Just as many of the creators behind the Marvel Cinematic Universe were comic book fans, in order for an IP to be successfully adapted to film, the creators must first have a deep understanding of the original work.
A closer look behind the scenes of the Middle-earth series reveals that Peter Jackson was not a die-hard fan of J.R.R. Tolkien's works. Like many others, he enjoyed them after reading, inevitably developing some ideas. While most people forget those ideas over time, Jackson actually took action.
His familiarity with the novel series, combined with years of solid filmmaking experience and a pragmatic attitude, ultimately created a cinematic legend.
These factors may seem simple, but few can truly achieve them.
In the office, after listening to Jackson's well-prepared statements, Simon nodded slightly. "I've read your proposal. Splitting The Lord of the Rings into two films to be shot back-to-back is a good idea. It will save a lot of costs. Filming in New Zealand is still up in the air, but as long as the filming environment and tax incentives are in line, that shouldn't be a problem. My suggestion, though, is that if we're going to split it, we should do it properly—split it into three films and shoot all three at once."
Peter Jackson, who had prepared a whole set of arguments, was taken aback. "Simon, does this mean you agree?"
Simon shook his head. "It's just a possibility for now, Peter. You need to understand that the most common thing in Hollywood is uncertainty. Ninety percent of projects disappear in the passage of time. So first, I need to see the results of The Frighteners. Think of it as a trial. Secondly, you can start working on the script now. Write it as a trilogy. In the future, I'll need to see your animated and live-action test footage based on your vision. If we go ahead with a trilogy, even at a budget of $70 million per film, that's $210 million total. So, Peter, if you fail, Daenerys Entertainment will still be Daenerys Entertainment, but Peter Jackson may no longer be Peter Jackson. You need to be aware of that."
Simon's tone was calm, but Peter Jackson felt a wave of emotion wash over him—whether it was excitement or fear, he couldn't tell. His fingertips tingled slightly.
With Daenerys Entertainment's current influence in Hollywood, Jackson knew that if a project costing over $200 million failed, he would never find a foothold in this industry again.
However…
Everything has two sides.
What if he succeeded?
After a brief silence, Peter Jackson forced himself to calm down. Meeting Simon's gaze, he spoke with determination, "Simon, I will make the most of this opportunity."
Simon was pleased with how quickly Jackson recovered under the pressure of his words. "Good. Now, someone will contact you regarding the scriptwriting agreement. Let me share some of my thoughts."
Before he could continue, there was a knock on the office door.
A Girl entered, carrying a stack of photos. "Boss, these are Mia Sara's photos and her résumé."
Simon paused, taking the stack of photos from A Girl and handing a portion to Jackson before looking through them himself.
After flipping through a few, he felt a slight disappointment.
He remembered when he first arrived in Los Angeles, Ferris Bueller's Day Off was a huge hit. With a $6 million budget, it had grossed $70 million domestically. Mia Sara, the film's lead actress, had become a dream girl for many teenagers.
Now, ten years had passed.
Mia Sara was still very beautiful, well above average, but the stunning beauty that once made hearts race was gone. The signs of plastic surgery were evident, and not even skillfully done.
Simon glanced at the résumé.
Mia Sara was 29 this year. Aside from Ferris Bueller's Day Off ten years ago, none of her other films had made any impact. Many of her recent works were labeled as TV movies.
When an actor starts doing TV movies, it becomes difficult for them to make a comeback.
Under normal circumstances, Simon wouldn't waste time on such details. He would have quickly dismissed her and asked Jackson to find another actress. But at this moment, he felt a rare sense of nostalgia for the passage of time.
Ten years had passed.
That film was also a starting point for him.
Feeling sentimental, he decided to give Mia Sara another chance.
The original The Frighteners had been a box office failure, but this time, many things had changed. Even if it wasn't wildly successful, Simon's guidance and Daenerys Entertainment's marketing would likely push the domestic box office past $50 million. With that kind of success, Mia Sara could break free from the TV movie circuit and regain opportunities in Hollywood.
A Girl's voice brought Simon out of his thoughts again. "Boss, CAA says Mia Sara is in Los Angeles and can be here within half an hour if needed."
Simon put the photos down and shook his head. "No need. Send her a copy of The Frighteners script and have her prepare," he said, turning to Jackson. "In three days, arrange an audition. Don't worry about my opinion—be strict. If she fits, she's in. If not, we'll find someone else."
Jackson agreed verbally but had other thoughts in mind.
