After staying in Los Angeles for five days, Duke returned to New Zealand, leaving Tina Fey in the City of Angels to continue discussions with Warner Bros. and promptly relay the latest updates to Wellington.
Given the performance of his past works during the summer blockbuster season, if The Lord of the Rings were to clash directly with Pearl Harbor, it would not be him who would be truly worried.
At Universal Studios' headquarters in Universal City, Martin Bob and Michael Ovitz walked into a large conference room one after another. This was the preparation meeting for a package project they had already signed a formal contract for.
As the CEO of Universal Pictures and one of the founders of CAA, Ron Meyer had performed exceptionally well in the film industry, far surpassing Michael Ovitz, even though his accomplishments as an agent were quite average.
Although Universal Pictures decided to collaborate with the Artist Management Company, Ron Meyer and Michael Ovitz's relationship had fractured years ago. Despite not letting personal feelings excessively interfere with work, Meyer only showed up briefly at the meeting and then left.
On one hand, it was due to his relationship with Michael Ovitz; on the other, it was because the film's budget was only $38 million.
Everything in Hollywood has become standardized. This preparatory meeting was no different from others. After a brief round of greetings, Martin Bob introduced the main cast of the film to Universal Pictures' representatives.
The first actor he introduced was a bald man. "This is Mr. Vin Diesel. He will play Dominic Toretto…"
After briefly mentioning his resume, Martin Bob went on to introduce the rest of the main cast one by one.
"This is Paul Walker…"
"This is Ms. Michelle Rodriguez…"
"This is Ms. Jessica Alba…"
The representatives from Universal Pictures were, of course, already familiar with the cast. This was merely a standard procedure during the preparation meeting. After Martin Bob's introductions, another routine activity followed: the cast reading the script.
As the four leads read through the condensed main storyline, Michael Ovitz kept frowning as if troubled by something significant. To Martin Bob, who knew him well, it seemed as though Ovitz's mind was elsewhere.
With a production budget of just $38 million, this was merely a straightforward action-packed popcorn flick. Under normal circumstances, recovering the investment wouldn't be too difficult. Michael Ovitz himself had little to worry about. Instead, his focus was on a much more significant concern: a massive war epic with a budget of $140 million.
The reason was simple—he had received news that Duke Rosenberg's new project had also secured next year's Memorial Day weekend release slot.
"Michael..."
A sudden voice interrupted Ovitz's thoughts. He looked up to see the film's producer, Clayton Bellinger, who said, "The film's title has been officially confirmed as The Fast and the Furious. What do you think?"
"No problem."
This was just a small project. Michael Ovitz nodded without hesitation.
Throughout the entire meeting, Ovitz appeared distracted, leaving the work entirely to Martin Bob while he remained deep in thought.
As soon as the meeting concluded, Ovitz called Martin Bob to leave Universal Studios and headed straight to the Disney headquarters in Burbank to discuss the more important project, Pearl Harbor.
Instead of visiting Touchstone Pictures, they went directly to Michael Eisner's office. In the face of a $140 million investment, past personal conflicts seemed trivial.
When they met, neither Michael Eisner nor Michael Ovitz brought up their past grievances. The discussion revolved solely around Pearl Harbor and its potential clash with The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.
"The Lord of the Rings series is considered one of the most difficult works to adapt."
In the chairman's reception room, a young executive from Walt Disney Studios remarked, "All previous film adaptations related to it have failed, and this one may not succeed either..."
Before he could finish speaking, he noticed everyone in the room staring at him as if he were an idiot.
Michael Ovitz shook his head slightly, clearly dismissive of the young executive's opinion. He recognized the man as John Disney, Roy Disney's most cherished youngest son.
No wonder the Disney family had declined to this point. Ovitz could only sigh inwardly.
"Am I wrong?"
Relying on his status as a direct descendant of the Disney family, John Disney had entered management immediately after graduation, despite his lack of experience. Worse, he seemed unaware that Disney was no longer the Disney family's company. Raising his voice, he continued, "From what I've heard, a large number of Lord of the Rings fans have protested in Wellington several times. This film clearly lacks support. Why do you think it will outperform our Pearl Harbor? We shouldn't..."
