After handling the company's basic affairs, Ethan went to the screenwriting department.
As soon as he pushed open the conference room door, he heard the screenwriters inside engaged in a heated discussion about the plot of Lucy.
"I believe Lucy must grow step by step. You can't deprive her of her growth process."
"But you have to consider the audience's viewing experience! Adding so many scenes will make it feel excessively long!"
"But if we don't add them, Lucy won't truly become omnipresent. This is just a small artistic concession we're making for the film!"
"A small concession? I think the box office is more important!"
"Box office? Is that all you care about? You're so shallow!"
"FXXK YOU! Who are you calling shallow?!"
The two were arguing fiercely. Just then, Ethan entered the room, and one of the screenwriters immediately spoke up: "Ethan's here!"
At these words, the two who had been quarreling instantly stopped and turned to look at Ethan.
Ethan walked into the conference room and glanced at the two arguing parties.
One was a bald, muscular man who looked nothing like a screenwriter—he seemed more suited to be a thug in a movie.
The other was an overweight man with a belly full of fat. He insisted on prioritizing the artistic value of the film, but since he couldn't physically compete with the muscle-bound man, he could only tilt his head back, his face red as he shouted in defiance.
"Trist, Victor, what's going on?"
The former was the bald, muscular man's name, and the latter was the fat man's.
Ethan sat at the head of the table and looked at the script in front of them.
"Ethan, it's like this—I believe Lucy's character growth must include these scenes..." Victor, seeing that their leader had arrived, immediately handed over the script for Ethan to review.
The movie Lucy tells a sci-fi story.
An American citizen, Lucy, originally an ordinary person living in Seoul.
But due to her boyfriend's deception, she became a drug mule, unknowingly transporting drugs.
One day, her boyfriend handed her a case containing an immensely valuable new drug called CPH4, asking her to deliver it to Mr. Zhang, the mastermind behind the drug trade.
However, as soon as Lucy entered the hotel, she witnessed her boyfriend being killed and was forcibly taken to Mr. Zhang.
Mr. Zhang didn't kill her; instead, he had the CPH4 sewn into her abdomen, along with three other drug mules, ordering them to smuggle the drugs into Europe.
During the process, Lucy was kicked in the stomach, causing the drugs to leak into her bloodstream and nervous system.
Yet instead of dying, she gained various superpowers, transforming into a true superhuman.
She attempted to kill Mr. Zhang but failed, only managing to eliminate his subordinates.
However, as she used her powers, she discovered her body was deteriorating rapidly. She had no choice but to seek out Professor Norman, the only person who could help her. From him, she learned that the only way to preserve her life was to take more CPH4.
So Lucy teamed up with a police officer to collect all the CPH4 and ingested it.
But after consuming all the CPH4, her body transformed into a black substance, and her consciousness traveled through time, interacting with the earliest human ancestor.
At this moment, Mr. Zhang arrived, attempting to kill Lucy.
But his bullets missed—Lucy's physical form had vanished, and she had transformed into an omnipresent, all-knowing next-generation supercomputer.
Mr. Zhang was eventually killed by others, while Lucy turned herself into a USB drive and handed it to Professor Norman.
This is the general plotline of Lucy.
It contains many elements—superpowers, crime, action, gunfights, and philosophy.
But Ethan saw a major flaw in the movie.
A character who ultimately becomes an all-knowing, omnipotent supercomputer is constantly entangled with a mere crime boss.
It felt incredibly low-tier, almost laughable.
Of course, this was the director's fault. After all, the original film was directed by Luc Besson, who paid tribute to many classic scenes, including those from his own work Léon: The Professional.
His love for gangster films was well known, but Ethan believed Lucy had the potential to be on a much grander scale!
It could even serve as the foundation for a new cinematic universe.
So he made the following modifications:
First, he changed the setting from Taipei to Seoul. The original movie was set in Taipei due to influence from Chinese producers.
