"Stanley, I heard you're going to make a big move this time?" Richard smiled and asked, "What the hell is going on, can you explain it to us?" ”

"yes, we'd like to hear about your big plans, too." David also said with a smile, and both of them had bright smiles on their faces, as if they were very enthusiastic.

However, Xu Guanwu is not in such a good mood as them at the moment, and anyone who is betrayed by someone he trusts will not be in a good mood. What's more, recruiting the two of them back this time, Xu Guanwu was originally going to dig a pit for the two of them.

"I do have an idea, but it's still immature, so I'll ask you for your opinion." Xu Guanwu said with a solemn face.

Richard and David glanced at each other, and they both felt that this must be an unprecedented big plan, so Xu Guanwu hesitated. You must know that even if he invested in "Star Wars 2" and "Raiders of the Lost Ark" before, the funds were as high as tens of millions, and Xu Guanwu did not hesitate. What can make him so distressed now must at least be an investment of hundreds of millions of dollars.

"If it's really an investment of hundreds of millions of dollars, how much might you make out of it?!" Richard and David glanced at each other, both with a greedy glint in their eyes.

In fact, their temperament was not bad in the early days, when they asked Xu Guanwu to invest in "Jaws", as well as "Star Wars" and "Raiders of the Lost Ark" in the future, their performance was also conscientious and hard-working, so they won Xu Guanwu's great trust.

But people always change, and when Richard and David are in power, they become the hottest and well-known producers in Hollywood. When they get a high reward, their mood also quietly changes.

When filming "Jaws" before, the two of them were just unlucky people who were discarded by Universal Pictures. At that time, even 20th Century Fox stopped taking them in. If it weren't for Xu Guanwu continuing to invest in the movie "Jaws", it is very likely that these two would not have a chance to turn over. After all, Hollywood is not a good place, and people who have failed many times will no longer be pitied.

But after the successive successes of "Jaws", "Star Wars", "Contact of the Third Kind", "Raiders of the Lost Ark", etc., after they swept away the previous decline, their personalities have also become stronger, and their desires have become greater. Before, their production cost was only a few hundred thousand dollars, and then after "Raiders of the Lost Ark". Their production costs have risen to millions of dollars, and they even participate in the film's box office dividends.

Even so, the two still felt dissatisfied, and went from thrift to luxury. It is difficult to go from luxury to frugality, and seeing that he worked hard to make the film, in the end, it did not reach a few million, and Xu Guanwu didn't have to worry about anything. But you can get hundreds of millions of dollars. Richard and David began to feel unbalanced.

But at that time, their production costs were already the highest in Hollywood, and unless they personally invested in the film, the return could not be higher. But there is a risk of failure to invest in the film in person, so they chose a seemingly safe, but in fact more dangerous path, that is, quietly embezzling Xu Guanwu's funds to invest in the film.

Because of the previous friendly cooperation, Xu Guanwu also trusted Richard and David very much, and rarely sent people to follow up and review after the investment was over. This gave Richard and David a lot of convenience. Since the filming of the film "Moonlight Panic", the two have been constantly pumping oil from the filming funds. At first, it was just a few hundred or thousands of dollars of oil, but later during the filming of "The Shining", "Star Wars 2", and "Cannonball", the two became more and more bold and began to rub oil in the thousands.

"Cannonball Speed" invested 20 million US dollars, and about one-tenth of it was embezzled by them in various names. and calculated to be two million dollars, which was already a huge amount of money at the time, you must know that even if it was Oscar-winning actor Ma Long. Brando's salary is only two million dollars.

If Xu Guanwu invests $100 million this time, they are likely to get more than $15 million from it, which is really a huge temptation for them.

"Stanley, what kind of big plan it is, tell me about it, let's hear about it." Richard asked with a smile.

"yes, Richard and I will help you with anything." David also said with a smile.

Xu Guanwu saw the rippling smiles on their faces, and knew that the two of them had been tempted, so he continued to throw out the bait quietly, "That's the case, I used to like to read a book, it's called "The Lord of the Rings", have you heard of the name of this book?" ”

Richard and David looked at each other, "Of course I know, this is the most important book in the history of Western literature, in the United States, in England, in France, in Germany...... All Western countries, who would not know this book? God, you're not going to bring it to the screen, are you?"

Xu Guanwu smiled, "You're right, that's exactly what I mean." ”

Richard glanced at Xu Guanwu in surprise, "The Lord of the Rings is a very long story, starting from Frodo's inheritance of Bilbo's inheritance, until he destroyed the One Ring, and finally went to the immortal land with the elves, the time span is large, there are many characters involved, the story is complicated, and there are many special effects, if you want to put it on the screen, it will be quite difficult." ”

Xu Guanwu smiled, "I also know this, but I think since "The Lord of the Rings" has such a great influence and such a wide audience base, even if the investment is higher and the filming time is longer, as long as the quality of the movie is passed, it will definitely be welcomed by the audience, and therefore it will get a very high box office." ”

Richard nodded, "That's right, Xu, you're a lot bolder than we are, and I support you in doing so." ”

David also smiled, "Xu, I also support you in doing this, to be honest, "The Lord of the Rings" is also one of my favorite novels, so I think you can leave this film to me." ”

Richard glanced at David, "I'm also very interested in this book, just leave it to me, and I will definitely live up to expectations." ”

Xu Guanwu smiled, he didn't expect that a "Lord of the Rings" would make the two of them infighting, it seems that what he said is not unreasonable. There is no absolute loyalty, just the price of betrayal is not enough.

