"Hey, Mr. Eisner, it's Dunn."
Dunn's voice on the phone had a smug, punchable edge.
"Oh, what's up?" Michael Eisner replied, keeping his cool.
Dunn chuckled. "Just wanted to congratulate you! Unbreakable pulled in $26.75 million in a single week—beat Saw by a cool couple million. Looks like Disney's the winner this time. Big studio muscle, huh? Impressive stuff!"
On the surface, it sounded like Dunn was conceding to Disney, but his tone—dripping with sarcasm and a hint of mockery—told a different story.
This was Saw's fourth week in theaters, and its North American box office had soared past $57 million.
Meanwhile, Unbreakable's opening week couldn't touch How the Grinch Stole Christmas's $82 million or X-Men's $64 million. It didn't even beat Charlie's Angels—only edging out Saw by a measly $1.75 million!
With a $75 million production budget and $45 million in marketing, Unbreakable's $26.75 million debut was a colossal flop.
By contrast, Saw was a historic triumph. In terms of profit margin, it could wipe the floor with Spider-Man!
So when Dunn called up Michael Eisner with this "sincere" congrats, the sarcasm and taunting behind it were painfully obvious.
On the other end, Eisner stayed silent for a long stretch. Dunn didn't rush him—just waited.
Finally, Eisner's voice came through, low and heavy. "Dunn, it's time to put the blacklist thing to bed."
Dunn's lips curled into a smirk. Lounging in the film crew's break room, he sipped his coffee with a loud slurp, then drawled, "Blacklist? I'm not in a hurry. Heh, what I'm really curious about right now is your old pal Joe Roth."
Eisner's brow furrowed. He got Dunn's drift. After a pause, he said flatly, "If Unbreakable doesn't bounce back next week, I've got grounds to question Joe's competence in front of the board."
Dunn scoffed, unimpressed. "Next week? There's four or five big commercial flicks in theaters right now, and more new releases coming. You really think Unbreakable's got a shot at a comeback?"
Eisner's tone hardened. "Disney's not Dunn Films. We do things by the board's rules here!"
"Fine, let's all play by the rules then. My terms haven't changed." Dunn leaned back, cocky and carefree—he wasn't the one sweating. "Besides, Disney's been greenlighting new projects left and right. I haven't blacklisted a single actor. The whole 'blacklist' thing? Just talk. It's meaningless."
Eisner's temper flared. Dunn playing dumb like this—he had no counter for it.
What he cared about wasn't Dunn Films' blacklist.
He cared about Disney's dignity!
A titan like Disney, blacklisted by a scrappy little outfit like Dunn Films for months with no resolution? His reputation was in tatters.
"Alright, you'll hear something by the end of this month or early next," Eisner snapped, clearly fed up.
Dunn's rudeness and arrogance were infuriating!
Fast forward to December, and Dunn's fourth directorial effort, A Beautiful Mind, wrapped production!
After over three months of shooting, he was back in Los Angeles.
Year-end meant a pile of work, and Dunn finally had time to tackle it.
First up: the blacklist.
Just yesterday, Disney had axed Joe Roth as head of production, handing the reins to Richard Cook.
"Mr. Eisner, it's Dunn!"
Back in his office, Dunn kicked his feet up on the desk, reclining in his chair, and dialed Michael Eisner again.
"What's up?" Eisner's voice was muffled, his mood obviously sour.
Joe Roth, one of his loyal lieutenants, had been forced out by Dunn's pressure—a humiliating blow to his career.
Dunn grinned. "So, Saw just crossed $70 million at the box office. Not bad, huh? The team's planning a little celebration party. I told them it's not worth it—$70 million's no big deal—but they insisted…"
"Enough!" Eisner cut him off, bristling at Dunn's fake modesty. A $1.5 million movie raking in over $70 million in North America, and it's "no big deal"?
Quit pretending, you smug jerk!
Eisner was fuming. "Get to the point. I've got a meeting."
