....
[Next Day]
[July 7th, 2010]
….
The unexpected blockbuster success of [Following] had sent shockwaves through the industry.
While Regal and company basked in their victory, fueling the hype with celebratory promotions, the cast and crew were still struggling to comprehend the sheer scale of what they had achieved.
While that was happening, behind closed doors, frustration simmered in places far removed from the glitz of box office numbers.
Among them - the most disgruntled were Brad Carter and his assistant, John, both from Pixy Studios.
Brad, a Script Review Coordinator, sat in his office, fuming in silence.
Outside, John stood just beyond the doorway, clutching a folder he had long forgotten the contents of. His mind was elsewhere, replaying a conversation he had once dismissed.
Hundred million dollars… Regal words echoed in his head.
He had already crossed the number at the box office, and on top of it, the run isn't over yet. Estimates say it's gonna add another fifty million to that number.
Regal's claims hadn't been arrogant.
It had been certainty, the kind of unshakable confidence that, in hindsight, John had underestimated.
He had spent the past week scrolling through article after article about [Following], glowing reviews, analytical breakdowns, and retrospective articles calling it a 'lottery ticket' for the cast and director.
Lottery? - that term made him scoff.
Luck had nothing to do with it.
This wasn't some fluke. It was a meticulously orchestrated triumph.
Success wasn't always a matter of chance. Sometimes, it was crafted, executed, and forced into reality with ruthless precision.
It is an undeniable fact that - Regal had played the game and won, while John had been too blind to see it coming.
Taking a regretful sigh, he pushed open the heavy door to Brad Carter's office.
Brad sat stiffly in his chair. His gaze flicked upward as John stepped inside, sharp, cutting as the barely restrained fury in his eyes.
This wasn't going to be a pleasant conversation. John thought.
But then again. When was it ever?
"Morning, Sir."
He greeted him. He didn't dare to say good morning.
"..." Expectedly, Brad didn't respond.
Still, John continued to stand still in front of the now closed door, bracing for the inevitable.
"Do you have any idea how badly we screwed up, John?" Finally Brad's voice lashed through the room like a whip.
A folder slammed onto the desk, papers spilling out in a chaotic mess. "You had one job! One damn job, get that green-leaf brat on board before they release the movie!"
John's jaw tightened. He had expected this. Brad's go-to move whenever things spiraled out of control was to find someone to pin it on.
"...I-I apologize, sir, but Regal was never interested in selling. He only wanted distribution. From the start, there was no deal to be made."
Brad scoffed, waving a dismissive hand. "Bullshit. There is always a deal to be made. You just didn't try hard enough to find the right angle."
"Sir, the CEO called." John added, completely hoping to redirect the topic.
Brad's breath hitched. His nostrils flared, fists twitching like he was resisting the urge to throw something. His anger was volcanic, but for the first time, it stalled.
Silence.
Then, with a heavy exhale, he dropped back into his chair.
John stood firm, composed. This was the only way to cut through Brad's tirades, dropping something heavier than his outrage.
"...continue." Brad responded, turning quit.
John gave a small nod. "The CEO assistant contacted us this morning for a meeting."
"Meeting?" Brad questioned.
John and Brad both exactly knew what this meeting was about - it is mostly probably about a full 'debrief' report on what happened on Pixy Stuidio's recent box office venture.
However, it won't just end there, as by now the information about Regal approaching the studio with the movie should have been informed, and obviously he wants to know how and why Brad let [Following] slip right through their fingers.
John couldn't help but wonder how many studios are going through the same process right now.
Brad exhaled through gritted teeth and kicked the edge of the desk, sending one of the scattered papers fluttering to the floor. "Perfect. Just perfect. Now I have to clean up this mess because you couldn't do your damn job!"
John said nothing. The truth was too obvious to waste words on. He knew better than to push back further when Brad was like this.
After a beat, Brad let out a bitter chuckle, shaking his head. "That little brat… turned an indie into a goddamn box office phenomenon. And we didn't even get crumbs."
He exhaled sharply, rubbing his temple before leveling a glare at John. "Fine. Tell me exactly when the meeting is scheduled."
Because like it or not, they were going to have to answer for this.
"...about now." John replied, glancing at the clock.
"Be ready. Your mistakes are about to cost both of us." Brad snapped, jabbing a finger at John before storming off. "And trust me, the consequences won't be pretty."
As the door shut, John let out a defeated breath, running a hand over his face before gathering the scattered papers.
He needed to focus.
But one thought refused to leave his mind - how the hell had Regal managed to pull Stephen Hawking into all this?
When Regal rejected their offer, John had expected the kid to come crawling back, tail between his legs, once the realities of distribution set in.
That was how this industry worked.
Young, cocky filmmakers always made a show of independence, until they hit the wall of logistics and funding.
But this time, it was different.
Regal hadn't just proved them wrong. He had flipped the entire script.
They were the ones left regretting their decisions.
The irony wasn't lost on him. The film industry has a very low success rate. Most projects flopped. Even those with promise barely broke even.
But when a hit did land?
It could secure a studio's future for years. One box office juggernaut meant more projects, more talent, and more power.
[Following] had become that success, a once-in-a-decade phenomenon.
If they had just played their cards right, pushed a little harder, secured that deal…
The studio would have made it big.
And John?
He would have been rewarded - of course, if he hadn't been robbed of the credit first.
Still, there was another layer to Brad's frustration, one that went beyond [Following] success.
