King of Hollywood-Chapter 68 - Press Conference

Chapter 68: Chapter 68 Press Conference

People from several companies gathered in the lounge, naturally discussing the preparations for “Jurassic Park”. “Hook” was essentially finished and only waiting for release; Spielberg had taken some time off and, with confirmation from his old friend Lucas that using computers to create realistic CGI dinosaurs was technically feasible, along with the shock of the “T-1000”, had moved “Jurassic Park” up the schedule.

Now, with all the responsible parties having to attend the premiere of “The Shawshank Redemption”, it was decided to discuss the matter there instead of setting another time—of course, Adrian’s promise was also one of Spielberg’s motivations.

Although Adrian had been invited to the lounge to join the discussions, more often than not, he played the role of a listener. As per their agreement, Spielberg took on the roles of both director and producer, so he had the final say in most things; as the screenwriter, Adrian only needed to answer his questions as they came.

“I disagree with your idea, Steven,” Adrian said when Spielberg suggested changing the ending to a clash with the Velociraptors. “I admit, having a confrontation with the Velociraptors at the end would definitely give a strong sense of tension and excitement, but you’re overlooking the oppressive size and impact of the Tyrannosaurus. Think about it, the Velociraptors, which have been relentlessly chasing the protagonists, are instantly killed by the Tyrannosaurus; this great contrast would create a shock for the audience no less than a confrontation with the Velociraptors, wouldn’t it?” Even though he’d given Spielberg all the power, it didn’t mean he had to obey him in everything—who knew better than Adrian how to make the movie profitable?

After considering it for a while, Spielberg accepted the suggestion and then turned to discuss the casting of the main characters with his assistant; it sounded like he was planning to invite Harrison Ford and Juliet Binoche for the lead roles.

Adrian couldn’t help but shake his head, and after listening for a bit, he simply interjected, “For several key roles, I could recommend some actors. Sam Neill and Laura Dern could play Grant and Sattler, respectively; Jeff Goldblum as Malcolm, and Sir Richard Attenborough could portray Hammond.”

Spielberg’s ideas were commendable but not practical. Even without the knowledge of the future, Adrian was aware of this. “Jurassic Park” was always an ensemble piece, with no standout lead roles; how could Harrison Ford, already an A-list Hollywood star, accept it? And even though his relationship with Spielberg was very good. As for Juliet Binoche, how many commercial films had the French actress made?

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“Sir Richard Attenborough?” Spielberg was somewhat surprised.

“I know he’s never acted in a film, but there’s a first time for everything, isn’t there?” Adrian said with a wave of his hand, “Well, I’m just making a suggestion; how to consider it is up to you.”

Spielberg nodded, indicating he would consider Adrian’s opinion, and then began discussing with the representative from Universal. More than an hour passed quickly, and since the film was about to end and the main matters had mostly been settled, the people in the lounge stood up and left the discussion. However, Adrian was stopped by Spielberg as he was leaving.

“At a conservative estimate, the pre-production may take 4 months or even more,” Spielberg said to him. “As you know, we can’t replace all shots with computer CG; necessary models still need to be made. Plus, we’ll need a few paleontologists for guidance since we want to portray them as animals, not monsters. Therefore, we probably won’t start filming until March of next year.”

“No worries, you call the shots, I have plenty of patience,” Adrian waved his hand, knowing what the other really wanted to say, “Rest assured, Steven, I’ll keep my promise—or how about this, even if the box office is a loss, I’ll still put in 20 million to invest in ‘Schindler’s List’, what do you think?”

Spielberg was momentarily stunned. The reason he had said those words to Adrian, besides suggesting to him that the film production would take a substantial amount of time, was to subtly remind him of their initial verbal agreement. He hadn’t expected such a response, which took him quite by surprise.

“Just like that, then,” said Adrian, not waiting for him to speak. He patted Spielberg on the arm with a smile and left.

“Schindler’s List” must be secured at all costs. Even though there had been quite a few films about the Jewish Holocaust since World War II none of them had the advantage of “Schindler’s List,” which was its entertainment value! With that, it meant the film could reach a much wider audience!

However, no matter what, that was still some time away. He would first wait for Spielberg to finish “Jurassic Park.” Adrian thought this as he walked towards the foyer, where there was a more pressing matter at hand. The film was about to end, and naturally, the press conference would follow—those folks weren’t so easily dismissed.

Indeed, the reporters, despite the attention drawn by Robbins and Freeman, the lead actors, soon turned their questions towards Adrian after a few rounds.

“Mr. Adrian, I remember you once said that this is a perfect film. While I agree that the movie is indeed brilliant, and even joined in the applause for Andy as he looked up into the rain, I still feel that there is a significant gap from perfection. Do you still stand by that statement?” a reporter asked.

“First, I need to correct something. The term I used was ‘near perfect,’ which is different from perfect, and I think we should all understand that there is no such thing as perfect in this world—of course, that doesn’t stop us from pursuing it. Secondly, if you have carefully analyzed those relatively favorable reports, you would realize that my ‘near perfect’ refers to the process of being suppressed and then experiencing exhilarating release, which was done almost perfectly. The gentleman just admitted that he applauded Andy’s escape, didn’t he?” Adrian replied calmly.

Because of the misinterpretation of “near perfect,” he had been criticized for being too arrogant lately. Even though it was mostly the small to mid-sized newspapers trying to make noise and garner attention, Adrian remained cautious. Boasting needed to be done with consideration.

“I’ve noticed that the term ‘institutionalization’ appears several times in the film, and the most important supporting character, Brooks, commits suicide because of it. Mr. Adrian, are you trying to metaphorically suggest something through this?” another reporter asked.

“I just want to say that everyone encounters such a predicament in life to some extent. After staying in one environment for too long, it becomes difficult to accept change. At that time, we should all strive to break free and fly like birds,” Adrian answered simply, “The yearning for freedom, that’s the core of the entire film.”

Even as Adrian continued to answer the questions, part of his mind involuntarily drifted to something else. He hadn’t watched the movie and didn’t know how the audience would react. How much would the box office be on the premiere?

(Once again criticized for laying down too much groundwork in the early stages, feeling downhearted. Another update is coming tonight, asking for recommendations and favorites!!!)