Chapter 869 Stallone's Daughter

Beverly Hills, Century City.

Heath Ledger, dressed in formal clothes, came out of the Fox Building. The decadent life in the past few years, coupled with long-term drug dependence, made him look extremely gloomy even under the bright sunshine.

The promotion at Fox was fruitless and Heath Ledger was directly rejected.

Heath Ledger went to all the production companies, big and small, but he did not go to Pacific Pictures, Davis Studios and Disney Pictures.

Among these three companies, one was founded by Martin Davis, one belonged to Martin Davis' mistress, and the other was in the honeymoon period of cooperation with Martin Davis.

And the bad things he and Martin Davis had done in the past were known to everyone in Hollywood.

Heath Ledger glanced at the nearby Death Star Building and went directly to CAA.

CAA used to be Heath Ledger's agency. He was familiar with many of the company's agents. CAA also liked to package film projects. If he could persuade CAA...

Things went against his will. Not long after, Heath Ledger came out of CAA's office floor with his head down.

CAA did not have a good relationship with Martin Davis, but after reading the script he brought, they directly rejected it.

Chess-related themes are too unpopular.

When Heath Ledger went downstairs, he regretted that he should not have listened to nonsense after getting high and bought the script for $20,000.

Wouldn't it be nice to use $20,000 to buy laundry detergent?

Heath Ledger got off the elevator and his cell phone rang. It was a call from an unfamiliar number.

"This is Heath Ledger."

"Hello, Mr. Ledger, I'm Clyde, the business president of Iris Pictures. I heard from screenwriter Alan Scott that you have the rights to the film and television adaptation of The Queen's Gambit?"

The copyright of this novel and script was indeed bought by Heath Ledger from Alan Scott. He said, "Yes, I have it."

The person on the other side said, "Mr. Ledger, can we talk about this project?"

Heath Ledger was overjoyed and said, "Of course, when do you want to talk?"

"It depends on your time." The person on the other side said, "I'm available anytime."

Heath Ledger couldn't wait any longer. He glanced at the cafe on the first floor of the building and said, "Come to the Death Star Building where CAA is located. I'll wait for you in the cafe on the first floor."

The other side agreed.

Heath Ledger entered the cafe, chose a quiet booth, and waited patiently.

A business car was parked in the parking lot in front of the Death Star Building.

Ivan, dressed in a suit and tie, wearing a pair of gold-rimmed glasses, walked towards the cafe with a briefcase.

When his assistant Luke caught up with him, he reminded him, "You are not an expert in movies. Try not to talk after a while."

Luke replied, "Okay."

After walking a few steps forward, Ivan paused for a moment, "You still shouldn't say anything."

Luke shrugged, "Boss, from now on, I am a mute. Is that okay?"

Ivan entered the coffee shop, made a phone call, and soon saw Heath Ledger. They greeted each other, sat on both sides of the booth, and talked about business.

Heath Ledger looked through Ivan's business card and couldn't help but be curious: "This is the first time I've heard of Iris Pictures, where Mr. Clyde works."

Ivan said calmly: "Iris Pictures was only established in the first half of the year, but we are strong and have the support of international capital."

He turned from passive to active: "Mr. Ledger, I have previously approached screenwriter Alan Scott to buy the film and television adaptation rights of The Queen's Gambit. He told me that the rights have been sold to you."

Heath Ledger said: "Yes, the rights are indeed in my hands."

An idea popped up in his mind. This new company may lack experience. If he sells the rights and adds additional conditions, can he become the director of the project?

In this way, the nearly finished Hollywood career may turn around.

Ivan investigated Heath Ledger's details and asked directly: "I wonder if Mr. Ledger is interested in reselling the copyright to Iris Films?"

Heath Ledger had his own ideas: "Why not change the way to reach a deal? How about we cooperate? Over the years, I have been concentrating on studying how to be a director, and I have a lot of experience. I will transfer the copyright to you, and you will hire me as the director of the project, so that we can achieve a win-win situation."

