It was overcast, and heavy clouds obscured the sun.

In the direction of the sea, a dark curtain of rain was falling, and it was pouring rain over there.

In the conference hall of the DC Comics headquarters building, the lights were bright, and more than 30 reporters crowded in front of it.

Diana. Nelson picked up the pen and signed his name.

She wore a blue dress today, although she is older and has more wrinkles on her face, but as the president of DC Comics, she still looks quite attractive under her huge aura.

Next to Diana, Toby. Emmerich, dressed in a black suit and tie, looked very formal, he took a deep breath, then controlled his emotions, his hands trembled slightly, and then signed his name on two papers.

Today is the signing ceremony for the sale of the copyright of "Joker".

To promote the film, Toby. Emmerich used his connections to invite dozens of reporters to fill the scene.

"Great, two, can we take a picture together?"

Emmerich and Diana stood up together, both holding the signing agreement and smiling at the reporters.

After the photo session.

It was time for reporters to ask questions freely.

"Toby, you are a senior producer in Hollywood, according to the information we have received, this time for the movie version of "Joker", you will invite director Li from Huaxia, is it true?"

"Yes, Lee is very good, he has won the Palme d'Or twice, the three best director awards in Europe, he is a person who cannot be ignored in the world of film, I think Hollywood needs a talent like him."

"In the past, many directors, producers, and even some politicians have criticized Lee, haven't you thought about this issue?"

"Of course, I know these things, I want to say that these are misunderstandings, because of the misunderstanding caused by not understanding, based on this situation, I think we should contact each other and communicate face-to-face, so that we can eliminate a lot of contradictions."

The reporters were all invited by Emmerich, and all the questions were discussed.

Emmerich replied very briskly and quickly.

"Toby, I heard that Warner accounts for 70% of the post-copyright of "Joker" and Lee accounts for 30%, is this true? This has never happened before in Hollywood, right? Don't you think it's too indulgent to Lee? ”

"It's true, it's true that it hasn't happened before, but I don't think it's condoning.

In fact, "Joker" does describe the Joker in Gotham, the antagonist of the Batman we know.

But this Joker is a completely different story, completely different from what we see in the comics, and he gives the Joker a new life.

This story was written by Lee, he is a screenwriter, it can be said that this is his project, and I think it is natural to give him 30% of the copyright. ”

Although the reporters had known about this for a long time, they were somewhat surprised to hear Emmerich tell it with their own ears.

The thinking of Europe and the United States is banditism, that is, winner takes all.

They don't understand the so-called win-win situation, they don't understand common development.

In the past, whether it was in the face of France or England's excellent films, the Hollywood Big Six directly grabbed it, demanding 100% copyright, and there was no such thing as giving people a share of the copyright.

Warner's cooperation with Lee Shengyao this time is really a huge sacrifice.

"I heard that this time the movie, Lee has the final editing rights."

"Yes, we believe in him."

"I heard that the budget, casting, and shooting of this movie are all in charge of Li Lai?"

Although the beautiful country is said to be a producer system, the division of labor in each link is clear.

But in fact, the movies of big directors such as Cameron and Spielberg are actually all in charge.

But these people are the top directors in Hollywood.

The reporter still couldn't believe it, Warner seemed to be handing over all the other links to Lee Shengyao this time, except for publicity and distribution, as well as money.

Is it worth trusting Lee Shengyao so much?

Emmerich nodded, "Yes, Lee is a genius, and in order for us to get the most out of his talents, we're going to give him enough rights to do whatever he wants."

This is a major attempt, and I think it is very significant. ”

"Have you considered failure? Warner Pictures will cause huge losses as a result, in fact, there has never been a movie featuring clowns before, let alone you still use a Chinese director?"

"Of course we thought about the risks, but we thought it was worth it in order to make bigger films, to push the Hollywood film industry forward.

If it fails, it's a lesson for other peers to think about.

If it succeeds, this is a path that can be explored. ”

The reporters asked some more questions, all about Li Shengyao, all of them questions.