Unlike Simon's sudden wave of sentimentality, Jackson was very satisfied after seeing the photos. With The Frighteners' $30 million budget, which was considered mid-range in this era, they couldn't afford an A-list actress. From the start, Jackson had only intended to find a second or third-tier actress to play the part. Mia Sara, with her decade of acting experience, was more than qualified.
As for the difference between the photos and her appearance from ten years ago, Jackson didn't feel the same way Simon did.
In fact, he quietly decided to push for her casting.
It was the wisest decision politically. Simon may have said not to worry about his opinion, but if the big boss's suggestion was accepted and the project succeeded, it would certainly bring some goodwill in return.
With that brief interlude over, Simon and Jackson resumed their discussion about the Lord of the Rings series, while A Girl gathered the photos and left the office.
As soon as she stepped out, another assistant informed her that Michael Ovitz from CAA was on the line.
Back in the 1980s, at the height of CAA's power, Ovitz's calls could reach the offices of any studio executive without going through an assistant. Even now, it was still possible. But Simon's office was different.
A Girl had initially contacted David O'Connor, Ovitz's former assistant. With many of CAA's founding members retiring or leaving, O'Connor and other new-generation agents were now in charge. A Girl hadn't expected Ovitz to respond so quickly, but after briefly explaining the situation, she sent a copy of the The Frighteners script to CAA.
At CAA headquarters in Century City.
Within five minutes, the script was copied and distributed to everyone in a meeting room.
As it happened, A Girl's call came just as David O'Connor was about to attend a Friday afternoon executive meeting at CAA. A third-tier actress like Mia Sara was not on his radar—O'Connor was now handling clients like Tom Hanks and Robert Redford.
However, a call from Simon Westeros's office was impossible to ignore. O'Connor had personally gathered Mia Sara's photos and sent them to Daenerys Studios, which delayed the meeting.
Michael Ovitz, who was leading the meeting, didn't mind at all. In fact, he was intrigued. Simon rarely requested actor portfolios directly, as casting director Linda Vargas, who had worked with him for years, usually handled such matters.
Perhaps Daenerys had something big in the works again.
None of them realized that if it hadn't been for Simon's brief moment of nostalgia, there wouldn't have been much of a follow-up to this matter.
CAA had always excelled at gathering information.
As the script for The Frighteners was handed out to the CAA executives in the meeting room, other information was also being compiled: Peter Jackson's background, an overview of The Frighteners, Jackson's current meeting with Simon, and whispers about the Lord of the Rings series.
The original agenda of the meeting was set aside as the CAA executives quickly skimmed through The Frighteners script. About ten minutes later, Michael Ovitz was the first to set the script down and check his watch. It was 5 PM—quitting time.
But no one mentioned that. For a qualified agent, there was no real distinction between working hours and off-hours. Whether it was a weekend or the middle of the night, if a call came in, they would have to get up and deal with clients who had gotten into trouble at a party—whether it was drugs or drunken brawls.
After everyone else put down their scripts, Ovitz asked, "What's everyone's take?"
David O'Connor was the first to speak. "The script is mediocre, but it might be revised. I think the key here isn't The Frighteners itself, but rather The Lord of the Rings, or the entire Middle-earth series."
Michael Ovitz nodded slightly.
That was his thinking as well.
According to the gathered information, New Line Cinema was positioning The Frighteners as the next Ghostbusters, but just from the script, the differences between the two were obvious.
The structure of The Frighteners actually resembled the recently released sequel to Ace Ventura.
In Ace Ventura, which catapulted
Jim Carrey to stardom, the protagonist makes a living by finding lost pets and inadvertently gets caught up in various conspiracies. In The Frighteners, the protagonist, who gains psychic abilities, makes a living by exorcising ghosts and gets involved in a series of events.
Both were comedies.
Both lead characters were unlucky underdogs.
And both stories ended with the protagonist defeating the villain and living happily ever after with the female lead.
It was a standard Hollywood commercial formula.
After O'Connor spoke, another top agent, Jay Molloy, sitting to Ovitz's left, added, "It's clear that The Frighteners is just a warm-up for Jackson, similar to how Michael Bay did Bad Boys before Jurassic Park 2, or how Brett Ratner directed This Man from Earth before taking on the Charlie's Angels adaptation, or how that Asian director did Broken Arrow before taking on Mission: Impossible 2."
