In March, Los Angeles already exuded the scent of summer. The cloudless azure sky allowed the sunlight to pour down unobstructed, accompanied by a pleasant breeze, making people particularly enjoy the weather.
Lyman, Thomas, René, George, and others walked out of the international airport's terminal, pushing their suitcases, and got into the special cars sent by Paramount and CAA to pick them up.
They split into two groups and rode in separate cars, parting ways at the intersection of Hollywood Boulevard.
Lyman rode in the CAA car alone; originally, Kevin Huvane was supposed to come, but he couldn't make it due to a last-minute matter.
The car turned into Wilson Drive and headed north, passing through bustling shopping districts before gradually entering the upscale residential area of Beverly Hills.
The bustling city noise was left behind, replaced by a gradually settling tranquility.
The environment here was indeed excellent, no wonder it had become the gathering place for the rich in Los Angeles.
Now, the project's development had been fully completed, and the contentious issues regarding his remuneration and investment had been settled.
With the efforts of his agent, John, and after several rounds of tug-of-war negotiations, everything had been settled.
He would receive a basic salary of $10M, plus 12% of the film's total revenue, provided that he invested $12M. However, concerning the box office revenue, he would also need to sign a tiered sharing agreement.
It was a mutual compromise, with each side making concessions.
Because Lyman's focus in the negotiations was on the film's investment return, it was inevitable that they had to sign a box office sharing agreement.
In other words, setting aside the identity of an investor and only considering himself as a director, obtaining the portion of the box office revenue he deserved would not be an easy task.
Hollywood distribution companies were like vampires. Without sufficient profit guarantees, they wouldn't easily budge.
And this tiered box office sharing was a common way for them to avoid directorial risks.
If "Miscreant" could only achieve a global box office of just three hundred million, Lyman would only receive the basic salary and investment return, and the basic salary would be paid in three installments – before shooting, before post-production, and after the film's release – without any box office bonuses. If the global box office exceeded $400M, he would enjoy 3% of the box office revenue; if it surpassed $500M, the sharing ratio would increase to 5%; if it exceeded $600M, it would be 7%... with a maximum of 10%. This upper limit was set in the supplementary agreement, and it was contingent on the global box office exceeding $800M. After that, regardless of how much more it earned, the sharing ratio would remain at 10%.
In essence, signing such an agreement aimed to avoid the huge investment risk from excessive initial investment.
This was also the common practice for major Hollywood productions. They liked to tightly bind the director to the film.
In any case, the more successful the film, the more they would earn, and they wouldn't hesitate to share some of the profits. But the premise was that profits had to be made.
If they lost money, reducing the losses was the right thing to do. If you didn't sign this sharing agreement and, in the end, the film's box office performance was poor, the director would still receive a significant share of the revenue, resulting in even greater losses for them.
Just think about it; Paramount even employed Allianz as a third party to cover the film's risks. How could they allow such risks to be exposed?
The operation of each blockbuster could be described as meticulously planned, and Paramount was experienced and meticulous even more so.
...
Beverly Hills had always been dubbed the "most prestigious residential area" by the American public. Of course, this title was not because of the area's land prices or actual property costs being the "most expensive" in America, but because it was the most well-known.
This city within Los Angeles, an aggregation of numerous Hollywood stars, can be described as a place that countless fans flock to.
The CAA driver adeptly steered the car smoothly into the Beverly Hills estate, skillfully observing the road conditions and finally stopping at the entrance of a luxurious mansion.
Opening the window, he leaned out, facing the surveillance camera above the main entrance, and pressed the voice call button below. Soon, a voice came through, "Alright, wait a moment, I'll open the gate."
The driver pulled back, waiting for the iron gate to slowly open inward before releasing the handbrake and starting the car.
The car slowly drove into the estate, and the first thing that caught the eye was a lush green lawn flanked by symmetrically arranged green grass on both sides.
Lyman looked with great interest. The small fountain, the columns, the tall trees planted around the perimeter of the walls, and more, each gave him a different visual experience.
After passing the front yard, the driver parked the car at the entrance of a residence.
Lyman opened the car door and got out, and a casually dressed man quickly walked out of the house when he heard the sound.
