Chapter 146: 21st Century Film Corporation

In the morning, after waking up and freshening up, Arthur went to the room and saw Sophie Marceau still asleep. He bent down and kissed her on the cheek. "Honey, I'm heading to the office!"

"Mmm," Sophie Marceau responded reflexively with a kiss as she opened her sleepy eyes.

"Is it busy now?" Sophie Marceau asked as she sat up, her perfect figure displayed before Arthur, her face glowing from the wonderful night they had.

"I bought a building in New York to serve as the West Coast headquarters. The relocation is complete, and I might need to go to New York again," Arthur explained with a smile as he sat on the bed, pulling Sophie Marceau into his arms.

Sophie Marceau nodded, taking Arthur's hand and placing it on her chest. "A Few Good Men will be filming in the Los Angeles studio for two months before moving to other locations. For Christmas, I want to go back to France! The recent rumors about us have caused quite a stir in France. Andrzej is very unhappy about me coming to Hollywood to develop my career."

Sophie Marceau was referring to her current boyfriend, Andrzej Żuławski. They had collaborated on a film last year, My Nights Are More Beautiful Than Your Days, but it hadn't received much praise.

"Did you break up?" Arthur kissed Sophie Marceau's ear. "You can't be confined to French art films or love stories. You should be the world's Sophie Marceau!"

Sophie Marceau smiled and pressed Arthur down, her hand moving to his waist. "Your real thought is that I should belong only to you, greedy guy."

"We've pretty much broken up. He's very opposed to my Hollywood career, and our last few calls ended badly. Satisfied?"

Arthur smoothed her hair. "I will make you a global superstar and let the world see your charm!"

Sophie Marceau licked her lips. "Now, shouldn't I repay you?"

Saying that, she lowered her head...

When Arthur left Sophie Marceau's apartment in Culver City, it was almost noon. One could say French women, like French cuisine, were unforgettable.

In the entire Western world, only French and Italian cuisine are considered top-notch, while British food is always looked down upon. As for America, a fast-food nation, it has no place in discussions about fine dining!

"Arthur, Menachem Golan from 21st Century Film Corporation hopes to collaborate with us on developing the Marvel Spider-Man series," Amy Pascal said as soon as Arthur returned to the office.

"Menachem Golan? Ha, I just signed the adaptation rights for Spider-Man with Marvel, and he already knows," Arthur shook his head.

"How can Galaxy work with him on Spider-Man? His licensing agreement expires next January. What does he have?"

Amy Pascal looked unsurprised. "In that case, we'll reject him directly."

"By the way, I remember Orion had a sub-label called Orion Classics for distributing art films," Arthur suddenly inquired.

"Yes, it was mainly for distributing foreign art films," Amy Pascal nodded. "However, it's been dormant for a few years. The founders of Orion were originally executives at United Artists. After United Artists was acquired by Transamerica, they left and founded Orion Pictures.

When MGM acquired United Artists and formed MGM/UA Entertainment, the executives from United Artists Classics joined Orion to establish Orion Classics.

Now United Artists Classics is closed, and Orion Classics is also basically shut down. The founding team, Tom Bernard and Michael Barker, are now collaborating with Sony Columbia to establish Sony Pictures Classics!"

Amy Pascal, who previously worked at Columbia TriStar, was well aware of these developments.

"Sony Pictures Classics," Arthur chuckled. "It seems Sony values the independent film market."

This was the first major Hollywood studio to establish its own art film label!

In late September, Arthur arrived in New York and coincidentally attended the New York Television Festival, where Galaxy and Orion moved into the Puck Building. Arthur also planned to check out the New York Film Festival for good movies.

Nicole Kidman, returning from Toronto, came to the Puck Building. "You bought a building just to serve as the company's headquarters?"

"As an investment," Arthur poured Nicole Kidman a drink. "Is the promotion for Malice going well?"

"No issues. Its performance at the Toronto Film Festival was good, and Columbia TriStar is handling the distribution, so there shouldn't be any problems," Nicole Kidman replied, taking a sip of the wine.

"Thanks to you, the promotion for Malice was extensive, all thanks to your efforts!"

Arthur smiled, hugging Nicole Kidman from behind. "Warner Bros. is optimistic too. If we win something at the awards, it'll benefit everyone."

However, Malice couldn't compare to Orion's The Silence of the Lambs. Even when Malice was released, it couldn't match the acclaim of The Silence of the Lambs.

"Disney's Billy Bathgate is about to release. I have to attend the promotional activities," Nicole Kidman said, kissing Arthur on the cheek. "I can't stay with you!"

Arthur rested his chin on her shoulder. "I heard you had some trouble recently, is that true?"

"Yeah, it's all sorted now," Nicole Kidman leaned into Arthur's embrace. "Just entertainment industry stuff, but Jessica helped me solve it. After all, I'm your girl now, they wouldn't dare mess with me!"

"Don't be afraid of trouble. At worst, you just lose a role," Arthur said, holding Nicole Kidman as they sat on the couch. "Be careful with Dustin Hoffman during the Billy Bathgate promotion. He's not a good person. If things get tough, you can use my name to keep him in check!"

"Dustin Hoffman?" Nicole Kidman was taken aback. "The autistic guy from Rain Man?"

"You're an actor too," Arthur remarked. "Actors don't just act on screen; they act off-screen too. You're still new. You'll get used to it in time!"

Nicole Kidman nodded. "I don't have many scenes with him, so we don't interact much. I'll be careful."

Nicole Kidman knew about Hollywood's workings and understood that Arthur Smith was her only support now.

"Let's go. I'll take you to dinner…"

*****

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