Huayu Entertainment 1995 started with hijacking.

Chapter 223 Hollywood Villains

"We producers hold the highest power in the crew. We are the gods of these actresses. If they want fame, money, honor, and an Oscar, then they must kneel before us, kiss our toes, and lick our asses!"

Harvey Weinstein made no attempt to hide anything and spoke candidly to Wu Yuchen.

Wu Yuchen knew Harvey was right. Hollywood had always been like this. Even the famous Marilyn Monroe admitted that she had been subjected to unspoken rules: "Everyone does it. If you don't do it, there's another girl waiting outside."

However, in these kinds of situations, everyone usually believes in mutual consent; at most, it's just an opportunity to tempt you.

The three women Wu Yuchen has connections with in Hollywood all threw themselves at him and received rewards and benefits from him. As a result, both sides got what they wanted and were very satisfied. Now, even Jennifer Connelly is reluctant to leave Wu Yuchen's side.

But Harvey was different. He was arrogant and domineering, using all sorts of methods, including coercion and bribery. He would force some actresses who disagreed but were not famous to comply, and he had even imprisoned them in hotel rooms for several days as a form of intimidation. It's not that no one has reported him, but it's all been in vain; no media outlets have reported on his actions.

That's just his style—unconventional, reckless, and sometimes called a Hollywood villain. Of course, he wouldn't mess with truly powerful figures. However, this behavior sowed the seeds of his downfall. A decade or so later, with the rise of feminism, Harvey was sent to jail.

In short, Wu Yuchen and Harvey are not on the same page, and he doesn't want to be condemned by the "Me Too" movement or get involved in the infamous "Weinstein incident," so he has no intention of communicating with Harvey about this matter.

"Oh, Wu, don't be so boring! Young people should be full of energy and enjoy their passion!"

Harvey showed a slightly disappointed expression, but continued to encourage Wu Yuchen. This was actually one of his social skills; after some producers or directors talked to him about their experiences of manipulating actresses, they could clearly build closer relationships.

Wu Yuchen simply gave a polite smile and shook his head.

Seeing that Wu Yuchen remained silent, Harvey knew the conversation was going nowhere. He wiped his mouth with a tissue and simply switched to a seductive tone, saying:
"Wu, how about we team up? With your directing talent and my abilities as a top-notch producer, the two of us combined can definitely sweep through Hollywood!"

However, before Wu Yuchen could speak, David Geffen frowned and interrupted him:
“Hey, hey, hey! Harvey, this is different from what you said when you first came here. Wu now has a close working relationship with DreamWorks, and it's impossible for him to cooperate with Miramax!”

Harvey Weinstein shrugged. "Who knows? Wu, if you want to win an Oscar, working with me is the best option!"

David Geffen glared at him: "Harvey, if you keep bringing this up, then there's no point in eating this meal anymore."

Harvey Weinstein laughed and said, "David, don't be nervous, I was just joking."

"That joke isn't funny at all. Let's get to the point!"

Seeing David Geffen's displeased expression and Wu Yuchen's apparent lack of interest, Harvey Weinstein said, "Alright, alright."

Then he turned to look at Wu Yuchen: "Wu, actually, the reason I came here this time is to make a deal with you."

Wu Yuchen looked at Harvey, wondering what the fat man was up to.

"To be honest, your creative talent is truly astonishing. I really don't know how your brain is structured to write so many good scripts. How about selling me a few copies?"

Wu Yuchen looked at Harvey and finally understood his intention. He had asked David Geffen to act as a go-between so that he could buy his script.

Previously, he registered a number of scripts related to Disney for the next few years. As Miramax is a subsidiary of Disney, its films were naturally among those snatched by Wu Yuchen. As a result, Harvey Weinstein found many of the scripts appealing and wanted to acquire them to produce his own.

"I really like 'Hand in Hand,' 'Every Moment,' 'Single's Diary,' and 'True Feelings Express.' You should know my abilities. I promise I won't waste these scripts; they'll all make your scripts shine!"

Upon hearing this, Wu Yuchen secretly thought that Harvey's judgment was truly remarkable. These films were all masterpieces from Miramax in his previous life, and their Oscar-contending works in the next two years had brought Miramax considerable profits.

Harvey looked at Wu Yuchen expectantly, but was met with a rejection: "Sorry, Harvey."

Harvey frowned, then asked, "What? Are you planning to direct it yourself? You've registered dozens of scripts; can you possibly direct them all by yourself?"

