Chapter 371: Seattle

Simon's return to Los Angeles this time was primarily to finalize the details of the DC Universe movies for "The Flash" and "Wonder Woman," including scripts, key creative decisions, and budgets.

Additionally, after much consideration, Simon planned to slow down the rollout of the DC movie universe.

The release of "Batman: The Dark Knight" and "The Flash" for next year was already set, and "Wonder Woman" for the summer of 1992 was a certainty.

These could no longer be changed.

However, Simon wanted to move the originally scheduled "Superman" from the end of 1992 to the summer of 1993. Other projects like "Batman: The Dark Knight Rises," "Suicide Squad," and "Batman vs. Superman" would also be delayed accordingly, ultimately establishing a production rhythm of one movie per year or three movies every two years, instead of the initially planned two movies per year.

The Hollywood of the original timeline in the 90s was a golden era of great films.

Simon's strategy would not only prevent superhero movies from dominating the big screen too early, allowing shining classics like "Jurassic Park," "Independence Day," "Forrest Gump," "Men in Black," "Twister," "The Shawshank Redemption," "Scent of a Woman," "The Crying Game," and others—both commercial and artistic—to retain sufficient market space, thus fostering a Hollywood renaissance. It also allowed more thorough preparation time for these superhero movies, especially in areas like scripting and special effects.

Especially the special effects.

Thanks to the establishment of Daenerys Special Effects and the relentless investment in CG technology development, Daenerys Entertainment's technical prowess had already reached the capability to produce effects seen in the original timeline's 1993 "Jurassic Park."

Earlier this year, Daenerys Entertainment acquired the unpublished novel rights for "Jurassic Park" from Michael Crichton, and under Simon's instruction, the special effects team managed to create a highly realistic CG dinosaur sequence in just one month.

As for the currently filming "Terminator," the liquid metal robot effects were easily handled by the Daenerys Special Effects team.

However, for the planned reboot of "Superman," Simon hoped to mimic the destructive power of the battle between Clark Kent and General Zod as seen in Zack Snyder's "Man of Steel." To achieve this, Daenerys Special Effects still needed much more development.

As a compromise, Simon hoped the special effects in this version of "Superman" could at least reach the level seen in 1996's "Independence Day," which would also require at least a year of targeted technological development.

Having returned to Los Angeles after 9 PM the night before, Simon worked as usual on Saturday.

After a busy day, as evening approached, his female assistant entered his office, carrying a black suit. Her assistant's assistant followed with a shoe box.

Simon looked up from his "Maverick Genius" project documents, smiling, "It's just a party. We can go straight there after dinner; do I really need to change?"

Jennifer, the main assistant, dismissed her helper after setting down the shoe box and said, "There are a lot of people there, and besides, Janet had this sent back from Europe yesterday. She said if your outfit at a public event becomes a joke while she's away, it'll come out of my paycheck."

Simon, dressed only in a shirt, stood to cooperate as his assistant pulled the suit jacket from its cover. "Aren't I the one who pays you?" he joked.

"Yes," the assistant nodded, helping him into his jacket, "Both of you bully me."

After helping Simon button up, the assistant stepped back to admire the fit, nodding in satisfaction before prompting, "Why so quiet?"

"I'm thinking about how to bully you tonight."

The assistant rolled her eyes and handed over the trousers, "I've already had Neil prepare everything. After the party, we're going to Seattle. I really like the house on Mercer Island, Lake Washington. We'll come back on Monday."

The assistant fetched a pair of custom shoes from the shoe box, watching Simon change his pants. Seeing his silence, she smiled teasingly, "What's the matter now?"

"I thought you'd let me bully someone else."

"I'm not Janet, I won't let you bully others."

"You're not Janet?"

"No."

"That's not what you said last time."

"That was then."

After putting on the pants, Simon took the shoes from the assistant and began to change them, saying, "So, Earthlings really lack creativity in naming. I'll have the final say when it comes to our children's names."

The assistant collected Simon's old pants and shoes, "Let's hear one of those unique names you've thought of."

"Where did you say we're going tonight?"

"Seattle."

"That's not a bad name."

"What?"

"Seattle, Seattle Westeros."

The assistant was about to pack the old shoes into the box when she blinked and teased in a sing-song voice, "You can give that name to Janet's child, she'd be thrilled."

"Yes, to the Janet right here."

"I don't want it."

"No refusing allowed, I'm the dad, and what I say goes."

"Suddenly I don't feel like going to Seattle tonight, I want to go to, um... Hawaii."

"No, we're only going to Seattle, and it's only Seattle, I'm the dad, and I say what happens."

The topic of children was actually quite sensitive.

Simon and Janet had been trying to conceive since their marriage, but despite their efforts, there had been no signs of pregnancy. Deep down, Simon was eager to see a brood of wealthy heirs turn the world upside down.

But such things couldn't be rushed.

During their last stay in a Tasmanian cabin, his assistant and Simon discussed this issue. She hoped to have a child by the time she turned 30, regardless of the legitimacy of the surname, which Simon agreed to, naturally under the Westeros name.

Simon also discussed this with Janet, who didn't say much verbally, but she bit Simon's ear hard several times that night, almost as if she were dreaming about it.

After changing, Simon and his companion dined in the company's executive dining area, as dusk fell.

