Dreams of Stardom (Hollywood SI)

April 2006, Leavesden Studios, London, UK

Dick Parsons was not happy with whatever the fuck was going on at Warner Bros. As their subsidiary with the largest turnover, he had given Barry Meyer a lot of leeway in conducting their affairs. So it was considered common courtesy to reach out and have a conversation if something went awry. It felt like a betrayal when he had to piece it together after reading the news.

Troy Armitage, Warner Bros.' biggest collaborator of 2005, had suddenly jumped ship to Paramount, and that too just after releasing not one, but three back-to-back non-franchise superhits.

After the Oscars, [The Perks of Being a Wallflower] and [Echoes of You] were reopened in cinemas worldwide in old and new territories. Even [Brick] benefitted from this as Warner bundled it together with the other two films. Some countries, where they had no distributors earlier, were all too eager to acquire those movies now. The Oscar effect was real on their box office performance. [The Perks of Being a Wallflower], which had earlier made a collection of $339m, earned $23m more, bringing its worldwide collection to $362m, while [Echoes of You] earned a staggering $48m more, bringing its total to $780m. Even the sales of the music album of [Echoes of You] saw a sharp spike after Troy's phenomenal performance at the Oscars. [Brick] earned a modest $2m more, bringing its total to $108m.

Together, these three films grossed $1.25 billion, which was not a figure to scoff at. Especially considering that Warner Bros. collectively earned $3.48 billion in the entire year from theatrical releases. This meant that the films produced by Troy alone accounted for more than 35% of their theatrical revenue. Then there was also the fact that all three of those films were highly profitable, having been collectively made on a budget of $37m.

If Barry and Alan were too stupid to see what a wonder Troy was for Warner, then they needed to go. That's why Dick had fixed this meeting with Troy. As soon as he got the okay, Dick flew to London the very next day.

"Troy will see you now, sir," the assistant director said, breaking Dick out of his internal thoughts.

Dick nodded and followed the man to a golf cart, where someone drove the two over to Troy's trailer. As soon as they reached the place, the AD knocked on the door and waited. Another man opened the door and let Dick in. The AD didn't come inside and walked back to the golf cart.

Inside, Troy Armitage was sitting on a beautiful ivory couch, wearing just a bathrobe. He looked up at Dick, then, without getting up as one would expect, he asked, "You must be the dick Dad wanted me to meet?"

Oh. So he was dealing with a mannerless brat. Those were even more difficult to handle than ignorant ones.

"You think you're the first person to make a dick joke at my expense?" Dick asked back with a small smile. "I've grown a thick skin by now, Troy."

The young man grinned back, stood up, and offered him a handshake. "Nice to meet you, Dick. Please don't mind my appearance—I'm not coming on to you, just waiting for my costume to show up for the next scene."

Despite himself, Dick snorted at the joke before shaking the teenager's hand. It was a well-known but unspoken reality in Hollywood: if a producer summoned an actor or actress to their room for an audition and greeted them in a bathrobe, it often implied a demand for sexual favors in exchange for a role.

"So, what can I do for you that you had to fly all the way here to meet me?" Troy retook his seat and gestured to the chair opposite him for the older man. Aside from the two of them, the only other person in the room was the man who had opened the door. Noticing Dick glancing in his direction, Troy added, "That's just Tobias, my assistant. Don't mind him; he has my complete trust."

"Why?" Dick decided to cut to the chase. "Why did you abandon Warner? We would have matched any offer that Paramount made. Probably even given you a better deal."

"Rest in peace, small talk," Troy said, shaking his head in amusement. "It's true—you could have matched the offer. But I didn't want to work with people who go back on their agreements and then try to extort me. I want to work with people I can trust not to backstab me when it's convenient for them."

In the minutes that followed, Troy explained the sequence of events leading to his agreement with Paramount. He described the changes Warner had made to the storylines in [Harry Potter], the creative differences that arose from those changes, and the revised profit-sharing contracts that Warner essentially forced him to sign.

"I could have sued Warner, you know?" Troy said when he finished. "I just didn't want unnecessary drama in my life or for people to think I'm a greedy bastard who just can't have enough. Instead, I'd rather work with another studio."

"That's how most businesses work, Troy," Dick countered. "You've just started producing films—you'll understand it better as you grow older. If it still bothers you, how about we sidestep Warner Bros entirely and sign a new agreement directly with Time Warner or maybe HBO? You wouldn't have to work with Warner Bros at all; they'd just handle the distribution. I'll personally guarantee that no one will change any future agreements with you."

