Chapter 148: Jerry’s Consideration

Chapter 148: Chapter 148: Jerry’s Consideration

"But she is young after all, and as a female director, her experience with big productions is still not as rich as that of male directors." Robert still had some concerns.

"If the final cut is handed over to her, and she insists on having her own way, producing a work that doesn’t meet Disney’s distribution standards, it’s our mutual interests that will suffer."

Jerry’s tone became more serious.

"The risk certainly exists, but compared to the risk, missing out on a director with potential is a greater loss. Do you think I haven’t considered that? I have read the script for Pirates of the Caribbean, and I have talked with Irene about her creative ideas.

Her understanding of the character Jack Sparrow and her construction of the pirate world are deeper than I imagined. Besides, she is not the type to act recklessly. You saw the negotiation just now. She is willing to accept a tripartite review of the rough cut. This is already a concession on her part, and it also reflects her professionalism and sense of propriety."

"Furthermore, being producer-centric does not mean being dictatorial. My responsibility is to safeguard the project, integrate resources, and solve problems, not to point fingers at the director regarding creative choices. If Irene’s ideas are right, why should I stop her? Just because of the rigid rule that ’the producer should be in charge’?"

Jerry’s words left Robert deep in thought.

He had to admit that Jerry’s foresight was indeed far beyond that of ordinary people. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have become one of the most successful producers in Hollywood.

The success of The Italian Job had already proven that Irene’s creative philosophy met market demands, and wasn’t the reason Disney was willing to hand over Pirates of the Caribbean to her because they saw her ability and potential?

Jerry noticed Robert’s wavering and continued, "And don’t forget, we have a tripartite review mechanism. If her editing really has problems, violates core values, or poses distribution risks, we have every opportunity to propose revisions.

Her agreement to this condition shows that she understands the rules of commercial films and won’t blindly pursue artistic expression while ignoring market demands."

Jerry put his cigar back in his pocket, his tone becoming firm. "Trust me, Robert. Giving Irene final cut authority is not giving up power, but the wisest investment. She will use the results to tell us that this decision was right.

Pirates of the Caribbean will become a work that makes us all proud, and Irene will also become one of the top directors in Hollywood."

Robert looked at Jerry’s confident eyes, and the concerns in his heart gradually dissipated.

"You make sense." Robert nodded, a relieved smile appearing on his face. "It seems I was too conservative. Since you trust her so much, let’s wait and see what kind of surprises this young female director can bring us."

The two smiled at each other. Just as Jerry was about to turn and leave, he suddenly remembered something, and his expression darkened slightly.

"To be honest, instead of worrying about Pirates of the Caribbean right now, you should think about whether Michael Eisner will come looking for trouble if Pearl Harbor doesn’t meet expectations."

After saying this, he walked straight away from the end of the corridor, leaving Robert Iger deep in thought.

When Irene walked out of the Fox Building, the setting sun was already slanting westward, and the golden afterglow spilled onto the streets, coating the city in a warm halo.

Shelly followed by her side, unable to hide her excitement. "Irene, we did it! We got the final cut authority, the casting recommendations were accepted, and Pirates of the Caribbean is finally going to start!"

Irene was also overjoyed. The first step of the long march was finally beginning. How could one not be excited?

"Go contact Johnny’s agent, but don’t seem too eager. You can’t let them think that I absolutely must have him, you know."

Shelly nodded. "You can rest assured when I handle things, but am I your agent or your assistant?"

Irene smiled. "My assistant wouldn’t take a cut of my earnings."

Meanwhile, after returning to the company, Robert Iger did not rest for a moment and immediately dialed his assistant’s phone.

"Send over all the internal materials for the Pearl Harbor project, including the test screening feedback, the final version of the script, the historical consultant report, and the marketing and distribution plan, as soon as possible."

The assistant was clearly a bit surprised. As a key annual project, the internal review for Pearl Harbor had long been completed, and with less than a month left before its release, it was highly unusual to suddenly request all the materials.

But he dared not ask more. Half an hour later, a thick stack of documents was piled on Robert’s desk.

Only one desk lamp was on in the office, its warm yellow light illuminating the dense handwriting on the documents. The night view of Los Angeles outside the window was brightly lit, but it could not distract Robert in the slightest.

He picked up the first document, the internal test screening feedback summary. The cover prominently displayed an overall rating of "A-", with a note next to it that read "Above the passing line for commercial films".

But Robert did not stop at the cover. Instead, he carefully read through the specific audience comments.

The first few were mostly positive feedback: "The war scenes are grand and shocking," "The special effects are well-produced," "The actors are good-looking."

But the further he flipped, the proportion of negative comments gradually increased, and they pointed in a surprisingly consistent direction:

"The romantic love triangle plot is too draggy, taking up nearly half the runtime, completely diluting the epic feel of the war film."

"The setup of Rafe and Danny both falling in love with Evelyn is cliché and deliberate. I almost fell asleep halfway through. Instead, I was looking forward to the bombing scenes appearing sooner."

"The seriousness of the historical event has been weakened. It’s more like a romance film disguised in war clothing. A bit disappointed."

"The three-hour runtime is too long! If some of the romance plot lines were cut, keeping it within two and a half hours would be much smoother."

Robert’s brows gradually furrowed.

He remembered that when the project started, Michael Bay claimed that he wanted to create an epic "combining historical gravitas with emotional tension," with the goal of aiming for Titanic.

But judging from the test screening feedback, the balance between the two had clearly been lost.

He casually flipped through the final version of the script and found that the romance plot lines indeed accounted for as much as 45%, while the critical Pearl Harbor bombing scene was instead compressed into the 40 minutes in the middle, with the buildup and conclusion both revolving around the love triangle.

"No wonder Jerry said that," Robert muttered to himself.

As the executive producer of Pearl Harbor, Jerry couldn’t have failed to notice this problem, and the fact that he noticed it but was powerless to stop it could only mean that the person who really called the shots was at a higher level than him.

He found the project proposal again, and there, with a big signature at the project approval section, was Michael Eisner, Robert Iger’s direct superior.