Kapitel 1028: Chapter 1030: The Chaos
[Chapter 1030: The Chaos]
Even without any signs of a decline in popularity, audiences continued to flock to theaters to watch the ghost emerge from their TV screens.
By its fifth weekend, the North American box office for The Ring had already reached $171 million, and it was projected that in the next four working days, followed by the subsequent week, the film's total North American box office would surpass the $200 million mark.
Early on Tuesday morning, Michael Eisner sat in a Beverly Hills restaurant, deeply engrossed in reading an article from Variety discussing why The Ring had become an unexpected box office hit. He set down the newspaper, his gaze falling on the script before him titled Pirates of the Caribbean.
Another pirate film, huh.
Michael Eisner could now face the blunder he had made with Cutthroat Island with a certain calmness. After leaving Disney and making a comeback at Universal, he had reflected on his years at Disney. In the final years, he acknowledged he had become overly blind and headstrong, and now, he viewed his experience a few years back as a transformation in his career.
This summer, Universal Pictures released two blockbuster films, The Mask of Zorro and The Scorpion King, both achieving impressive box office results. The Scorpion King, a spinoff of The Mummy series, was particularly successful, indicating that Universal was beginning to establish its own 'film universe.' Even if it couldn't compare to MGM's consecutive $1 billion spy movie franchise, it was more than enough to make other major film companies envious.
With the upswing at Universal, Michael Eisner's position in Hollywood and at Seagram was becoming increasingly secure. However, the sudden emergence of Pirates of the Caribbean stirred some ripples in his otherwise settled mindset.
As Michael Eisner drifted in thought, the current CEO of Seagram, Edgar Bronfman, hurried over, casually greeted him, and took a seat across the table. He impatiently waved for the waiter to come over.
Michael Eisner raised an eyebrow at Edgar Bronfman's somewhat frantic actions but refrained from commenting.
While Universal Pictures was thriving, the situation at Seagram Group could only be described as dismal.
Last year, Seagram had acquired Polygram Records for a staggering $10 billion and had yet to complete the integration with Universal Music. This year, the overall condition of the music industry took a steep downturn.
Influenced by the rapid spread of internet piracy, the sales performance of the world's major record labels plummeted by around 30% in the first half of the year. Universal Music and Polygram, still in the integration process, were faring even worse. Other record companies were experiencing declines but remained profitable, while Universal reported massive losses.
At this moment, Michael Eisner couldn't help but admire Eric Williams' foresight.
He had been closely following Firefly Group's progress and knew that two years prior, Firefly's executives had aimed to expand the company's record business. Rumor had it that Firefly was the first potential buyer Polygram had approached, but Eric Williams had decisively rejected the offer.
Even though Firefly had acquired Virgin Records last year, the scale of Firefly's music division was still nothing compared to the major labels.
Perhaps it was this nimble nature that had allowed Firefly to grow while major labels were suffering. Though official financial reports were not available, many public sales data suggested that Firefly Records was definitely on the rise.
The strategy of focusing on youth pop music seemed to offer considerable potential. In the entertainment industry, it was no secret that young people's money was the easiest to earn.
After taking a few sips of the soda the waiter had brought, Edgar Bronfman expressed his frustration, "Doug Morrison is a fool; Polygram just discovered $600 million in hidden debt. Adding in the losses from the first half of the year, the record group will need to write down at least $1 billion in assets."
Michael Eisner listened as Edgar Bronfman blamed the current mess at Universal Records on its CEO. He opened his mouth slightly but said nothing. In fact, the situation at Universal now stemmed not only from the impact of internet piracy but also from Edgar Bronfman's overly eager approach to the Polygram acquisition.
However, pointing this out would only embarrass Edgar Bronfman further without achieving anything practical, so Michael opted for silence.
When Edgar Bronfman said this, noticing that Michael Eisner neither agreed nor disagreed, his expression became somewhat awkward. As the head of Seagram, he was far from mediocre and was keenly aware of the root cause of Universal's troubles.
Spotting the script resembling a manuscript on the table in front of Michael Eisner, Edgar Bronfman shifted the topic, "Michael, is this the script for our new movie?"
Michael Eisner handed over the script for Pirates of the Caribbean, saying, "No, this script just circulated in Hollywood yesterday. It's said that Eric Williams personally selected it, and Firefly Group has already made an offer."
Edgar Bronfman glanced at the cover and remarked, "A pirate film? Didn't they say pirate films are a no-go zone in Hollywood?"
As he said this, Edgar glanced pointedly at Michael Eisner, and the awkwardness he had felt earlier faded somewhat. Michael's disastrous experience with Cutthroat Island had indeed been quite severe.
Michael Eisner seemed oblivious to the change in Edgar Bronfman's expression and replied, "Exactly, which is why this script is more likely to have caught Eric Williams' eye; others wouldn't dare touch this subject matter."
Edgar Bronfman detected the excitement hidden in Michael Eisner's tone and urged, "Michael, while I have absolute confidence in your handling of Universal, it might be best if we avoid this kind of subject matter."
"I've already had the production department run the numbers. For this movie, being cautious, $80 million should cover it," Michael Eisner continued, ignoring Edgar's concern. "And while the narrative is somewhat cliche, it aligns perfectly with the high-concept film approach. Plus, the fantasy plot involving cursed pirates has great potential for box office success as a special effects blockbuster."
