Simon only rested for less than five hours, waking up early at 8 AM the next day.
To save time, he didn't plan to drive back himself this time; the crew would hire a designated driver to take the SUV back to Los Angeles.
After a simple breakfast and saying goodbye to everyone, Edward Feldman, the producer of 'Near Dark', drove him to Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.
Due to the time difference, when they arrived in Los Angeles, it was still only 9 AM.
Los Angeles International Airport.
Simon got off the plane and walked to the arrival hall, looking around.
Last night, he had called Janette to pick him up, but unexpectedly, Jonathan's assistant, Owen Wright, appeared.
Owen Wright quickly spotted Simon, hurried over, and without bothering to exchange pleasantries, handed him a pair of sunglasses, saying, "Simon, you'd better put these on".
The arrival hall wasn't particularly crowded at that time, and before Owen Wright could remind him further, Simon had already seen seven or eight people with cameras jogging towards them from all directions.
Someone even eagerly raised their camera and pressed the shutter, and a series of flashes immediately lit up the area.
With the commotion, many eyes in the hall also turned towards them.
Although this was the first time in two lifetimes that he had encountered such a situation, Simon didn't panic.
He put on his sunglasses, picked up the suitcase he had been dragging behind him, and hurried out of the hall with Owen Wright.
Seeing Simon and Owen quicken their pace, intending to leave, the paparazzi once again jogged after them, surrounding the two tightly from all sides, continuing to take photos while bombarding them with questions.
"Simon, can you stop and say a few words?"
"Simon, 'Run Lola Run' was the box office champion last weekend, what are your thoughts?"
"Simon, I heard you're looking for partners for your new script, asking for a 10% share of the North American box office, do you think that's possible?"
"Simon..."
Buzz, buzz, buzz.
Amidst the chaotic questions, Simon simply lowered his head slightly in silence, squeezing through the gaps between the paparazzi with Owen Wright, slowly moving outward, not daring to use too much force.
He had heard news of Sylvester Stallone being 'catfished' by paparazzi in Arizona and didn't want to encounter such trouble right after returning to Los Angeles.
They arrived at the parking lot with some difficulty, got into the car, and it wasn't until they drove onto the highway around the airport that Simon finally breathed a sigh of relief.
However, he quickly noticed that all the paparazzi from earlier were following Owen Wright's car.
Owen, in the front driver's seat, glanced at the rearview mirror and smiled, saying, "Simon, how does it feel to be famous?"
Simon honestly replied, "I feel like hitting someone".
"Heh, you'll get used to it later. This number of people is actually quite small.
Your sudden return must have been due to reporters from Arizona contacting them on short notice," Owen pressed the accelerator, speeding up a bit, and then continued, "Miss Johnston originally planned to pick you up, but when she was about to leave her house, she found it surrounded. She had to call Joe, and then I came".
Upon hearing this, Simon immediately asked with concern, "What happened?"
Owen made a 'calm down' gesture to Simon, who was leaning forward from the back seat, and said, "Didn't you tell reporters last night that you have a girlfriend?"
Simon said in surprise, "I didn't say Janette's name, and how did this spread so fast, even you know about it?"
"With thousands of newspapers across the country, how can there be sales if it's not fast? But don't worry, those paparazzi are generally rule-abiding. As long as Miss Johnston doesn't leave her house, there won't be any problems.
After a few days, when the news about this matter has been sufficiently hyped, the paparazzi blocking her house will disperse," Owen explained, then asked, "Simon, where are you going now? I suggest you don't go to Miss Johnston's place; that will only bring more paparazzi".
Simon thought for a moment.
Since Janette was already blocked at home, there must be people staking out his villa in the Montana district as well.
After a moment of consideration, Simon made a decision, saying, "Let's go to WMA headquarters. It just so happens that I also have something to discuss with Jon".
Owen nodded, saying, "Jon actually wants to talk to you as soon as possible. In the month you've been away, especially in the last two weeks, there have been all sorts of people seeking collaborations, requesting interviews, and asking for information.
