Behind The Spotlight Chapter 290
At the grand arena in Los Angeles, Collin and Lila decided to watch the first match of the Lakers Los Angeles against the Miami Hots.
Today marked the first pre-season game for the Lakers Los Angeles in the NBA.
The players were running warm-up drills as the stadium gradually filled to about 30% capacity. Since it was still the pre-season, most star players would only play for a few minutes. Pre-season was essentially a series of practice games before the regular season officially kicked off.
The main objectives of the pre-season were to:
Get players back into game shape.
Test new lineups and strategies.
Evaluate rookies and new signings.
Finalize who made the roster.
Collin and Lila bought courtside seats that cost $750 each. It was a bit pricey, but since they rarely watched basketball games in person, they preferred a close-up view. They would have been even more surprised to learn that courtside seats during the regular season cost $1,150.
The couple watched as James dribbled the ball and shoot down three-pointers as a warm up. He wore the Lakers' jersey with the number #69 and appeared to be in top physical condition.
Aside from James, the couple also spotted Amelia Nova near the floor. The female talent agent noticed her two bosses watching the warm-ups and greeted them warmly.
"It seems like Amelia is settling into her role. She doesn't look flustered at all anymore," Lila noted, impressed.
"I think so too," Collin agreed. He wasn't surprised by how quickly Amelia had adapted, that was just her nature.
While waiting for the start, the couple discussed company matters. They recognized that this was technically a date, but they couldn't help discussing business given their shared focus.
"Jennifer got the job. She'll be interviewing people and will likely be busy for a month or two," Lila began.
"That's great."
"You're not surprised?"
"I have complete confidence in Jennifer."
"Fair enough." Lila slid her hand around Collin's arm and leaned into him comfortably.
"Though there is one thing that surprised me," Collin added.
"What's that?"
"Her agent closed the deal at a $1.3 million salary."
Lila hadn't expected Jennifer to command that kind of money for a one-off special. Documentaries produced for cable channels rarely had large budgets.
Given that Jennifer had just suffered a major scandal, earning even $100,000 from the job would have been considered a win. Yet Denis, Jennifer's agent, had successfully convinced the cable network to pay a premium fee for the single-episode documentary.
"Sounds like Denis did a fantastic job," Collin remarked.
"He really did," Lila agreed, thoroughly impressed. "At first, I was confused why you wanted me to hire a waiter as a talent agent, but it seems Denis has a natural gift for representation."
Collin had discovered Denis while eating at a fast-food restaurant. He had watched Denis expertly de-escalate an upset customer and convince them not to demand a refund. Denis possessed a yellow talent for persuasion, and Collin had noted his contact details in his notebook for future recruitment.
Now, Denis was a working talent agent at GSG, proving to be a valuable asset.
"By the way, Murray Fred landed the lead role in Justice Guy. He's playing the protagonist," Lila shifted the topic.
"I heard about that from Arnold. He also mentioned Axel is attached to the project."
"Looks like you and Axel share the same taste in scripts."
"He just knows how to spot high-quality projects."
Collin had consistently fed Axel top-tier scripts, which elevated Axel's standards when evaluating work. It was no surprise Axel had chosen Justice Guy despite it being a superhero movie.
'It's because of Jim Gan. He's the third director I've met who possesses a Golden Talent.'
-- Jim Gan
-- Blockbuster Director (Golden)
-- Profitable Artist (Yellow)
Throughout his entire career, Jim Gan's films had consistently grossed over $450 million worldwide. He was simply extraordinary at directing box-office hits.
"So what's Murray's salary looking like? I assume he signed a trilogy contract?"
"Yeah... about that." Lila pursed her lips slightly. The opportunity was massive, but the immediate payout left much to be desired.
Murray and Jim Gan had collaborated on a short concept film depicting a bank heist where Murray played an average bystander caught in the middle. In that screen test, Murray had performed all of his own stunts.
The way he moved in front of the camera was remarkably sleek. Even without formal stunt training, his raw athleticism adapted seamlessly to the action.
When Jim Gan screened the footage for the executives at Whiner Bruh Studio, they were blown away by Murray's performance. He met every criterion. He could act, without a doubt.
However, because Murray possessed zero prior film credits in Hollywood, executives insisted on casting him for a low starting salary under a mandatory three-picture deal.
When Arnold received the initial offer, he was thrilled about the greenlight but appalled by the opening figure. The producer had initially offered Murray just $200,000, which Arnold fought aggressively to raise.
In the end, Arnold negotiated Murray's compensation up to $450,000. It was the absolute maximum he could extract, and an opportunity Arnold refused to pass up. Murray desperately needed this break.
"I heard Axel's salary is at least $20 million, while Murray is only getting $450,000. That's a massive gap," Lila said, a bit frustrated by the disparity, though she understood the business rationale.
"That's Whiner Bruh Studio's core strategy. They invest heavily in the first movie to attract a massive fanbase, then cut costs on the sequels to maximize profit margins," Collin explained.
"It's the mandatory trilogy contract terms that frustrate me the most, though."
Arnold had done everything possible to negotiate favorable terms, but Murray's lack of leverage as a total newcomer limited his options. The studio's terms stipulated that Murray's salary would increase fivefold with each consecutive sequel, if they didn't accept the salary increase, the role would go to someone else.
On paper, a fivefold increase sounded impressive, but Murray's base salary for the first film was only $450,000.
For the second movie, his pay would cap out at $2.2 million.
For the third installment, that $2.2 million would rise to $11 million.
[Thank you for reading this novel.]