On the same day the two little ones were born, The Game by Daenerys Entertainment, directed by David Fincher, was released in North America across 2,453 screens. However, the film's reception was far less positive than Se7en, receiving an average score of only 7.3 from critics.
From August 18 to August 24, during its opening week, The Game grossed only $19.23 million in its first seven days.
It was lukewarm at best.
Many Hollywood directors struggle with the so-called "sophomore slump" after their breakthrough film. While Se7en wasn't Fincher's first movie, it was his breakout hit, and now The Game turned into a major disappointment. After a weak opening, the second week saw a 39% drop, grossing just $11.56 million. By the end of two weeks, the film had earned a total of $30.79 million.
With a production budget of $50 million and $30 million spent on marketing, The Game was poised to bring in about $50 million in domestic box office, marking it as Daenerys Entertainment's most significant flop of 1995. With a global box office projection of around $100 million, Daenerys Entertainment wouldn't even recover the production costs of $50 million, leaving hope only in ancillary revenue streams.
Fincher's failure with this new movie was something Simon had anticipated, and it even seemed somewhat intentional.
This summer, or more broadly, from the start of 1995 until now, Daenerys Entertainment had dominated Hollywood, leaving the rest of the industry struggling to keep up. Now, with a stumble at the end of the summer season, it gave everyone else in the industry a moment to breathe.
People tend to see what they want to see.
The fact that Daenerys Entertainment could fail comforted many in the industry.
As a filmmaker on Simon's priority list, one failure wouldn't jeopardize David Fincher's relationship with Daenerys Entertainment. In fact, before The Game was even released, Daenerys had already begun discussing future collaborations with Fincher, and the talks continued despite the film's underperformance.
With the release of The Game, the summer box office season was wrapping up.
Simon stayed in Rome with Sophia and the two little ones until September 2nd. Afterward, his first stop was Venice.
This year's Venice Film Festival opened on August 30th.
Daenerys Entertainment had two films competing in the main competition: The Suspect, directed by African American filmmaker Spike Lee, and Sean Penn's second directorial effort, 72 Hours: Life or Death, both projects funded by Gaumont.
Simon traveled to Venice primarily to attend a Saturday evening themed event hosted by Gaumont, and stayed for an extra day on Sunday to network with other filmmakers and discuss future projects before leaving for Milan on Monday.
The 1995 Fall Fashion Week was set to open on September 15th, following the traditional sequence of New York, London, Paris, and Milan, with Milan Fashion Week scheduled for late October. However, Melisandre's brands had been preparing for their shows months in advance.
East of Milan, in the Fraine district.
What was once an abandoned factory in this area had been transformed into Melisandre's Milan headquarters.
In addition to Gucci, Versace, which had been acquired by Melisandre last year, also established offices here.
Simon's ruthless measures last year had thoroughly intimidated the Italian mafia, and the shadow behind the Versace brand had vanished. Gianni Versace no longer needed to tread so carefully when traveling back and forth to Italy, and he had been in Milan personally preparing for next month's fashion show.
Coincidentally, today was a dress rehearsal for Versace's upcoming show.
Although it was just a rehearsal, with Simon's arrival, Gianni Versace arranged for a full run-through. Given the tight schedules of models during fashion season, the news of Westeros's presence brought excitement rather than reluctance, with many models eager to participate.
In the expansive loft space of the old factory turned headquarters, only a few people, including Simon and Sophia's trusted assistant Angela Ahrendts, were seated on one side of the runway.
After a brief wait, lively yet classical music filled the room, and the models, having changed into their outfits, began walking down the runway one after another.
Opening the show was Yasmeen Ghauri.
Simon's presence here today was largely at her request.
Having already decided to step down as a Victoria's Secret Angel, Yasmeen planned to retire after completing this fall's fashion season. Milan, being the last stop of the Fall Fashion Week, and Versace's show, in particular, would serve as her final bow.
Nadja Auermann would also participate in this show.
However, unlike Yasmeen, Nadja had no intention of retiring just yet and planned to gradually reduce her workload instead.
Their differing career plans could largely be attributed to their cultural backgrounds.