"Hey, buddy, welcome." The one greeting him was the owner of this mansion, Tom Cruise, who currently held an A-list position in Hollywood. "You can go back now," he said to the driver, then turned back with a warm smile. "Lyman, sorry to have you come over; it's definitely my rudeness."
Facing his enthusiasm, Lyman also showed a courteous and polite smile, "It's okay; it's my honor."
The two exchanged pleasantries and walked into the exquisitely decorated house.
Lyman had always maintained a certain distance from others. He wasn't familiar with Tom and had no personal relationship with him. He came here today because of Kevin's invitation, but unexpectedly, Kevin had some last-minute matters to attend to.
"Well then, let me be a good host today. Since the premiere of "Rage", after we met, I've had this idea," Tom said sincerely.
"Of course, you are the host," Lyman calmly replied.
After the guided tour, the relationship between the two became slightly closer. At this moment, sitting under the pergola by the backyard pool, Tom personally brewed two cups of coffee.
"How is it?"
Watching Lyman tastefully take a sip, he asked with a smile.
"It's very good."
Lyman liked drinking coffee, but if asked to judge its quality or taste, he would be at a loss.
Setting down the coffee, he said, "I heard you're interested in the undercover role."
After using Kevin's favor to get him here, Lyman didn't want to beat around the bush and directly addressed the matter.
Tom paused slightly while lifting the coffee cup, looking at Lyman. "Yes, my agent told me about this project, and I became interested in this role."
"But it seems that when you were discussing it that day, you didn't have much confidence in my performance?" After saying that, he took a sip of coffee.
"I don't have a specific candidate for this role, but I won't change the character's set just for an actor." Lyman had always held the initiative in the conversation. He didn't mind who joined the cast, but first, the candidate had to be feasible. "So, Tom, your conditions are too demanding, and it's something I can't do."
Indeed, as Pat Kingsley, the agent, said, Tom's on-screen positive image naturally clashed with the nature of this project, and director Lyman wouldn't compromise.
So, he had to make concessions. He was prepared for it. "What if I accept the character's setup?"
After a moment of silence, when Lyman heard this sentence, he couldn't help but feel a bit surprised.
He originally thought that Tom invited him in person to try to persuade him to make some adjustments to the character through face-to-face communication. But unexpectedly, Tom Cruise was willing to accept it himself.
Then, what were the advantages of Tom joining?
His unparalleled box office appeal; even a slightly plain arthouse romantic film like "Vanilla Sky" could make a hundred million dollars in North America. It could be imagined what kind of impact his face would have on the box office. The only concern was whether he could portray the role well.
Objectively speaking, Tom's talent was not in acting. The same could be said for Brad Pitt, and Leonardo DiCaprio was the same now. However, after experiencing a few years of arthouse films, their performances became more vivid and natural.
But can people be trained? Which actor was born knowing how to act?
Lyman pondered over the pros and cons and then took out a document from his briefcase and placed it on the small table in front of them. "This is the character profile I wrote for the undercover role. Take a look."
It was a profile that did not involve specific plot points, just a pure analysis of the character's personality and background. In fact, this should be left to the actor to interpret, but when Lyman was writing the script, he first created the character and then let these characters experience a series of events based on their personalities. So, it wasn't a big deal.
However, Tom was a bit surprised. He thought Lyman's style was like this: thorough, rigorous, even writing character analysis himself.
This made him more certain that Lyman was serious about the collaboration, and that the chances of success weren't low.
As a member of Hollywood's A-list actors, he could be said to have achieved a lot, but he had never escaped the shadow of being a "pretty face". It had become a thorn in his heart. This time, it must be an opportunity for him.
Tom thought this way as he took the character profile personally written by the director.
The story began with a police officer named Ian Caden, who had just graduated and joined the police force.
After a routine patrol, his superior found him and, after reading through his file, tore up the written records of his registration with the police force in front of him.
"I have something for you to do..."
Name: Ian Caden. His father was a policeman who died three years ago in a gang fight, and his mother was a primary school teacher who passed away last year due to illness. His family relations were simple, and he had cut off contact with most of his relatives...
Was there anything better than having a righteous and talented police disciple become an undercover agent? Outstanding academic achievements, excellent close combat skills.
This was a very good undercover plan.