King of Hollywood-Chapter 540 - 261 What if it’s not in California?

Michael Ovitz truly had a knack for managing talent agents, although in Adrian’s memory, the agency Ovitz founded after leaving Disney eventually faded into obscurity, this was not a personal failing. The turn of the 21st century wasn’t like the 70s brimming with countless opportunities; the market was already carved up, making it difficult to carve out a niche based solely on personal ability, as the Chinese saying goes: It’s fate, not the fault of battle.

Now, however, things were different, with the full support of Adrian and Claude, especially Adrian’s keen insight, the MCM talent agency had gathered a plethora of rising stars, allowing Ovitz to fully utilize his capabilities.

To give a simple example, when Ovitz was the CEO at CAA, his specialty was package selling. If a film company wanted to work with their actors and directors, they also had to accept other people they recommended. Many film companies were dissatisfied with this, and many producers complained that this practice increased the cost of filmmaking, but they ultimately had to accept it.

But after joining MCM, his tactics became more flexible and varied. Despite sticking to package deals, the coercive implication was much less, no need for this screenwriter? Don’t want that lighting technician? No problem, everything was up for negotiation! Although Ovitz enjoyed a luxurious lifestyle, he was very pragmatic at work. Don’t be fooled by the fact that the agency had just over 100 agents; its influence was already silently trailing just behind CAA and WMA, much of that success was thanks to Ovitz, which is why Adrian said so much just to give him a nudge, not really to punish him.

Setting aside profits, Adrian could empathize with Ovitz’s feelings. Before this, he had been the CEO of Disney—although he was ousted by Eisner after just over a year—and even earlier, he had built a talent agency with his friends that surpassed WMA in influence. In Hollywood, he was certainly a powerful figure and must have been very proud deep inside.

Although he accepted the invitation from Adrian and Claude, and the idea of recreating his former glory had indeed sparked his interest, he inevitably harbored some old-school thoughts. Moreover, since the talent agency was independent of AC Media legally, without any issues, it meant he could often monopolize power, so Ovitz didn’t place them in the same regard as himself in his heart.

But Adrian and Claude were not the kind of people who could be judged by ordinary standards. The growth rate of AC Media had far exceeded everyone’s expectations, and after acquiring Universal, it even surpassed Time Warner and Disney, becoming a super media group that could sit equally with News Corporation, Viacom, and Bertelsmann!

Ovitz couldn’t help feeling a disparity. Being the CEO of a well-known talent agency was certainly glamorous, but the truly powerful figures who could influence the entertainment industry were the leaders of these super media groups, otherwise, he wouldn’t have left CAA for Disney. Although his time at Disney made him realize he wasn’t cut out for it, seeing the achievements of Adrian and Claude still irked him.

This was why Adrian said that the recent poaching of agents would be a good opportunity. He intended to deter other talent agencies that were eyeing MCM as well as Michael Ovitz.

Poaching among talent agencies was common, even CAA, with many benefits and rules for its agents, couldn’t avoid it. When Ovitz and several friends left, several significant agents were poached, and after joining MCM, Ovitz had also poached the well-known agent Tracy Jacobs from CAA, which was not a big deal.

But this time, it was taken too lightly. If it hadn’t been discovered midway, Anderson Keller might have passed the agency’s client list to WMA—his poacher was WMA, William Morris, an old talent agency founded at the turn of the last century. Although its influence had waned for various reasons, it was still one of the largest talent agencies in Hollywood.

The client list is very important for a talent agency, especially those with detailed profiles. If competitors got the list, they could very likely take targeted measures to pull clients their way. Anderson Keller was one of MCM’s best agents, and if he really had been secretly poached, the loss to the company would be substantial; hence, retaliation was necessary, and it had to be swift and forceful, otherwise, it would be underestimated, and then everyone would want to come and have a go.

Thus, Ovitz hoped that Adrian would step in, contact the stars managed by Keller and advise them to terminate their contracts with Keller. It had to be admitted, Ovitz’s idea was very feasible. Although MCM was currently known for high-end services and possessed a number of high-profile stars ranging from Tom Hanks to Nicholas Cage, from Julia Roberts to Gwyneth Paltrow, housing many stars who emerged in the 90s, the biggest and most prominent was still Miracle Director Adrian Cowell. Moreover, the stars managed by MCM were somewhat aware of Adrian’s relationship with MCM, and if he was willing to speak up, it certainly would have an effect.

Indeed, that was the case, no, it was even simpler. The most significant stars in Keller’s hand were Jennifer Lopez and Russell Crowe. Adrian made two calls and met with them—of course, with Crowe at a high-end club, and with Lopez in bed—they terminated their contracts with Keller in a short period and even influenced other actors managed by that guy.

