America Tycoon: The Wolf of Showbiz

"What, Warner Bros. isn't satisfied with Ridley's edited version?"

Hearing the news brought by Thomas, Martin wasn't too surprised. Production companies cutting the director's version was a common practice in the industry and often the key to a film's success.

He asked, "What exactly happened?"

Thomas had inquired about the situation: "Jon Berg, the president of Warner Bros., thinks the director's cut is too long, nearly three hours, which is not conducive to scheduling. He brought in the film's editors to personally handle the trimming, aiming to reduce the runtime to within 130 minutes."

These words reminded Martin of "Kingdom of Heaven," exactly the same scenario.

But he also knew that such situations were constantly occurring in Hollywood, with "Kingdom of Heaven" and "Pharaoh and the Gods" being just typical examples among hundreds of director's cuts edited each year.

Ridley's epic and science fiction films were like they were made by two different directors with completely different skill sets, with the latter being familiar territory and the former always requiring a long runtime to properly tell a story.

To avoid such a situation, Martin specifically called the producer, Louise, and asked her to find the right time to communicate with Ridley in advance that the director's cut of "The Martian" should not exceed 130 minutes.

Aside from the credits, the rest of the film's content should ideally be around 120 minutes.

"Green Lantern" would hold a test screening in May, and Martin had long been paying attention to the situation. The lead actor was still Ryan Reynolds, and it was said that most of the scenes were shot in a studio with extensive use of green screen.

An old friend from Warner told him that even Ryan Reynolds's costume was generated with CGI.

With such extensive use of special effects, one could imagine the money burned through, pushing the production cost up to 200 million US dollars.

Martin then went to the studio to meet with Ridley and discuss preparation for the crew.

He acted as if he knew nothing about the "Pharaoh and the Gods" situation, not even asking about it.

Preparation for "The Martian" also encountered a fair share of issues.

Firstly, real-life spacesuits are very bulky and cumbersome, making filming of walking scenes not only difficult for actors but also visually unappealing. Ridley sent the costumes back, asking the costume department to redesign them to be more aesthetically pleasing and convenient for the actors.

Ridley initially wanted to shoot in Australia, which had both studios and desert terrains, but for unknown reasons—or perhaps due to Martin's longstanding issues with the Australian Gang—the local government, under the guise of environmental reasons, refused to approve permits for the crew.

The alternative option was Morocco's studios and Jordan's Wadi Rum, but the recent instability in the Middle East, especially with Jordan bordering Israel, not to mention the high security expenses, left safety without guarantees.

The crew had no choice but to opt for the last plan, shooting in California.

All interior scenes were to be built within Disney Studio, and according to Ridley's plan, only 20 sets were needed, which is far less than a typical movie.

The exterior scenes would be selected within California, where gulches, deserts, and badlands were all available.

No matter the location, green screens would eventually be mounted for all exterior scenes, with CGI integrated into them.

According to Ridley's plan, 120 million US dollars were enough to film this movie.

The veteran director, who had botched so many big productions, was still constantly working on blockbuster films, on one hand, recovering the losses from the epic films with science fiction films and, on the other hand, not being as difficult as some directors who frequently demanded additional budgets. He instead used every penny wisely within the budget.

During this time, the crew held auditions for multiple roles. With Martin's recommendation, Jessica Chastain unsurprisingly passed the third round of auditions, landing the role of the spaceships commander.

Mene would also play an important supporting role on the ground.

In addition, the crew attracted industry veterans like Jeff Daniels and Sean Bean.

Upon receiving the audition invite, Sean Bean's first question after arriving at the crew was: "Can someone tell me how my character is going to die?"

Martin, fully understanding the implication, seriously assured him, "Don't worry, your character won't die this time."

Sean Bean seemed somewhat uplifted: "Finally, I got a role with a good ending."

Having had too many characters he played killed off in movies, he asked, "Is the ending for this role really good?"

"Yes, it's a hundred times better than death," Martin could only say. "You'll merely be saddled with a scapegoat, leading to the resignation from a senior position at NASA."

Since his earliest portrayal as 006, Sean Bean had been killed nearly twenty times in significant supporting roles.

Although he had played a wide variety of supporting characters, his image wasn't typecast, and his acting range was wide, his development in Hollywood was still limited. Most roles sent his way by production companies involved dying early on.

Sometimes Sean Bean wanted to ask if he could survive until the end of the movie.

He said, "This ending isn't bad, surviving until the movie's end isn't easy."

Martin, feeling sympathetic, was very curious and asked, "Which character's death has been the most unforgettable to you? 006?"