They couldn't find you, so they could only contact us. Jon is almost driven crazy, and even I have to fend off dozens of calls about you every day".
Although he had already clearly felt the changes around him in Arizona, Simon still smiled and said, "It's not that exaggerated, is it?".
Owen looked at Simon again through the rearview mirror and then said, "It seems you're still not quite clear about your current situation, Simon. 'Run Lola Run' has a very good chance of topping this year's North American box office.
Think about how glorious Tom Cruise was after 'Top Gun' was a huge box office success last year. Now, you're the same".
Simon noticed a paparazzi on a motorcycle outside the car window, performing a difficult one-handed camera operation, taking futile photos of the car window.
He nodded, said nothing more, and began to re-evaluate his upcoming plans.
More than twenty minutes later, Owen parked the car in the parking lot in front of WMA headquarters.
Before the paparazzi could surround them again, the two hurried into the WMA headquarters building.
It was the busy time right after work started, and the WMA headquarters building was bustling with people coming and going.
Noticing Owen Wright entering with a young man, most people were initially puzzled.
As some who recognized Simon eagerly came forward to greet him, everyone quickly realized Simon's identity.
So, they either nodded in acknowledgment or actively came forward to chat.
Amidst this lively atmosphere, they arrived outside Jonathan Friedman's office, where the agent was already waiting to greet them.
"Simon, you're finally back".
Jonathan greeted Simon, came forward, and hugged him.
After releasing him, he patted him on the shoulder, then led him into his office amidst the envious glances of other WMA employees and clients.
Entering the office, Jonathan gestured for Simon to sit on the sofa in the reception area, but he himself turned to his desk, taking out a thick stack of folders from the filing cabinet.
Simon watched his agent busy himself, but instead of going to the reception area, he came to his desk, pointed to the desk phone, and said, "Jon, I want to call Janette first".
"Of course," Jonathan nodded understandingly, placed the stack of folders on his desk, and casually pressed them down, saying, "You go ahead and call. I just happen to need to step out for a moment; the mailroom just said there's a document that requires my personal signature".
Simon smiled as he watched his agent leave the office, then picked up the receiver and dialled Janette's number.
Having spent so much time together, Simon had also discovered that Janette was someone who really disliked answering the phone.
The phone rang for quite a while before someone picked up, giving a lazy hum.
A smile appeared at the corner of Simon's mouth as he said, "Janette, it's me".
Hearing Simon's voice, Janette on the other end of the phone finally perked up, but then immediately began to scold Simon for bringing a whole bunch of paparazzi to her.
After chatting for a while, under the woman's insistence, and despite knowing that going to Malibu would certainly attract more paparazzi, Simon finally promised Janette that he would go as soon as he finished talking with Jonathan.
After hanging up the phone, Jonathan, who had clearly been waiting outside for a while, pushed the door open and walked in.
The two went to the reception area and sat down together, and Owen Wright brought in two cups of coffee.
Once Owen left, Jonathan began to introduce the stack of folders one by one, handing them to Simon, saying, "Simon, these are some files and memos related to you from the past few weeks. From the media, from production studios, from other filmmakers. I've told you about some of them on the phone. However, it's best if you take a look yourself".
Simon nodded in response, even opening one folder and glancing through it.
Jonathan waited for Simon to flip through a few pages of documents, then handed him two scripts, saying, "Also, regarding the screenwriter named Nora Ephron you asked me to look into, she happens to have two scripts under her name.
One is a crime comedy called 'Cookie' which I think is pretty good, but it's already been bought by Warner Bros. The other is a romantic comedy called 'When Harry Met Sally' with a very unique plot structure.
However, perhaps because it deviates too much from the mainstream, no production studio has yet taken an interest in this story".
Simon took the two scripts, still smiling, and casually flipped through them.
Jonathan observed Simon's expression, then handed him the last folder, saying, "Finally, regarding 'Final Destination' after I released the news as you requested, in the past few days, Warner, MGM, Columbia, as well as second-tier companies like Cannon and New Line, have all inquired about it.