"No can do," Troy replied, shaking his head. "It was business earlier, but Barry made it personal. Ask him who sent those paparazzi after me and Rihanna in LA when we were on a date. I'm pretty sure it was him—he knew details about that incident before anyone else did. And he sounded strangely smug about it, as if he was warning me not to cross him again. I can't work with people like that—not even indirectly. The profits I'd make for Warner would only inflate the year-end bonuses of these assholes I've grown to hate.

"It's bad enough they'll benefit from my involvement in [Harry Potter]. If I didn't love this series as much as I do, I would have left it too, damn the consequences."

Dick closed his eyes in contemplation. This was beyond messed up. Barry Meyer was the biggest fool not to bend over backward and cater to Troy's every whim. Heck, he should be down on his knees in front of Troy, begging to suck him off if that's what it took. Instead, he had sabotaged one of Warner's best business partners of the last decade.

"What will it take for you to come back?" Dick asked when it was clear Troy would want significant concessions.

"I don't want to come back," Troy said plainly. "At least not as long as Barry Meyer and Alan Horn are part of Warner."

Then he paused, as if considering something, and added, "Although I wouldn't mind working with HBO, as long as Warner Bros has nothing to do with it."

"Definitely," Dick agreed immediately. At this point, he'd take whatever he could get to get Troy onboard. Undoubtedly, Troy was the biggest superstar currently in the entire world. "I'll have a conversation with Bill Nelson, the CEO of HBO, personally and make sure he offers you some of the best terms possible."

Troy shook his head, "I want to work with you. I got a feeling that you're a no-nonsense person. I don't want another schemer."

Dick didn't have to think twice about it. "Alright. I'll handle all your future negotiations personally."

Troy stood up and then shook hands with Dick again. "Now, if you don't mind, I need to change for the next scene."

"Of course," Dick nodded and stood up. "All the best for the shoot."

As Dick left the trailer, he couldn't help but reflect that perhaps he had been too quick to judge Troy. Troy might not be the perfect gentleman he portrayed to the media, but Dick appreciated his straightforward attitude. In Hollywood, where people wore too many faces to distinguish real from fake, Troy's bluntness was refreshing. That was precisely what Dick hated about the politics of the movie business.

If only Barry were as blunt as Troy, everything would be perfect.

(Break)

As soon as Dick left the trailer, I turned to Tobias and said in a serious tone, "Get me a meeting with George R.R. Martin for the TV adaptation rights to his book series [A Song of Ice and Fire]. I'll ask Dad to come along as well."

While talking to Dick about HBO, I had gotten a brief flash of some of their biggest shows, and the biggest one was undoubtedly [Game of Thrones]. The show that had six amazing seasons, one average season, and one terrible one. Why only capitalize on the movie business when I can take care of the TV business as well? After all this was considered as the golden age of television if my memory was right.

"Really?" Tobias, who had been a silent observer during the earlier conversation, finally spoke up. "How did you decide that based on this meeting?"

I shrugged in amusement. "I love that book series. A lot. Almost as much as I do [Harry Potter]. It would be great if we could produce it as a TV series because the books are way too long for anything else. That would also show Dick that I'm serious about this project."

Tobias gave me a thoughtful look before asking, "So, would it be like [Twilight], where you're just a producer, or more like [Harry Potter], where you're acting as well?"

"[Twilight]," I said. "But it'll have a very grand scale, so just like [Twilight], it will take time to come to fruition. That reminds me—how's the progress on [Twilight]?"

"It's going well," Tobias said. "The script is a work in progress. Stephenie wanted some changes to keep it closer to her original vision. The writer you chose for the adaptation, Melissa Rosenberg, is on good terms with Meyer, and the two are now working together on it. As per the current estimates, they should be done in a few months. Then we'll need a director, and after that, we can start the casting process. Hopefully, principal photography will begin by early to mid-2007."

I nodded in satisfaction. "Good. I'll also need a meeting with my investment manager to discuss some changes in my portfolio."

"I'll arrange it within a few days," he said with a nod before heading toward the door. "Now, please get ready. Shooting will resume soon."

(Break)

Dad looked at me skeptically after I finished presenting my plan. "So, you want me to produce a show based on this book series called [A Song of Ice and Fire]?"

"Yes," I nodded. "Don't tell me you haven't read the books? I found them in your study when I was a kid."

"That was me," Mum said, interrupting from her spot behind Dad. "I love Martin's works, not your father."

"You?" I asked dubiously. "Then tell me—who is Jon Snow's mother?"

