Chapter 353 I Must Get Back What I Lost!

After hearing what Wu Baige said, Wu Yuchen was silent for a while, then sighed and said:

"Director Wu, it's not appropriate for us to talk about the salary directly. We are in Hollywood, so we have to follow the rules of Hollywood. Am I right?"

Wu Baige nodded: "I know my call was a bit abrupt, and we should indeed follow the rules of Hollywood. I just want to express my personal wishes."

Wu Yuchen pondered for a while: "Well, although "Taken" is the script I wrote and I have certain decision-making power, Director Wu, we are currently quoting based on the market. The producer thinks that your agent's price is too high. "Taken" is just a small and medium-cost movie of more than 30 million. To be honest, it cannot afford the cost of you and Cheng Long together. More than half.

Give you 5 million, Cheng Long still has tens of millions, and if we give dividends, it will be difficult for us to guarantee the project's profitability."

Wu Baige opened his mouth, and for a moment he didn't know what to say.

He knew that after two projects failed in succession, he was not popular in Hollywood. Now his agent offered him 8-10 million yuan in salary, but he still couldn't get any projects.

But he didn't expect that he would fall to this point now. He couldn't even get the 5 million plus bonus. This made him feel painful and a little depressed.

Then he heard Wu Yuchen say on the phone: "Director Wu, it doesn't matter. Even if the deal doesn't go well, there is still friendship. Didn't you say before that you wanted to return to China to make "Red Cliff"? I can introduce you to Mr. Han from China Film."

Wu Yuchen himself didn't invest in "Red Cliff", but he didn't mind recommending it to Han Sanping. After all, it was still very profitable and it was a big production that the other party liked.

When Wu Baige heard Han Sanping, his heart moved and he said to Wu Yuchen: "Thank you. Regarding "Taken", I will think about it again..."

Wu Baige was a little disappointed at this time. Just now, Wu Yuchen did not refuse outright on the phone, but he had already said frankly that his and Cheng Long's salaries were too high, which was a bit difficult for a movie like "Taken" with a cost of more than 30 million.

So in the current situation, unless the two are willing to reduce their salaries, the project may be temporarily shelved. But Wu Baige thought that reducing it to 5 million was low enough, and if he asked him to reduce it again...

But he would not break up with Wu Yuchen because of this. Wu Baige has experienced this situation before. He has been a director for 30 years and has experienced countless similar things. Besides, Hollywood is like this. Who made him fail continuously?

Fortunately, Wu Baige mentioned the "Red Cliff" project to Wu Yuchen just now, and the other party said that he could introduce him to Mr. Han of China Film. If things don't go well in the west, there will be brighter in the east.

What makes Wu Baige entangled now is whether he should choose "Taken" or "Red Cliff"?

He was only paid $4 million for "Taken". To be honest, Wu Baige was skeptical about the project. It was a very ordinary script. It was just about fighting and fighting. It was not as eye-catching as Wu Yuchen's previous scripts, such as "Black Hole Frequency", "The Sixth Sense", "Phone Booth", etc. If this script was filmed, could it really become popular?

If he were to make "Red Cliff", Chinese costume movies are hot now. Although Wu Baige's reputation is not very useful in Hollywood, it is still very famous in Asia. Chen Kaizi was able to attract investment from four countries for "The Promise", with a cost of more than 40 million US dollars. Wouldn't it be easy for Wu Baige to get 50 to 60 million US dollars to shoot it?

With his status, it's not too much to get a director's salary of 8 to 10 million US dollars? Moreover, the supervision of the Chinese crew is far less strict than that of Hollywood. If he sets up a company to participate in the production process such as crew procurement, he can make a fortune.

Comparing the two sides, the income alone is at least twice as much.

But Wu Baige thought of "Taken" as a Hollywood project, which is his chance to return to Hollywood. And Wu Yuchen's projects seem to have never failed. Wu Yuchen + Hollywood, these two points, are very tempting to hang him, making him extremely entangled...

After hanging up the phone, Wu Yuchen shook his head.

Wu Baige is willing to take his own salary of 5 million plus 10% box office dividends. Maybe in his own opinion, this is already a good condition he has given, after all, he was a big director who received 20 million salary plus dividends.

