Chapter 335: Collecting Debts

"Rich personal style, superb scriptwriting ability, and brilliant editing—these are the personal hallmarks Murphy Stanton has left on us, making him undoubtedly one of Hollywood's highest-achieving directors under the age of thirty!"

When a director continuously succeeds, the media is bound to sing praises, especially with CAA and Stanton Studios orchestrating a public relations campaign for the Oscars.

Bill Rossis had specifically advised Murphy that from now until the Oscar nominations were officially announced, he could not remain as low-profile as before. He needed to maintain a presence in the media, be topical, and keep the industry's attention.

This media hype was undoubtedly a good way to maintain visibility.

"Murphy Stanton's films are better than good films. He focuses on the dark aspects of human nature and society, offering the audience a deeper experience and reflection while advancing the story layer by layer. His seamless narrative pace, cleverly designed dialogues, and perfect use of somber tones have successfully told one story after another. Even a typically unbearable work like 'Deadpool' was well adapted and even enriched based on respect for the original, creating a wonderful chemical reaction between Murphy's distinct style and the brilliant original."

"In film history, there are always some darlings blessed by fate. They not only freely express their artistic talents but also reap commercial success and critical acclaim, achieving fame and envy. Murphy Stanton has now become one of those figures."

Media reports made Murphy a focal point, and a review in "The Hollywood Reporter" further spotlighted him in the media and industry.

"His style is unique in Hollywood; his works, like those of Martin Scorsese, are laden with a strong personal touch; his editing is swift and smooth, yet his colors are dark and subdued; his films are perennially devoid of sunlight, always revolving around murder and violence that radiates a chilling cold from the inside out; he firmly believes that humans are inherently twisted, and only dark, ominous stories can expose this perversion to the audience. Over the years, as his directing techniques have matured, his style has become increasingly apparent. His latest work saw Charlize Theron turn down her own projects to star as the lead in 'Gone Girl.'"

Handling a theatrical film is delicate—it must be carefully managed at every step, and success also depends on good fortune. Murphy was well aware of this and would not let any opportunity for advantage slip by.

Meanwhile, "Gone Girl" continued to rake in substantial box office revenue in North America. Although a film cannot maintain high heat indefinitely and there was only about a 30% drop in weekend box office performance, seating capacity, screening rates, and the number of showing theaters all noticeably decreased starting from the sixth week. However, by the weekend prior to the sixth week, the North American box office easily surpassed the $200 million mark.

This made it the fourth film this year in North America to cross $200 million, following "Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith," "World War," and "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory." The directors of these films were George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, and Tim Burton, respectively. Being ranked alongside these names inevitably drew significant attention.

By mid-September, "Gone Girl" had exceeded $210 million in North America. Stimulated by the outstanding North American box office performance, more overseas countries and regions signed distribution agreements with 20th Century Fox. The drama was then released in over seventy countries worldwide.

This type of film couldn't create the sensational impact overseas that superhero movies or other visually spectacular films might, but its international box office was respectable, quickly reaching $200 million.

With global box office earnings of $400 million, Murphy firmly stepped into the ranks of Hollywood's second-tier directors.

As "Gone Girl" crossed the $400 million global box office threshold, Murphy received another piece of news. After years of internal strife and endless battles, the Weinstein brothers had finally lost their struggle against a management group led by Michael Eisner at Disney and had officially left Miramax to establish a new film company based on Diemen Films—Weinstein Films.

Diemen Films had previously been a Weinstein subsidiary specializing in distributing low-budget horror films and was not equipped to handle the Weinsteins' strategy of focusing on the awards season to generate profits, making the establishment of a new film company necessary.

"Disney didn't just leave behind a mess at Miramax."

At a private club's seaside café, the well-informed Robert Downey Jr. informed Murphy and others, "They also left behind a huge library of over 700 Miramax films, which will now be entirely owned by Disney."

"Michael Eisner is just creating problems for himself," Murphy commented, tapping his leg. "Miramax will soon decline."

"Why do you say that?" asked Jonah Hill, more known for his comedic talent than his understanding of such matters. "Is Disney not better than the Weinstein brothers?"

"Think about what Disney is best at," Murphy posed a question before giving

 the answer himself, "All-ages films! Even a pirate adventure like 'Pirates of the Caribbean' was produced by Disney to be age-appropriate. And Miramax? They've never produced or distributed this type of film before."

"There's another point," added James Franco. "Miramax used to be a relatively independent and distinctive film company. Now, it's just another ordinary label under Disney."

"Murphy and Jim are right," Downey Jr. agreed, "Miramax used to operate entirely around the Oscars. With management resigning and the Weinsteins gone, this strategy can only become a thing of the past. The new management will inevitably face transformation challenges, and for a film company to successfully transform..."

He made a face and shook his head.

Seth Rogen, who had been enjoying a dessert, looked up, "Did the Weinstein brothers just sell their shares and leave? They didn't take anything but their management positions?"

"Who knows," shrugged Murphy.

In terms of insider information, he couldn't compare with Downey Jr., who said, "I heard Harvey Weinstein took the film rights and project plans for two projects with him."

Harvey Weinstein's knack for spotting potential was well known in the circle, prompting Jonah Hill to ask, "Do you know what he took?"

Murphy turned to Downey Jr., the most likely of their group to have inside information.

Sure enough, Downey Jr. was well-informed, "The film rights for 'The Reader,' a novel by Bernhard Schlink from 1995, and something related to the former King George VI of Great Britain. I don't know the details."

Hearing about these projects, Murphy recalled that they were almost standard Oscar bait, not only winning the hearts of the Oscar judges but also earning significant profits from theaters, TV, online, and DVD markets after winning the awards.

Those years could be considered the peak of Harvey Weinstein's Oscar public relations efforts, with some media even joking that the Oscars should be renamed the Weinsteins.

"Oh, there's more," Downey Jr. suddenly remembered, "The Weinstein brothers are seeking external financing to establish the new Weinstein Films. If you guys have some spare cash, you might consider investing."

"Downey's right," Murphy advised his friends, "Rather than spending money on frivolous things, it's wiser to invest in a company like Weinstein Films."

Although he had no plans to invest, it was smarter for the others to put their money into Weinstein Films than to squander it or let it depreciate in a bank.

James Franco nodded, "I'll think it over when I get back."

Seth Rogen shook his head, "I just signed up for a director's training program. I'm out of funds right now."

Investment wasn't something to be forced, and Murphy was just giving them a heads-up. They were all adults, and even though they were close, he couldn't meddle in everything—this was North America, where no one liked others interfering in their private lives.

"Thank goodness we didn't agree to shoot 'Sin City 2.'"

Thinking about the chaotic situation at Miramax in recent years, Downey Jr. felt relieved, "Otherwise, we'd be unlucky too."

Jonah Hill looked at Murphy, "This guy always makes wise decisions."

"If he couldn't even do that," added James Franco, "how could he be the leader of our group?"

"The leader of the Stanton followers?" Downey Jr. pondered, lifting his chin, "Hmm, that's a nice position."

He turned to Murphy, "Mr. Leader, when do you plan to lead us into the White House?"

Murphy made a cutting gesture, "When you finally shut up."

He stood up, looking out towards the sea, "What I need to do now is not think about moving on Washington, but to collect wages from Disney!"

Last year, Miramax had failed to pay him some of the profits from "Sin City," and at the time, Disney was still embroiled in internal strife with the Weinsteins, so he had put it aside. Now that the conflict was over and Miramax was wholly owned by Disney, it was time to collect what was owed.

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