In his current situation, if he successfully directs the film, he can turn things around. Even if he fails, the loss is the producer's money, and he will not be worse off than now, and he can get more director's salary.

Ivan certainly would not agree: "Iris is only interested in the copyright for film and television adaptation."

Heath Ledger's face was quite ugly, but he endured it. He didn't endure it at the time, which led to the current outcome...

Ivan said: "The copyright transferred to you by Alan Scott is 20,000 US dollars, and Iris Films is willing to buy it for 25,000 US dollars."

Heath Ledger still wanted to be a director, so he didn't say anything.

Ivan thought about the content of the investigation in the past few days and Bruce's instructions, and said: "30,000 US dollars."

Heath Ledger refused: "Unless I am the director."

"Then there is no room for negotiation." Ivan said no more, picked up his briefcase and prepared to leave.

Seeing this, Heath Ledger quickly said: "I am just making a suggestion."

There is no way, the inventory at home is about to run out, you can skip meals, but you can't skip medicine.

"40,000 US dollars." Ivan gave the final offer, opened his wallet, took out a 20-dollar bill and put it on the table.

Heath Ledger calculated how many bags of goods 40,000 US dollars could buy, and while the other party was still there, he said: "Okay, 40,000 US dollars."

He was worried that the other party would go back on his word, and emphasized: "I ask to sign the transfer agreement as soon as possible, and you will pay the copyright transfer fee in one lump sum."

Ivan thought about it and said: "Okay."

The copyright transfer agreement is very troublesome, and it is not enough for two people to sign a contract. Heath Ledger and Ivan both started to call people, striving to complete the agreement today.

In the afternoon, when the sun turned to the west, Heath Ledger received $40,000 in cash. He took out a quarter of it and immediately contacted the drug supplier to buy a batch of good goods.

He then called Gemma Ward and asked her to go home early today so that they could have fun together.

This transfer agreement naturally did not include restrictive clauses. In just one week, "The Queen's Gambit" was transferred to the Dave Davis Studio.

Martin then asked the studio to recruit suitable screenwriters to adapt the movie script into a TV series script of about eight episodes.

The subject matter of this series determined that it could not take the usual path.

Martin required the screenwriters and directors recruited to be proficient in chess, and each chess game must be carefully designed by a chess master. It must be easy to understand, and even people who do not understand chess will not find the chess game in the play boring.

The subject matter of the project determined that too many special effects would not be used, and high-paid big-name stars would not be invited to perform. Moreover, the cost of hiring a chess master was not high, and the production budget of more than 20 million US dollars was sufficient.

The most difficult thing is to recruit a screenwriter and director who are proficient in chess.

Martin and Louise don't know chess. There are a few people in Davis Studio who can play chess, but they are far from being proficient.

Davis Studio, Martin's office.

Thomas recommended a candidate: "I asked around in the company. There is a senior screenwriter in the company who is proficient in chess. He has participated in the national amateur level competition and is said to have made it to the quarterfinals."

Even if he is in the quarterfinals of the amateur level, it is quite impressive. Martin asked: "What are his works as a screenwriter?"

Thomas briefly introduced: "This screenwriter is Scott Frank. As a signed screenwriter, he has written scripts for more than a dozen films such as "Edge", "Minority Report" and "Logan 2".

Martin has seen all three movies, and the last one is of course needless to say. "Minority Report" is directed by Spielberg and starred by Tom Cruise, and the heroine of "Edge" is Nicole Kidman.

Thomas added: "Scott Frank also directed many episodes in the first two seasons of Shameless."

Martin said: "He can write and direct, and has experience directing successful series."

Thomas responded: "Yes, although Shameless is a remake, it is very successful."

Martin said directly: "You go talk to him. If he is interested, I will ask him out for a chat."

Thomas left now: "I will go to Scott Frank's agent."

Martin also left the studio.

Today there is a third audition for several main female roles in Split, and he is going to participate.

Arriving at Disney Studios, Martin joined Louise and entered the audition room together.

The casting director in David Fincher's team had already set up the camera.