"Because its director is Duke Rosenberg!"
A cold voice interrupted John Disney. Michael Eisner's stern gaze swept over him. "That reason alone makes it worthy of Disney's attention!"
Ignoring the pampered scion, Eisner turned to his old friend Ovitz. "What's your opinion?"
Michael Ovitz didn't answer immediately. Instead, he looked at Michael Bay, who had arrived earlier. When Eisner mentioned Duke Rosenberg's name, Bay's expression grew grim.
Nobody wants to be labeled a copycat or second best. Michael Bay was no exception, and he longed to compete head-on.
However, unlike John Disney, Bay knew his voice carried little weight in determining whether to change the release date. Remaining silent was the wisest choice.
Michael Ovitz withdrew his gaze, still pondering. Over the years, even during the most competitive release windows, he had never feared any rival. Now, he had to carefully weigh the pros and cons. A competitor with such a strong market appeal could be counted on one hand, not just in Hollywood but worldwide.
While The Lord of the Rings was notoriously hard to adapt, all previous attempts had failed. Yet when paired with Duke Rosenberg as its director, Ovitz felt everything could be different.
Should the release date be changed or not? Ovitz found it hard to decide.
If changed, could another date match the significance of Memorial Day weekend for Pearl Harbor? If not, could Pearl Harbor hold its ground against The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring?
Unconsciously, Ovitz's thoughts centered solely on whether Pearl Harbor could withstand The Lord of the Rings. He never once considered it might triumph.
He looked again at Michael Bay, whose long face bore traces of discontent.
Seeing the frustration on Bay's face, Ovitz gradually made up his mind. If Michael Bay was destined to be seen as the second "explosive maniac," so be it. Ovitz didn't believe Bay could surpass Duke Rosenberg anytime soon.
Although Ovitz longed to redeem himself after the failure of Godzilla, he wouldn't let such desires cloud his judgment.
"I believe changing the release date is the wise choice," he said slowly.
The room fell silent. Michael Eisner remained expressionless, but Michael Bay's frustration deepened, and Martin Bob's eyes flashed with anger.
"I agree," Eisner finally said.
At this, Disney's other top executives visibly relaxed, clearly relieved to avoid pitting their big production against the summer blockbuster madman's work.
For reasons he couldn't explain, Ovitz suddenly felt a weight lift from his chest. Days of anxiety vanished in an instant.
After thinking for a moment, he couldn't help but smile wryly. The pressure from Duke Rosenberg's films was truly immense.
Though Pearl Harbor would lose its Memorial Day weekend release, avoiding direct competition with Rosenberg's work might be a blessing in disguise. This thought surfaced unbidden in Ovitz's mind.
"Since we're changing the release date," Eisner said, "let's quickly decide on a new one to align with Disney's promotional plans."
He signaled to his assistant, who promptly distributed a document to everyone present.
Looking at the summer release schedule for next year, Ovitz smirked slightly. His old friend Eisner appeared calm, as if unconcerned, but the document revealed otherwise. He was just as wary of clashing with Duke Rosenberg's film.
Disney's distribution chief, Cook Dick, spoke up. "The first weekend in May is Universal's The Mummy Returns. The second weekend features Paramount's war epic Enemy at the Gates. The third weekend is DreamWorks' animated film Shrek. Then comes Memorial Day weekend. After that, Paramount's Tomb Raider releases, followed by your project, The Fast and the Furious..."
"I think Pearl Harbor should still open in May!" Ovitz interrupted.
"But May weekends are already crowded!" Cook Dick hesitated. "While Shrek targets a different audience, wouldn't releasing Pearl Harbor the weekend before Duke's film be too close?"
"No, you misunderstood me." Ovitz shook his head. "I mean the weekend of Enemy at the Gates!"
"Why?"
This time, the question came from John Disney. "Both are WWII films with overlapping audiences!"
"Because Pearl Harbor is an American film, and Enemy at the Gates is European," Ovitz replied.