Yasmeen, of Pakistani descent, had faced strong opposition from her family when she initially pursued a modeling career. If it hadn't been for her relatively progressive family, there was a real risk she might have been forced to quit. Now, with a highly successful career and substantial wealth, thanks in part to Simon's support, she no longer needed to remain in the spotlight.
In contrast, Nadja Auermann, a German, had no such concerns.
Both women were only 24 years old. Even if they chose to retire now, the wealth they had accumulated would allow them to live comfortably for the rest of their lives. However, a life of leisure without work can be dull, so Nadja planned to remain active on the runway for a few more years.
Yasmeen's retirement wasn't a complete withdrawal from life.
Since last year, both women had been studying for their MBAs at Simon's suggestion. After retirement, Yasmeen planned to move to San Francisco, continue her MBA, and assist with Instagram. Upon completing her studies and gaining enough experience, she would consider pursuing other ventures. As her partner, Nadja also planned to settle in Silicon Valley.
The opening segment featured a collection of retro-style cropped tops and mini skirts.
With Yasmeen's physique, a white cropped top paired with a black mini skirt perfectly accentuated her slender waist. Her graceful movements on the runway, combined with her subtle glances, exuded a mesmerizing allure. Even for those familiar with her, the gaze of the model from the runway could still stir the heart.
It's easy to imagine how many would regret her retirement.
Since this was an impromptu rehearsal, not all the themes were presented. Otherwise, with sets ranging from suits to swimwear to casual attire, the show could have lasted over half an hour.
On the runway, after about 10 minutes, the rehearsal ended. A group of models immediately flocked to Simon, crowding around him, leaving Gianni Versace, who wanted to greet Simon, waiting on the sidelines with other Melisandre executives.
Yasmeen and Nadja, of course, claimed the prime spots next to Simon and asked about recent events.
The two women had vaguely heard that Sophia was pregnant, but they didn't know she had recently given birth. Simon, however, didn't mention this, and instead, the conversation shifted to the Venice Film Festival over the weekend.
After all, every model aspires to act.
Though Yasmeen and Nadja had no such ambitions, Carla Bruni, who had sneakily taken a position at Simon's feet, brought up the topic, half-jokingly asking if Simon could help her land a movie role, even teasing that she was now "his" and thus his responsibility.
Since Elite Model Management had been acquired by Westeros, the changes had only just begun.
Recently, Elite had undergone a series of drastic transformations.
After sorting things out in North America, Grace began consolidating power in the overseas divisions, dismissing many executives who refused to relinquish control. Among them was Gerald Marie, head of the Paris division and a former confidant of Elite founder John Casablancas, who managed high-profile clients like Carla Bruni and Claudia Schiffer.
Faced with Grace's dismissal, Marie had initially hoped to start his own agency with a group of clients. Under other circumstances, he might have succeeded. However, in this case, Marie ended up almost penniless. Not only did he fail to take Carla Bruni or Claudia Schiffer, but even the lower-profile models refused to follow him.
The girls in this industry aren't fools.
With Westeros behind Elite, no competitor could match the resources of Melisandre's fashion empire or Daenerys's media influence. Under these circumstances, only someone out of their mind would follow a manager who might get blacklisted by Westeros.
After the restructuring, most of Elite's supermodels had their contracts transferred directly under Grace's control, including Europe's top talents like Carla Bruni and Claudia Schiffer.
And behind Grace, of course, was Simon.
So when a "seductive female demon" like Carla Bruni said she was "Simon's now," she wasn't entirely wrong.
But Simon had no intention of taking responsibility.
It was nearing noon, but Simon was generous enough to offer to treat them all to lunch.
Since Yasmeen and Nadja still had work in the afternoon, Simon stayed in Milan for the day to check on the operations of Melisandre's various brands, before heading back to New York the following morning.
Since New York Fashion Week was first on the calendar, Simon brought along a group of models with him.
While Simon had been away from North America, the federal review of Daenerys's merger with ABC had reached its final stages. Currently, the only issue left to negotiate was how to address certain assets that violated antitrust regulations or media ownership laws after the merger. Approval from
the Department of Justice and the FCC was expected by the end of September.
