While chatting with a guest, Sophia felt a large hand wrap around her waist. She turned to see the man beside her and teased, "I thought I wouldn't see you tonight."
Simon nodded to the guest across from them and said to Sophia, "We should head back."
"Alright."
Sophia agreed with a smile, and after a few farewells to other essential guests, they left the auction house together.
Once in the car, Sophia wisely chose not to mention a certain woman from the party. Instead, she said, "Agnelli asked me again about details of Westeros Group's investments in China. Seems like he's not giving up on his plans to enter that market."
Sophia had overheard part of Simon's conversation with Gianni Agnelli in the lounge.
Simon said, "That's expected, but whether he'll succeed is another story."
"I think he still hopes to cooperate with us."
"The sticking point is control. If Fiat moves into China, Agnelli won't want to give up control of the project. Without control, I won't participate either, so there's no way we'll reach an agreement."
Looking at Simon with a mix of admiration and flirtation, Sophia said, "If it were me, I'd definitely compromise. After all, it's an opportunity to work with Simon Westeros."
"If everyone made sensible and wise decisions, I can only imagine how beautiful the world would be."
"Well, as long as you're around, my world is already perfect."
Simon took her face in his hands and kissed her. Suddenly serious, he said, "No matter how much you flatter me, it won't work. I was exhausted this afternoon, so we're not doing anything tonight."
Sophia rolled her eyes at him and leaned in for another kiss.
The next morning, they set off early.
At Milan's Malpensa International Airport, Simon said goodbye to Sophia before boarding. As he entered the Boeing 767, a woman with crescent-shaped eyes he'd met at last night's party approached him.
"Oh, Simon, this feels like a dream. I must be crazy. We just met last night, and today I'm going with you to the USA. It's my first time there, and I don't even know much English."
Alessandra Martinez spoke in Italian as she naturally linked her arm with Simon's, her gaze sweeping around.
It was her first time on a private plane, and to her surprise, it was a lavish Boeing 767. And the man beside her was Simon Westeros.
No matter how things ended, this was a moment worthy of a bold entry in a future memoir, if she ever wrote one. It was why she had agreed so readily when he invited her last night.
At 33, Alessandra was married to a minor French nobleman with modest means. But compared to Simon Westeros, her husband's family, barely maintaining an air of respectability, was hardly impressive.
She'd married hoping her husband's connections in French cinema would help her career, but her plans fell through. She remained a struggling actress barely scraping into the French B-list.
So, when she met Simon last night and felt his interest, she decided to take a chance.
After all, if she let it pass, such an opportunity might never come again.
In essence, it was an elopement.
Simon led her to the lounge area in the middle of the cabin, gestured for her to sit by the window, and sat beside her. One of the maids fastened Alessandra's seatbelt.
Simon fastened his own seatbelt and told her, "There might be some turbulence during takeoff. We'll be able to move around once we're stable."
Alessandra nodded quickly. She hadn't realized there'd be restrictions on a private plane and was glad she hadn't embarrassed herself with unnecessary questions.
Once the maid left, Simon noticed Alessandra's cautious demeanor and asked with a smile, "Ali, did you have breakfast?"
Alessandra instinctively wanted to nod but answered honestly, "Not yet."
She hadn't slept the night before, and in the morning, she'd focused on preparing herself for Simon's car, which had arrived to pick her up. Eating hadn't even crossed her mind.
Simon said, "Skipping breakfast isn't good. I'll have them prepare something for you."
"Thank you, Simon. You're so considerate."
Simon's assistant, A, approached with a stack of documents, handing a few newspapers to Simon before sitting across from him.
Seeing Alessandra's slight discomfort at A's reserved demeanor, Simon introduced her. "This is A, my assistant."
Alessandra extended her hand, switching to slightly clumsy English, "Hello, A. I'm Alessandra Martinez. You can call me Ali."
A shook her hand briefly.
Afterward, the maid returned, confirmed details with Simon, and informed the crew to prepare for takeoff.
Simon chatted casually with Alessandra while glancing at the newspaper A had handed him. It was France's Ouest-France, a widely circulated national paper. A had marked an article in the political section about Rwanda's recent claims of new evidence implicating French forces in past atrocities.
The article strongly criticized Rwanda's allegations, dismissing them as groundless and manipulated by anti-French forces. The newspaper didn't specify who these 'anti-French forces' might be.
Next was L'Humanité, a left-leaning paper.
While Ouest-France had buried the article in a less prominent section, L'Humanité featured it on the front page. The piece briefly recapped the horrific genocide in Rwanda two years prior and urged the French government to set up a task force to investigate possible involvement by members of the French military.