Wu Yuchen registered so many scripts just to reserve them, not necessarily to film them himself, as long as Disney doesn't make them.

Wu Yuchen shook his head, not answering the question directly, but said, "Harvey, you should know what happened to me at the Best Director Award. If you don't know, you can ask around. I hate Eisner."

Upon hearing this, Harvey Weinstein immediately launched into a tirade without any restraint:
“I hate Eisner too, that guy is a son of a bitch! We agree on that, we should be friends, you shouldn’t be wary of me!”

Harvey acted as if he shared the same hatred and put on an innocent expression, extending his goodwill to Wu Yuchen.

Wu Yuchen chuckled. Despite Harvey Weinstein's fierce criticism, Wu Yuchen had no idea what his relationship with Eisner was really like behind the scenes.

However, Wu Yuchen knew some publicly available information: in his previous life, Michael Eisner was forced to resign from Disney at the end of 2005, and the Weinstein brothers also left Miramax at the same time to create a new company.

In other words, they left Disney at almost the same time, or were kicked out of Disney, with the time difference being no more than a month. How could it be such a coincidence?
Therefore, Wu Yuchen was not going to be fooled by Harvey so easily, and said, "I'm sorry, Harvey, I will not cooperate with Disney in any way."

Harvey spread his arms wide and emphasized, "Wu, I think you've misunderstood. Disney is Disney, and Miramax is Miramax. We operate completely independently! You shouldn't confuse Miramax with Disney!"

“But you’re making money for Disney. Any profits you earn from the movies you produce will go into Disney’s financial statements and become Michael Eisner’s achievement,” Wu Yuchen said earnestly.

Then Wu Yuchen smiled and said, "Harvey, if Miramax is willing to leave Disney, then these scripts are all negotiable."

"Oh, come on! You know this is impossible!"

Miramax has already been acquired. The so-called exit from Disney is just the Weinstein brothers leaving. It's impossible for them to abandon Miramax. Moreover, they now need to rely on Disney's distribution channels, so it's even less likely that they will leave.

Wu Yuchen shrugged: "Then I'm afraid I can't help you."

Harvey waved his hand: "Come on, Wu, business is business, and personal grudges are personal grudges. You shouldn't bring your personal feud with Eisner into business. Do you think you can take on the entire Disney organization on your own?"

Wu Yuchen stretched out one hand and gestured:
"Disney is now Eisner's henchman, so I will not have any cooperation with Disney during Eisner's tenure."

"Fuck! I'm not Eisner's henchman!"

Harvey swore, but remembering he still had to discuss the script with Wu Yuchen, he tugged at his collar to suppress his anger, and then said to Wu Yuchen:
“Hey Wu, don’t do this. Nobody does things like this in Hollywood. You shouldn’t let Eisner affect our friendship. Having more friends means having more options. You have so many scripts, it doesn’t matter who you sell them to. I won’t shortchange you on the price!”

“Harvey, I don’t need you to tell me how to do things. This isn’t about money, it’s about principles!” Wu Yuchen said firmly.

This annoyed Harvey, who then swore, "What kind of principles are these! Everyone's here to make money, why are you so stubborn? Sell it to me, I'll make a great movie, and you'll reap both fame and fortune, isn't that better?!"

In response, Wu Yuchen coldly uttered only one word: "No!"

Harvey Weinstein slammed his hand on the table with a loud bang. He felt he had been polite enough, but the other party still didn't give him any face, making him want to start swearing.

At this moment, David Geffen spoke with a stern face: "Harvey, I'm warning you, don't bring your ways here!"

Harvey glanced at David Geffen, holding back his outburst, then picked up his glass, took a swig, and slammed it down on the table. He looked at Wu Yuchen again, but this time his expression wasn't so friendly; it was slightly gloomy.

"Wu, I don't want to make things difficult for you. Making a deal with me won't hurt you; you'll gain the friendship of the Weinstein brothers and Miramax. Not much, I only need three!"

Harvey had seen a lot of good stuff from Wu Yuchen and wanted to buy seven or eight scripts, but now he has lowered his expectations and only wants three.

Wu Yuchen looked directly at Harvey and asked, "Will you leave Disney?"

Harvey Weinstein clenched his fists, his face tense, and said in a low, hoarse voice, "It seems you don't want to be friends with Weinstein."

