Like 'A League Of Their Own', 'Home Alone', directed by John Hughes, will also begin filming soon.
Yesterday, Simon was busy with 'A League Of Their Own', 'Ghost', and 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'. Today, he spent most of the day on the phone with John Hughes in Chicago, discussing various details of 'Home Alone'.
Under Simon's push, the male lead for 'Home Alone' was still Macaulay Culkin, the original actor.
Macaulay Culkin happened to be a signed artist under WMA. Although due to the butterfly effect of Simon, Culkin did not appear in John Hughes's 'Uncle Buck' last year, this young actor had already shown his face in many film and television dramas and was also a signed child model under Ford Models.
Besides Culkin, the two clumsy thief roles were also played by the original Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern.
With the 'original' cast and crew confirmed, Simon wouldn't need to worry too much anymore.
Basically, Simon has adopted this attitude towards many of his current projects.
Daenerys Entertainment has become increasingly dazzling, or rather, glaring, over the past two years. Even if one or two of these projects fail, it wouldn't matter to Simon, or perhaps, it would be just right.
After finishing a day's work, Simon drove directly from Santa Monica to Coldwater Canyon in Beverly Hills at 7 PM.
The Coldwater Canyon neighbourhood is part of Beverly Hills, adjacent to the west side of Trousdale Estates. The entire neighbourhood winds its way up from Coldwater Canyon Park near Sunset Boulevard at the foot of the mountain, all the way to Mulholland Drive at the summit, spanning over five kilometres. Various luxury homes line both sides of the canyon street, also making it a celebrity gathering area in Los Angeles.
By the time he arrived at Fox Pictures President Joe Roth's residence, it was already dark.
Joe Roth's villa was a common two-story minimalist white house in Los Angeles, covering about a quarter of an acre. Considering the geographical location and other factors, this was already considered a luxury home in Los Angeles.
James Cameron and Arnold Schwarzenegger had already arrived, and there were many other filmmakers in the courtyard.
After Simon arrived, he briefly greeted some guests, then went with Roth and Cameron to the sun terrace on the second floor of the villa. There was no sunlight at this time, but the city lights of a corner of Los Angeles could vaguely be seen from the terrace.
The three sat down by the chairs on the terrace. Roth spoke first: "I've talked to Jim several times, Simon. The budget for 'Terminator 2' is set at $50 million, and Jim will still be the director. However, if the project goes over budget, Jim will automatically waive his director's fee. At the same time, we will implement stricter financial supervision measures this time to ensure that the film's production does not get out of control. Do you think this is acceptable?"
Simon didn't answer but looked at Cameron and asked, "Jim, do you think you can do it?"
Cameron forced a smile and nodded, "It should be fine".
Simon did not express an opinion, turning back to Joe Roth and asking, "What is Arnold's salary?"
Joe Roth paused, then said, "$15 million". After saying this, seeing Simon raise an eyebrow, Roth quickly explained, "Stallone's salary in that movie, 'Rocky V', already rose to $15 million. Arnold doesn't want to get less than Stallone".
With a total budget of $50 million, Schwarzenegger takes $15 million, and Cameron, despite a big setback with The Abyss, will certainly not get less than a $3 million base salary.
Counting other main creators, the funds left for film production are less than $30 million.
Given Cameron's extravagant nature, it would be a miracle if 'Terminator 2' could be completed with less than $30 million.
Simon smirked slightly and said, "I specifically checked the data of Arnold's previous films this afternoon. Starting from the summer of 1987, for 'Predator', Arnold received a $3 million salary, and the box office was $59 million. For 'The Running Man', Arnold's salary was $5 million, and the box office was $38 million. Last year's 'Red Heat', Arnold's salary increased to $8 million, but the box office was only $35 million. Following this trend, if 'Terminator 2' is priced at $15 million, the box office should only be $15 million, right?"
Joe Roth said, "Simon, Arnold accumulated a lot of popularity in the first 'Terminator'. His salary certainly cannot be compared to other original projects".