Dunn switched to a soothing tone, like he was the wise elder. "Mr. Eisner, come on, don't be like that. Sure, we've had some rough patches lately, but that's all behind us now, right? We teamed up and took down that jerk Joe Roth…"
"Hold on!" Eisner's voice sharpened. "What's that? Teamed up? Don't talk nonsense!"
Dunn chuckled, all carefree swagger. "Close enough! Joe Roth was my old nemesis, and you helped me get him canned. We made a good team this time. Let's let bygones be bygones. I'm a big-picture guy—my best trait!"
Eisner gritted his teeth at Dunn's shamelessness, keeping his response icy. "What about the blacklist? How're you handling it?"
"Done! Like I said, the past is the past. We're moving forward. The blacklist was just a misunderstanding! How about this: tonight, third floor of the Beverly Hills Hilton, Saw's throwing a celebration party. I'd love for you to come!"
Eisner wanted nothing to do with it. Last time, he'd crashed Spider-Man's party uninvited and made a fool of himself.
Now, Saw had squeezed Unbreakable's breathing room—another nightmare for Disney, just like Spider-Man. Celebrate? His heart was bleeding!
Dunn, sharp as ever, didn't give him a chance to say no. "Look, I get it—the blacklist hit Disney's industry cred hard. Since we're both ready to bury the hatchet, let's figure out a clean way to wrap this up. We'll sort it out together."
The blacklist was a thorn in Eisner's side.
He was sick of it. He just wanted this absurdity over with, to get Disney back on track.
"Dunn, our book's about to blow up!" Isla Fisher had been tied up revising her new novel, Gone Girl, for weeks. Now, it was finalized and off to the publisher.
Dunn, still savoring his chat with Eisner, flashed a smug grin. Seeing his little secretary Isla stroll in, he waved her over.
She smirked, plopped right onto his lap, and wrapped her arms around him tight.
"Didn't it just go to the publisher? Already a hit?"
"There's buzz already! Second-tier distributors have ordered over 500,000 copies!" Isla couldn't hide her excitement, her hands looped around his neck, her sweet breath brushing his face. "You don't get it—my last two books combined sold maybe 3,000 copies."
"Really? Sounds like your writing's leveled up big time."
"Nah, I know the truth—it's your story that's gold. And… the booksellers are only ordering this much because your name's on it." Her eyes sparkled with admiration.
Dunn smiled. "I heard you're thinking of ditching acting to focus on writing?"
Isla giggled. "Acting's whatever. Writing's where it's at—way classier than showbiz."
Dunn shook his head. "By the way, Spider-Man's about to wrap its run. How's the distribution side looking?"
"They're set to pull it December 25th. Universal's negotiating with some TV networks for cable rights. Word is, they turned down a $20 million offer from A Network."
"$20 million?" Dunn scowled, annoyed. "Tell Universal anything under $30 million, TARZ TV's taking it! Damn it, my own movie, and Universal's got the reins. Frustrating as hell."
Isla pursed her lips. "Aren't you planning to buy Universal? Once that's done, you'll control distribution—your movies airing on your own network."
Dunn nodded firmly. "Exactly. Movies, TV, animation, games, publishing, music—it's a closed-loop entertainment ecosystem. Turning the company into a full-blown conglomerate takes time, but short-term, Universal Pictures is the key!"
Isla, just a secretary, didn't quite follow. "Oh, and Universal said they're working with VH Video and DVD factories on two editions—standard version's $19…"
Dunn waved it off. "Let Universal sweat that stuff. They get 10%—they'll push it hard. I'm not stressing over it."
"Also, Mr. Ovitz wants to meet. Legendary Pictures' second co-financing project's ready to lock in partners—he needs to talk it over with you."
"Cool, set it for tomorrow afternoon. I'll head over myself. Sort out the schedule."
"And Six Feet Under wrapped filming. The TV team's asking if they should loop in TARZ TV. The show's tone doesn't really match TARZ's past lineup."
"No need! TARZ's old strategy's gotta change—it's gotta lean on Dunn Films' TV division to thrive. That's the future. Forget it, just get Bill in here—I'll talk to him myself!"
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