Wu Yuchen remained unfazed, retorting sharply, "Looks like you're not going to back down. You won't get a single copy!" Just as Harvey Weinstein was about to explode, David Geffen suddenly stood up and said to him:
“Harvey, since your deal with Wu didn’t go through, I don’t think we need to stay here any longer.”

Then he turned to Wu Yuchen and said, "Wu, let's go."

Wu Yuchen nodded, showing no intention of staying any longer. The two walked out of the room, and just a few steps later, they heard the sound of cups being smashed and Harvey Weinstein's angry shouts coming from inside.

David Geffen apologized to Wu Yuchen as he walked: "I'm sorry, Wu. I just thought we were sitting together peacefully to discuss the sale of the script, but I didn't expect him to be so rude."

Wu Yuchen smiled and shook his head: "It's okay. I know some favors that I can't refuse, but I don't want to deal with him again in the future."

“Wu, there won’t be a next time. Harvey has become increasingly arrogant these past two years, and he’s lost all sense of propriety in his interactions with others!” David Geffen also said.

Then he said to Wu Yuchen, "Wu, don't worry, Harvey wouldn't dare to do anything to you. His underhanded methods can only be used on small fry."

Wu Yuchen nodded. Harvey Weinstein did have many connections with the top executives of major film studios and was quite adept at networking. However, his own strength was not that great, and he could not control everything. Otherwise, he would not have been discarded as a pawn twenty years later and sentenced to 16 years in prison.

More than a decade later, while the lid on Hollywood's unspoken rules was finally lifted, Harvey was just the tip of the iceberg, used to quell public and feminist anger. The real big shots were watching the show from the sidelines, continuing their lives as usual.

Not to mention that Wu Yuchen already has considerable influence, he is working closely with DreamWorks and is also co-developing the Spider-Man project with Sony. Both sides will help him in any way, so it's impossible for Harvey to really do anything to him.

That's how it is in Hollywood. Harvey was able to get ahead because he brought benefits to others. The same goes for Wu Yuchen; as long as he continues to successfully bring benefits to others, there won't be any problems.

……

The phone rang, and Fatty Hand immediately pressed the answer button, asking, "How is it?"

“Harvey, I called Wu and he agreed to sell the script to us.”

Upon hearing this, Harvey Weinstein's fat face broke into a smile, but the next moment, all that could be heard on the other end of the phone was:
"However, he said we couldn't resell it, and we couldn't cooperate with Disney on its development, otherwise he had the right to take back the script."

Harvey hung up the phone with a grim face. Even after returning, he hadn't given up on Wu Yuchen's scripts, as they were all ones he believed could make money. So he contacted acquaintances at Paramount, thinking that if Wu Yuchen was willing to sell them to someone else, who could then resell them to him, they could eventually end up in his hands. However, Wu Yuchen had clearly blocked this path, which infuriated Harvey Weinstein.

After hanging up the phone, Harvey cursed, "Fuck! You damn yellow-skinned monkey!"

Harvey's huge success at the Oscars in recent years has almost made him a god among actors and directors who pursue Oscars. Everyone greets him with a smile, and some people are even willing to tattoo his name on their private parts to express their gratitude.

This time, Harvey took the initiative to lower his guard and politely beg Wu Yuchen to sell him the script, only to be met with a cold shoulder, which made him feel extremely frustrated.

"You idiot Eisner, a series of stupid decisions that have dragged me down with you!"

Harvey grew increasingly annoyed, picked up the phone and dialed Eisner. A deep voice quickly came from the other end:

"Hey, Harvey, what's up?"

“Wow! Wise and insightful Mr. President, I send you my sincerest greetings!” Harvey said with a sneer.

"Please speak frankly if you have something to say."

"It's nothing, I just wanted to vent a little. Two years ago, I wanted to develop 'The Lord of the Rings,' but you personally rejected it. It's fine if you don't give me the money, but please don't cause me any more trouble, okay?"

Regardless of Harvey Weinstein's character, his vision was undeniable. When Peter Jackson approached him with "The Lord of the Rings," he wanted to develop it, but Eisner rejected it due to the large amount of funding and high risks, a decision that had always bothered him.

Although the risks of "The Lord of the Rings" were indeed very high, Harvey was in a state of extreme confidence. He believed that he could make "The Lord of the Rings" a successful project. It's just a pity that it didn't come to fruition and has now fallen into the hands of New Line Cinema.

Eisner frowned and demanded, "Harvey, what's wrong with you?"

"It's not that I did anything wrong, it's just that my business has been ruined again because of you! That Eastern kid, Wu Yuchen, took his anger out on me because you ruined his Best Director Oscar!"

