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Chapter 67 Release Date

Pittsburgh, early morning, at the hotel where Arthur was staying.

Arthur got out of bed, walked to the window, and pulled back the curtains. The sunlight shone on him, and he looked back at Mary Klaus, who was still lying in bed. He then started making coffee.

"Hey, Arthur, last night you really busted the lip of a federal agent," Mary Klaus said, draped in her bathrobe, hugging Arthur from behind with a smile on her face.

Arthur took a sip of coffee, looked out at the streets of Pittsburgh, and smiled, "Well, you slept with a future Hollywood mogul last night! By the way, I made coffee."

"That's a win for me," Mary Klaus pressed against Arthur's back, her hands gliding over his chest. "How is it different being with a Hollywood star and an FBI agent?"

Arthur raised an eyebrow, "They're all women, how different can it be?"

"The sense of psychological conquest!" responded Mary Klaus.

"Unless you're the FBI director or a top Hollywood star, you wouldn't understand that feeling," Arthur shook his head helplessly, "Figures, you're a psychologist."

Mary Klaus nodded, then poured herself a cup of coffee and sat thoughtfully on a chair nearby, "Arthur, you should work with our bureau more in the future!"

"It depends on the film's subject. CIA, NSA, the Department of Defense, and others all have potential." Arthur was aware of the nature of these US government agencies. They use Hollywood to expand influence and cover up their misdeeds - damn cultural propaganda!

Edgar Hoover, the first director of the FBI, was the first to use Hollywood. He used Hollywood movies to expand the FBI's reputation, infiltrating all aspects from actor selection, and movie scene arrangements, to how to depict criminals and the valor of agents.

Arthur sat on the sofa and said, "The FBI belongs to the Department of Justice, while the CIA, which is under the White House, is most commonly seen in movies. Don't worry, there will definitely be future collaborations. But, your script reviews are overly meticulous, which might affect the plot."

Mary Klaus shook her head, "We only review aspects related to the FBI's image. We won't interfere with your storyline!"

Arthur glanced at Mary Klaus, "You guys are not short on money. Can't you use some substantial means to enhance your image? You don't need me to say what kind of reputation the FBI and CIA have domestically and abroad, right?"

Mary Klaus knew Arthur was talking about real money, "It requires approval from higher-ups. Anything involving dollars is complicated. Besides, our FBI isn't as wealthy as the CIA. They focus abroad, so they have more funding. We primarily focus domestically."

"Alright," Arthur put down his coffee, "I need to head back to Los Angeles. When I come back next time, if the director accepts your suggestion about the crew of The Silence of the Lambs, it can be filmed. Otherwise, forget it!"

"Arthur, I thought you'd have the director take more of my suggestions to heart because of the night we spent together," Mary Klaus said with a hint of resentment.

Arthur walked towards the bathroom, "This movie has a budget of 20 million dollars. There's also a release and marketing budget to consider later. Who would dare go against capital? If the FBI is willing to invest, I could develop a propaganda film for you to recruit new agents, not scam them!"

By the end of the month, Arthur left the crew of The Silence of the Lambs, because Sleeping with the Enemy wrapped up filming in Los Angeles.

At Orion Pictures, once Sleeping with the Enemy wrapped, post-production discussion began in Mike Medavoy's office.

"Arthur, you did well," Mike Medavoy was quite satisfied after watching the rough cut.

"Thank you, just doing my job," Arthur had been running around a lot lately and was indeed a bit tired.

Mike Medavoy smiled, "Has The Silence of the Lambs started filming?"

"Yes," Arthur nodded, "It officially started filming a week ago. It's expected to wrap by mid to late August!"

"Next summer is not ideal for release. You could go for a spring, autumn, or winter release," Mike Medavoy continued.

Arthur massaged his forehead. The winter season is awards season, so it would be best for The Silence of the Lambs to release during that time.

Spring is early in the year, with the Oscars held in late March. During this period, audience anticipation for movies is high, and many new releases come out!

"Late April next year. Orion doesn't have many releases then," May kicks off the summer season, and Arthur wanted to ride the wave.

Moreover, Orion would release some of their own projects, and overlapping schedules would complicate promotion resource allocation.

Mike Medavoy stroked his chin in thought, then nodded. The Silence of the Lambs falls under the thriller-horror genre, which is best released during the Halloween season in winter.

However, as an independent distributor, Orion doesn't have much competitive edge against major distributors in the popular summer and Christmas release periods.

For Halloween, they need to push their own projects. The Silence of the Lambs wouldn't get much promotion from Orion, and Arthur wanted an earlier release to recoup investment sooner.

After confirming that The Silence of the Lambs would be released in April of next year, Arthur left Orion and returned to Galaxy Films.

"Jessica, what's up?" He asked as Winona Ryder's agent, Jessica James, approached.

Jessica James took the coffee offered, "Coppola's The Godfather Part III has wrapped. Many journalists went to interview Winona because of tabloid reports, but we cited health issues."

Arthur nodded, "I've seen some tabloid reports. They love to sensationalize; it's their thing. But they don't know the truth, and it's not hard for Paramount to suppress it. No need to rush; The Godfather Part III is set to release at the end of the year. Let's wait for the outcome. After all, it's a minor issue. Not many would care, just a supporting role. Once Winona Ryder becomes more successful, it will highlight Coppola's shortsightedness!"

Arthur then thought of something, "Didn't Edward Scissorhands participate in the Cannes Film Festival?"

Recently, the Cannes Film Festival in France had just ended. Nicholas Cage and Laura Dern's film Wild at Heart won the Palme d'Or!

"Cannes?" Jessica James shook her head. "No notification received. Tim Burton is busy preparing Warner Bros. Batman Returns."

Arthur rubbed his forehead, "Probably Tim Burton's best work, but 20th Century Fox doesn't seem to value Edward Scissorhands."

Well, Fox hadn't established its independent label Fox Searchlight yet. The big studios mainly cared about commercial projects.

*****

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