oh, and at the same time, also let Fox Searchlight and other companies that had previously shown interest in selling "Black Swan"!

Competition is a motivator, but we can't let Paramount always feel like it has to make a replacement.

"OK!"

Jason Blum acted swiftly, after all, it was just a matter of delivering a message.

The following day, the morning sunlight pierced through the thin mist of Beverly Hills and streamed into the conference room through the towering floor-to-ceiling windows.

Three documents were laid out on the conference table, with a printed copy bearing the words "Black Swan" lying quietly in the center.

Rebecca Sarkin, Vice President of International Development, gently lifted her coffee cup and focused her gaze on the potential analysis of the script for "Black Swan".

"So, should we change it or not?" she asked calmly.

Sitting across from her was Craig Holmes, Paramount’s head of international copyright cooperation and one of the first to sign the “Kip Thorne Science Concept Development Agreement” with Linda Obbs.

He was reviewing the preliminary letter that had been delivered, which stated: North American distribution priority for "Black Peony" + original adapted screenplay for "Black Swan" in exchange for control of the "Interstellar" project.

He closed the file, his brow furrowing slightly: "He also proposed clauses regarding the retention of screenplay credits, profit sharing, and bonuses."

"These are all open to discussion. Based on our current analysis, Black Swan is a project with a high probability of making money, unless we're out of our minds. It also has a chance to compete for an Oscar."

"If we let it go, we might not get a second chance like this; Fox Searchlight is watching closely too."

(End of this chapter)