Edgar Bronfman felt frustrated by Michael Eisner's independent decision-making and began to question whether helping him oust Michael Ovitz was a wise choice. Universal's developments had been impressive, but Edgar could sense his control over Universal dwindling.
Given Universal's dire situation, he didn't dare to entertain too many ideas about reclaiming power from Michael Eisner for fear of causing unrest within the company.
After outlining his plans, Michael Eisner noticed Edgar Bronfman's subtle expressions and chuckled, saying, "But my thoughts can only stay at the planning stage. Universal will follow the offers, but we don't truly know what Eric Williams is thinking about this script, so we won't be making any outlandish bids. The chances of acquiring the script are slim."
...
By ten o'clock in the morning, Warner Bros CEO Richard Parsons had spent several hours discussing the merger with Steve Case. He declined an invitation for lunch, instead making his way to East Hampton where Gerald Levin, vice chairman of Time Warner, had been vacationing. They were scheduled for lunch to chat about the progress of Richard Parsons' negotiations with Steve Case.
The merger talks between AOL and Time Warner were becoming very public, and Firefly's decision to sell off 25% of its AOL stock had made the merger's prospects clearer. Otherwise, even if both sides reached a merger agreement, they would still be bound by Firefly's interests and the subsequent antitrust scrutiny.
After departing from AOL's headquarters, Richard got into his car, and his assistant handed him a script.
Although much of his focus was currently on the merger, Richard Parsons had not slackened his grip on managing Warner Bros. In a company like Warner with severe internal strife, once power slipped away, reclaiming it would be nearly impossible.
"Is this the script that surfaced yesterday?" Richard asked, flipping through a few pages uncertainly.
The assistant nodded, "Firefly made a formal offer for this script yesterday. As you know, over the past few years, very few have ventured into pirate films. This script is also a classic high-budget effects blockbuster template. At Firefly, aside from Eric Williams himself, it's clear that others with decision-making power wouldn't be keen on such a script."
"You mean this is merely speculation with no confirmation?" Richard asked.
The assistant replied, "We can only speculate; Firefly clearly wouldn't disclose any confirmations to us."
Richard Parsons hesitated for a moment. Warner's film endeavors had been lukewarm; they desperately needed a flagship series to hit it big. Particularly now, if the film sector could turn around, it would greatly enhance their negotiating power in discussions with AOL.
"Alright, you personally head back to Los Angeles. I'll give you a budget of $3 million to secure this script. If we can confirm that it's Eric Williams himself who is interested, the offer can go up to $5 million."
...
Early in the morning, as soon as they entered the office, Terry Rossio and Ted Elliott received word that Sherry Lansing wanted to speak with them.
Since yesterday afternoon, the two low-level screenwriters from Paramount Animation had felt a level of attention like never before, receiving a flood of inquiries and probing calls throughout the night.
At that moment, both men sported heavy dark circles under their eyes, and there was no thrill from being in the spotlight; they both sensed they might be in over their heads.
If this script incident turned out to be a misunderstanding, with Eric Williams completely unaware of their possession of the pirate film script, they could imagine that once this was exposed, their Hollywood careers would be over.
Standing outside Sherry Lansing's office, the secretary went in to announce their presence. Inside, Terry Rossio finally snapped out of his daze, and quietly asked Ted Elliott, "What should we say when we go in?"
Ted Elliott, slightly more composed, urgently whispered back, "Decline, just decline for now, and wait for Firefly's reaction."
Terry nodded, feeling somewhat reassured. Only if Firefly provided further feedback could their speculation hold any weight. If Firefly showed no further interest in the script, then the incident evidently had no ties to Eric Williams, merely a routine purchase of rights for Pirates of the Caribbean.
If that happened, Firefly wouldn't even need to make a public denial; the other major film companies in Hollywood would realize they had been duped. In that case, even if they managed to snag a few million dollars now, their future prospects in Hollywood would be bleak.
With a few million bucks, after agents' fees and taxes, splitting it would yield little, hardly enough to sustain them for life.
While their current job didn't pay too well, it was stable and, more importantly, it allowed them to continue writing scripts and seeking opportunities. The moment they were labeled as frauds and were thrown out of Hollywood, their literary degrees would barely help them find another job.
The secretary soon emerged, informing them they could enter.
...
Walking into Sherry Lansing's office, the Paramount leader was reviewing documents through her elegant silver-rimmed glasses. She noticed the two men entering, set the file aside, and politely stood to shake hands.
After a round of introductions and pleasantries, Terry Rossio and Ted Elliott sat down with Sherry Lansing on the couch in the meeting area.
After the secretary served them coffee and left, Sherry smiled and looked at the two, "I took the time to review your script suggestions for the studio's recent animated films. They were exceptional! By the way, since you're both with Paramount, feel free to contact our script procurement department directly if you have any excellent scripts."
Of course, Terry and Ted had contacted Paramount's script procurement department before, only to find that interest in pirate-themed scripts was immediately lacking. However, the two men now respectfully agreed with Sherry Lansing's words without any intention of arguing.
*****
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