Because of its complex main building and interior decoration, the large activity center in the second-floor office area of Daenerys Cinema had only recently opened for use. The celebration of "Crossroads of Life" winning the Venice Golden Lion could be considered the first major event in this new center.

Though the party was ostensibly to celebrate the Golden Lion, it effectively served as a cumulative celebration for Daenerys Entertainment's summer box office success.

Not just the team from "Crossroads of Life," but also creators from the recently successful summer releases "Ghost," "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles," "Sleeping with the Enemy," "The Hand That Rocks the Cradle," and even earlier "Pretty Woman" were invited.

By late September, "Pretty Woman," which had premiered during the Valentine's season, had ended its North American run, reaching a domestic box office total of $178 million. Furthermore, "Pretty Woman's" international box office had surpassed that, recently breaking $200 million.

According to estimates from Daenerys Entertainment's distribution department, "Pretty Woman" could potentially reach a global box office of $450 million.

A production cost of $10 million returning $450 million at the global box office was a miraculous result even by Daenerys Entertainment's standards and left the rest of Hollywood in awe.

Yet, the success didn't stop there.

At the start of the summer, Daenerys Entertainment's fantasy romance "Ghost" became an unexpected hit, its tear-jerking story capturing countless viewers. After more than three months in theaters, its box office steadily grew.

From its June 1st premiere to September 20th, "Ghost" had accumulated a domestic box office of $181 million, surpassing "Pretty Woman." With weekly box office still around $5 million, reaching the $200 million mark was all but certain.

From the feedback of "Ghost's" gradually unfolding international release, the film's performance abroad was just as strong as "Pretty Woman."

Thus, just from "Pretty Woman" and "Ghost," Daenerys Entertainment could expect global ticket sales exceeding $900 million, a figure comparable to last year's "Batman: Moment of Battle" directed by Simon himself.

Excluding all costs, the box office profits from these two hit romance films were no less than $300 million, and with expected revenue from merchandising, video sales, and TV rights—which meant a long revenue return period—the potential earnings could be about twice the profit from ticket sales.

This series of successful projects underpinned the recent $10 billion valuation of Daenerys Entertainment by "Forbes" magazine.

Beyond "Pretty Woman" and "Ghost," films like "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles," "Sleeping with the Enemy," and "The Hand That Rocks the Cradle" also found success. With "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" alone bringing in $119 million, these films, along with "Pretty Woman" and "Ghost," were set to top Daenerys Entertainment's annual box office charts.

The stellar box office performance of Daenerys Entertainment's films this summer certainly merited more celebration than just for "Crossroads of Life."

However, the hundreds of guests attending tonight's party in the cinema's event hall were mostly there for one young man.

Everyone knew that Simon Westeros was the mastermind behind all this success.

And with the release of "Forbes'" U.S. 400 Richest list at the beginning of the month, Simon Westeros' personal net worth of $21 billion only solidified his influence in Hollywood.

There was a bit of a buzz in the industry about

 this.

"Premiere" magazine in Los Angeles had been discussing creating a list of Hollywood's most powerful figures since earlier this year, and Simon Westeros was the undisputed top choice. However, when "Forbes'" wealth list came out, "Premiere" scrapped the idea altogether.

The person destined for first place on their list was simply too dazzling.

Everyone knew Simon Westeros, and everyone only saw Simon Westeros.

As for those who might rank second, third, or even fourth through tenth... they weren't as well-known as the likes of John Kruger or Warren Buffett who followed Simon on the "Forbes" wealth list. So, even if these individuals were listed after Simon, very few people would care.

If nobody cared, then making such a list was pointless.

Inside the hall.

Originally engaged in a conversation with Bruce Willis and Demi Moore, hoping to include them in one of his studio's films, the president of Columbia Pictures, Jon Peters, heard something whispered by his girlfriend and immediately raised his glass to the Willis couple before turning to head toward the hall's entrance.

At the same time, it seemed as if the entire crowd felt a powerful magnetism, creating a noticeable stir.

Although everyone understood that Simon Westeros had arrived, the hall was already filled with over 600 guests.

Despite the inner turmoil, it was impossible for everyone to rush over at once.

Most quickly regained composure, or pretended to, with only a few who felt they had the status to approach Simon Westeros actually moving.

Simon, dressed in the black Armani suit he had changed into before dinner, and his female assistant, in a simple white gown, appeared side by side in the hall, exuding a very evident couple vibe.

However, since Simon was no longer a bachelor and the occasion was too public, the assistant did not hang on his arm but stood slightly apart like a true assistant, occasionally leaning in to remind him of the identities of those approaching to greet.

"This is Barbara Broccoli and her half-brother Michael Wilson."

Just having chatted with Fox's president Joe Roth and spotting an unfamiliar man and woman approaching, the assistant quickly whispered a reminder to Simon.

Just the introduction was enough for Simon to recognize their significance.

Heirs to the Broccoli family, long-term controllers of half the rights to the 007 series.

After greetings and handshakes, Barbara Broccoli, clearly the more talkative, started discussing the latest 007 movie.

With MGM stabilized and the rights dispute resolved, the Broccoli family and MGM management were fully committed to producing "007: GoldenEye," which had a completed script.

However, Barbara Broccoli was noticeably displeased with Simon's insistence on changing the lead actor for the 007 series: "Simon, shouldn't the 007 series be a matter between the Broccoli family and MGM? I think whether we need a new lead actor should be our decision to make."

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