In the past, for hundreds of thousands of dollars in profits, the two of them may not turn against each other. But now that tens of millions of profits are at stake, even if he is as rich as Xu Guanwu, he can't let go easily, let alone Richard and David. The two of them didn't quarrel on the spot, which was already considered restraint.

"Alright, alright, you two don't have to fight anymore." Xu Guanwu hurriedly made peace, "The Lord of the Rings. Richard also mentioned just now that there are many characters involved and the story is long. There are a lot of special effects applications...... It's a very vast and complex project, so I suggest that the two of you join forces, do you have any comments? ”

Richard and David looked at each other, and the two hadn't teamed up since Raiders of the Lost Ark. Because both of them have become famous. Each of them can be on their own. But now it's okay to join forces again for "The Lord of the Rings", after all, this cake is very big, and you may not be able to eat it yourself.

Richard and David nodded together, "Okay, since it's for the masterpiece of The Lord of the Rings, then let's join forces again." ”

Xu Guanwu smiled, "It's great that you two can agree to come down, to be honest." I'm really afraid that you won't accept this heavy responsibility for fear of hard work. ”

"No, as long as you can put out a good work. No matter how hard it is, we have to do it. Richard said with a smile.

"Yes, we are willing to dedicate ourselves to art, and no hardship can quench our passion." David also said impassionedly.

Xu Guanwu hurriedly waved his hand, "Okay, okay, don't say it again, I already understand the sincerity of the two of you." Well, sure enough, I didn't see the wrong person. ”

Richard and David also smiled, secretly glad that they had made a big deal this time.

Xu Guanwu saw that their faces were happy, but he was also secretly snickering in his heart, "The fish has been hooked!" ”

"Then you start preparing for the filming of this movie, from the script to the actors, from the special effects to the exterior ......," Xu Guanwu thought for a while and said, "Go back and tell me the cost, and I will pay you again when the time comes." ”

Richard and David nodded, "I think there are so many stories written in the book "The Lord of the Rings", if it is simply compressed into one movie, and the plot is only two hours, many wonderful stories will be deleted. Richard thought for a moment and said.

Xu Guanwu nodded, "This is also what I'm worried about, I've always liked to pursue perfection, if "The Lord of the Rings" can't be fully displayed in front of everyone, I don't think it's necessary to invest in it." But if a movie doesn't fully tell its story, then I think we can borrow the Star Wars model and shoot it in a trilogy. Just like the book "The Lord of the Rings", "The Fellowship of the Ring", "The Two Towers", and "The Return of the King" are three volumes, each of which is made into a movie. ”

"If you shoot three movies in a row, the investment is quite large." David exclaimed, "And especially for a magical movie like "The Lord of the Rings", there are a lot of actors, sets, special effects, costumes, etc., and it is estimated that the cost of each part is likely to exceed 30 million US dollars." ”

Xu Guanwu smiled, "If you can really complete the filming of "The Lord of the Rings" for only 30 million US dollars, then I think I have earned it." My estimate was $200 million. ”

As soon as he heard Xu Guanwu say this, David hated to slap himself in a big mouth, and when he said this, he pressed down half of his life and made him lose at least more than 20 million US dollars.

Richard couldn't help but glance at David, if it weren't for the jealousy that Xu Guanwu was still here, he really wanted to strangle David to death, it's hard to say what the cost. If Xu Guanwu thinks that he can finish filming for only 30 million, then wouldn't they have at least lost the opportunity to rub oil for tens of millions? !

"In short, I must make this movie look good and wonderful, you two do it with your heart." Xu Guanwu said with a smile, "Now that you have the work at hand, I will find someone else to take over." ”

Richard and David glanced at each other, although they were still a little reluctant to shoot a few movies now, but thinking that there was a big project with an investment of 200 million waiting for them soon, they couldn't look down on those small projects of hundreds of thousands. I couldn't help but smile and nodded.

Xu Guanwu saw that they were completely in the pit, so he didn't bother to talk to them anymore, and turned around to let Michael. Ovitz sent a CAA-owned producer to take over.

There are many American film producers who are more capable than Richard and David, so once they handed over the producer's throne, someone immediately took their place, and they did a pretty good job.

Richard and David saw that Xu Guanwu sent someone to take over so quickly, but they did not arouse the slightest vigilance from them, in their opinion, Xu Guanwu was in a hurry to let "The Lord of the Rings" start filming quickly. So they immediately began to contact the writers, directors, actors, etc., and did all kinds of preparations for the filming of "The Lord of the Rings".

And just as they were tossing, Xu Guanwu had already packed his bags and quietly returned to Hong Kong. (To be continued......)