Illusiveone
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183: Redoing my Life, The Space Movie
🕑 Added 2025-03-20 09:58:09 +0000 UTCWhile Margot’s PR crisis was being dealt with, I made a trip to Stardust Studios. I rarely visited this year because I was busy with DC, Midas, and everything else.
They didn’t really need me; the animation studio had been working on Percy Jackson for Netflix, and they were also working on The Incredibles, which was written by me. Sam, who was heading the studio, was working on IT, whose rights I had gotten from Stephen King.
They released two other movies this year. One was a flop, and the other was a success—a comedy movie that I found quite funny. Of course, the big movie they were banking on was IT, whose screening I was here to see.
To my pleasant surprise, the final product exceeded my expectations. It was leagues better than the version from my old world, and that was saying something. Sam had poured blood and sweat into making it perfect, and it showed. Bill Skarsgård’s performance as Pennywise was genuinely terrifying. There were moments so unsettling that I actually felt the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.
We were in the private screening room, a select group of us watching the final cut. Among the attendees was Christopher Nolan himself, which wasn’t a coincidence—he had come to discuss some future projects he was interested in developing with Stardust.
Nolan had made his intentions known to us: he wanted to make movies with Stardust after he finished The Dark Knight, which, to me, Sam, Chris, and the executives, was great news. Nolan was a man who could generate serious box office numbers, and I had a suspicion about which movie he wanted to make with Stardust next.
He’d been telling me how he wanted to make a movie in space—he’d been rewatching a lot of Star Wars and 2001: A Space Odyssey lately while we were writing the script for The Dark Knight.
The final scene of IT played out—the Losers’ Club making their blood pact and leaving behind the horror of Derry… for now.
The credits rolled.
For a brief moment, there was silence—the perfect, eerie kind of silence that tells you yeah, that was a damn good movie. Then the applause started. It was scattered at first, but within seconds, the entire room was clapping. Some were even cheering.
“It’s great,” I said to Sam, who was standing next to me.
We began walking out of the screening room, and I was with Chris Henderson, the CEO and the unofficial head of Stardust’s animation department. Chris and I hadn’t seen each other in a while—not since the last board meeting.
“Daniel!”
“Chris, you look a bit… big, my friend,” I observed, noticing how the fit, tall man seemed to be putting on a little weight.
Chris shot me an annoyed look. “Come on, you too?”
“Hey, I’m just making an observation,” I said, raising my hands in defense.
“You could maybe be a little less observant.”
I smirked but decided to drop it—no need to push my luck.
Chris cleared his throat and changed the subject. “Listen, I wanted to talk to you about The Incredibles.”
I raised an eyebrow. “What about it?”
“I want you to come in and take a look at the progress,” Chris said. “Like you did with Toy Story and Finding Nemo. You helped find problems and fix scenes—after all, you are the creator.”
I let out a sigh. “Chris, I don’t know… I’m really busy right now.”
“Just a couple of days,” Chris insisted. “I really feel like something bad will happen if you’re not involved.”
I chuckled. “That sounds like some astrology bullshit.”
Chris shrugged. “Maybe it is. But let’s be honest—you’re kind of the reason we’re here anyway.”
I gave him a long look, then exhaled. “Fine.”
Chris grinned.
“Just to be clear, Wonder Woman is coming out in a few months, and I will be busy with that,” I reminded him. “And whatever Nolan wants to do with us.”
Chris nodded. “Yeah, I get it. It’s great that Nolan will be continuing to make movies with us. That’s huge. Everyone’s excited—especially the shareholders—and for Wonder Woman too.”
I narrowed my eyes. “Really?”
That wasn’t the vibe I’d gotten a few months ago. Many on the board didn’t believe Wonder Woman would be a big hit. Some still didn’t. There had even been attempts to cut the film’s budget during production under the excuse that a female-led superhero film wouldn’t perform well. Idiots.
Chris gave me a knowing look. “Yeah, well, you know how it is. Some of them are still stuck in their ways.”
I scoffed. “Fucking morons, the lot of them.”
“Let’s not talk about DC. Let Dave handle that while you help me.” he paused and spoke after a moment
“I wanted to talk about sequels, Danny. We made three Toy Story’s to great success. Some have floated the idea of doing a second Finding Nemo.”
I stopped walking.
“Chris,” I said slowly. “What the hell are you talking about? They found Nemo in the first one. It's over.”
Chris shrugged. “Maybe this time, Marlin is the one who gets lost.”
I sighed, rubbing my forehead. “No, Chris. Just… no. The Incredibles has a real chance to be a franchise. Let’s focus on making that one good.”
Chris sighed but nodded. “Yeah, I guess you’re right…”
“I’ll catch up with you at the studio after I talk to Nolan,” I said as I turned back toward the hall. But then I stopped and turned around. “Wait a second.”
“If someone pitched a Finding Nemo sequel, did…?”
“Yes, Toy Story 4 was also suggested,” Chris began.
I didn’t respond and simply gave him a glare and walked away.
.
.
.
I found Nolan, Sam, and another executive I recognized talking in Sam’s office. The executive saw me first. I tried to remember his name and, after a moment, it clicked—Jacob Lester.
“Ah, Mr. Adler,” Lester said, drawing Sam and Nolan’s attention to me.
“We were just talking about you,” Nolan added. “Mr. Lester here was asking about how things are progressing with the next Batman.”
I nodded, glancing at Nolan. “Oh, uh… yeah, we’re making good progress.”
That wasn’t entirely true—“progress” was a generous way to describe it. Nolan and I were in a bit of a disagreement about how to handle the Joker. It was a minor issue, but I was sure we could come to an agreement soon.