It wasn’t surprising that Adrian single-handedly discovered Crowe and helped him secure two Oscar nominations for Best Actor, given his immense power and influence — Crowe naturally felt a deep sense of gratitude toward him. More importantly, by the end of this month, a film funded by Universal was set to start shooting, and Adrian specifically named Crowe as the lead actor and personally invited Ridley Scott to direct.

Indeed, it was the film "Gladiator," which revitalized the development of epic movies. Universal had obtained the script long ago. When AC Media was discussing whether to invest in Universal, Adrian immediately approved the investment and even decided to fund it alone, thus excluding DreamWorks, who was originally supposed to co-invest. Simultaneously, he controversially invited Ridley Scott, who had no choice but to stop directing after the failures of "White Squall" and "G.I. Jane" and had started producing with his brother Tom Scott but still longed to direct again.

So Crowe would definitely not refuse Adrian’s request, especially since Adrian had hinted the film might win him an Oscar statuette — who didn’t recognize the Miracle Director’s eye for talent now?

The case of Lopez was even simpler; her record company created an album tailored for her that, although it didn’t allow her to rival Britney and Christina, received significant acclaim among Latinos in the United States and was well-liked in Latin America. Her movie career was similarly progressing smoothly. When Adrian offered her the script for "Maid In Manhattan" and planned to cast Ralph Fiennes as the male lead, the smart woman immediately agreed to Adrian’s request and warmly invited him to her home, an invitation that Adrian naturally couldn’t refuse.

The resolution of the whole situation so swiftly surprised many — almost immediately after Keller left MCM, his top two stars terminated their contracts with him, and other average actors also started making similar requests in the following days, making other talent agencies wary of MCM. Michael Ovitz was also shocked; when Adrian called him three days after the agreement to prepare new agents for Lopez and Crowe, Ovitz initially thought he was joking, only to find out it was indeed true!

His original plan was for Adrian to break the news, then he would personally communicate with them to salvage the situation, thus making up for his previous mistakes. However, after Adrian simply talked with them, they ended their contracts with Anderson Keller, showcasing a terrifyingly powerful influence on the stars.

On reflection, it made sense. Much of MCM’s growth was attributed to Ovitz, with a smaller part thanks to Adrian. Typically, actors personally signed by Adrian developed faster than the average person, which is why MCM was known for its premium service. Therefore, after this incident, Ovitz worked even more carefully.

Adrian, who paid attention from start to finish, was very satisfied with the outcome. It temporarily deterred other talent agencies from targeting MCM and made Ovitz drop his arrogant attitude. Although effective, this method couldn’t be used frequently since MCM operated independently from AC Media, and even legally, it was a close call — Adrian didn’t want others to find a reason to cause problems, which is why he initially asked Ovitz, "This issue is resolved, but what about the next time?"

Fortunately, everything had been resolved according to his plan. Under these circumstances, suggesting that Ovitz extend agent duties to the sports sector seemed likely to succeed. After all, it’s often easier to earn money from sports stars, especially those black athletes who knew neither savings nor investment and spent freely. Even though Adrian couldn’t recall many sports stars, with Ovitz’s capabilities, he should be able to take the lead.

As for the unfortunate Anderson Keller, without clients he was valueless, and having his clients terminate their contracts as soon as he joined WMA would certainly diminish their assessment of his capabilities. One could easily imagine his downfall.

Now, let’s move past this topic. After acquiring Universal, although AC Media was continuously consolidating internally, its various productions never ceased. Adrian personally inquired into many movies and television shows, such as Kate’s upcoming Valentine’s Day release "Serendipity," or Julia’s hurriedly filmed "Notting Hill" in London, among others.

"Very good!" With the director’s voice, several assistants who had been ready instantly ran towards the pool, waiting for the soaked girl in a leather outfit to shiver as she emerged from the water, then they draped a blanket over her.

"She did quite well, didn’t she?" Adrian, watching all this, said to James Cameron, who stood beside him wearing a baseball cap and sporting his signature goatee.

"Are you referring to her acting? Or her movements? Or... maybe her figure?" Cameron asked teasingly.

"Use them all." Adrian glanced at him, smiled unconcernedly, and then half-warned, "Steven has already produced the first episode of ’Band of Brothers.’ When can you produce the first episode of ’Dark Angel,’ Jamie? You know, the investment in ’Band of Brothers’ is much larger than that in ’Dark Angel.’"

"You said it yourself, the investment in ’Band of Brothers’ is bigger than that in ’Dark Angel,’ so they can shoot on location in the United Kingdom, while we can only build sets in the studio," Cameron shrugged.

