Jason Blum, the CEO of Blumhouse Productions, is the guy who gave filmmaker Damien Chazelle his first shot, producing the art house hit “Whiplash.”
Chazelle’s second film? “La La Land,” which is the odds-on favorite to win big at the Oscars this year. It was nominated in 12 categories, including Best Picture.
“We had the movie,” Blum started to explain at Peter Kafka’s Code Media conference at the Ritz Carlton in Dana Point, Calif. It came down to missing a lunch, like a lot of things in Hollywood, er, La La Land.
He says he threw everything he could at the deal, but ultimately lost.
“And it kills me. I’m not going to the Oscars this year,” he said. “I’m not watching it this year. I’m actually going to New York this year for the Oscars because I can’t take it.”
Watch the full explanation above.
This article originally appeared on Recode.net.