Richard Lovett, another newly promoted CAA vice president, chimed in from the far end of the table. "Jay's right, but I think Simon Westeros places even more importance on Peter Jackson. If I'm not mistaken, all of J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle-earth rights are held by Daenerys Entertainment. They were acquired along with the rights to Batman, Superman, and Marvel characters back in 1987 after the stock market crash, when Westeros made a killing. So, what does that suggest?"
Lovett's comment made everyone sit up a little straighter.
Tolkien's Middle-earth books—The Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit, and The Silmarillion—formed a complete and vast world with a rich mythology. Elves, dwarves, hobbits, humans, orcs—each had countless stories to explore.
What did that mean?
It was obvious.
Simon Westeros was planning to create another cinematic universe, this time based on Middle-earth, to follow the DC and Conjuring Universes.
If that was the case, CAA needed to be on high alert.
Look at the current juggernaut that was the DC Cinematic Universe.
Simon Westeros had distributed the major roles among various Hollywood talent agencies in order to maintain balance. Had he favored WMA exclusively, given his close ties to them, agencies like CAA, ICM, and other second-tier agencies would be struggling right now.
The paychecks for DC actors weren't high by Hollywood standards.
This was something that frustrated many in the industry.
But those "low" paychecks were relative to the staggering box office numbers of the DC films. Aside from that, most of the main DC actors were earning first-rate salaries.
Moreover, the incredible popularity they had garnered opened up other lucrative opportunities—endorsements and film contracts. Adam Baldwin, who played Batman, had earned $32 million in 1995 alone from various endorsements and his participation in the DC series, even though his fee for Batman v Superman was only $9 million.
And this year, while he had no role in the DC series, the success of Batman v Superman would undoubtedly result in a substantial bonus.
Initially, Baldwin had signed a five-film contract for a relatively low fee. Now that only one film remained on that contract, many believed he wouldn't renew it or would demand an exorbitant fee to make up for the "loss" from the initial deal. However, rumors in the industry suggested that Baldwin's team was actively negotiating with Daenerys to extend the partnership.
This was because Justice League, the final film, wasn't slated for release until around 2000. With a four-year gap, if Baldwin didn't maintain his public presence, even his advertisers wouldn't be happy.
Aside from Baldwin, other actors in the DC series—Brad Pitt as Superman, Will Smith as Cyborg, Valeria Golino as Catwoman, Nicole Kidman as Poison Ivy—had all become major Hollywood players in recent years.
In this age of celebrity-driven media, high visibility equated to tangible financial benefits.
If Simon Westeros truly planned to create a Middle-earth cinematic universe after the DC and Conjuring Universes, CAA had to ensure its clients landed roles in it.
Because this was the most valuable resource in Hollywood right now.
Lovett's revelation caused a brief pause in the room. However, someone soon raised a concern. "But if Daenerys is looking to develop another cinematic universe, why not start with Marvel?"
As soon as the words were spoken, the speaker realized their mistake, noticing the puzzled looks from around the table.
That question was too foolish.
The DC Cinematic Universe was still at its peak. Even though Daenerys had to share the profits with Warner Bros., the benefits were substantial enough. Starting on Marvel now might allow Daenerys to claim all the profits, but what would happen to DC? They couldn't just drop it. Running both universes simultaneously would only lead to severe resource cannibalization.
Tolkien's Middle-earth series, on the other hand, was different.
Due to differences in audience and genre, the DC and Middle-earth universes might compete for some resources, but it wouldn't lead to severe cannibalization, much like how Daenerys's Jurassic Park series coexisted with the DC films.
The group discussed the matter further, and with that understanding in place, they began strategizing.
Michael Ovitz, who had long given up on switching to a major studio, ultimately decided to handle the situation personally. If Simon Westeros was willing to invest in a film just to give a director a trial run before developing Middle-earth, then CAA could certainly take steps to groom actors for the roles.
After all, the roles in the Middle-earth series were already well-defined.
And there were many of them.
Starting now, CAA would carefully select actors for those roles. When the time came, even if Simon wanted to distribute the roles among various agencies for balance, if CAA's candidates were strong enough, they could still secure a significant share.
As the meeting wrapped up, Ovitz specifically assigned Vice President Richard Lovett to reach out to Peter Jackson.
The New Zealand director was currently signed with WMA.
If they could poach him, that would be ideal.
But if they couldn't, building rapport through regular contact certainly wouldn't hurt.
With that decided, the group returned to the original agenda items. By the time the meeting ended, it was already past 6 PM. As Ovitz exited the room, he was greeted by one of the agency's managers, Mark Ferguson, who was accompanied by a black-haired woman—Mia Sara.
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