"Ooh, that's a tricky one," Mum replied with a grin. "But not the right question. You should ask who his parents are rather than just his mother. If we go by George Martin's hints, it's either Ashara Dayne with Ned Stark or Lyanna Stark with Rhaegar Targaryen. But I'm pretty sure it's the latter. If it were Ashara Dayne, why would Ned hide the truth from Jon?"

I grinned excitedly and launched into another theory confirming Lyanna Stark as Jon's mother. The next few minutes were spent enthusiastically discussing the world and characters of A Song of Ice and Fire with Mum.

Feeling left out, Dad finally interjected, "As enlightening as this conversation is, can we please get back to the topic?"

That brought Mum and me back from our heated discussion about why the red wedding was the most heartbreaking moment of the series so far.

"Sorry," I said sheepishly. "We got carried away."

"Yeah," Mum added with a chuckle. "It's so nice discussing a book you love with someone else."

"Anyway," Dad continued, "you want to make a TV show out of it. Why not a movie series like [Harry Potter]?"

"Because no studio would agree to make it," I said bluntly. "The story is way too R-rated—there's a lot of sex and violence. Plus, it would require a massive budget because of the fantasy elements like dragons. The story is incredible, but all the things that make it so good are the same things that would stop it from being PG-13."

"That's true," Mum agreed. "Every major twist involves a bloody death. I agree with Troy—this would work much better as a TV-MA show." She then turned to me with a pointed look. "But remember, you promised me a TV show as well? The script is complete. We've written a full limited series. Just needed your go ahead to get the ball rolling."

"So, we can begin shooting in June?" I asked.

"No, we will need time for location scouting and casting, " Mum said with a smile. "So probably early next year. You don't need to take anything on right now."

"Next year would be better," I agreed. "I need to oversee the pre-production of [Twilight] as well." Turning back to Dad, I continued, "The reason I'm asking you to talk to George Martin is that most people still treat me like a kid. You also have the experience of producing the biggest movie franchise in the world. In fact, now that I think about it, you should go without me, after doing some homework that is, and take Mum with you—she's clearly passionate about the story. You two can be the showrunners together."

"I would love that," Mum said, beaming. "I really, really love [A Song of Ice and Fire]."

Dad thought about the proposal for a few moments before nodding. "I've been searching for a new project after [Harry Potter] ends, and this sounds promising with the way you two are talking about it. Are you sure you don't want to star in this project yourself?"

"Nah," I said, shaking my head. "It's too much work to portray the same character for that long, especially in a TV show. The most I'd consider is a cameo or a supporting role for one season, provided all my scenes are shot together. Anything more than that isn't worth it for me."

Dad nodded. "Alright then, give me the first book. Let me at least read it before I meet with the author."

(Break)

"So, how can I help you today, Troy?" Andrew Cohen beamed at me.

Of course, the man was happy. I wasn't getting rich alone. While I'd negotiated early on not to pay him outrageous brokerage or wealth management commissions, I still paid Andrew a very generous monthly salary to manage my finances. Why else would he maintain such a big account for me?

"Your wealth has been growing steadily," he continued after a moment. "I must ask, though, how do you get tips about the stocks you've invested in? Apple, Amazon, and even McDonald's. Every stock you've chosen has grown your wealth multifold—everything except Coca-Cola, that is. That one is barely breaking even."

I shook my head sagely and replied, "The secret to my wealth-making tips shall die with me."

"Fair enough, I guess. But you can't blame me for trying, right?" Andrew said, raising his hands in mock surrender.

"Why don't you give me a brief estimate of my finances?" I prompted.

"Sure," he agreed. "You've invested around $40 million each in six companies—Apple, Amazon, Nvidia, Netflix, Coca-Cola, and McDonald's. Apple has been the best performer, increasing your wealth sixfold. Similarly, Nvidia, Netflix, and Amazon have given you more than four times your investment, and McDonald's has doubled your money. Because Netflix is relatively smaller, you currently own about 11% of its stock, which could even get you a seat on their board of directors if you wanted. Coke, however, is your worst-performing stock, giving only a 10% return."

"So, how much money do I have in stocks, exactly?" I asked.

Andrew's wide grin was the answer that made me nervous for some reason.

_______________________________________________

AN: Hey guys! I have started a new Hollywood story exclusively on Pat/reon which starts in the year 1979. I have made a public post on Pat/reon which has the summary of the plot as well. Go check it out if you're interested.

Let me assure you that Dreams of Stardom shall remain my current priority. As usual, my target will be at least four chapters per week. When I have met that target, only then will I work on the other story.

Before someone asks, I'm not posting that story on any free sites currently, because the updates will be highly irregular. When I'm finished with DOS, or have made significant progress with the other story, only then will I start posting it here.