"In view of the type of subject matter and publicity needs of the film, there are four time periods that are more appropriate."

Seeing Duke's nod, Charles Rowan said one by one, "They are German Surrender Day in early May next year, Memorial Day at the end of May, D-Day in early June, and Independence Day in July." ”

It's already October, even if he is commanding a relatively mature team with tacit understanding, Duke also feels a little nervous about the release in early May next year, and Memorial Day at the end of May is actually the most suitable time for the North American release, but the filming is extremely cumbersome, and if there is an accident, it may have to be postponed.

After thinking about it for a while, Duke said, "Charles, don't announce the specific release date for the time being, the time is a little tight, we have to see the actual work progress of the crew." ”

"For the time being." Charles Rowan nodded, and added, "But not for too long." ”

"I'll be sure to give you a definite finish date for the film before Super Bowl Day next year."

In the past two films, Super Bowl Day publicity has played an important role, and the studio's promotional plan naturally includes a Super Bowl halftime advertisement.

The film's North American release date was temporarily shelved, and the conversation gradually turned to the actors.

"This is a group play, and I need a large number of actors with relatively good acting skills."

Duke told the casting assistant director and an executive producer, "Zach and Sophia have already written the script for the role, and you're going to have a big audition." ”

The other actors, Duke, don't care, but the rescue team and James Ryan's selection must be nodded by him to get through guò.

Compared with pure popcorn films like "Independence Day", "Saving Private Ryan" has higher requirements for the acting skills of the actors, plus the main actors participating in the show, military training must be carried out in the preliminary preparations, and the candidates must be determined as much as possible.

"I have two candidates for auditions, and I will send them an invitation." Duktiyì is the two key characters in the film, "Invite Tom Hanks to audition for John Miller and Leonardo DiCaprio for James Ryan's audition." ”

Needless to say, "Forrest Gump" is still being screened in North America, and it is so popular that it is purple, and it is even regarded by many critics as the favorite for Best Actor at the Oscar next year; The latter is not an unknown actor, not only a child star, but also nominated for the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor in 1993 for "A Different Sky".

Duke's mention was not objected to, but Robin Grande reminded him.

"Duke, Tom Hanks might have a bit of a problem." These people, who often work together, know more or less about Duke, "He is an actor under CAA. ”

Hearing the name of this familiar agency, Duke couldn't help frowning slightly, but it was not surprising that Tom Hanks was under their banner when he thought that CAA could occupy half of Hollywood's actor market.

"Send out an audition invitation." Duke thought for a moment, but said, "Also send Hanks a copy of the full script, and if he refuses, forget it." ”

This is Hollywood, no one is indispensable, and even if the former Captain Miller made an extremely strong impression on him, Duke would not be stupid enough to choose only Tom Hanks.

If Tom Hanks is willing to accept the invitation, of course it would be best; If you don't accept it, Hollywood has a lot of other actors.

Behind every successful director, there is a strong team of tacit cooperation, Duke is no exception, after a long period of cooperation, his team has a tacit understanding, although there are conflicts between members, there is no huge conflict of interest, and some of his intentions can be understood, which will make the preliminary preparations much smoother.

The crew will then move to Ireland, where Los Angeles is just doing some of the most basic preparations, and everything is going on in an orderly manner.

While "Saving Private Ryan" was being prepared, Duke also received several pieces of good news, and his share had arrived.

Perhaps it was because of the incentives given out during the filming of "Independence Day," or perhaps because Warner Bros. and Twentieth Century Fox wanted to continue to woo such a successful commercial director, and in mid-October, a large sum of money was transferred to the Duke's studio.

Warner Bros. remitted the last overseas share of "Death Island", totaling a little more than $7.1 million, so that Duke Studios invested $10 million in "Death Island" in exchange for more than $27.1 million in book income, and the gross profit from the investment exceeded $17 million.

The mother's $10 million loan had already been paid, but the $2.71 million interest had to be settled, Nancy and the lawyer accountant had to pay 10 percent of the last $710,000, and the Duke studio received nearly $12 million in book income for "Death Island", plus Duke's successive directorial salaries, enough to pay for the $8 million film rights transfer fee of the epic masterpiece.

A few days later than Warner Bros., Twentieth Century Fox paid Independence Day's first North American box office share, which was $300 million, and Duke received 20 percent of it, or $60 million, but there was still some time before the contract payment deadline, and Fox paid only half of that - $30 million.