Cameron also chimed in, "'Terminator 2' is different from those few movies. I believe this movie will definitely be successful".
"I'm also very optimistic about this project", Simon then looked at Cameron, saying, "However, Daenerys Entertainment is not Carolco Pictures. We won't offer exorbitant salaries irrationally. Arnold has already started post-production for 'Total Recall'. If my information is correct, he only received a base salary of $1 million, right? For 'Terminator 2', he can choose between two options: either a base salary plus a share, like total recall, or a salary maintaining the level of 'Red Heat', which is only $8 million".
Joe Roth and Cameron were somewhat silent.
Simon didn't wait for their response and quickly continued, "Compared to the previous three movies, 'Total Recall' cost $65 million even with Arnold almost giving up his salary. It's unlikely Carolco will recover its costs. I believe after this movie, no other film company will risk investing in Arnold. 'Terminator 2' can be said to be the project that best guarantees his return to popularity. So, I can only offer the above two options. Or, everyone can wait for 'Total Recall', and by then, Arnold's salary will only be lower".
In memory, 'Total Recall's global box office exceeded $200 million.
Although Carolco Pictures only barely made a hard-earned profit from it, it was still considered a success.
Thanks to the massive success of 'Total Recall', Schwarzenegger, after a series of declining films, finally returned to his peak, restoring his status comparable to Stallone.
However, Simon certainly wouldn't say that at this moment.
Moreover, Simon suddenly remembered that besides 'Total Recall', Arnold also had another relatively successful work during this period, 'Kindergarten Cop'.
In memory, this was also a blockbuster film with a global box office exceeding $200 million.
Thinking of this, Simon decided to snatch it up.
If necessary, even 'Terminator 3', 'True lies', and even 'Eraser'.
Or, he could also give Schwarzenegger a few more projects that flopped at the box office in the original timeline.
With his foresight, it was easy for Simon to target the career of a Hollywood filmmaker.
As for 'Terminator 2', Simon was not in a hurry at all.
Moreover, although not yet officially announced, Daenerys Entertainment and Fox Pictures have already signed a cooperation agreement, which is one of the 10-film plan. Therefore, the initiative for this project is now completely in Simon's hands.
Joe Roth considered for a moment, then said to Simon, "So, I'll go down and talk to Arnold?"
Simon nodded and said, "I haven't had dinner yet, Joe. Please have someone send some food over, anything will do".
"Of course".
Joe Roth agreed, then stood up, glanced at Cameron, and walked downstairs.
Cameron looked at the young man in front of him, momentarily unsure whether he should leave voluntarily. He had watched 'Batman Begins' several times before and was full of admiration for the various groundbreaking details in the film. He had originally wanted to have a good chat with Simon.
However, Westeros in his film company boss state was truly not very likable.
Simon observed the somewhat restless Cameron and suddenly said, "Jim, someone must have told you about Coppola and the elephant, right?"
Cameron's face showed a puzzled expression.
Simon realized Cameron hadn't heard the story and explained, "This is a story from Coppola's filming of 'Apocalypse Now'. During the filming, Coppola wanted to feature several elephants, but the project was already significantly over budget and behind schedule. Transporting the elephants to the set would not only be hugely expensive but also further delay the filming schedule. The film's producer tried to dissuade Coppola, saying that many things can't be perfect, and you have to make sacrifices. Later, there were no elephants in 'Apocalypse Now', and that film was still very successful".
Cameron naturally thought Simon was referring to his film 'The Abyss' from last year. For a moment, he couldn't think of anything to refute, so he just nodded awkwardly and said, "Simon, I understand what you mean".
"I've watched the original 'Terminator', more than once", Simon continued, "Jim, since you were able to make a perfect film with $6.4 million back then, there's no reason why you can't complete other films within the stipulated budget now. Last year's 'The Abyss' cost $69.5 million. I heard you were under a lot of pressure because of it, but that was just mental pressure. Perhaps you don't know, but a large number of people at Fox lost their jobs because of the failure of this project. The biggest reason they were fired wasn't because of 'The Abyss's box office failure, as this industry inherently carries great risks. They were fired because the project's budget got out of control. You need to understand that studio money doesn't just fall from the sky".