If such an interview is sent out, it will inevitably attract criticism from a large number of viewers.

For a while, Warner Pictures was afraid that it would become the object of ridicule.

This is called "black-red".

After the press conference of the signing ceremony was over, Emmerich sorted out the agreement and left quickly.

At this moment, Diana called out to Emmerich, "Toby, I heard some rumors before, I think the truth should not be so serious, but I just heard your words, do you really give 100% of the production rights to Lee?" ”

Emmerich nodded, "Yes, Diana, I gave him one hundred percent trust. ”

"Aren't you worried, do you really trust him that much?"

Emmerich turned around and nodded, "Lee is young, but he's very good, needless to say in terms of movie quality."

Speaking of the box office, he is known as the most successful commercial director in Asia.

He's never made the producers lose money, he's got a great business acumen and I believe in his quality. ”

When Diana heard this, she smiled, "I don't like people talking too much, but since you are so confident, then I wish you good luck." ”

Emmerich nodded, then hurried away with the papers.

Giving Li Shengyao so much benefit and power, he is actually under tremendous pressure.

It's not just Diana who questioned it, but many at Warner Pictures top brass questioned his decision.

This time, he really gambled on his future at Warners.

"Joker" was a success, and he had a huge contribution.

"Joker" fails, then he will be swept out of the house, than Jeff. Robinov is still embarrassed.

As the number of skepticians increased, Emmerich himself lost the confidence he had before.

Now in the face of his friend's questioning, he is actually irritable and worried, Li Shengyao is indeed talented, and the script of "Joker" is indeed very good.

But if nothing happens, who knows if there will be an accident?

What if it fails? Emmerich didn't dare to think deeply.

……

When Lee came to Pretty Country and signed with Emmerich at Warner Pictures' headquarters, more reporters came over.

The establishment of the "Joker" project has spread in the beautiful country.

In the past, there were many movies involving clowns, and the actors contributed superb acting skills, giving the role of "Joker" an extraordinary charm.

But there has never been a movie or TV series where the male protagonist is a clown.

What's more, the director of this movie is Lee Shengyao, and Warner still "makes profits" so much. Give Lee Shengyao that much power.

After the last press conference at the DC Comics headquarters building, there was an explosion of news about the movie Joker.

Fans still think that this movie is unreliable, and using a Chinese director is even more of a joke.

So when it was reported that Warner had signed a contract with Lee Shengyao, almost all the reporters in Hollywood passed.

Of course, they didn't come to congratulate and exhort, they came to see Warner jokes.

At this time, a large group of reporters were in the dark.

Considering that the topic is sufficient, there is no need to say some exaggerated words again to attract the audience.

So the press conference didn't last long, and after talking about it and answering three questions, Lee and Emmerich left in a hurry.

The two of them walked fast, and some reporters wrote that they were afraid of interviews.

When he arrived at Emmerich's office, he took the lead and said, "Lee, now that you have all the preliminary preparations, can you officially prepare for the movie?" ”

He was very free and easy when he faced memorization, but after watching too much negative news, he also felt a little less confidence in his heart.

He hopes that Lee Shengyao can start his work as soon as possible, so that he will have more confidence.

When Li Shengyao heard this, he said, "Toby, don't worry, I can start the real preparation for filming tomorrow, and I already have a few candidates for the main role." ”

Although according to the agreement, all the characters in "Joker" are in charge of Lee Shengyao, Emmerich is still a little curious.

"Li, can you talk to me?"

After all, Lee Shengyao has been away from Hollywood for several years, and he is worried that Lee Shengyao doesn't know much about Hollywood actors, so he chose an actor who is not suitable.

Li Shengyao nodded, "There are three main roles in the script, the male protagonist, the female protagonist, and the talk show host, this person can be said to be the second male lead."

This male number two, I'm going to invite Robert. De Niro to play. ”

Robert. De Niro is a master of acting in the beautiful country, and he and Al Pacino have become representatives of acting.

If you use Google or search for powerful actors on YouTube, you can see the entries of these two old men.