"No, not 006, it's Boromir," said Sean Bean seriously. "I think Boromir's death was brave and inspiring; he was a hero."

He sighed, "Let's not talk about the rest."

After signing the contract, Jessica Chastain and her agent walked out of the studio to find Martin waiting in the lobby.

The agent went forward and shook hands with Martin, "Thank you for giving Jessie this opportunity."

Martin replied, "I merely recommended Jessie; it was her excellence that got her through the audition."

Jessica Chastain said, "If it hadn't been for your help that day, I'd have been in trouble. Megan Ellison was too overbearing. Later, I don't know how she got my number, but she called several times forbidding me to work with you, God Jesus, how can such people exist."

Martin said, "Just ignore her."

Maybe it was her natural resemblance, but Jessica Chastain's skin, along with her red hair, reminded one of Nicole Kidman back in the day, giving off a glowing white vibe.

She went on to say, "Afterwards, Megan Ellison called me several times, and I just hung up directly."

Martin reminded her, "Don't provoke her."

"I'll try to keep my distance," Jessica reached for the fitness recommendations pamphlet provided by the production crew, "I've scheduled a professional fitness trainer, let's talk another day."

Martin watched her leave, still waiting in the lobby, and after a few minutes, the person he was waiting for finally arrived.

Ellen Horn came into the studio with Robert Iger.

Martin greeted them, and after Ellen Horn made the introductions, he shook hands with Robert Iger and took them on a tour of the studio.

Robert Iger commented, "I attended the internal screening of 'John Wick: Chapter 2' at Disney, and the film is shot very well—filling a gap for Disney in this genre."

Martin made a point of thanking Ellen Horn, "Ellen extended me a hand when I was in trouble, offering me the chance to work with Disney."

The three of them entered the studio's design area where the props team, art directors, and the NASA technical staff dispatched to help were collaborating, creating many design drawings and concept art, as well as some Martian rover and habitat models.

Hollywood's big productions always strive for perfection, making all the models convincingly realistic.

Close to the studio, where they were setting up the scene, they had already begun planting potatoes.

Ellen Horn was very optimistic about Martin's project, saying, "This film will portray a lone person struggling to survive on Mars with limited resources. If the film does well, could we consider adding a new themed area in Disneyland? A 'Mars Living Experience'!"

Robert Iger said, "That's a good suggestion; after the film's release, we could conduct a market survey on it."

Such matters were only proposals at this stage, decisions could not be made yet. Martin pointed to the newly designed spacesuits, "These could be used to create merchandise and figures later on, with a unique look unlike the typical astronaut image."

The spacesuits were mainly orange and beige, not as bulky as real-world ones.

Robert Iger examined them closely and commented, "We should develop other related merchandise as well; the tax rate on human figures is much higher than other types."

Martin had some understanding of this; the tax rate for human toys was 12%, while other types were only 6.8%.

Ellen Horn said, "We've been trying to find a way around this with Marvel, figuring out how to bypass this issue since Disney Studio's next Marvel movie and its related merchandise will have a considerable number of human toys."

An idea suddenly occurred to Martin, recalling a news story he had seen in his past life, though he wasn't sure if it was true, and he joined the conversation, "I do have an idea, but I'm not familiar with the legalities, so I'm not sure if it's feasible."

Robert Iger had heard about Martin's multitude of ideas, always coming up with special creative promotions and marketing strategies.

He looked at Martin, "It's okay, let's hear it."

Martin organized his thoughts a bit and said, "Take Thor, set to be released this year, for example. He's not a person; he's a god. How could he be classified as a human toy? By that logic, all the superheroes who've been irradiated by cosmic rays, bitten by insects, or hit by cars should also be beyond the human category, including the X-Men, right?"

Ellen Horn realized that this method seemed somewhat feasible.

Inspired, Robert Iger thought Martin's suggestion was rather one-sided, but the direction was correct.

"No wonder many people say you're a genius," he said, "Martin, you've just opened up my mind!"

Martin smiled, "I can only voice my thoughts; Disney will have to verify their feasibility."

"Excuse me, I need to make a call." Unable to contain his excitement, Robert Iger pulled out his phone and dialed his assistant right away. Once connected, he said, "Assemble the heads of the legal department immediately; I want to see them in the small conference room in one hour."
Experience exclusive tales on My Virtual Library Empire

Disney's legal department is notorious for its strength; there's an old saying that if you're stranded on a deserted island, you should draw Mickey Mouse on the ground to get rescued.

A thought suddenly flashed through Martin's mind: if Disney really succeeded, would that mean X-Men's Professor X's lifelong efforts were in vain, handing Magneto an easy victory?