Pixy had released a film the same week, a project Brad had personally championed.
The film, [Eragon], was an adaptation of the wildly popular first book in [The Inheritance Cycle] tetralogy, a property that had generated considerable buzz.
Originally published in 2002, the novel had become a bestseller, amassing a huge following, particularly among young fantasy readers.
On paper, turning it into a movie should have been a safe bet.
Adaptations, after all, came with a built-in audience, a guaranteed baseline of ticket sales.
Brad had played it safe at every turn, ensuring the marketing team leaned heavily into the book's fanbase. The pre-release hype had been overwhelming.
And that was the problem.
The hype raised expectations.
When [Eragon] finally hit theaters, it didn't just underperform.
It crashed.
Hard.
Meanwhile, [Following] soared, siphoning off audiences, dominating headlines, and rewriting industry expectations in real time.
The contrast couldn't have been more humiliating for Brad, or more infuriating.
John pressed his lips into a thin line as he finished organizing the scattered papers. He understood the frustration. But this wasn't his failure.
Regal had outmaneuvered them at every turn, and Brad's refusal to see that wasn't his burden to carry.
Not that it mattered.
In Brad's world, someone had to take the fall.
And that someone was almost always him.
….
Same Time.
Regal stepped out of the theater, the night air doing little to lift the weight in his chest.
Less than 25% occupancy in its first week - that was the cold, hard truth staring him in the face. It didn't take a genius to figure out what that meant.
The movie was as good as dead.
He could hear the disappointed murmurs around him, scattered fragments of critique from fans and casual viewers alike.
"Such a letdown."
"Not what I expected at all."
"They had so much material to work with…"
The comments didn't surprise him, but they stung nonetheless - the movie itself wasn't terrible. If anything, it had its moments.
But somehow, it just didn't land.
As Regal walked toward the parking lot, his phone buzzed in his pocket. He pulled it out, glancing at the screen.
[Keanu]
"Hello." Regal answered, his tone neutral.
["Hello. Where the hell are you?"] Keanu's voice came through, laced with irritation. ["You vanish without a word, and now you are not even picking up your phone?"]
"I went to watch a movie." Regal replied, stepping off the curb and into the night.
["Oh, still basking in your own success, huh?"] Keanu's sarcasm was as sharp as ever.
"Nah, not ours." Regal corrected.
["Then what?"]
"The other one. The one that dropped the Friday after ours. [Eragon]"
["Huh? How was it?"] Keanu asked, his tone shifting slightly.
"It was… decent." Regal said after a moment.
["Decent? Then, that's definitely bad."] Keanu's response came instantly.
There was no doubt in his voice, no room for negotiation. It was a simple equation - if Regal didn't outright praise something, then it was bad.
Keanu didn't know the specifics, and frankly, he didn't care to. He had long since grown accustomed to Regal's unfiltered opinions when it came to movies.
Maybe it was because Regal was also in the creative field, someone who understood how tough filmmaking could be. Or maybe it was just who he was.
Either way, he had no intention of debating it.
He just equated it to his character, simply assuming - it is because he is also related as he is from the creative field and knows how tough it is to make a film.
["Well, hurry up and get back here. We are waiting."] His voice came again.
"Yeah, yeah. I am on my way." Regal muttered before ending the call.
The faint hum of wheels on asphalt pulled his attention.
He turned to see a poster for [Eragon], illuminated under the dim glow of the marquee.
For a moment, he simply stared at it, frustration simmering beneath the surface before escaping in a quiet sigh.
"How the hell do you screw up a project like this - not once, but in both worlds?" He muttered, shaking his head in disbelief.
Because this so-called [Eragon] was, in reality, none other than the same [Eragon] movie from his world.
Yeah. Same title, same train wreck.
His gaze lingered on the poster for another second before he scoffed and turned away.
"Some things never change, do they…?"
With that, Regal walked off, his mind already spinning with possibilities.
….
Regal slid into the backseat of a waiting taxi.
He gave the driver the address of the restaurant where the crew was waiting, then leaned back, his mind still buzzing with thoughts of [Eragon].
The film had been adapted from [Eragon], the first part of [The Inheritance Cycle], a novel he had read earlier that week to compare this world's version to the one he remembered.
While the book itself had already made a few changes from [Eragon], the movie had taken it to another level.
Some changes were immediately noticeable.
They butchered everything that made the book great.
First off, they cut out key characters like Murtagh and Ajihad, both of whom played significant roles in Eragon's journey. On top of that, the protagonist himself lacked the depth he deserved.
Eragon in the movie was just a typical, boring hero with no real development.
The dragon -Saphira? The CGI was awful, and she looked nothing like the majestic dragon from the book.
The plot was rushed, especially the battle with the Empire and Murtagh's twist. It was supposed to be emotional, but it just fell flat.
The world-building, which was a huge part of the book, barely even exists in the film. The movie missed out on explaining the different cultures, history, and everything that made the world feel alive.
Then there was the VFX - a critical aspect for a film of this nature.
Instead of enhancing the high-octane action scenes, the visuals were jarring and poorly rendered, breaking any sense of immersion.
It was as if the studio had tried to cut corners, hoping the novelty of the source material would carry the project.
While the comparison between the novel and book was unavoidable, and [Eragon] came out looking like a cheap knockoff.
The movie was a huge financial loss, and Regal doubted the studio would greenlight a sequel anytime soon.
.
….
[To be continued…]
★─────⇌•★•⇋─────★
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