[Chapter 229: In a Bind]
Soon, Michael Ovitz and the presidents of the major film studios received word that Guess Pictures was planning to step up its marketing budget for Se7en in an attempt to compete with the big players.
"Ha! This kid Link still hasn't learned," Michael chuckled upon hearing the news. "Guess Pictures is just one company, while we have over ten. How could one possibly outdo all of us? This gamble is a certain loss for him, and it has a high chance of being a catastrophic one."
Ron Meyer nodded while taking a drag from his cigarette. "It's quite reckless, but it's understandable. Link is young and can't take the pressure. When he saw the major studios targeting his film, he impulsively thought raising the stakes was a good idea. That's not exactly a smart move in a competitive industry."
"Ha! This kid got cocky after winning against us last time. He thinks he has no rivals in Hollywood, which is why he's acting so tough. This time, I'm going to crush him and make him regret every bit of it," Michael said coldly, as he picked up the phone to contact the executives of several studios, urging them to come up with strategies to undermine Link's film and increase Guess Pictures' losses.
The heads of the major studios agreed to suppress Link's film's publicity but emphasized that CAA or Michael Ovitz needed to demonstrate involvement. As the initiator of the coalition, he couldn't just stand by while everyone else targeted Link; he needed to take tangible action -- like contributing to the marketing budget and arranging for stars to back the film in order to leverage his connections to damage Link's reputation.
The thought of spending money made Michael's heart sink. Last year, he had wagered over ten million on Link, poured a lot into promotion, and now he was being asked to spend again. He felt a pang of reluctance.
...
"Michael, you have to consider that Link's film won the Palme d'Or at Cannes; the quality is good. Competing against him carries substantial risk. If we lose, it will hurt the company, and I won't be able to explain that to Murdoch or the board," Barry Diller, the chairman of 20th Century Fox, said.
Michael frowned. "If we win, the benefits are also yours."
"No, the benefits are ours. If we win, we can prioritize CAA's artists for future projects," stated Sid Sheinberg, the president of Universal Pictures.
After pondering for a moment, Michael said, "I'll arrange for our talents to promote the films."
"Great! Michael, if we join forces, Link has no chance of winning," said Terry Semel, president of Warner Bros.
Michael nodded in agreement; he felt the same way.
"Michael, I heard that Nicholas Cage and Keanu Reeves, along with Sandra Bullock, have a good relationship with Link and are involved in his film projects. This is problematic and should be prevented," warned Sherry Lansing, president of Paramount Pictures.
"I understand!" Michael replied, hanging up the phone angrily, clenching his fist and slamming it on the desk.
Michael Ovitz was elated when he picked up the phone and angry when he hung up.
...
Ron Meyer shook his head. "You can't blame them. The major studios may be titans of the film industry, but they all have boards to answer to. They must keep their shareholders satisfied."
Michael was aware of that but the thought of financing promotional efforts for the other studios felt unfair. He considered the previous time he asked his artists to promote The Firm, which had irked many of them. Doing it again would stir even more frustration.
When artists become dissatisfied with management, their loyalty wanes, and they begin contemplating leaving for other agencies, which could hurt CAA's interests. He knew he couldn't explain that to the CAA board.
As he reflected, he found himself regretting initiating this alliance against Link.
Let Link have his moment; if he wants to make money, so be it; there was no direct conflict with CAA. Even if Link acted too high-profile and it grated on his nerves, he could just endure it and pretend Link didn't exist.
Sigh...
Yet, now that the alliance was formed and partners were taking action against Guess Pictures, if he suddenly announced his withdrawal, what would his partners think? How would the industry view him as the top power player in Hollywood?
If he backed out now, he wouldn't have a solid footing in Hollywood.
At this point, he felt trapped.
...
Michael dialed the head of the talent department, Jay Moloney, instructing him to arrange for artists to promote the major studios' films, utilizing this method to exchange film resources with them.
The more someone worked, the more resources they'd receive in the future.
Simultaneously, he recalled Sherry's warning -- Nicholas Cage had gotten close to Link, and Keanu Reeves along with Sandra Bullock and Julianne Moore had appeared in Link's movies.
That was a headache.
As CAA's president, he wasn't even supposed to interfere in the personal lives of the actors.
Michael pondered, then called the agents of the actors to advise Nicholas and others to maintain distance from Link and avoid participating in Guess Pictures' projects. The roles they lost would be compensated with different parts from the company.
And during the promotion of Speed, Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock must respond negatively and refuse to cooperate with Guess Pictures. Should any issues arise, the CAA legal team would handle it.
...
Soon after, he received a call from Nicholas Cage's agent.
Nicholas was very displeased by Michael's interference in the artists' private matters, threatening to consider terminating their contract if it happened again.
Michael was taken aback, quickly dialing Nicholas Cage to persuade him not to take such actions and assuring him he wouldn't meddle in his personal affairs.
After the fallout of Robert Downey Jr., Richard Gere, and Dustin Hoffman, CAA had felt a significant impact, and Nicholas was one of their most important clients and a company figurehead.
In terms of importance, Nicholas surpassed even Tom Cruise. Nicholas' uncle was legendary director Francis Ford Coppola, a key figure in Hollywood's Italian community.
Signing Nicholas Cage would make accessing Italian connections more straightforward.
...
Once he hung up, Michael cursed Link vehemently. If Link hadn't ruined Robert and the others, he wouldn't have to worry so much about Cage's future.
Just as he finished that call, Jay Moloney called back to inform him that Keanu Reeves, Sandra Bullock, and Julianne Moore were unhappy with the company's arrangements and were considering termination of their contracts.
"I won't allow that! Stop them immediately!"
Michael erupted in anger. While Sandra and Julianne leaving wouldn't be catastrophic, he couldn't let Keanu slip away.
After River Phoenix's passing, Tom Cruise, Keanu Reeves, Johnny Depp, and Nicholas Cage were considered the four most powerful actors in Hollywood, with a good shot at becoming superstars.
Johnny had originally been with CAA before jumping ship to UTA in 1992.
The remaining three were still at CAA, and if Keanu jumped to UTA, there was a chance that little agency would become emboldened and threaten CAA's dominance.
That could never happen.
However, Jay claimed the trio was very adamant about their intentions to switch, even offering to cover the breach of contract fees.
Michael cursed and demanded Jay tell them that if they left, they could forget about collaborating with CAA's directors and actors in the future. They wouldn't have a place in Hollywood.
Jay promised to personally talk to the trio.
Michael also tried to reach Keanu directly to persuade him to stay, but he couldn't get through.
Frustrated, he slammed his hand on the table, cursing loudly -- with even Link getting caught in the crossfire, who had nothing to do with the matter.
*****
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