[Chapter 262: Super Bowl Teaser]
After Christmas, Madonna, Catherine, Shania, Winona, and Cameron decided to make Linton Manor their permanent home. Of course, it didn't affect their daytime work schedules, but they would purposely return to the manor at night to throw lively, fantastic parties with Linton.
Once filming for Pulp Fiction and The Rock wrapped up, Winona and Sophie Marceau also moved in, making the night parties even more thrilling.
Others, like Cristiana, Monica, Jennifer Connelly, and Heidi Klum, had been jet-setting across the United States because of their busy schedules, but whenever they were in Los Angeles, they made it a point to join the evening celebrations at the manor.
Madonna naturally took on the role of the mistress, often preparing various props and organizing the ladies to put on stunning performances and come up with different engaging activities.
From prop shows to themed uniform displays and stocking showcases, every night brought a unique party theme and fresh acts and tricks.
This added a rich variety to the parties, letting Linton and everyone experience new and exciting things every evening.
Linton found himself reluctant to leave each day, eagerly looking forward to the parties at night.
Except for occasionally staying overnight at Winnie's villa, he declined all other invitations, including several from Nicole Kidman and Sharon Stone.
Even when Charlize flirted over the phone multiple times, inviting him to visit her set, he still refused.
With everyone's support and his own rising popularity, Linton's Starlight Spark energy had become perfectly harmonious, and it was the right moment to break through to the Celestial Presence stage.
Since achieving the Celestial Presence state would take significant time, and after forming the core, a large formation needed to be set up on the farm, he planned to stay there two months and publicly announced he would take a two-month vacation.
Before leaving, he called a meeting of top managers at the film company to review progress on various projects.
...
Pulp Fiction was currently in post-production and was expected to be completed by the end of February. After extensive discussion between the publicity and the crew, the promotional plan was to first enter the Cannes Film Festival and try to gain acclaim there, sell overseas rights, then come back to North America for release. This approach was standard for art house films.
At that time, the three major European film festivals still had a strong overseas influence. Winning awards at these festivals would greatly boost publicity and foreign rights sales.
Linton recalled that in his previous life, Pulp Fiction made a huge splash at Cannes, won the Palme d'Or, and went on to become a global box office success.
Since such a plan had been proven effective before, Linton naturally approved.
...
The Fault in Our Stars project was progressing well. Filming had begun and was expected to last 50 days.
Get Out was in preparation with casting completed, scheduled to start filming on February 5th with a two-month shooting period.
Frankly, Linton wasn't too worried about these projects. They were all low-budget, and thanks to a deep partnership with Universal, there was little risk of outside interference.
Even if there was interference, no serious resources would be devoted to undermining such small projects. Even heavy sabotage wouldn't cause him significant losses.
The key was The Rock -- there could be no mistakes; it had to be a box office hit.
...
"Boss, the release date for The Rock has been confirmed: June 10th."
"That's a good time slot. Any other blockbusters releasing then?"
"Not yet. Generally, major studios stagger releases and avoid clashing dates."
"Any word on Interview with the Vampire?"
"They haven't announced yet. I hope they don't recklessly go head-to-head with us."
"Prepare for the worst, but don't stress. If they want to fight, let them."
"With you here, we're confident." To Linton's surprise, Robert also learned to flatter him. Linton almost scolded him but instead asked, "Don't underestimate them, but stay strategic."
"Agreed, we'll give it our all."
"How are preparations going?"
"Boss, we've secured a Super Bowl ad slot for The Rock."
"How much?"
"2.4 million dollars. I heard this year's Super Bowl ad rate is $100,000 per second. Seems the organizers gave us a discount to expand Hollywood movie promotions."
"Not bad. Universal's negotiators are impressive. Finished editing the 30-second promo?"
"Yes, want to see it now?"
"Hold that, finish preparations first."
"Roger Moore's publicity materials are nearly ready, and his British intelligence service experience is confirmed by the agency."
"Good. Endorsement by British intelligence will definitely boost publicity."
"I've gathered almost all of Tom Cruise and Sean Connery's negative info. You might not know, but beneath their glamorous images, their scandals run deep beyond public imagination. If we leak these and Universal quietly hypes them up, Tom Cruise will be in trouble; Sean Connery might be finished."
"Coordinate with Universal on this. We won't start a war, but we aren't afraid of one either."
...
Linton, Robert, and Klinsmann then headed to the company's screening room to watch a 30-second promo for The Rock.
The video began with a massive explosion. Flames engulfed the screen, roaring as though the audience were there.
As the fire blazed, the title 'The Rock' appeared boldly.
A Hummer and a Mercedes raced through San Francisco's streets in a deadly chase. The Hummer led, crashing through obstacles at lightning speed, while the Mercedes took shortcuts, dodging through alleys and even flying out of windows.
Then a squadron of F-18 Hornets flew over the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz Island. After one dropped a bomb, the fleet performed a near 90-degree vertical climb.
The scene switched to the bomb's first-person perspective falling fast toward Alcatraz, which grew clearer with every second.
Finally, the bomb hit the island, erupting into a blazing inferno, like a meteor crashing to Earth.
"The Rock" would release on June 10th, promising thrilling entertainment.
Clearly, Michael Bay put great effort into this teaser. Cars, explosions, and intense chases -- exactly what summer audiences crave. It captured the movie's spirit perfectly. No wonder he's nicknamed "Explosive Bay".
It was a sure hit. Even the three film professionals watching were visibly excited and eager for the full movie.
*****
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