HWI 131

Hollywood What If Chapter 131

Kazir Grey was strongly in demand right now. Right after the new year celebration, Kazir was contacted by three companies at the same time. 

John Wick was still in pre-production and this was the right time for Paramount, 20th Century Fox, and Warner Bros to cooperate with Kazir Grey. 

Both 20th Century Fox and Warner Bros experienced Kazir's directorship on their hands and his movies were successful. 

The script of The Hangover 2 was already done and the script was completed. If there were changes, they should be minor changes. There was no reason to do an audition because the cast were filled since the first movie.

The only major of The Hangover 2 right now was the lack of a director. Three months before the official filming, the project still has no director. 

Enrico Pusi even went to Grey Pictures just to find Kazir Grey. Enrico Pusi was responsible for the project and he couldn't let the project fall. 

He went to Kazir's office and kneeled down just to beg. 

Kazir massaged his forehead. The position of director was important and he didn't want The Hangover 2 to disintegrate to dust. 

"Mel Brooks."

"Hm?"

Enrico Pusi sat up and looked at Kazir. 

"Why don't you hire Mel Brooks instead? I'm sure he can do a better job than me."

"I'll try."

Being a producer, Enrico Pusi knew who Mel Brooks was. To be honest, Warner Bros invited Mel Brooks to take the position but he asked for a $5 million salary. 

Warner Bros was still skeptical so they were quiet at the moment. Mel Brooks didn't have a movie these past few years. His last movie was Robin Hood: Men In Tights and it was released in 1993. His salary of $5 million might be questionable. 

However, Kazir Grey knew Mel Brooks's next projects such as Get Smart and Space Balls. At least the director got humor. 

After hearing Kazir's opinion, Enrico Pusi quietly left the company after causing a scene. For the success of The Hangover 2, Enrico would have a face as thick as the Earth's Crust. 

Later, Enrico thanked Kazir Grey for his suggestion. As long as everything was all good, kneeling once was not a problem. 

.........

......

...

The next person who showed up was none other than Shirley Lansing of Paramount. The head of promotion management. 

The woman started asking her about the possible promotion methods for Meet The Parents. Shirley asked Kazir Grey to visit Paramount at least once. 

The project started its first round audition this week. Even though Kazir was just the scriptwriter, his opinion and wisdom could not be disregarded. Kazir was now the most sought director at a 1st-tier level. 

With three years of back-to-back successful movies, his opinions regarding the cast were relevant. 

"Jim Carrey, Ben Stiller, and Adam Sandler are all interested in the project."

Shirley Lansing added while watching the man sketching. 

"I'm sure that Paramount didn't have a problem with the budget for the salary."

"Actually... We are suffering because of Titanic. The movie was a fucking flop."

"... Let's see about that next month," Kazir muttered. 

"Anyway, are you still okay with Ben Stiller and Robert De Niro being the protagonists?"

"I'm sure as heck. But it all depends on your decision. I'm just the scriptwriter."

He only sold the script for $500 thousand. It was the conditions they agreed on so that his three movies would be distributed at a lower fee. Honestly, Paramount took an L on that one. Perhaps they gambled and believe that Kazir's magic was still strong. 

"I'll contact you again, no, I'll take you out of your office and force you to attend the last round of audition. Make sure you take a shower on that day. As for the marketing plan, I want to hear your response later."

"Shirley, I'm not your employee. You should ask your team about that."

"I know, but I won't lose nothing consulting you. I will buy you donuts if I like your suggestions."

"I don't like donuts."

"Donuts it is, Dunkin Donuts."

"... I don't like them."

"Alright, I'm going to leave now. Make sure to remember what I said."

Shirley Lansing left the office. 

"... I guess that's the reason why she became the next CEO of Paramount. She's freaking thick-faced. Much worst than Enrico Pusi."

He never met someone like Shirley Lansing. He was scared to work with her, he felt like he was going to be sucked dry... 

.........

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...

The first month of the year was too much for him because the three companies were trying to contact him in different directions. 

On top of that was the pestering of Sony-Columbia and Walt Disney to buy his scripts. 

"Sir... Someone wants to talk to you." Erica Mendez informed him on the phone. His assistant was busy after Christmas too. Even though Kazir stayed in his office for the whole month, his job was easy. 

Erica Mendez had to face so many people just to prevent them from disturbing him. But if she could not, she didn't have a choice but to pass the baton to Kazir. 

"Who is it?"

"It's Nancy Utley from Fox Searchlight."

"Napoleon Dynamite, it is."

Kazir dropped his pen and prepared for another discussion. 

'Seriously, they are quite active these days. But at least they are the ones who visited me, not the other way around. I guess people started respecting me.'

Scriptwriter and Executive Producer, his position for the three companies was quite troublesome. But as long as it was related to movies and he was having fun, why not?

[Author's Note: I know, I know, some of you don't like it when I wrote something unrelated to filming. But I got to tackle the side arcs even in one chapter. Besides, I'm having a mental block since I can't write comfortably in my grandma's place. There are so many people here and even the rooms are shared.]