Things were not as simple as they seemed.
On one side, Anson and James Franco both passed their auditions and secured roles, but this was far from the end. The two actors belonged to different agencies, so there was no coordination between them. Their respective agents began contract negotiations.
While Anson, as the lead actor, faced a slower negotiation process due to various possibilities regarding the contract, one would expect James's negotiations to be smoother. However, that was not the case; his negotiations also encountered obstacles.
The issue stemmed from Sony Columbia's interest in creating a film series, but their internal leadership hadn't yet reached a consensus:
Should they bundle the actors into multi-film contracts? Would James's character appear in the sequels? Should they raise the actors' pay in anticipation of sequels? What if they committed now and the film ended up failing?
These were just a few of the questions causing delays.
Meanwhile, the casting for other key roles wasn't going as smoothly as expected.
For instance, the role of the female lead, Mary Jane, was a point of contention. Director Sam Raimi favored Alicia Witt—the same Alicia who had gone to a bar with James after her screen test. Sony Columbia had already begun discussions with Alicia, but there were other opinions within the company.
There wasn't outright opposition, but others weren't as enthusiastic about her, expressing sentiments like "She's okay, but not amazing." This lukewarm attitude further slowed down the negotiations between Sony Columbia and Alicia.
In essence, Anson, James, and Alicia were in the same boat. None of them had signed contracts yet, and even if they had, the studio could still replace them at any time.
Adding to the complexity was Edgar's ambitious approach.
Edgar didn't rush things or make any sudden moves. Instead, he carefully laid the groundwork, gradually baiting the negotiations before finally revealing his true ambitions—aiming for a share of the box office profits.
As a result, the negotiation process dragged on, and a resolution seemed distant.
From September to October, with November just around the corner, Edgar's meticulous, patient, bold, and decisive efforts finally paid off.
The contract was settled.
Initially, Edgar aimed for a $3 million salary for Anson, plus a 5% share of the North American box office. But Sony Columbia rejected this offer.
They agreed to share the box office risk with a profit-sharing plan but countered with a $1 million salary and a 1% share of the North American box office. The larger the company, the more precise their calculations.
Negotiations continued, with both sides pushing and pulling.
Unfortunately, Anson lacked a solid resume. His only film, *The Princess Diaries*, had not yet been released, and it was uncertain whether its popularity would translate into box office success. His bargaining power was still limited.
After weighing the pros and cons, Edgar made concessions, and they finally reached an agreement—
$2 million plus a 3% share of the North American box office.
The profit-sharing would only kick in if the North American box office exceeded $100 million.
In other words, if *Spider-Man* grossed $110 million in North America, Anson would earn 3% of the additional $10 million, or $300,000.
This was Sony Columbia's bottom line. But what was the significance of this insistence?
It was a matter of numbers. Sony Columbia was hoping the film's North American box office would surpass $200 million. In that case, Anson's profit-sharing would amount to $3 million. Adding that to his salary would make his total compensation $5 million, a figure Sony Columbia found acceptable.
Previously, Edgar had said he was confident he could secure a $5 million deal for Anson—
The negotiation results proved that $5 million was indeed Sony Columbia's upper limit. However, Edgar and Anson changed the situation by "cutting" $3 million from the salary and replacing it with box office bonuses. This showed sincerity and confidence, and they looked forward to working with Sony Columbia to achieve success.
Sony Columbia was very satisfied with this. By controlling costs, reducing risks, and working together, the production of "Spider-Man" was finally on track.
Then, a strange scene appeared in Hollywood:
There were rumors in the industry that Sony Columbia had signed Anson to play Peter Parker. For a complete newcomer, they were willing to give box office bonuses, and such a crazy move was already shocking enough. What was even more amazing was that Sony Columbia was very satisfied with Anson, even full of praise.
Everyone was like: ???
What kind of fantasy was this?
As a result, the "Spider-Man" project, which had already attracted a lot of attention, triggered even more discussion. The industry was also curious about the direction of the project and its performance after its release. Among the thousands of projects in Hollywood, this was indeed an unusual one.
In any case, after all the back and forth, both sides finally found a balance.
Then, Anson nodded.
After signing in New York, the matter was officially settled.
Anson Wood was about to become the first Spider-Man, Peter Parker.
A newcomer, a new face, a new beginning, a superhero exclusive to Sony Columbia, an idol ready to be created by Sony Columbia, a new starting point.
Everything was new, representing both a beginning and hope.
Undoubtedly, Sony Columbia's performance in all aspects showed that they were extremely satisfied with the casting of the male lead.
Although the pre-production of the film still required a long time, the actor's preparation could already begin, which also required a lot of time.
When Sam Raimi learned that Anson had already started martial arts training for two months, he did not hide his admiration and affirmation. The facts once again proved that their judgment of Anson was correct.
As expected, once he made up his mind, he would not change it. Sam was more and more satisfied with Anson, no matter how he looked at him.
However, this was not enough.
Sony Columbia found a professional team to tailor a training plan for Anson based on the script and the character image.
And, they set a goal.
Sony Columbia's costume team would start customizing the suit at the same time. They would tailor the suit according to Anson's target body shape.
If Anson couldn't fit into the suit by then, it would be a breach of contract.
Anson was relaxed about this and even joked.
"From the moment I signed the contract, my stomach, my body, my muscles all no longer belonged to me. It really was a contract of selling myself. Maybe I need to double-check if my kidneys still belong to me."
As for martial arts training, Sony Columbia thought it was a good idea. They not only reimbursed Anson for the previous course fees but also continued to enroll him in three more months of courses, while also arranging a series of other courses to progress simultaneously.
These included yoga, rock climbing, fitness, and so on.
The "Spider-Man" crew specially arranged a professional team of six for Anson, not only responsible for daily training but also for the nutritional arrangement and arrangement of three meals a day.
From diet to training to rest, they would renew him from the inside out.
This team did not need to be responsible for any other work, completely revolving around Anson. Their only job was to create a perfect Spider-Man.
(Third update)