But since Ethan was now directing and funding it, there was no need to compromise. He repositioned the antagonist as the head of a transnational drug cartel with numerous superpowered subordinates.
That's right—if Lucy could gain superpowers from the drug, why couldn't others do the same through different means?
It wouldn't make sense otherwise.
A world with only one superpowered individual wouldn't feel convincing.
So Ethan directly reworked the setting, creating a Superpowered Universe.
This way, Lucy's battles against others would be more engaging. Otherwise, watching an invincible being slaughter ordinary people might be satisfying, but it wouldn't be visually exciting.
Of course, Lucy was far stronger than the other superpowered individuals—she was essentially the Captain Marvel of this universe.
Ordinary superpowered beings were mere trash in her eyes.
Secondly, Ethan elevated Mr. Zhang to the role of the ultimate antagonist while introducing smaller villains. For instance, the hotel where Lucy initially delivered the drugs was now controlled by one of these minor antagonists.
This served two purposes:
1. It established Mr. Zhang's status—after all, if he had to personally oversee a mere drug transport operation, it would make him seem low-level.
2. It allowed Lucy to defeat a minor villain early on, providing instant gratification for the audience while smoothly introducing the ultimate antagonist.
Additionally, Ethan instructed the screenwriters to build a detailed superpowered world.
For example, why was Mr. Zhang's drug cartel so powerful?
In this world, mega-corporations were the true rulers, while nations were just loose coalitions that had lost their former authority.
That's right—Ethan borrowed elements from cyberpunk to construct his Superpowered Universe.
Even cybernetic enhancements were included in his vision, adding a new level of excitement for the audience.
Beyond this, he also adjusted the pacing and duration. The original movie was only 90 minutes long, but now it had been extended to two hours.
Although the runtime increased, the pacing was much faster. The original film had many unnecessarily drawn-out scenes, focusing on unimportant details.
Ethan removed all of them, ensuring the movie remained gripping from start to finish.
However, despite Ethan's clear vision, some screenwriters still insisted the film should have deeper artistic and philosophical elements.
Like Victor.
Ethan skimmed through Victor's script and raised an eyebrow.
"Why do you want Lucy to keep suffering after gaining superpowers?"
Victor had written several scenes where Lucy was tricked and humiliated. Just reading them was frustrating.
"Because it's inevitable. Superpowers can't solve everything. Lucy must endure hardships to understand the complexities of life," Victor said earnestly, convinced of his genius idea.
Imagine—a superpowered individual who keeps failing despite her abilities. Thinking she can solve everything with superpowers, only to make things worse. Wouldn't that be thought-provoking?
Victor believed Ethan, who had directed No Country for Old Men, would appreciate his perspective.
He looked at Ethan expectantly.
Silence.
Then Ethan spoke: "Let's call it a day. Abby, refine the world-building details."
"Got it."
"Nasu, finish the character backgrounds. I want them by the end of the day."
"Understood."
"Trist, revise the first two acts."
"Will do."
"Alright, meeting dismissed."
Victor hesitated. "What about me, Ethan?"
Ethan smiled and patted his shoulder. "Put your work on hold for now. I think your ideas are great, so…"
Half an hour later, Victor stood by the roadside, clutching a box, his face twisted in fury.
"FXXK! He doesn't understand art! He's a tyrant! SHXT! He must've bought those Oscars!"
HR had already informed him he was fired. The severance pay was fair, but the humiliation of being kicked out was unbearable.
He was a well-known Hollywood screenwriter—how could he tolerate such disgrace?
He immediately decided to write an article ruthlessly criticizing Ethan.
Meanwhile, Ethan was giving Yuffie further instructions.
"In the future, avoid hiring these 'art-house' screenwriters. Their thinking is too rigid."
"Understood, boss." Yuffie adjusted her glasses.
"Mm, I'll head to Digital Domain in the afternoon."
Digital Domain had regained its foothold in Hollywood after Inception and, with Ethan investing heavily to poach several top industry experts, their facial capture, motion capture, and 3D scene effects had become even more refined.