Similarly, Cheng Long is also willing to reduce it to 10 million, but requires 15% dividends.

The cash salary of 15 million for the two people is within Wu Yuchen's acceptable range, but this 25% dividend is completely impossible, so it is better to give them a high salary.

Without mentioning the global box office of "Taken", based on the North American box office of 145 million, the 25% box office dividend is 36 million US dollars.

In fact, the price he set before was not so rigid, and there was room for premium, but the dividends must not be given.

There is another more critical issue. "Taken" is still a series of movies. They were given this treatment in the first part. When it comes to the second and third parts, they will definitely have to increase accordingly. At that time, Cheng Long proposed 2000+20% of the share, and Wu Baige 10 million plus the share. Isn't that Wu Yuchen creating a project for these two people to work?

Wu Baige, the director, may be replaced in the second part, but once Cheng Long starred in the first part, can he be replaced as the male lead in the second part?

It is always a taboo to change the leading actor in a series, especially for a film like "Taken". He fights from beginning to end and portrays the protagonist's personal charm. The other supporting roles are to highlight him. If you change him, the fans of the first film will be at least half less by the time of the sequel.

Wu Yuchen also sighed. It is true that he thought things were simple at the beginning. This is related to the different perceptions of their status by several people.

In Wu Yuchen's view, Cheng Long and Wu Baige can no longer make it in Hollywood.

For example, although Cheng Long offered 20 million yuan, except for his "Rush Hour 3", no one was willing to give him such a high price, let alone 20 million, no one even offered 15 million. His later films "The Karate Kid" and "The Spy Next Door" were all priced at 10 million plus dividends, because he was afraid that the risk was too high and he could not carry the box office. And Wu Baige offered 8 million to 10 million yuan, but no one was willing to give him a chance.

Maybe Wu Yuchen felt that he was helping Cheng Long by offering him 12 million plus a chance of a hit, because after all, if he became popular, his salary for the next film would increase directly. Wait until the second film is 20 million, and the third film is 20 million plus box office dividends, which is all fine.

But Cheng Long and Wu Baige obviously don't think so. For them who have reached the top of Hollywood, they can accept a certain reduction in salary, but this kind of halving is hard to accept.

Wu Yuchen also felt emotional. Compared with helping such a famous person, it is more comfortable to promote those newcomers!

For example, he promoted Anne Hathaway and Jessica Alba. The salaries of the two women were only opened to tens of millions for the sequels when "The Princess Diaries" and "Step Up" were already a big hit.

The salaries of Hollywood's first-line actresses are lower than those of male stars. In fact, the income of female stars only accounts for a part of the salary, and a lot of them rely on endorsements and advertisements.

Look, the two women serve Wu Yuchen so well, and the pay they ask for is lower than Cheng Long, and they are obedient, isn't it double the happiness?

Wu Yuchen shook his head. This time it was just a coincidence. He wanted to match them up on a whim. If it doesn't work out, forget it. In the future, he should support newcomers more!

Originally, Wu Yuchen thought that since the two sides couldn't reach an agreement, "Taken" would be forgotten. Wu Yuchen didn't think about it anymore and devoted himself to the filming of "Batman" again.

Unexpectedly, half a month later, Wu Baige called him again: "Director Wu, 4 million yuan for the film, I'll take "Taken"!"

This surprised Wu Yuchen: "4 million yuan, no dividends?"

Wu Baige nodded: "No dividends! I've waited for so long, just to wait for an opportunity. I'm not doing it for money, I just want to fight for my dignity, I want to tell people that I must get back what I lost!"

When Wu Baige directly quoted the lines of Xiao Ma Ge in "A Better Tomorrow", Wu Yuchen was also stunned. Wu Baige is almost 60, right? Still so "passionate"?

However, Wu Yuchen did not agree to it immediately: "Director Wu, I know what you mean, but the project has not been decided yet, after all, the male lead still needs to be discussed."

"Okay, then I'll wait for good news from Wu Shengni!"

After hanging up the phone, Wu Yuchen was a little distressed. I thought this matter had no result, but I didn't expect that Wu Baige, this little old man, was still ambitious and so persistent in Hollywood?

