Lionsgate

After resolving the actor issues, Zack hurried to the set to oversee the pre-shoot preparations. He also summoned the main cast for costume fittings and makeup tests.

As for Lyman, he finally had some free time on his hands. He spent his days wandering around the company, occasionally checking on the progress of "Hellboy", directed by Del Toro.

Speaking of which, James was already busy with the editing of "Saw II", while Gordo had only completed half of his shoot. The pace of filming was truly touching.

On another day, Lyman was in the middle of interviewing potential new employees when a call came in from the front desk.

"Mr. President, there's a film company executive here who wants to meet you."

"Who is it?"

"Jon Feltheimer of Lionsgate."

Why would the CEO of Lionsgate want to see me?

Though Lyman was somewhat puzzled, he agreed to let the man into his office.

This guy was already in his fifties, but he appeared quite lively.

When it came to this man, Lyman couldn't help but admire him.

Lions Gate Entertainment was a film company controlled by capital. Its founder, Frank Gustav, was a Canadian banker who viewed Lionsgate as an investment opportunity in the film industry. He knew nothing about making movies, so he had recruited former Columbia Pictures president Jon to manage the company.

In the past few years, Lionsgate had seen rapid development, all thanks to Jon's leadership. Their production and distribution business had been consistently growing, undoubtedly proving Jon's competence.

However, the sudden visit of such a Lionsgate executive, who held considerable influence in today's Hollywood, left Lyman guessing about his intentions.

Lyman warmly shook his hand and pretended to be surprised. "Mr. Feltheimer, you came all the way here without prior notice. I could have prepared something to entertain our esteemed guest."

Jon chuckled heartily. "No need to be so formal. We met at Paramount's celebration last time, didn't we? We even mentioned the possibility of collaborating."

Could that hollow politeness from such settings be genuine?

Lyman pondered what this man might be up to. When he heard Jon mention collaboration, he wondered if he was here to propose a film project together.

For the moment, he couldn't make any assumptions, so Lyman decided to play dumb and engaged in casual conversation, circling around the topic of company management.

After circling for a while and seeing that Lyman wasn't taking the bait, Jon finally asked directly, "Lyman, I heard that your company has finished shooting "Saw II"?"

Lyman felt that they were getting to the point and perked up. "Yes, that's correct. It's finished shooting and is currently in post-production."

Jon asked further, "May I ask when you plan to release it? Do you have any plans?"

This question was somewhat impolite. Distribution was Paramount's responsibility, and the two companies were competitors. Lyman, as the head of a production company, should naturally direct any inquiries to Paramount. Moreover, the specific release schedule was considered a business secret.

Lyman shook his head, pretending to be clueless. "Paramount is still discussing the release date. I'm not sure about the specifics."

"In that case, have you considered having Lionsgate distribute it?"

Lyman hadn't expected this idea. It seemed that Lionsgate had noticed the value of "Saw", which made sense since it was a Lionsgate-developed franchise in his previous life. Furthermore, the company had always excelled in producing horror-themed films.

However, Lyman still smiled and shook his head, politely declining. "Lionsgate distributed over 40 films last year, and they've already released six this year. Their distribution volume in the industry seems quite substantial. I don't think they're short on film sources, are they?"

Lionsgate had indeed been doing reasonably well in distribution, but what good was a high volume of releases? Many of their films were either European productions or low-budget projects they had developed in-house. Over the past four months, they had released more than ten films, but only three of them had crossed the $10M mark at the box office. Several films even ran at a loss, relying on offline revenues for recovery. The situation was far from optimistic.

If it weren't for their well-established distribution channels and various profit streams, relying solely on box office earnings would likely lead to investors pulling out, placing tremendous financial pressure on Lionsgate.

However, Jon wouldn't divulge this information to Lyman. He simply smiled and said, "Good projects are never in short supply, and Paramount's distribution business is also solid. There are always considerations when it comes to scheduling. In case the film's release date isn't well arranged, perhaps some sacrifices will have to be made. What do you think, Mr. Lattes?"

Of course, this had always been a concern for Lyman. After all, outsiders could never match his own interests. Who knew how Paramount would arrange things when scheduling conflicts arose? Otherwise, he wouldn't have approached Warner Bros. with such an amicable attitude.

Seeing Lyman hesitating, Jon continued, "Lionsgate's offer is certainly sincere. If we collaborate, you can have full control over the release schedule. How about it?"

Unfortunately, "Saw" had already been arranged, and Lyman couldn't switch sides at this point. He replied, "I've already signed distribution terms with Paramount, I'm sorry, Mr. Feltheimer."

"What about international distribution?"

Lionsgate even wanted to bypass the domestic market and seek international distribution.

That was a bit too ambitious.

Everyone knew about his relationship with EuropaCorp, and Lionsgate's international distribution was also handled by others. Moreover, Lyman had already signed a three-year distribution agreement with Luc Besson. EuropaCorp managed the overseas market for Firefly Films' movies, and Lyman had a certain investment stake in EuropaCorp's film projects as well.

Even if Lionsgate offered better terms, the savings in distribution costs wouldn't compare to the investment returns from EuropaCorp. That's why Paramount never raised such demands. They understood that it was impossible to offer more favorable terms than EuropaCorp.

"It's not possible," Lyman said firmly.

Clearly, he didn't want to discuss it any further, but Jon wasn't giving up.

He added, "Your company's investment in "Hellboy" hasn't signed a distributor yet, right? Or maybe "Train to New York"? We can discuss those as well."

Jon was genuinely trying to win over Firefly Films. He was even willing to negotiate terms for projects that were still in production.

And this was something Lyman could consider.

Having multiple partners meant having more options.

In case Paramount and Warner Bros. proved unreliable, he needed a countermeasure to avoid losing control.

After all, Lionsgate still had strength, and Lyman knew that they were secretly building overseas distribution channels, intending to bypass the big six studios in Hollywood and expand their overseas business.

When they successfully crossed over in the future, it would create an opening, and they would need to collaborate with more film companies to secure better and more diverse sources of films to break through the blockade of the big six studios in Hollywood.

In this context, getting on board early was like purchasing insurance.

After calculating the pros and cons of various gains and losses, Lyman nodded calmly. "If it's about the distribution of "Hellboy", we can discuss it."