Cameron's expression flickered for a moment, then he finally said, "Simon, I will definitely pay attention to this in the future".
At this point, a waiter brought some food.
Simon waited for him to leave, gestured to Cameron, and seeing him shake his head, pulled the tray in front of himself, picked up the cutlery, and said, "I've studied The Abyss's special effects plan. The CG alien technology in it should be usable for making the liquid metal robot in 'Terminator 2', right?"
The special effects for 'The Abyss' were actually handled by Daenerys Effects Studio.
Moreover, whether it was 'The Abyss' or 'Terminator 2' in Simon's memory, the special effects expenses were not actually high.
The main reason for the huge cost of the two projects was Cameron's perfectionist procrastination.
Last year's 'The Abyss' had a filming period of 5 months. In the original timeline, 'Terminator 2' was filmed for 6 months. Compared to the average Hollywood film's filming period of about 3 months, this was the primary reason for the two projects' budget overruns.
From a fan's perspective, given Cameron's box office performance, any amount of money spent is considered justified.
However, for film companies, unless it's someone like Carolco Pictures who doesn't mind spending other people's money, working with Cameron is definitely an ordeal.
Cameron perked up when Simon brought up 'The Abyss's special effects technology and began chatting with Simon.
Joe Roth returned about ten minutes later, sat down, and said to Simon, "$10 million. Arnold's agent insisted on this amount. He said Arnold is considering another film, and if we don't agree, this project will have to be postponed until next year".
Simon hesitated for a moment, then didn't dwell on it further, saying, "Let's officially announce the news tomorrow".
If he continued to haggle over the $2 million difference, Simon knew Schwarzenegger would truly drag the project out. The initiative was not with the production company at this point.
Moreover, although he had just expressed pessimism about 'Total Recall', Simon was the one who knew the outcome best. Once Schwarzenegger made a comeback with 'Total Recall' in the summer, it would be even harder to sign him.
Joe Roth also breathed a sigh of relief and quickly nodded in agreement.
During this time, because 'Batman Begins'' box office success exceeded everyone's expectations, Fox once again paid special attention to this project favoured by Simon.
Now, with 'Terminator 2' confirmed, Fox's main film for next year is settled.
After Simon finished speaking, he looked at Cameron again and said, "Jim, for the next few months, first hire someone to complete the full storyboard for the sequel. I hope you know exactly what you want after filming begins, rather than developing hundreds of thousands of feet of useless film footage".
For the original 'Terminator 2', Cameron developed over a million feet of film footage, but less than 1% was ultimately used. This film footage essentially meant huge budget expenditures.
Simon absolutely would not allow such a thing to happen this time.
As long as Cameron's unrestrained spending during filming is strictly controlled, even if it still goes slightly over budget this time, it will certainly not reach the original version's budget of over $100 million.
Cameron naturally agreed wholeheartedly.
The three continued to chat about some things. Cameron got up and left first. Joe Roth followed Simon's casual gaze towards the terrace below and tentatively asked, "Simon, do you want to go down and chat with everyone?"
There were at least thirty people in the courtyard downstairs at this time, and although many pretended to be chatting with each other, they were all closely watching the activity on the terrace.
Simon had only briefly greeted everyone when he first arrived, and everyone downstairs was hoping to chat with him more.
The success of 'Batman Begins', and the numerous resources Simon controlled, had elevated his status in Hollywood to a level he himself might not fully comprehend.
Casting for DC Cinematic Universe projects like 'The Dark Knight', 'Superman', 'Wonder Woman', and 'The Flash' will begin soon. All of Hollywood is watching this. In addition, projects from the 10-film plan, such as 'Terminator 2' and 'The Fugitive', also mean a lot of opportunities.
Simon had no interest in carousing tonight, but he didn't refuse Joe Roth's invitation either. He nodded, stood up, and went downstairs with him to join the crowd.