Combined with their original expertise in particle effects, they were the perfect fit for Lucy's needs.
So, Ethan entrusted Lucy to Digital Domain, instructing them to focus all efforts on modeling.
"However, you also have a scheduled meeting this afternoon with the organizer of the New York Metropolitan Museum Charity Gala," Yuffie reminded him professionally.
"Oh, right." Ethan had been completely immersed in Lucy and had momentarily forgotten about this.
"Alright, I'll meet them first."
From its name alone, one could tell what the New York Metropolitan Museum Charity Gala was about. Ethan had participated before.
But this time was different. This time, the museum's management had specifically sought out Ethan, inviting him to serve as this year's honorary chairperson, responsible for designing the theme of the gala.
Ethan agreed. This was another way to boost his reputation—especially in the fashion world. Holding the title of honorary chairperson was a form of recognition and a prestigious honor.
Thus, after meeting with the organizer, they quickly settled on this year's theme: American Women: A New Perspective.
Feminism was a hot topic, with marches and demonstrations gaining widespread recognition across society. Many individuals promoting feminism had also reaped significant benefits.
Even Camila, an author who wrote exclusively for women, had been invited to various talk shows to advocate for women's rights.
However, Carmela wasn't truly a feminist—or at least, she had little in common with the radical faction. She leaned more toward the idea of husbands and wives fulfilling their respective roles and raising a family together.
But under Ethan's advice, she refrained from expressing her actual views.
After all, no one wants to turn down money.
If young readers deemed her ideology outdated, it would inevitably impact the sales of the Fifty Shades of Grey series—and, by extension, the films.
A prime example was J.K. Rowling in later years. Due to her controversial remarks on transgender issues—such as disagreeing with transgender individuals using restrooms based on their self-identified gender—she was subjected to mass online backlash. Even Harry Potter fans publicly denounced her.
Not even the actors were willing to speak up for the mother of Harry Potter.
It confirmed a certain theory: in reality, minority groups often hold the upper hand in public discourse. Because they must actively advocate for their rights, they create the illusion of having a larger voice.
Ethan had long been wary of this. He had never publicly commented on topics like transgender rights or homosexuality to avoid being "blacklisted" by fans and having his films boycotted.
With the internet evolving, public discourse had increasingly turned into a cesspool. Those immersed in it would inevitably be tainted, so maintaining a clean reputation was crucial.
After finalizing the museum's art theme, Ethan drove to Digital Domain.
There, he met the top technical expert he had poached from Industrial Light & Magic—Salomon Ambrose.
This man had been a core member of the Avatar team, indispensable to its success. Initially, Ethan had no chance of recruiting him, but due to a failed investment that left Salomon heavily in debt, he was swayed by a high salary and company shares.
And Salomon wasn't the only one. Throughout the financial crisis this year, Ethan had poached plenty of talent.
After all, opportunities like this were rare.
As a result, Digital Domain's capabilities had grown significantly, and their VFX techniques had become more diverse.
"Ethan, we've already solved most of the visual effects challenges you needed," Salomon Ambrose said, demonstrating on his computer.
On-screen was a fully rendered 3D character, with cybernetic implants on the arms and head. When the camera zoomed in, one could see the highly detailed textures and materials of the implants, as well as light reflections shifting with the angle.
This effect, in gaming, was known as real-time lighting. Of course, this was only a simplified version.
And unlike in games, this wasn't true real-time lighting—rather, it was manually adjusted lighting.
Nonetheless, the result was incredibly realistic. The high-resolution model, paired with precise lighting, made the cybernetic limbs look as authentic as real-world prosthetics.
Compared to most of the visual effects in current films, this was on an entirely different level. Only the yet-to-be-released Avatar was superior.
But Avatar's budget was several times that of Lucy, so Ethan felt that, at this standard, his film was already far ahead of its contemporaries.
....
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