The party at the villa began winding down at 11 PM and by 11:30, most guests had left. Simon personally escorted a drunken Madonna, who was trying to stay overnight, out of the house and returned to the villa's living room. The cleanup team from the party company was already at work, and the maids led by Naomi had joined in.
One of the girls approached Simon and asked, "Boss, should Miss Kirshner stay tonight?"
"Send her back. Contact her agent tomorrow and get a dossier on her," Simon instructed, heading towards the stairs and motioning for Allison to follow. He asked quietly, "What about that script?"
Allison, walking beside him, replied softly, "A lot of people must have seen it."
Simon nodded and continued, "Have the rooms downstairs cleaned thoroughly tomorrow. Throw away anything that needs to be discarded. Also, have Ella join me for breakfast and arrange for a car to pick her up since transportation here is inconvenient. Make sure the media feedback on 'Four Weddings and a Funeral' is compiled and sent over from Los Angeles by noon tomorrow..."
As he listed instructions, the two reached the third floor. After Allison finished noting everything down, Simon added, "Also, send Natasha up."
Allison agreed and as Simon turned towards the corridor, she instinctively followed, then asked, "Boss, should I prepare your bathwater?"
Simon stopped and turned to look at her.
Regretting her words immediately, Allison lowered her head guiltily, her pale fingers nervously gripping her small notepad.
After a moment, Simon spoke, "This is the first time. Don't be greedy. I usually don't give people a third chance."
Allison responded softly, "Boss, I'm sorry."
"Go get some rest," Simon said.
As he turned and walked away, Allison watched him, then impulsively said, "Boss, mistakes need to be punished."
Simon stopped again, glanced at her elegant figure in her black OL suit, and asked, "Are you afraid of pain?"
Allison lowered her eyelashes, "Pain helps you remember things."
Simon nodded, "Come."
He turned and walked towards the master bedroom.
Allison followed, her head lowered, and heard the slight clicking sound of a belt being unfastened, feeling as if all her strength was being drained.
The 10th Sundance Film Festival concluded the next day. Highgate Pictures had two entries in the main competition, "Spanking the Monkey" and "Barcelona," with "Spanking the Monkey" winning a relatively minor Audience Award, and none of the core awards going to Danneel Entertainment.
This outcome was not disappointing.
For Sundance, Simon valued its role in nurturing new filmmakers. Danneel Entertainment had reaped significant benefits from the talented filmmakers, excellent scripts, and completed films discovered at Sundance in recent years, far exceeding the value of simple awards.
The sparse awards for Highgate Pictures at this Sundance were also a result of Simon's deliberate restraint.
Even with the most powerful PR team and network in Hollywood, Simon did not want the major film festivals to become Danneel Entertainment's private reserve. Such dominance would be counterproductive.
Of course, there were exceptions to absolute power.
For example, this year's Oscars and the next.
On January 31, the Monday following the Sundance finale, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences officially announced the nominations for the 66th Academy Awards.
Steven Spielberg's "Schindler's List," depicting the Holocaust, unsurprisingly became the hottest contender, receiving 12 nominations including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, and Best Adapted Screenplay.
Moreover, Danneel Entertainment set another record.
Pixar's 3D animated film "The Lion King" not only won the Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy but also became the first animated film in Hollywood history to be nominated for an Oscar for Best Picture, with six nominations in total including Best Picture, Best Screenplay, Best Score, and three Best Original Song nominations.
The Best Screenplay nomination also marked another personal Oscar nomination for Simon.
In the original timeline, the first animated film to receive a Best Picture nomination was Disney's 1992 "Beauty and the Beast." With Simon's intervention, this project had been taken over by Pixar and would be produced as a 3D animation like "The Lion King."
This year's "The Lion King" was even more deserving.
As of January 27, in its 10th week of release, "The Lion King" had grossed $286.55 million domestically, needing just three more weeks to cross the $300 million mark.
Before the turn of the century, the Oscars still highly valued a film's commercial success.
As the first animated film in Hollywood to gross $300 million domestically, if "The Lion King" couldn't earn a Best Picture nomination, few films would qualify.
With the Oscar nominations announced, the week of January 28 to February 3 saw "The Lion King" drop only 13% in weekly box office, grossing another $6.75 million for a total of $293.3 million. Danneel Entertainment could easily push it past $300 million the following week if they wanted.
"The Lion King" had already garnered enough honors, and hitting $300 million was inevitable. There was no need to buy box office figures and risk criticism.
Aside from the two most talked-about Oscar contenders, Danneel Entertainment's other film, the Daniel Day-Lewis-starring drama "In the Name of the Father," also received six nominations, including Best Director, Best Actor, and Best Adapted Screenplay.
The original "In the Name of the Father" had also received a Best Picture nomination.
This time, with Danneel Entertainment already having two Best Picture nominations for "Schindler's List" and "The Lion King," a third nomination for "In the Name of the Father" was out of the question.
Adding the nominations for Tina Turner's biopic "What's Love Got to Do with It" for Best Actress and Best Supporting Actor, and "The Wedding Banquet" for Best Foreign Language Film, Danneel Entertainment's direct productions and distributions garnered a total of 29 Oscar nominations this year. This did not include "Sleepless in Seattle," distributed by Disney, or "Superman," distributed by Warner Bros., which had various other nominations.
