Hollywood: Behind The SpotLight Chapter 107

Behind The Spotlight Chapter 107

"We et again. It seems like you're doing great, Collin." Stan Gavin greeted his wealthy client with a polished smile and a firm handshake.

"Well, how can I not be happy when the investnts are doing great?" Collin replied, a faint smirk tugging at the corner of his lips.

"When was it again? I think you also invested around this ti of the month. Let see... I believe it was in Chapter 84, you know, to remind the readers."

"This ti I'm not going to invest more. I just want to know how much my investnt has increased so I can make a clear plan for the rest of the year."

In 1997, Collin didn't earn as much compared to his explosive gains in previous years. He earned about $6 million. An enormous sum for most people, more than many could dream of making in a lifeti. Perhaps Collin had beco numb to money because of his past successes.

There were several reasons why he didn't earn as much this year despite his relentless work ethic and sharp negotiation skills.

First was his commission. Collin's current commission rate had dropped to 5%. Furthermore, the SAG-AFTRA situation lowered his personal commission rate for Lawrence Terrence, impacting his earnings more than he had anticipated.

Second, Wyatt Bray didn't have a project last year, which ant Collin didn't earn anything from him. As much as Collin wanted to make money, he knew Wyatt needed a break. Forcing clients to work when they didn't want to would only burn them out and possibly damage their long-term careers. Besides, he didn't want Wyatt to lose his passion for filmmaking by being pressured into making one movie per year. Honestly, who in their right mind would even want that?

Third, there was a lack of job opportunities for his clients. Jennifer and Axel only had one project each last year. Their salaries weren't high enough for Collin to make a substantial profit. It didn't help that Axel couldn't find a job due to his recent scandal, while Jennifer was still fully committed to the demanding shooting schedule of The Singing Voice.

Fourth, the money Collin earned from being the producer of The Accidental Wedding Crashers had decreased. He only made about $1.8 million this year from his profit shares of the movie, most of it coming from videotape sales and broadcasting rights.

Collin felt like he needed to find another client to milk... That sounded diabolical, but it was the reality. The entertainnt business was brutal, and survival often required making decisions that sounded heartless on paper.

Unfortunately, Collin couldn't find a worthy client to sign. Now that he had a superpower to see through people's talent, he felt it was pointless to settle for soone diocre. He wanted another talent like Wyatt and Lawrence, soone who could dominate the industry and deliver massive returns.

'Still, I'm thankful that Lawrence's fa skyrocketed last year, giving many opportunities to earn money.'

In fact, $4 million of his earnings last year ca from Lawrence's salary and brand deals, which were plentiful thanks to Lawrence's charisma and growing influence in Hollywood.

Collin's 5% commission rate ca from the fact that the other 5% went to the rest of Lawrence's managent team.

Based on that, Collin handled about $80 million worth of negotiations last year, most of which involved Lawrence's movie salaries and brand deals. It wasn't an exaggeration to say Lawrence earned about $50 million in 1997 before taxes, his peak performance as an actor so far. Lawrence was the biggest winner here.

Collin was proud of Lawrence's accomplishnts. He had been there from the very beginning, steering Lawrence's career at every critical turn, and the millions he earned from Lawrence more than justified the countless hours spent networking and negotiating.

A few days ago, Collin had earned from negotiating Wyatt's salary, about $1.5 million, but that was 1998 inco, so it wasn't part of last year's total.

This ti, Collin didn't want to invest too heavily until he reassessed his financial goals.

Stan Gavin's face twitched when he heard that Collin didn't want to invest, but he had no choice but to remain professional, hiding any trace of disappointnt. He earned money from commissions when clients invested, so Collin's decision wasn't exactly music to his ears.

Still, he presented Collin's portfolio and explained how his investnts had grown, flipping through neatly prepared docunts with practiced ease.

Last year, after investing $2 million in each company, Collin's investnts were:

Macrosoft — $4.5 million

Cisko — $3.6 million

Intelligence — $3.4 million

Database Giant — $3.3 million

Now, in 1998, the amounts had increased to:

Macrosoft — $7.2 million

Cisko — $6.3 million

Intelligence — $5.1 million

Database Giant — $5.1 million

Collin couldn't help but smile at the sight of his growing investnts, the kind of smile only financial success could bring. Just as he expected, his chosen stockbroker was worth every commission fee. The companies Stan had recomnded were top-notch and consistently strong in their industries.

Suddenly, he felt a twinge of guilt for not investing more. He knew stockbrokers earned from commissions, but he still saw no reason to invest too heavily at the mont. He was eyeing a property in Beverly Hills as a potential long-term investnt.

"After thinking about it, I've decided to invest $250,000 in each company," Collin said after a long pause, finding a middle ground between restraint and opportunity.

Stan Gavin smiled and nodded, a subtle glint in his eyes at securing at least so profit.

"Of course, of course. I'll settle it quickly and give you the docuntation so you can review it at your convenience."

Macrosoft was best known for its software, particularly its Window operating system. Collin loved using computers with Macrosoft's OS and found it indispensable for work-related tasks.

Cisko specialized in hardware and telecommunications, and was currently expanding its internet provider services across multiple states.

Intelligence was a leading chip manufacturer, producing the core processors that powered many computers in the market.

Database Giant focused on database and enterprise software, increasingly essential for large businesses and governnt systems alike.

These companies were part of the dot-com boom, a rising group in the new tech economy, gaining relevance as technology and the internet surged in 1998.

...

...

...

Jennifer watched the show from backstage, keeping track of timing cues from the production team. The Singing Voice was now in its knockout rounds, where singers had to prove themselves to their coaches in tense, high-pressure performances, eliminating one contestant per round until only eight remained for the live broadcast, where the public would vote for the winner.

Only one contestant would win the $1 million prize and a record deal, making the competition fierce.

Jennifer's job as host had gone smoothly so far, with no major mishaps, and her fa had grown in recent weeks, helped by the steadily rising ratings of The Singing Voice, boosted by word-of-mouth.

The show's average viewership was now 30 million in the United States, an impressive figure considering the country's population of 270 million in 1998. More than 10% of the nation was tuning in, and the numbers continued to climb as the competition heated up.