Taking risks

What kind of actor qualifies for a share? A top-tier actor? Such an answer is obviously inadequate. A truly meaningful answer should be: an actor who can bear the risk of box office performance, or, in positive terms, an actor with box office appeal.

In Hugo's acting career, although the five films before "Desperate Hours" received excellent word-of-mouth, their box office performance was not outstanding. Even the best-performing "Dead Poets Society" only made a modest $95 million, and it was Robin Williams, not Hugo, who shouldered the box office responsibility. The consecutive failures of three commercial blockbusters that followed further confirmed the fact that Hugo had acting skills but lacked box office appeal.

Last year, Hugo's two works, "Scent of a Woman" and "A Few Good Men", achieved excellent box office results. "A Few Good Men" secured a surprising $170 million and held the top spot for eight consecutive weeks. This was undoubtedly Hugo's contribution and the reason why the media was willing to consider Hugo as a top-tier actor.

However, Hugo's so-called box office appeal was only evident in these two works; it was not trustworthy at all. Therefore, Hugo naturally does not qualify for a share. Currently, there were only a handful of actors in Hollywood who qualified for a share, and Hugo definitely did not hold that position.

Joseph was quite worried about this, but it was his responsibility. After experiencing so many things, Joseph knew that he, as Hugo's agent, could provide the best support to Hugo. Therefore, despite the daunting task, Joseph initiated tough negotiations with the film producer Gary Foster.

Gary was not considered a top-tier producer in Hollywood, which corresponded to the background of "Sleepless in Seattle" not being highly regarded in the industry. In Gary's list of works, the 1986 film "Short Circuit" was his first as an executive producer. With an investment of less than $10 million, the film grossed $40 million, which was a huge success, leading to a sequel two years later. Unfortunately, the sequel flopped and only earned $21 million.

After that, Gary produced two more films, neither of which had any remarkable achievements. It could be said that Gary was an unknown figure among producers. However, Joseph would never underestimate Gary because every producer was a shrewd vampire who wouldn't easily let go of their interests.

"Gary, you must show enough sincerity." Joseph and Gary had been deadlocked for nearly twenty minutes, forcing Joseph to play his trump card. "You know, Hugo is truly willing to star in this film, and it has been quite a while since Nora has been looking for an actor with Hugo's sincerity and capability..."

In fact, Joseph was implying that besides Hugo, it seems that no other male actors are willing to take on "Sleepless in Seattle". You shouldn't be so picky anymore.

Gary chuckled lightly, "I think I've shown enough sincerity. You know, Hugo doesn't have many scripts to choose from lately." People in the industry should have a clear understanding of Hugo's situation, and Gary was no exception.

"But both Hugo and I can continue to wait. You know we can afford to wait, for example, after the Oscars," Joseph reminded Gary. Hugo received dual nominations at the Golden Globes, and although he didn't receive an Oscar nomination, both "Scent of a Woman" and "A Few Good Men" were strong contenders for the Academy Awards. As long as the films won awards, Hugo's reputation would rise again.

After Joseph finished speaking, he looked to see if Gary had anything else to say, but he preemptively interrupted him. "I know what you're about to say. So, I think we're stuck here, going in circles, again and again. Are you so sure that Hugo won't give up this opportunity?"

In fact, they had already repeated this conversation twice, just going in circles. So Joseph decided to take the initiative.

Gary looked at Joseph in front of him, finding it difficult to find any flaws in Joseph's expression. Therefore, he didn't know how much truth there was in Joseph's words. However, Gary was unwilling to back down. It was a competition of willpower now. Whoever backed down first would lose the advantage, which was a budget of several million dollars. Gary had a total budget of only $20 million, and he wouldn't squander it easily.

But Joseph had no intention of backing down first either, so he gave Gary a way out. "I've spoken to Nora, and $8 million is simply unnecessary. Hugo doesn't even have that idea. So why don't you show some sincerity? For example, give me a more realistic figure instead of crossing your arms and waiting for me to back down again."

Earlier, Gary proposed a salary of $3 million, which Joseph naturally couldn't accept. A year ago, Joseph secured "A Few Good Men" for Hugo at $3 million, but that was a different situation a year ago. Even though Hugo was currently facing doubts about his status as a top-tier actor, his salary couldn't stay stagnant. "A Few Good Men" was still performing remarkably well in the North American box office. So Joseph chose to be tough.

