Chapter 292

At the cinema, as the screening of The Shawshank Redemption ended, Yu Feihong looked surprised and left with Arthur. "How could such a great movie perform so poorly at the box office?"

In a tone of disbelief, she felt that it was a work that directly touched the soul. The film's expression of the pursuit of freedom and the inherent goodness of humanity was truly thought-provoking!

Arthur helplessly replied, "You noticed it too, but the audience just doesn't want to spend over two hours in the cinema to appreciate it. After all, it does start off a bit slow."

The Shawshank Redemption, with a runtime of 142 minutes, was a story entirely set in a prison, which didn't have much appeal to many people.

"Let's go, let's find a restaurant to get something to eat first." Arthur, driving a Honda NSX, couldn't do much about The Shawshank Redemption.

At that time, DVDs hadn't been invented yet; Although renting VHS tapes and laser discs was supplemental income, the majority of movie revenue still came from box office sales.

Furthermore, for television stations, the broadcasting price of a movie was also tied to its box office performance. Movie production costs weren't high at that time, but things changed once DVDs appeared!

Back then, movies didn't frequently have production costs reaching hundreds of millions of dollars. Only James Cameron could play with such big budgets.

Heading south along Vermont Avenue, they found an Italian restaurant.

"Your English is pretty good now. Studying abroad has paid off," Arthur smiled. Although Arthur's Chinese wasn't bad, Yu Feihong certainly used English at USC.

"Of course! I specially hired a tutor to learn English before I came here. Now that I've been here for a year and everyone around me speaks English, I had to learn!" Yu Feihong, who was already quite independent, didn't face any problems in the U.S. with Arthur's support.

"Bang," a loud noise suddenly interrupted them as a plate crashed to the floor, followed by a string of curses.

Arthur looked over to see a conflict between diners at the next table, calling over a waiter, "This is a high-end restaurant, please handle it quickly so others can dine peacefully."

"I'm sorry, sir. We already have someone handling it. It will be resolved shortly. Please forgive us," the waiter apologized to Arthur and Yu Feihong.

"It's okay, let's eat," Yu Feihong dismissed the waiter with a smile."

After leaving the restaurant, Arthur kissed the woman in the car's passenger seat. 

"Didn't get enough this afternoon?" Yu Feihong laughed, feeling Arthur kiss her neck.

"Not enough. You're quite attractive now," Arthur said, reaching down the woman's collar.

"Hmm, let's go home first..."

In the bathroom of an apartment in Culver City, a steamy scene was unfolding, with a dense atmosphere of hormones filling the entire room!

"Hmm, Arthur, I got some movie roles when I went back home during the summer vacation. Do you think I should take the time to train myself?" Yu Feihong asked softly while hugging Arthur's neck.

"Well," Arthur let go of the lady he was holding, took a deep breath, and smiled, "It's up to you. If you think it's necessary to train, then take the role. If it doesn't matter to you, then don't worry about it."

"Anyway, during the summer vacation, I'm sure you can find an internship spot here in Hollywood. Even if you don't want to intern, you can always take a good rest."

Leaning weakly in Arthur's arms, Yu Feihong shook her head.

"Besides, you're majoring in producing. Even after you graduate, you can always invest in your own projects. No need to worry about not having roles."

"True..."

Because of the completion of Rumble in the Bronx, Arthur took some time to meet with Raymond Chow, the head of Golden Harvest in the U.S., mainly to discuss matters regarding Jackie Chan.

Arthur, sitting in a chair, looked at the man opposite him, Raymond Chow, and smiled, "I've already seen the rough cut of Rumble in the Bronx. The movie looks good. Once it's released in Asia and gains some traction, we plan to schedule a domestic commercial release through Galaxy. Jackie Chan's unique blend of action is bold and thrilling, and will be a fresh experience for American audiences!"

Raymond Chow also smiled, "Thank you, Mr. Smith, for your confidence in Jackie. In the Asian market, his appeal is undeniable.

We also hope that Jackie can quickly make a name for himself in the North American market."