Although they haven't given a definite reply, the heads of these companies all expressed hope that they could talk to you personally".
Simon took the last folder, opened it, and it turned out to be Jonathan's assessment of the possibility of collaboration between Warner and other companies on the 'Final Destination' project.
After a quick glance, Simon also placed the document in front of him, then looked at Jonathan and said, "Jon, I think we should discuss the new contract first".
The contract Simon originally signed with Jonathan was purely a script agency contract, with a term of three years.
But now, with Simon's rapid rise in Hollywood thanks to 'Run Lola Run', if the two were to continue their collaboration, the original contract would certainly no longer be suitable.
Jonathan, at this moment, piled this large stack of script files and memos in front of Simon, both to show that he had invested sufficient energy in him, and also to remind Simon that they needed to renegotiate the contract.
Therefore, when Jonathan heard Simon speak first, he simply smiled and nodded, waiting for him to continue.
Simon was not a stingy person, so he naturally wouldn't let Jonathan do the work of a full agent while only taking a script agent's commission.
However, considering his development plans for the next few years, Simon also couldn't sign a percentage-based contract with Jonathan.
After re-organizing his thoughts, Simon said, "Jon, I had already considered this before I came back. Going forward, I hope we can sign a fixed salary contract, three years, $500,000. What do you think?"
When Jonathan heard the terms Simon offered, a hint of disappointment flashed in his eyes, and he remained silent for a moment.
Simon noticed the change in Jonathan's expression and realized that his previous words had been ambiguous, so he quickly explained, "You misunderstood, Jon. It's $500,000 per year, not $500,000 for three years".
Jonathan had some understanding of the profits Simon was about to gain from 'Run Lola Run'.
From the details he knew, Simon personally would definitely receive no less than $20 million from the distribution of 'Run Lola Run' through various channels.
Given such a huge sum, it was understandable that he was unwilling to sign a percentage-based agency agreement with him anymore.
However, initially thinking Simon was only offering him a total fixed salary of $500,000 for three years, even though that offer wasn't strictly too low, if Simon insisted, Jonathan would have agreed to maintain the partnership with this young man and secure opportunities for his other clients, but disappointment in Simon would have been inevitable.
Now, $500,000 per year, Jonathan Friedman immediately had no complaints.
In this era, only a very small number of A-list stars could command salaries of $5 million, and these individuals often only took on one starring role every one or two years.
Therefore, on average, the commission they brought to their agents each year was certainly less than $500,000.
Simon's offer essentially placed him in the position of an A-list star who made one full-salary film per year on average.
Although he had a premonition that this young man's future annual income would definitely be more than that, as an agent, Jonathan also understood that he couldn't ask for more.
A smile appeared on his face, and Jonathan readily extended his hand to Simon, saying, "Then, it's a pleasure to work with you".
Simon also extended his hand to his agent, saying, "And it's a pleasure to work with you".
There was no rush to change the contract, and Jonathan immediately began to explain the series of documents in detail to Simon.
However, after less than half an hour of discussion, the phone on Jonathan's desk rang.
Jonathan gestured to Simon to wait, walked over, picked up the phone, and spoke a few words to the person on the other end.
Then he cupped the receiver and quickly whispered "Goldberg" to Simon before continuing his conversation with the other party.
Simon didn't get up, but simply listened quietly to Jonathan's conversation with Ronald Goldberg, the president of Fox Studios.
A moment later, after hanging up the phone, Jonathan said to Simon, who already had a general understanding of the situation, "Goldberg wants to invite you to lunch today. And, from what he just said, Fox should have agreed to your terms".
As Jonathan spoke, his expression still clearly showed some disbelief.
10% of the North American box office share, 5% of the video sales share.
Even Spielberg wouldn't casually propose such demanding terms, yet Fox was actually going to agree to them.
This was truly incredible.
Although he had diligently communicated with the film companies on Simon's behalf, Jonathan had originally only thought that after some bargaining, it would be extremely rare for Simon to ultimately get half of the terms he proposed.