There was also another problem: I had no idea who would play him. Yes, the production for the movie was a while away, but still—who would play such a big and important character?
Heath Ledger? That was a possibility. In this world, he was alive, thankfully—but after a stint in rehab three years ago, he had seemingly quit acting. Who else? Joaquin Phoenix? Jared Leto? Yeah, no, I didn’t like those portrayals. Maybe someone new…
I put those thoughts aside for now, stepping forward and shaking Jacob’s hand. “Good to see you, Mr. Lester. And thank you for your support on the game studio proposal.”
Jacob smiled. “Ah, it’s a great idea! My son is a big ‘gamer’—he tells me how it’s going to be very big soon.”
I turned my attention to Nolan and Sam, getting to the reason they were all here. “So, is this about your space movie?” I asked.
Nolan smirked slightly. “Yes. I was just getting to that.”
Jacob and I sat down next to Sam and Nolan on the couches arranged in Sam’s office.
“So, the movie is called Interstellar. The idea was originally conceived by producer Lynda Obst and physicist Kip Thorne years ago,” Nolan began. “Kip is one of the foremost experts in theoretical physics and gravitational physics—black holes, wormholes, relativity….”
Nolan went on to explain the premise of the movie, which was very similar to the one I was familiar with.
“Steven Spielberg was originally attached to direct,” he continued, “but the project stalled. Paramount brought in my brother, Jonathan, to write a screenplay, which he did… but the studio hasn’t moved forward with it. And considering the financial trouble they’re in, I doubt they will anytime soon.”
“So you’re saying we should make it instead?” Sam asked, leaning forward with interest.
Nolan nodded. “Yes. I want Stardust to approach Paramount and see if they’re willing to sell the rights. I believe Interstellar has the potential to be something truly special. It will be an ambitious film. I want to move away from Warner, especially after the issues with Inception.”
Jacob Lester adjusted his tie. “Sounds good to me. We would love to support a great director like yourself.”
I didn’t need any convincing either—this was Interstellar. It would be huge.
Sam glanced at Nolan. “What about Batman?”
Nolan nodded. “Yes, Daniel and I agreed to two films. The Dark Knight will be my last one. The third Batman film, if it’s planned, will be directed by someone else.”
I nodded; yes, that had been the agreement.
He turned to me. “Maybe you could do it, Daniel.”
I blinked. “Me?”
“I think you can do it,” Nolan pointed out. “You have an eye for it. Maybe it’s time you stepped behind the camera.”
I leaned back in my chair, considering it. “Chris, I haven’t even directed a movie yet. You must be joking if you think I can handle a big movie like this.”
“Well,” Nolan said with a slight smirk, “there’s plenty of time to get some practice.”
====
The meeting ended with Sam agreeing to approach Paramount. Nolan was happy, and like I had told Sam when we started working with him some time ago, keeping Nolan happy meant a lot of great movies for Stardust in the future. A happy Christopher Nolan working with us long-term? That was an invaluable asset.
I found myself walking with Jacob Lester out of Sam’s office. My mind was still swirling with the idea Nolan had planted—me, directing a movie. Could I do it? Maybe. I had spent the last five years working with some of the greatest directors in the industry, learning from them, absorbing their techniques, their instincts. Maybe I had been unknowingly preparing for this moment.
Or maybe I would completely fuck it up.
But then again, it had been a dream of mine—the final challenge, the last frontier for me to conquer.
“Ah, Daniel,” Jacob said, pulling me from my thoughts. “I almost forgot.”
I turned to him. “What is it, Mr. Lester?”
Jacob smiled. “My granddaughter—she’s in her final year of college. She wants to be a writer...a screenwriter, like you. She’s a big fan of yours, actually. She’s been following your work for years, ever since those Toy Story movies.”
I raised an eyebrow. “Really?”
“Oh yes, she absolutely adores your books and movies. She’s the reason I knew about you before we met during the merger,” Jacob continued. “She even wrote a paper on 12 Angry Men for one of her courses.”
That made me chuckle. “Well, she’s got good taste, then.”
Jacob laughed as well. “I was wondering… she’d love the opportunity to work with you at Midas. Just something small to start—maybe an internship. I don’t want her at Stardust yet—it’s too big. It would mean the world to her to learn from someone she looks up to.”
I thought about it for a second before nodding. “Why not?”
Jacob’s face lit up. “Oh, she’s going to love this. Thank you, Daniel. I’ll keep in touch.”
He gave me a firm handshake before heading down the hall. I watched him go, then turned in the other direction toward the elevator.
The Wonder Woman trailer was set to release soon, and we still hadn’t picked which version to use. It was time to go deal with that.
Comments
Illusiveone
Iam editing new ones now will post soon.
David Zimmerle
I keep getting notifications for this chapter from a few days ago and it keeps making me think there is a new one T_T
Illusiveone
The Margot Daniel bonus chapter after i post 184
Kyle.S406
Please don't change The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises. Swapping Christian Bale was fine and the only other thing I would change is the horrible death scene Marion Cotillard gave in The Dark Knight Rises
RedCap
Great chapter. Heath Ledger's Joker was a masterpiece. If Heath is there, anyone else playing Joker doesn't make sense to me.
Matias Arce
Will it be about one of the crossovers or about Margot and Daniel?
Illusiveone
Fuck i forgot to update the crossover. Expect it by the end of the day.
Matias Arce
I thought it was going to be a special episode like the end of B99, Big Bang, or one of Daniel and Margot.