Given that the merger was virtually a done deal, Daenerys and ABC had already begun collaborating more closely.
This fall, their joint project was focused on the music reality show American Idol.
Simon had been personally involved in planning this project since the beginning of the year. After the merger agreement between Daenerys and ABC was finalized, the television department officially signed a contract with ABC Network to co-produce American Idol, and production had already begun.
The show closely followed the format Simon remembered from the original.
The main difference was the selection of judges.
Simon Cowell, who had once been the backbone of American Idol, did not appear. At this point in time, Cowell was still an unknown in the British music industry. Although he had worked in the industry for years, in the original timeline, it wasn't until the success of Westlife in 1999 that he made a name for himself, eventually becoming a household name with the Pop Idol series.
Ultimately, music reality shows are still just reality shows.
The focus is on "performance."
For this version of American Idol, Simon settled on a panel of four judges, with clearly defined roles.
One judge would be a professional music producer—strict, sharp-tongued, but highly professional.
Another would be a middle-aged female singer, charming and nurturing, taking on a "big sister" role.
The third judge would be a Black rapper, for political correctness.
The fourth would be a female singer under 30, preferably Latina, beautiful and fiery, serving as eye candy for younger viewers.
With the maturity of the U.S. music industry, there was no shortage of talented musicians.
Given the success of reality shows like Who Wants to Be a Millionaire and Survivor, and recognizing Daenerys's commitment to American Idol, many prominent musicians had volunteered for a spot on the judging panel. Even Barry Weiss, who had solidified his position at Daenerys Records after producing the Backstreet Boys, expressed interest in the music producer role, only for Simon to personally reject him.
Weiss was busy developing young talent that Simon had poached from Disney's Mickey Mouse Club, including Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, and Justin Timberlake. Simon had no intention of letting this influential figure in the 90s Teen Pop movement get distracted by a reality show.
Instead, the role went to David Kreuger, a producer who had helped craft the Backstreet Boys' first hit album and was a trusted assistant Weiss had brought over from Jive Records. After several rehearsals and auditions, Simon was thoroughly satisfied with Kreuger's on-screen presence.
For the rapper role, Simon personally chose Jay-Z, a legendary name in his memory. At 36 years old, Jay-Z had been active in the rap scene for years, but at this time, he was still a newcomer, having just released his first single. However, his potential as a top-tier rapper was already evident.
As a condition for joining American Idol, Jay-Z signed a 10-year contract with Daenerys Records.
In return, Daenerys Records would provide him with significant resources. How far Jay-Z could go in the music world alongside his role as a judge on American Idol would depend on his luck.
For the role of the middle-aged "big sister" judge, after much negotiation, Simon settled on Cher.
She was, by far, the biggest name among the four judges.
Cher had been one of the most popular singers in North America during the 60s and 70s and had also successfully transitioned to acting, winning an Oscar for Best Actress in 1987 for Moonstruck.
However, Cher's popularity had waned significantly in the 90s, especially with the rise of blockbuster movies.
Cher's appointment as a judge was largely due to her existing contract with Daenerys Records. Cher had originally been signed with Geffen Records, which was acquired by Universal Music, and when Daenerys acquired MCA, Cher's contract was transferred to the newly formed Daenerys Records.
Compared to Daenerys Records' current megastars like Guns N' Roses and the Backstreet Boys, Cher's fame was now more historical than current.
Still, she remained a big name.
From the initial contact to the finalization of the deal, it took three months to iron out all the details. Cher also negotiated the highest salary of the four judges, earning $8 million for the first season, with the contract covering three seasons. Depending on her performance, she was eligible for up to a 25% increase in pay for future seasons.
The final judge, the eye candy role, was filled by Jennifer Lopez.
Like Jay-Z, Lopez was just starting her career at this point. Simon, who had always been baffled by her meteoric rise, decided to give her a shot. While David Kreuger and Cher would act as the central figures of American Idol, Jay-Z and Jennifer Lopez would play supporting roles.
Still, potential is potential, and Simon wasn't going to overlook it. Jennifer Lopez secured her judge spot on the condition that she, too, sign a 10-year contract with Daenerys Records.
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