The previous two rounds of auditions eliminated most of the actors, leaving only six actors.

One of them is Martin's acquaintance, named Sofia Stallone.

There is no doubt that she is the eldest of Stallone's three daughters.

Martin looked at the actor's information and asked, "Is Sofia's acting good enough?"

"It's just okay." David Fincher said, "But she has a great figure. This time, we are auditioning not only the heroine, but also two other female characters."

There are four main female characters in the script, and only six actors entered the third round of auditions, so the pass rate is still relatively high.

Martin believes in David Fincher's judgment.

The latter said, "Stallone's daughter can also become a gimmick for the promotion of the film."

David Fincher, who won the Oscar for Best Director, has completely evolved, and the commercial attributes in his head have gradually gained the upper hand.

The casting director came over and asked, "Shall we start now?"

David Fincher glanced at the last row, where representatives from the actors' union and insurance companies were concentrating on playing with tablets.

He said, "Let's start."

An assistant brought in actors, and the first one to come in was Sofia Stallone.

She politely greeted Louise and David Fincher, and smiled and said to Martin: "Long time no see."

Martin nodded: "Get busy with work first."

Sophia quickly got into the state and auditioned two scenes according to the casting director's requirements.

One was a scene of panic, and the other was when the character's emotions collapsed.

It was a normal performance and ended normally. Martin and David Fincher did not comment, but just asked Sofia to go back and wait for news.

In the two audition scenes, Sofia performed well, better than Martin expected, but still considered mediocre acting.

However, the female role that really needs to perform explosively is the heroine, and the other roles are more like vases.

Beautiful female vases are an indispensable embellishment in Hollywood horror and thriller movies.

The second actress who auditioned has a particularly recognizable appearance, especially a pair of bulging eyes, which always give people a sense of innocence.

The brown-haired actress was very scheming. She wore slightly tight clothes and walked a little slowly when she entered the audition.

I don’t know if it was her walking habit or intentional, but she swayed her body when she walked, causing the bulging part in front of her chest and behind her to always tremble up and down.

Anya Taylor-Joy just turned 18 this year. Before attending the audition, she carefully studied the role and the characteristics of the person who could really determine who the role belonged to.

According to the analysis of the agent, this film requires not only acting skills, but also a good appearance and a good figure.

Therefore, Anya tried her best to highlight her own advantages before the audition began.

Martin took a quick look at Anya. Her appearance was particularly recognizable. At first glance, she looked like a goldfish.

But she was a little different from the goldfish girl in his impression. She should not have had plastic surgery or liposuction, and she has not become a weird appearance with ribs and sunken cheeks.

The casting director said, "Let's start."

An assistant was responsible for acting with Anya. The audition scene was exactly the same as Sofia Stallone.

Anya's explosive performance and the shaping of the details of the role are more than one level better than Sofia.

Martin vaguely saw the shadow of Saoirse Ronan when she was just an adult.

David Fincher was very satisfied with her. When Anya left the audition room, he immediately said to Martin: "This girl is the heroine we are looking for. Her appearance, eyes and expressions give people a particularly complex feeling."

Martin also has some experience in acting. He said: "It is rare to have such acting skills at the age of 18."

Louise reminded: "There are still a few audition actors behind. It's not too late to make a decision after you have watched all the auditions."

Martin nodded: "Go on."

David Fincher waved to the assistant director and the audition continued.

In the later auditions, Martin also saw an actress who impressed him, named Ana de Armas, from Cuba.

After all the auditions were over, David Fincher, Louise and Martin watched the audition video one by one.

The three quickly reached a consensus on the heroine.

David Fincher first said: "Anya Taylor-Joy, this is the heroine I want."

Martin said: "Among the audition actors, her appearance and acting skills are the most suitable."

"Then let's finalize her." Louise said to her deputy: "Contact her agent and discuss the contract."

Martin didn't care much about the other actors and didn't comment.

The list of actors finalized by David Fincher was not unexpected, such as Sofia Stallone and Ana de Armas.