Chapter 71
George Lucas spent the night at Spielberg's house and left the following noon.
As his car passed a video store on the way, he called out to his driver.
"Pluto, stop for a moment."
The car slowed and came to a halt.
"Pluto, go inside this video store and buy a CD by Martin Meyers. The album's called Martin 1. Wait, buy one CD and one record... no, make that two of each."
George Lucas, suddenly intrigued by collecting, decided to buy multiple copies. After hearing Martin Meyers's powerful score, he believed the quality of the albums would be just as remarkable.
A while later, Pluto emerged from the video store with two records and two CDs.
Once back in the car, Lucas eagerly instructed Pluto to open one of the CDs, put it into the car stereo, and play it.
The music began to play, and the soothing vocals soon enveloped the car.
George Lucas immediately found himself lost in the world created by the music. Even Pluto, the driver, was drawn in, his head swaying gently to the rhythm, though he kept his focus on the road, never losing his professionalism.
As the second track began, George Lucas's expression changed dramatically. At his age, he suddenly felt as though something inside him had sparked—a forgotten inspiration ignited.
"Hiss..."
"Does music still have this kind of effect?!" Lucas thought, utterly amazed. He knocked on the seat and called to Pluto.
"Change the route. Instead of going back to the farm, head to 113 Castellan Street."
That address led to a small private club known only within exclusive circles, offering various high-end services to the wealthy. It had no name for security and privacy reasons, only an address known to the select few.
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Meanwhile, Martin had been extremely busy lately—but in a good way.
In his quest to promote The Sixth Sense and secure more opportunities, he continued to stay active. He was happy to be occupied, knowing it would lead to financial rewards and career success.
Despite his packed schedule, Martin still made time to negotiate with Nicole Kidman about script purchases and film investments for The Island. To his surprise, Tom Cruise—whom he thought would stay out of the project—also arrived, announcing that Cruise Films would be involved in the investment.
After some discussions, Martin and his partner Jeff agreed. Tom Cruise, of course, understood the potential of the movie, seeing parallels with the success of The Sixth Sense. If that film had done so well, The Island had the same potential to succeed.
Still, Martin decided to bring Miramax into the fold for the movie project. Harvey Weinstein's strong connections in Europe could help the film gain recognition at the Europa Film Festival.
The final investment breakdown was as follows: Tom Cruise invested $15 million (30%); Miramax Pictures and Pulse invested $15 million, totaling 40%; Martin personally invested $10 million, along with the book, soundtrack, and key team members, covering another 30%.
At first, Martin had no intention of participating in The Island. He had already written a script for Hide and Seek, which he considered his next big project. However, with Nicole Kidman expressing willingness to accept more screen time, and Tom Cruise and Harvey Weinstein urging him, Martin reluctantly agreed.
On the one hand, he could look out for Lindsay Lohan, the child actress who had been a standout in Made in Heaven; on the other hand, the movie had strong potential at the box office, given Nicole Kidman's star power, even if her films hadn't historically done well at the box office.
It was strange—Nicole Kidman was considered one of Hollywood's most beautiful actresses, but her films rarely managed to make a splash. Despite her star status, no film she starred in was able to carry the box office, with The Island being an exception.
In the future, Forbes would even name Nicole as one of Hollywood's "least investment-worthy" actresses.
Interestingly, even in the case of Eyes Wide Shut, where Tom Cruise left the film and Kidman exposed herself on-screen, the film still failed to perform well at the box office. And tragically, the film's director, Stanley Kubrick, passed away suddenly just five days after handing in the final cut of the film. His death caused many conspiracy theories to swirl around Hollywood.
Still, even with this failure, it was clear that Tom Cruise, Harvey Weinstein, and Nicole Kidman had no faith in Nicole carrying the film's box office potential on her own. They were all eager for Martin to come on board.
Eventually, Martin agreed, but with some strange feeling in his heart. He couldn't help but think that when the film became a hit, everyone would claim the credit. After all, he already had two successes under his belt, while Nicole Kidman had... none.
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After wrapping up The Island, Martin continued with his interviews and promotional work for The Sixth Sense.
Alongside the film, his new book, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, was being launched by Random House. Unlike the cold reception the book received when initially published by J.K. Rowling in the original timeline, Martin's fame and the vigorous promotion by Random House led to an explosive release.
In its first month, the book sold 500,000 copies in North America alone—more than J.K. Rowling's entire first-year sales. It quickly became a global sensation.
The book's success was clear; Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone was just the beginning of an entire series. The sales were astronomical, and the accompanying merchandise—wands, robes, and badges—flew off the shelves.
Even in the UK, where the story is set, the book saw sales comparable to those in the U.S. This was a far cry from the original timeline, where the series took much longer to gain traction.
[•———•——•———•]
𝙥𝗮𝙩𝙧𝙚𝙤𝙣(.)𝙘𝙤𝙢/𝙂𝙤𝙙𝙊𝙛𝙍𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙧
✨ • 𝗘𝘅𝗰𝗹𝘂𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗔𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀: 𝙂𝙚𝙩 𝟲𝟬+ 𝙖𝙙𝙫𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚𝙙 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙖𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙤𝙛 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙚𝙡𝙨𝙚.