"That’s no excuse, Jamie. Investment and production efficiency aren’t necessarily directly proportional nor inversely proportional; we must analyze specific issues specifically. Besides," Adrian looked around, "the set here is quite substantial."

The studio was vast, with huge steel frames standing in the middle of a broad pool, much like a ship moored at sea. That’s the power of a studio, especially now with the maturity of CG technology. Given the funds, one can construct undeniably realistic, architectural and scenic features from anywhere in the world here.

However, Cameron was not satisfied: "What kind of scale is this? If I were directing, such rough sets wouldn’t be usable at all."

Adrian couldn’t help laughing heartily--that was indeed something Cameron would say.

"Alright, I’m going to check on the leading lady," Adrian said, glancing over at the pool, then patted his shoulder and walked over.

At that moment, a young girl, wrapped in a blanket, was sipping from a cup of hot water, trying to ward off the chill. It was still quite cold in Los Angeles during January, especially in a spacious yet breezy studio. She hadn’t changed much from before, her features not yet fully defined, but the exotic allure was already beginning to show, and indeed, her figure was quite impressive.

"How do you feel, Jessica?" Adrian called out.

"Mr. Adrian?" Jessica Alba looked up with a surprised smile.

"Call me Adrian or Ed—The shot just now was impressive, especially your dive into the water; very agile. I didn’t expect you’d do it yourself," Adrian said earnestly.

"Thank you," the girl smiled sweetly, "I’m just trying to do better."

"Good, that’s the mindset of a talented actress," Adrian complimented her, then pointed at her wet hair, "Go back to the trailer and dry your hair and change your clothes, so you don’t get sick, and those wet clothes must be uncomfortable."

"Alright, I’ll go now." Jessica nodded immediately, about to turn around but then stopped, hesitated, then walked up to Adrian and whispered, "Thank you, Mr. Adrian."

"You knew?" Adrian raised his eyebrows, slightly surprised.

"Yes, I overheard Mr. Cameron and the director talking," Jessica said sheepishly, sticking out her tongue, "I really appreciate it, Mr. Adrian."

"There’s no need for that; I just think you have potential. In fact, everyone has potential; the difference is whether they work hard or not. You’re doing quite well, Jessica." Adrian smiled gently, then preempted her as she opened her mouth to speak again, "I’ve told you many times, call me Adrian or Ed."

"Of course, Sir... Ed, I’ll keep working hard." Jessica stuck out her tongue fetchingly again and then walked towards the trailer.

After watching her enter the trailer, Adrian turned to leave ’Dark Angel’s’ set. He wasn’t too worried about Jessica Alba; as long as she continued with this good start and with his current status and power, as long as she remained in Hollywood, she couldn’t escape his palm.

Indeed, he recalled that she had shot a dance-related movie. Although it wasn’t a box office hit, it perfectly showcased her physique, marking a beautiful beginning in her film career. Perhaps it was worth considering having someone produce it; as for the screenplay, sometimes recalling the outline and then handing it over to a screenwriter would suffice, especially since the original script wasn’t very good, and he didn’t care about making money.

Of course, these things couldn’t be achieved overnight. Moreover, he needed time to gradually engage with this beautiful mixed-race girl, so for now, it was more important to handle immediate affairs. A man, who had calmly waited for almost a month, finally appeared in Adrian’s office.

"Please have a seat, Mr. Spears," Adrian gestured politely to the middle-aged man in front of him.

"Thank you, Mr. Cowell," the man replied, maintaining a smile as he sat down.

Although he was dressed in a well-fitting suit and had slickly combed hair, trying hard to maintain a composed demeanor, one could still observe his psychological state from his occasionally twitching throat, his hand unbuttoning his collar as he entered the office, the twitch at the corner of his mouth when he smiled, and the slight tremble in his voice.

"Would you like something to drink?" Adrian continued, then without waiting for an answer, pressed the intercom: "Two lattes, Charli, thanks."

Charlize soon came in with the coffee, her form-fitting office lady outfit beautifully accentuating her curves, causing James Spears to inadvertently gaze at her shapely rear. Although he quickly recovered, Adrian didn’t miss the action, and his smile deepened meaningfully.

"Is there anything I can help you with, Mr. Spears?" Adrian asked again.

"Ah? Oh, yes, Mr. Cowell, I... I’m very grateful that you’ve cultivated Britney; we love her, we very much love her..." Spears steadied his nerves then began to speak, initially stuttering, but becoming more fluent as he continued, repeatedly emphasizing, "I love my daughter, and I won’t let her be hurt," excitement and... a slight greed flickering in his eyes.

Adrian’s smile took on a mocking edge, and seizing a pause from Spears, he suddenly asked, "One question, Mr. Spears, what if—it wasn’t in California?" (To be continued. If you like this work, please vote for it at qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation.)

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