This is a huge revenue share, and if it weren't for the long-term cooperation of Twentieth Century Fox, this half would have been delayed until the end of the contract payment period.

According to Duke's estimates, even if it is this time next year, it is impossible to pay all the box office shares of "Independence Day".

In addition, part of the basic remuneration for "Saving Private Ryan" - $3.5 million - has also arrived.

Duke has truly stepped into the ranks of multimillionaires, and at the same time is prepared to spend a lot of money.

On one side, there was the seaside estate in Malibu, which Nancy's assistant slashed to $8.75 million, and Duke decided to buy the property after consulting lawyers and accountants and other professionals.

As long as the funds are in place, the transfer contract and other chores are not a problem, and as for the renovation, Duke temporarily tosses it to Nancy Josephson, who only reviews the final renderings.

On the other hand, in addition to setting aside enough for daily expenses and maintaining the operation of the Duke's studio, Duke once again put most of the remaining funds in Apple stock and acquired a small amount of Microsoft stock for a long time to come.

The pre-production of "Saving Private Ryan" also progressed in an orderly manner, and after a brief preparation, Duke led the crew to Ireland, where an open-air set near Dublin would become the crew's home base, and the follow-up preparations would also begin.

When Duke flew to Europe, many Hollywood actors received audition invitations, and some actors who did not receive the invitation and inquired about the role also let their public relations and agents actively fight for audition opportunities for them.

"There are a few scenes in this role."

In a house in Los Angeles, Leonardo DiCaprio closes the script and looks at his agent, "According to the setting, it won't appear until the end of the film." ”

The agent did not agree with his statement, this was an invitation from Duke Rosenberg, and the whole of Hollywood knows how many young actors want to receive his audition invitation!

"This role is important!" The agent patiently persuaded, "Leo, I have seen the full version of the script in the agency, this is the heaviest and most critical role except for the actor, this film is called "Saving Private Ryan", and the role you play is Ryan!" ”

"Male protagonist ......" young people will always have a lot of fantasies.

"The actor is a middle-aged officer!" The agent shattered his illusions, "There is gossip that Tom Hanks will be invited to play this role, and there are not many opportunities to play against Hanks!" ”

Seeing that Leonardo DiCaprio was a little moved, the agent continued to persuade, "You have to figure it out, Leo, the director of the film is Duke Rosenberg, how many actors has he become popular?" His work has a world-class impact! Let's just say that young actors who want to audition for "Saving Private Ryan" can make it from Beverly Hills to Hollywood! ”

How many people who have entered this circle do not want to become famous? The agent understands this very well, and in his opinion, even if the casting director asks them to bend over and pout their butts, I'm afraid that the number of people participating in the audition will not decrease!

"Leo, you entered this circle very early, you should understand," the agent did not stop, "If you want to become a popular movie star, you must enter the mainstream film industry, those idiot and mentally retarded characters have brought you Oscar nominations, but they have hardly helped your situation, what you need now is a mainstream movie with huge influence and box office and big hits!" ”

The young Leonardo DiCaprio fell into thought, although he was only twenty years old, he was born as a child star, and his understanding of this circle was also profound.

"Duke Rosenberg's work is now a guaranteed hit, and you're one of the two people he personally invited to audition."

"Prepare a plane ticket to Dublin!"

Hearing this, the agent laughed, and Leonardo asked curiously, "Who is the second person invited by Dukr Rosenberg?" ”

"Tom Hanks, he's not in competition with you."

Leonardo DiCaprio, who is only twenty years old, is preparing for a trip to Ireland, but Tom Hanks, who is almost forty years old, is hesitating, he likes this script and this role very much, although it is a group play, Captain Miller has enough room for acting skills, and most importantly, he sees a deep humanistic care in the script and the characters, which is one of the favorite themes of the Oscar gang of old men in the movie.

At present, the film company and his agency are in public relations, judging from the feedback news, there should be no problem with getting an Oscar nomination for Best Actor with Forrest Gump, if you want to get it, it seems to be a little difficult, after all, it is too difficult to win the actor Xiaojinren twice in a row.

And the role of Captain Miller is so in line with the appetite of the academy, as long as it is played well, it is very likely to be nominated again, plus the role of Forrest Gump, which may be disappointed this year, has every chance to win the second Best Actor Little Golden Man.

Thinking of this, Tom Hanks looked to the other side, it was his agent, Inno Martin from CAA! R1152