Additionally, "Philadelphia," which Simon had handed over to MGM, also received five nominations, including Best Actor for Tom Hanks.
Given the likely outcomes, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say Danneel Entertainment dominated this year's Oscars.
While many believed Danneel Entertainment exercised restraint in awards, Hollywood expected other studios to have their chance at the Oscars next year. They were unaware that another blockbuster, "Forrest Gump," was set to release in the summer.
Meanwhile, the trap Simon set at the Sundance party with the "Cutthroat Island" script started to take effect in the following days.
Once the news spread, executives from various studios and talent agencies quickly got their hands on the "Cutthroat Island" script. Many filmmakers began inquiring about the project, with Warner's Terry Semel even calling Simon for information.
In a well-crafted ruse, Amy Pascal, under Simon's direction, personally met with Carolco Pictures' management.
Naturally, no deal was reached.
Danneel Entertainment's terms were not harsh, in line with their usual practice for co-productions—both parties sharing 50% of the investment, with Danneel Entertainment handling distribution and taking a 12.5% distribution fee, the same as for DC Universe projects.
According to Amy's feedback, Carolco Pictures was divided.
Hollywood was full of sharp minds. Given Danneel Entertainment's current stature, some at Carolco saw collaborating with them on a $70 million blockbuster like "Cutthroat Island" as the safest bet, given Danneel's proven track record.
However, greed also abounded.
Some believed Carolco need not yield so much if Simon Westeros valued the project highly. After all, Carolco, backed by foreign capital, wasn't short on funds. Collaborating with Danneel Entertainment meant giving up at least 60% of the profits.
After a week of tentative negotiations, the situation became clear.
Hollywood studios had experienced failures after taking projects from Danneel Entertainment, such as "Rocketman" and Redford's "Sneakers," now stuck at Disney.
Though there was no evidence these were deliberate traps set by Simon Westeros, Hollywood was forming a belief that taking projects from Danneel Entertainment didn't guarantee success.
Thus, except for Paramount, other studios remained cautious.
Last year, Seagram Group acquired Paramount Communications, mirroring Sony's earlier move. Seagram's CEO Edgar Bronfman sought to quickly elevate his company's profile with a few blockbusters.
Considering their collaboration on "Mission: Impossible," with the sequel already in development, Bronfman knew it was unwise to upset Simon. He called Simon for a discussion.
With the fish on the hook, Simon switched tactics, telling Bronfman that Danneel Entertainment had abandoned "Cutthroat Island" because he doubted the future of pirate films, and half-jokingly advised Bronfman to avoid the project.
Simon was sincere, but Bronfman didn't believe him and quickly negotiated further with Carolco Pictures.
News of Danneel Entertainment dropping "Cutthroat Island" and Simon's personal doubts spread fast.
Hollywood was puzzled.
Many had seen the "Cutthroat Island" script at Simon's villa, and Danneel had discussed collaboration with Carolco, showing genuine interest.
Simon's sudden stance seemed like a cover-up.
Clearly, he wanted others to back off, so Danneel could swoop in.
Could they believe such a blatant ploy?
Negotiations continued.
To attract more competitors, Carolco leaked Paramount's terms, which included a 30% budget share,
a 10% distribution fee, a prime summer slot next year, and a guaranteed 2,500-screen opening.
Carolco could retain about 60% of the profits.
Moreover, Danneel's terms didn't include release dates and screen guarantees, which were crucial in Hollywood. A summer blockbuster and a spring release's box office potential differed significantly, as did opening on 1,000 or 2,000 screens.
This disparity in marketing resources was one reason independent studios struggled against the big seven.
Unless willing to only distribute, other studios couldn't match Paramount's offer. Guaranteeing a prime release slot and a large screen count without knowing the film's final quality was risky.
Other studios waited for Danneel's next move.
Without a last-minute bid from Danneel, the project seemed set for Paramount.
Danneel had no intention of stepping in.
Even MGM's CEO Sherry Lansing was turned down when probing Simon about taking the project.
Among the big seven, only MGM could offer better terms, avoiding high-risk blockbusters due to its recovering state. This aligned perfectly with Carolco's expectations.
In Simon's hands, MGM no longer lacked quality projects, and wasting slots wasn't allowed. Even if "Cutthroat Island" succeeded, focusing on a few medium-budget films made more sense for MGM.
After initiating the chaos, Simon turned his attention elsewhere, focusing on "Four Weddings and a Funeral."
Following its Sundance premiere, "Four Weddings and a Funeral" received excellent media reviews. With most invited media being friendly with Danneel, over 20 mainstream newspapers and magazines gave it a stunning average score of 9.5.
February approached, bringing Valentine's Day.
Danneel, leveraging the film's great reviews, launched a final marketing blitz, releasing "Four Weddings and a Funeral" in North American theaters on February 11, on 1,672 screens. To avoid audiences mistaking it for an art film, mainstream Danneel Films handled distribution.
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