Powerhouse: The Untold Story of Hollywood's Creative Artists Agency

by James Andrew Miller

At first Ovitz refused to grant screenwriter Joe Eszterhas’s (Flashdance, F.I.S.T., Jagged Edge) request to be released from his CAA agency contract. Typical industry practice is for agents to grant releases to their clients if they are unhappy. During the meeting when Eszterhas announced his intentions to leave CAA for ICM, Ovitz allegedly told him, “My foot soldiers who go up and down Wilshire Boulevard each day will blow your brains out,” according to Eszterhas. Eszterhas detailed Ovitz’s comments in a four-page missive that circulated throughout Hollywood, with the Los Angeles Times calling it “The Letter That’s Shaking Hollywood.” “I knew when I walked in that you wouldn’t be happy—no other writer at CAA makes $1.25 million a screenplay—but I was unprepared for the crudity and severity of your response . . . you said that you would sue me,” Eszterhas wrote. “‘I don’t care if I win or lose,’ you said, ‘but I’m going to tie you up with depositions and court dates so that you won’t be able to spend any time at your typewriter.’ You said, ‘If you make me eat shit, I’m going to make you eat shit.’” Eszterhas also alleged Ovitz threatened to damage Eszterhas’s relationship with his attorney, Barry Hirsch, and with Irwin Winkler (the producer for two Eszterhas films, Music Box and Betrayed). CAA issued a response from Ovitz denying all of Eszterhas’s allegations. The Writers Guild of America later released a statement that absolved CAA of responsibility for Eszterhas’s claim...