Harvey and Eisner's relationship can be described as mutually exploitative. In the past, he was quite respectful of Eisner, but as he achieved brilliant results at the Oscars in recent years, he became increasingly arrogant and more and more presumptuous towards Eisner. However, he knew that this was all within the other party's tolerance limit, because Eisner's abilities were unique.

“All my decisions are for Disney, so show me some respect! Don’t try to pin things on me! And do you think you can just come to me crying and complaining because some Asian kid bullied you, and expect me to help you get revenge?” Eisner said sarcastically.

"Fuck! I'll handle this myself, but don't let Miramax and me suffer losses because of your decisions again!" With that, Harvey slammed down the phone.

"Damn it! That fat pig is getting more and more outrageous!" Eisner cursed into the phone, then called his secretary to find out what had happened.

A moment later, his secretary returned and reported to him that Wu Yuchen was now selling scripts to anyone except Disney, and that Harvey had probably complained to him about this.

After listening, Eisner gave a disdainful smile: "Harvey is really going backwards, complaining about things like this. And that Wu, who does he think he is? Does he think Disney needs his scripts? What an arrogant fool!"

There are plenty of screenwriters in Hollywood, and countless old scripts that no one cares about. In Eisner's opinion, Wu Yuchen's dozens of scripts have no impact on Disney at all. If Disney were to fail because of a kid, it would really be time to go bankrupt!
However, Eisner was still quite dissatisfied with Wu Yuchen's approach and wanted to teach this Eastern boy who dared to be disrespectful to him and Disney a lesson right now, but then he thought of the mutual promotion strategy between "Pearl Harbor" and "The Pirate King".

He thought for a moment, then dialed Miles's number: "Miles, after Pearl Harbor crushes The Pirate King, arrange for media to attack that Wu Yuchen and make him realize who he is!"

"Yes, Mr. President!"

Then Pearl Harbor will expose this arrogant Eastern boy's true colors and teach him what humility is!

……

Meanwhile, after Harvey hung up the phone, he released some of his anger, since he felt he was implicated by Eisner. However, he still had most of his anger to vent on Wu Yuchen.

This kid really thinks that just because he's made a few high-grossing movies, he can look down on Harvey Weinstein?!

Harvey Weinstein has been a fixture in Hollywood for over two decades. What storms hasn't he weathered? What geniuses hasn't he encountered? Do you really think that just because you're famous now, you can treat him like dirt? He's the Harvey Weinstein everyone in Hollywood wants to curry favor with!

He had to take concrete actions to teach this kid what Hollywood was all about and make him realize what Harvey Weinstein was all about!

However, Harvey also knew that Wu Yuchen now had close collaborations with DreamWorks and Sony, so it was impossible to deal with him using underhanded tactics. The only option now was to use fair and square methods.

Harvey pondered for a moment, trying to pinpoint Wu Yuchen's weakness. Since he cared so much about Eisner ruining his Best Director Oscar, it meant he valued the Oscar highly. And the Oscars were Harvey Weinstein's greatest asset!

Harvey Weinstein then quickly made a few more phone calls and learned that his fellow Jewish producer, Glazer, had partnered with DreamWorks on a project called "A Beautiful Mind," which was directed by Wu Yuchen.

Harvey quickly learned that "A Beautiful Mind" was aimed at the Oscars. A biographical film? Certainly a favorite among older men.

However, these old men's favorites are not limited to biographical films. Nostalgia and retro styles can also evoke their memories of the past. If classic adaptations and artistic processing are added, they can achieve great success at the Oscars!
Harvey snorted coldly. This time, he planned to personally produce an Oscar-contending film to directly challenge "A Beautiful Mind" at the Oscars and show that kid who the true Oscar king was! He wanted him to watch as he defeated him and went on stage to accept the award, regretting it so much that he cried his eyes out!
……

Wu Yuchen wasn't too bothered by other companies buying his scripts. He could sell scripts he didn't plan to film himself, or scripts his Miracle Films didn't intend to produce. However, he specifically included clauses to prevent them from ending up at Disney.

After returning home, Wu Yuchen devoted most of his energy to the "Pirate King" project. In order to speed up the process, in addition to Hans Zimmer, he also brought together 15 composers to quickly complete the composition of all the musical pieces.

With a stretch, the "Pirate King" project, which had taken more than half a year, was finally completed!

(End of this chapter)