Arthur raised his hand, "The jump between the two floors in the movie was truly a heart-stopping moment. Maybe after Rumble in the Bronx is released, Galaxy can develop more action comedies that suit Jackie Chan's style..."

Jackie Chan's action comedies do have a market in Hollywood. The future success of the Rush Hour series will rightfully belong to Galaxy. Moreover, DVDs are about to be invented, and the DVD market for such action films will be substantial.

...

Meanwhile, the merger news between Viacom and the video rental giant Blockbuster has rekindled interest in the acquisition news of Paramount Communications Group!

At the recently opened Peninsula Beverly Hills hotel, Arthur attended a cocktail party with Catherine Zeta-Jones.

"Brad Pitt is promoting Se7en with Elizabeth Hurley, so you came back from the set of Legends of the Fall?"

"Yes, but I didn't have that many scenes in Legends of the Fall. If needed, I can leave," Catherine Zeta-Jones smiled.

"You know, Four Weddings and a Funeral was such a hit. As one of its cast members, I have some promotional events to attend too!"

"Wait, someone's coming over," Arthur noticed the newly appointed Paramount Chairwoman, Sherry Lansing, approaching.

As the first female chair of a major film studio in Hollywood, 49-year-old Sherry Lansing has undoubtedly made history.

Arthur also went up to greet her and shook hands naturally. "It's an honor to finally meet the famous golden boy of Hollywood!"

Arthur smiled, "Your takeover of Paramount is what's truly significant."

"I never thought that a low-budget romance film developed by you could achieve such success. You're truly a genius," Sherry Lansing referred to Four Weddings and a Funeral, a romantic comedy Meg Ryan shot in the UK.

After being in theaters for over a month, it grossed $70 million in North America, and with an earlier overseas release, it has already surpassed $100 million globally!

Arthur took a champagne glass from a waiter and toasted with her, "Paramount also had a good summer. Indecent Proposal released before the summer season grossed over a hundred million in North America and hundreds of millions worldwide.

And Tom Cruise's film The Firm also grossed hundreds of millions both domestically and globally, which is indeed enviable!"

Sherry Lansing shook her head, "Does Galaxy envy anyone?"

If it weren't for Universal's Jurassic Park releasing this summer, this summer would have been Galaxy's.

The earliest release, Speed, grossed 130 million in North America and globally, expected to cross 350 million. Another film still in theaters, Mrs. Doubtfire, is a smash hit, with North American earnings already more than hundred million, and overseas surpassing that amount as well. It's only a matter of time before it surpasses Speed.

With this lineup, who else would Galaxy envy?

Arthur casually glanced over at Tom Cruise and his group, including his partner and former agent Paula Wagner and current agent Pat Kingsley.

"Cruise/Wagner Productions was actually my idea for them, but now they've signed a cooperation agreement with Paramount," Arthur said flatly. "Do you think I should be envious?"

After all, Galaxy did collaborate with Tom Cruise on A Few Good Men.

Before becoming the Paramount chairwoman, Sherry Lansing had already started working and her first task was to contact Tom Cruise's team. By signing an exclusive cooperation agreement, they tied Tom Cruise to Paramount, providing Cruise/Wagner Productions with annual funding in exchange for first dibs on their projects.

Sherry Lansing smiled, "Arthur, this is just normal business cooperation. Galaxy has also brought in some outstanding filmmakers. Jonathan Demme, David Fincher, Tom Hanks, and Winona Ryder are all working with you. They just haven't started their own studios yet."

"True, there are plenty of great filmmakers in Hollywood," Arthur didn't mind. After all, his major advantage is nurturing new talent, and Galaxy's next big name is Jim Carrey!

As for Tom Cruise, Arthur was aware that there was some distance due to Nicole Kidman. The star didn't necessarily have to work with Galaxy, and Galaxy didn't need to waste its time on Tom Cruise either.

"Arthur, with movie investments getting higher, big studios can actually collaborate to share risks," Sherry Lansing suddenly suggested.

As her first move upon entering Paramount, Sherry Lansing set her sights on movie production budgets!

*****

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