Wu Yuchen thought about it and decided to call Cheng Long in person. If it works, it works. If it doesn't, forget it. After the call was connected, the two exchanged pleasantries for a while, and then talked about the project of "Taken".

Cheng Long also said directly about the salary: "Director Wu, you said that the cost of the movie is low, so I can reduce it to 10 million plus dividends, right? It's really low! Although the box office of my last movie was not ideal, there are still many fans. It's impossible not to give me a salary of 10 million, right?

And you also know that we are celebrities and we have face. If my salary is reduced to less than others, it will be difficult to explain to my fans."

Wu Yuchen's heart moved, and he immediately understood who Cheng Long was talking about. Wasn't he talking about Jet Li?

Cheng Long and Jet Li entered Hollywood one after another, and they are both action stars, so they are often compared. Their fans even attack each other, which is not a new thing.

Cheng Long meant that Jet Li's salary in Hollywood is now tens of millions, so he can't possibly be lower than Jet Li! Otherwise, wouldn't his status be lower than Jet Li?

Wu Yuchen smiled when he heard this:

"The comparison between you stars is about the work, isn't it? As long as your work is a big hit, you and your fans will be proud. Your salary for the next movie will also increase immediately, isn't that the truth? And we didn't offer a salary lower than tens of millions, right? I remember it was not 12 million?"

Cheng Long was also quite entangled at this moment. He knew the situation in Hollywood. The agent quoted 20 million for face, after all, the superficial status had to be maintained. In fact, he was willing to act if it was 15 million. But since the big flop of "Around the World in 80 Days", no one has invited him for 15 million in the past two years.

This time, he didn't think the script of "Taken" was that great, but after all, it was written by John Woo, and his successful past naturally made Cheng Long feel that "Taken" was different from others, and he was worried that he had really missed an opportunity.

When it comes to "Taken" being priced at 12 million, whether he can act in it or not, he can act in it, but he just feels that the price puts him down.

So Cheng Long said to Wu Yuchen: "Director Wu, how about 12 million plus 8% dividend? I can't drop too much at once."

Wu Yuchen did not answer Cheng Long directly, but asked: "Brother Long, what do you think of "Hurricane Rescue"?"

Cheng Long immediately smiled and said: "Hahaha, I am definitely optimistic about your director Wu's project!"

Wu Yuchen chuckled: "Brother Long, if you really want to be so optimistic, will you still hesitate?"

"Where is it? It's not that I don't like "Taken", I just think that this movie is different from my previous style. There are still risks in my transformation..."

Wu Yuchen thought to himself, isn't this still doubtful? But then he said: "I have full confidence in you, Brother Long. In this way, I will come up with a new plan now."

"New plan?" Cheng Long asked curiously.

Wu Yuchen nodded: "Yes. You also know that I like to make series films, so I also plan to make "Hurricane Rescue" into a trilogy. If you are willing to be the leading actor, then we will sign three films at a time. Your As for the salary, the first part is 12 million, the second part is 20 million... As for the third part, it’s 25 million.”

Hearing 20 million and 25 million, Cheng Long couldn't help but feel moved. He thought for a while and said, "Director Wu, if you sign three movies at once, what if, I mean what if the box office fails..."

Wu Yuchen smiled and said: "Haha, you don't need to consider the risks of the project. They are all borne by our producers. Even if the first one loses money, we will continue to shoot the sequel. How about it?"

Cheng Long was really excited about this new plan. It was equivalent to the other party taking all the risks in advance. Cheng Long's salary would not be affected by the box office and was completely guaranteed.

Although the salary for the first movie was only 12 million, if the three movies are averaged, his salary for each movie would be 19 million!

And even if it is announced to the public at that time, the salary package for the trilogy can also be announced, which will save both money and face.

Cheng Long originally wanted to agree immediately, but thinking that since Wu Yuchen was so confident, this project might really be a hit, he tentatively asked: "Director Wu, can my remuneration for the sequel be changed to cash plus dividends?" ?”

Wu Yuchen chuckled and said: "Haha, Brother Long, we can't have our producers take the risk in advance and then give you a high dividend if the sequel is a hit? There is no such reason."