The article also criticized President Chirac's military policies, particularly his decision to resume nuclear tests after taking office in 1995. Between September 1995 and January 1996, France conducted six nuclear tests in the French overseas territories in the South Pacific. L'Humanité argued that this could incite a new arms race and bring humanity to the brink of unknown dangers.
The remaining newspapers Simon reviewed showed a roughly even split in stance.
Seeing that there wasn't a consensus, Simon could sense the pressure on the French government. Being branded as complicit in genocide is a label like that borne by Germany, a lasting stain that can take generations to erase.
Relations between the U.S. and France were already strained since the right-wing Chirac came to power, and Simon's involvement in Rwanda's criticism of France aligned with these tensions. If France didn't privately offer Simon some form of reconciliation, the confrontation could escalate.
Simon wasn't concerned about an all-out clash. At most, the Westeros Group might lose some business in France, but the losses for France would likely be greater.
After quickly skimming through the newspapers, the Boeing 767 took off and soon leveled at cruising altitude.
Simon called over a maid and had her escort Alessandra to have breakfast and tour the plane. Realizing Simon wanted to discuss work with his assistant, Alessandra obediently followed the maid.
Left alone, A began reporting on key matters.
"From Los Angeles, we got word that Golden Harvest rejected our proposal for Police Story 4 and went with Disney instead. Disney offered a 28% share of North American box office revenue, five points higher than our offer, and they're willing to make concessions on distribution and other channels. Danny made a last attempt to persuade them but failed, so we've issued a restriction letter to Golden Harvest, prohibiting them from using any creative elements we'd discussed or imitating Rush Hour."
The Police Story series was well-known.
After Rush Hour's success, Jackie Chan should ideally focus on Hollywood, but Police Story 4 was a prior commitment to his old Hong Kong studio, Golden Harvest. Due to his ties to the studio, Chan couldn't back out.
With Rush Hour's popularity, Golden Harvest saw an opportunity to break into Hollywood. They revised the already completed script to make Police Story 4 an international film with overseas characters and settings, much like Rumble in the Bronx.
Given this new direction, Golden Harvest's first choice for a Hollywood partner was New World Pictures, owned by Danvers Entertainment, which had collaborated successfully with them several times before.
However, buoyed by Rush Hour's success, Golden Harvest pushed for more favorable terms, especially since Black Mask had recently served as a cautionary tale, reinforcing their determination.
New World Pictures was willing to offer a 23% cut with full marketing support, but with no input in production. Considering the inherent risks with a Hong Kong film, their offer was more than generous.
Disney's terms, though only five points higher in box office split, added more concessions on distribution channels, reducing the already slim profits unless the film performed as well as Rush Hour, which was unlikely.
After finishing her report, A looked at Simon.
Simon merely nodded to show he understood. Vivendi's Disney, like Sony in its earlier days, was eager to establish a foothold and secure strong projects, making them more flexible with profit margins.
The outcome would likely be predictable.
Seeing that Simon had no further instructions, A continued, "In China, after we extended our invitation, directors like Zhang and Chen responded positively. Here's a summary of their proposals."
With the recent success of Black Mask, Simon planned to develop additional Chinese historical films to showcase Chinese culture while appealing to Western audiences. The budget range was set between $15 million to $30 million—a modest sum in Hollywood but significant in China, making these films major investments.
Simon's objective wasn't purely altruistic. Apart from potential profits, these projects aimed to improve relations with Chinese authorities. High-budget productions could also boost China's film market and alleviate local resistance
to Hollywood's influence.
His specific focus was on Hero, a historical martial arts epic that, though initially controversial in China, had proved profitable.
Simon glanced through the proposals from Chinese directors and decided to suggest Hero, a choice that balanced reliability with appeal to the Chinese market. Although Danvers Entertainment could absorb a failed project, any failures could hinder Simon's larger goals.
While Simon reviewed the directors' proposals, he motioned for A to continue.
"In the UK, our production team has signed agreements with Guy Ritchie for Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and Peter Cattaneo for The Full Monty. Negotiations on the adaptation rights for Bridget Jones's Diary are also nearly complete."
Before his trip to Europe, Simon had instructed the UK branch of Danvers Entertainment to gather information on popular books and screenplays, personally selecting Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, The Full Monty, and Bridget Jones's Diary.
The European plan mirrored the Chinese approach, all part of Simon's vision for a new phase in Danvers Entertainment's global film strategy.
After consolidating its place in Hollywood, Danvers Entertainment planned to expand globally, supporting overseas talent to provide diverse film content for the North American market.
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