Emmerich nodded when he heard this, "This choice is very good, his acting skills are very good, and I believe he can do this role." ”

He breathed a sigh of relief, the choice was still good.

"As for the female number one, I'm going to use a newcomer, and she's called Saji. Baez. ”

Emmerich frowned and thought about it, he didn't remember an actress with that name.

"What work has she acted in?"

"It's not officially acting yet, it's an African-American girl from Germany, currently looking for a job in Los Angeles, and she's interviewing everywhere."

Emmerich couldn't help frowning when he heard Li Shengyao's words.

didn't act in a movie, and he was indeed a "newcomer".

But that's too new, right?

Can such a newcomer really be qualified to be the heroine of "Joker"?

According to the description in the script, the emotional changes of this character are actually quite large, and it will be very embarrassing for people without acting skills to perform.

Why did Lee Shengyao choose such a girl?

Is it because two people have a leg?

Emmerich had heard of Lee Shengyao's previous scandals in Hollywood, and knew that Lee Shengyao was not a monk in Chinese movies.

"Lee, are you sure she can do it?"

"Yes, I trust her."

In 2010, Hollywood's political correctness became more and more serious, and the important characters in the movie must have African Americans.

Since the male lead, the second male lead did not choose an African-American actor, then the heroine must be African-American.

In Lee Shengyao's previous life, this was the case with "Joker". One of the important reasons for Baez.

In addition to Sagi. Baez's face is very storytelling, she is not beautiful, she has the ordinary temperament of the ordinary people at the bottom, and she is more compatible with the male protagonist.

Emmerich thought of Lee Shengyao's temperament and paused for a moment, but did not continue to discuss the issue.

"Where's the male lead?"

He looked at Li Shengyao and secretly prayed in his heart, hoping that he would not be an unknown youngster, and that he would be a very good, preferably box office appealing actor.

Li Shengyao smiled: "Hollywood weird guy - Jack Quin. Phoenix. ”

In Lee Shengyao's previous life, the actor of the clown has always been an acting school.

The first movie to feature a joker was 1966's Batman, at a time when DC Comics had not yet established the dark wind.

It's a gothic comedy movie, Caesar. Ramoro played the clown, humorous and funny, and was very popular.

In 1989, actor Jack. Nicholson played the Joker, and by this time the DC style had been decided.

This clown is dark, crazy, paranoid, and almost like the clown in the comics.

By 2007, there was also Hiss. Ledger plays the Joker, and this time the Joker is considered by many fans to be the pinnacle of the Joker.

The characters are morbid, dark, crazy, pathetic, paranoid, and have an aesthetic that terrifies the audience.

It's amazing, even though I know that he is a villain and anti-social, but the audience still likes to watch it.

In 2014, HBO produced the American drama "Gotham", in which Cameron . Monaghan played the Joker as a young man.

This clown is very young, and he has no exaggerated shape, just like an ordinary person.

This clown should be the closest to a normal person, although his acting skills are not comparable to other big names, but he can be regarded as relatively good and completed all the performances.

And then there is the clown who appeared in the movie "Suicide Squad", that is, Jared. Leto plays the Joker.

This clown is known by fans as the closest to the comics, the most handsome clown.

With a punk style and a rebellious temperament.

All of the clowns above are very good.

But they're all like clowns from the Batman world.

Only Jacques. Phoenix is another clown, a clown from the bottom, depressed, with a desperate laugh that makes you think creepy.

When Li Shengyao wrote the script, he decided that Jie Kun. Phoenix, he didn't plan to think about anyone else, so he chose this person as the male lead.

He was recently searching for Jeaquin. Phoenix's information revealed that Woody Allen was inviting Jaaquin to play "The Unreasonable Man".

Woody Allen's appeal as an actor is not to be said, and the actors in the beautiful country are proud to act in his movies.

If Li Shengyao wants to cut off his beard, he must contact Jie Kun earlier.

He paused for a moment, then said, "I'll be looking for Jacques tomorrow, we're going to hurry, Woody Allen has a crush on him." ”

(End of chapter)