When Brad Grey first heard about the incident on the Transformers set, he really didn't want to get involved in this mess. Sure, he had voted in favor of acquiring DreamWorks during the shareholders' meeting, but at the time, Sherry Lansing was firmly in control of Paramount. As the newly appointed second-in-command, he had no desire to cross this highly respected woman in Hollywood.
Though he was a film producer himself, he didn't have nearly the same clout as Sherry Lansing.
And what Spielberg had privately told him was:
"Transformers is Sherry's swan song. If you don't want her digging any last-minute traps for you before she leaves, I suggest you fly to the UK yourself. Besides, for someone from Viacom like you, this shouldn't be too troublesome."
Two days had passed since the Manchester Reserve Heist incident, and Brad Grey couldn't help but admire the British government's control over the media. But when he shared his (somewhat insincere) praise with Spielberg, who had come to pick him up, the director scoffed:
"Charlie and the Chocolate Factory's biggest overseas market was the UK!"
The moment Spielberg brought up Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Brad Grey reacted like a monkey with its tail on fire, snapping back without regard for the setting:
"You know better than I do why it made a billion dollars."
"Back then, Nestlé was under fire from the British media, claiming candy was harmful to children's health, which tanked their Q1 confectionery sales. There was no way Viacom would support me!"
Seeing his future boss getting worked up, Spielberg quickly put on a flattering smile and even opened the car door for him. Once they were inside, Spielberg pulled a portable DV camera from the glove compartment.
"Take a look. I told you—if handled right, this could turn into something great."
Adjusting his suit, Spielberg shot a smug glance at Brad Grey, who was now intently watching the footage.
Spielberg was a man of patience and ambition.
The entire industry was shocked when he "lowered himself" to join Paramount, but he knew his own struggles. After all, "A soldier who doesn't want to be a general isn't a good soldier." Who wouldn't want to stand at the peak of Hollywood and take in the view?
DreamWorks had made a fortune—and a name for itself—in its early years thanks to its animation studio. Its collaborations with Michael Bay and Hollywood's golden producer Jerry Bruckheimer even briefly earned it the title of the "Ninth Major Studio."
But the real Big Eight, who had dominated Hollywood for two decades, weren't about to let another major player rise. Their coordinated attacks sent DreamWorks into retreat.
In the process, Spielberg realized DreamWorks' fatal flaw: it had no distribution network.
To secure his own pipeline, he had no choice but to pull a classic "endure humiliation to achieve greatness" move (a la the Thirty-Six Stratagems). He had known about Paramount's impending leadership shake-up long before the merger.
If Sherry Lansing had stayed in power, Spielberg would never have joined. But with Brad Grey? That was a different story. Grey came from TV production, and Spielberg had a good read on Paramount's direction. If his guess was right, Grey would shift the studio's focus toward television after taking over.
And if that happened… DreamWorks might just find an opening.
As for the Transformers reshoot incident in the UK, Spielberg had been genuinely shocked at first. In all his years of filmmaking, he'd dealt with extortion and on-set crises—but armed robbers hijacking a production? That was a first. And to think The Bank Job, starring Jason Statham, had just premiered in the UK…
At first, he thought it could be resolved as a standard PR disaster. But the deeper he dug, the more he realized something interesting was going on.
Because he discovered that an artist under his old friend Edgar Bronfman Jr.—former CEO of Universal—was involved.
And if not for this person's intervention, Transformers might never have made it into British theaters. After Shia LaBeouf recounted the entire incident, Spielberg saw the potential value in it. If played right…
Transformers could score huge at the European box office. Not only that, but Shia could cement a tough-guy image from this. And if executed well, Transformers 2 would have built-in hype.
As for his old friend's artist, Claire Lee? He'd be the biggest winner in all this. Exactly what Claire stood to gain, however…
After watching the DV footage, Brad Grey sighed regretfully:
"What a shame such a talented kid went into soccer. If he were under my wing, I'd have made him a star in a year!"
"You?" Spielberg smirked. "You won't have much 'leisure time' left soon."
Grey glanced out the window at the streets of Manchester, crawling with police. At one point, their car was even stopped at a checkpoint. He turned back to Spielberg:
"This Claire Lee… he's with Warner Music?"
"Yes. I'm planning to have him sing the theme for Transformers—an anti-war anthem. Edgar and I discussed it. If Claire doesn't have a song ready, we'll buy one for him."
"A hero's cry in the apocalypse? Not bad." Grey nodded approvingly, then frowned. "Wait, Edgar… as in the former Universal CEO?"
"With a $150 million budget, crossing the billion-dollar mark would be perfect."
Hearing Spielberg's expectations for Transformers, Grey couldn't help but feel a flicker of hope. If this movie did break a billion, his tenure as CEO might start with much healthier studio finances.
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