Gary squinted slightly, carefully observing Joseph. The person in front of him was quite different from the information he had gathered. Today's Joseph was more assertive and shrewd than he had expected, and Gary felt somewhat caught off guard.

Just as Gary was considering how to adjust the offer, Joseph spoke again. "I understand the difficulties of the production team, and I also understand Hugo's situation. How about we both compromise and show some sincerity?" This was Joseph's way of showing weakness, as Gary had anticipated. Joseph took the initiative to back down, which pleased Gary. Then he heard Joseph continue, "How about this, a salary of $6 million. What do you think?"

Gary had to admit that Joseph's offer was indeed sincere. It was the same salary Hugo had received for "Hudson Hawk" and aligned with Hugo's current market value. There was nothing excessive about it, and if the industry learned of Joseph's offer, no one would say Hugo was asking for too much.

However, the problem was that Gary's budget still couldn't reach that figure. Considering Meg Ryan's salary as the lead actress, Gary had to press it down again. "Four million," Gary firmly lowered the salary by a significant margin. He felt no guilt about it because it was his responsibility. In Gary's view, this price was even higher than the initial three million!

Joseph shook his head and smiled at Gary, "If you're not willing to show enough sincerity, then I think we can end today's negotiation here. There's no need to make everyone more unhappy." After speaking, Joseph stood up directly and extended his right hand.

Gary speculated whether Joseph was using retreat as a means of advancement or if he had genuinely given up. However, his experience was still inferior to those old foxes, making it difficult for him to make an accurate judgment. Therefore, reluctantly, he also stood up and said somewhat eagerly, "Four million five hundred thousand." Then he tried to slow down his speech, not appearing too anxious, but unfortunately, the effect was not very noticeable. "Joseph, this is already our greatest sincerity. You must understand the situation of the production crew."

"Gary, if this is what you call sincerity, then I will express Hugo's apologies to Nora," Joseph shook his head. He would never agree to this number. After speaking, Joseph was actually prepared to turn and leave.

Gary stood in place, uncertain. In fact, the salary set by the production crew for Hugo was indeed four million five hundred thousand, but the upper limit was five million. Gary was still hesitating whether or not to reveal his final card. However, even if he revealed his card now, it seemed that Joseph would not agree because there was still a significant gap from six million. Five million five hundred thousand would give him a chance.

"Joseph, you must understand that the situation of the production crew is really difficult," Gary reluctantly said half a sentence, but he hesitated.

Joseph, with his back turned to Gary, revealed a slight smile. Neither Joseph nor Gary were top-notch old foxes, and both were extremely cautious in this battle. Now it seemed that Joseph had finally gained a slight advantage, exposing Gary's vulnerability. But Joseph quickly restrained his smile. He knew that the next move would be the fatal blow.

So, Joseph turned around calmly, pondering with a grave expression. "Gary, I understand all of these circumstances. We've already discussed them before. But you also know Hugo's situation. He deserves better." Joseph explained with difficulty, and then fell silent, as if engaged in intense internal struggle.

Gary had "five million" ready to be spoken, but he forcefully held it back. He was waiting for Joseph's next words.

Sure enough, Joseph spoke again, "In that case, if you agree to give Hugo a 20% share of the box office, then the salary can be lowered to three million."

The box office sharing was the most realistic result after Joseph's consideration. It wouldn't affect Hugo's reputation and value, while still providing sufficient returns. The only concern was whether "Sleepless in Seattle" was worth it. So Joseph discussed it with Hugo, and unexpectedly, Hugo agreed to it immediately. It could be seen that everyone had doubts about the success of "Sleepless in Seattle", but Hugo firmly believed that the film would be a success.

Therefore, Joseph came up with his final answer. It was either a salary of five million five hundred thousand dollars, or three million plus a 20% share of the box office.

"Oh, and there's no lower limit set for the box office," Joseph added.

Generally, a lower limit would be set for box office sharing. For example, actors could only participate in the sharing after the box office exceeded one hundred million, as a way to stimulate their enthusiasm. Otherwise, if the film was already losing money and they still had to share the profits with the actors, the production company would suffer heavy losses.

However, Joseph was still worried about the box office of "Sleepless in Seattle". He didn't have complete confidence that the film would surpass the one hundred million threshold. That's why he added this clause. In this way, Hugo's salary would ultimately be at least higher than "A Few Good Men".

Of course, relatively speaking, Hugo would have to bear the box office risk of "Sleepless in Seattle". But the question was, did Hugo have the ability to bear that risk?