King of Hollywood-Chapter 270 - 268 Solution
Chapter 270: Chapter 268 Solution
Chapter 270: Chapter 268 Solution
“You think he will agree to our terms, Claude?” Adrian asked after Turner had left.
“It’s more likely that he will agree to the terms we’ve offered,” Claude thought before answering, “Although he has some countermeasures, they won’t work against us. At most, it will just cost us more money and time. Turner understands this too. After all, a bitter fight would benefit no one, so it’s very likely that he will eventually agree with us. Of course, your speech also played a big role—it was quite spirited and rather…arrogant.”
“Turner went through military school and has an inherent can-do spirit, coupled with a strong spirit of contradiction; otherwise, he wouldn’t have been able to develop TBS to this extent. Thus, a strong stance to promote his achievements resonates more with him.” Adrian shrugged, “But in my opinion, your praise of CNN and the revelations that you initially chose the more promising TBS over the continuously struggling ABC, made him feel respected and gratified. I still remember how unabashedly proud and proud he was when we earlier complimented the 24-hour news cycle of CNN as an impressive setup.”
“That’s obvious, it must be his most valuable creation,” Claude laughed, “But I stand by my opinion. Without facts to back it up, a strong stance will only alienate those kinds of people. Speaking of which, I have to marvel at the fact that you’ve come this far in just three years. You were right, Ed, it really turns out exactly as you say it will, utterly impressive!”
“You too, Claude, without you, the growth of AC Media wouldn’t have been this swift, and we wouldn’t even be discussing the acquisition with Turner now,” Adrian raised his hands, “Let’s not dwell on these anymore, this is just the beginning.”
He paused before he continued, “Right, if Turner agrees to our terms, how do you plan to place him?”
“What do you think?” Claude asked thoughtfully after pondering.
The two looked at each other, and in unison they said, “Vice President.”
Startled, they both laughed in sync.
“To have full control over TBS, Turner must not continue as the CEO of TBS,” thought Claude, while Adrian was considering other ideas.
“He’s too old,” Adrian said, “Though he is unyielding and still has a go-getter spirit, some ideas are hard to change after being ingrained for a long time. The coming years require constant renewal of ideas!”
Although their starting points were not the same, their goal was the same—to conveniently move Turner out if necessary. This too was a common business practice.
“The Internet wave?” Claude looked at Adrian and asked.
“The Internet wave,” Adrian sipped his coffee and nodded.
Claude fell silent, knowing Adrian’s fervent faith in the Internet. He not only kept in touch with Stanford but also privately followed a few electromechanical engineering students through Regret—an interest Adrian hadn’t kept hidden from him.
“Right, Claude, regarding the current boom in the movie company, I have some suggestions I’d like to discuss with you,” Adrian spoke again, “Though I could just talk to Laverne about it, I think your support might have a bigger impact.”
Claude gestured for him to please continue.
“When we talked about this previously, you didn’t elaborate, but I know the situation isn’t great, not terrible but not great,” Adrian contemplated, “So, I’ve been thinking about solutions.”
Indeed, not great. If not for the acquisition of Paramount and entering the Viacom board, thanks to Schindler’s List and some dealings with Jewish magnates, plus his father’s support, it’s hard to say what situation AC Media would be facing today.
“Like I said to Turner, some things I don’t understand, so I can only think from my angle; the rest is up to you to supplement.” Adrian made a gesture, “Our current situation is that the momentum is too high, so we simply need to bring it down, and my idea is to produce a large number of low-budget independent films.”
He paused here, took a sip of his coffee, then continued, “You know, my first productions were almost all low-budget independent films, so the movie company earned a good reputation in the indie film circle, thus we can issue as many low-cost films as possible relying on this repute. Of course, the profitable ones will be a minority, most just breaking even is already quite good, and many will be losses, but these will curb our rising momentum, at least on paper. As for the losses, these films are relatively cheap, so as long as they’re managed properly—for example, recouping costs through video tapes—the losses won’t be too significant, which are entirely within an acceptable range. And as you know, tax evasion.”
“And there are two benefits to this,” Adrian raised his hand to interject as Claude opened his mouth to speak, “First, we can continue to maintain an advantageous reputation in the independent film circle. Although large investment, big productions will be the trend, we mustn’t neglect small productions; secondly, some small productions will still achieve high box office results. I have already proven this myself, plus it will also enrich our film library, so there’s no reason not to do this.”
“This is an idealized state, right?” Claude considered before speaking.
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“Of course, but you have to admit it’s a viable method.” Adrian shrugged, “Don’t forget…”
“Yes, I know, the rest is up to us to fill in,” Claude looked at him, amused yet exasperated, “You, guy!”
“That settles it then, if there’s nothing else, I’ll be on my way,” Adrian mentioned as he stood up.
“You’re leaving after just a few minutes, who are you meeting today?” Claude sighed.
“Kate, she seems not to be in a good mood today. I already cheered her up over the phone,” Adrian replied with a smile, “I’m considering taking a trip with her for a few days.”
“You guy…” Claude shook his head, seeming to disapprove of his actions. But Adrian immediately teased him in a lazy voice, “Don’t tell me, Claude, that day in the hotel with that German model was just talking all night. Or do you want to say you and those models are just ordinary friends?”
“It’s different, I was just playing around, while you now…” Claude gestured but suddenly stopped himself, as Adrian half-jokingly, half-warningly pointed at him, then laughed heartily as he walked out.
It was still the same, nothing had changed. Claude laughed lightly and straightened his clothes before following out. No, there were changes, significant ones. Standing outside the club, watching Adrian’s car leave, Claude thought as he got into his own car.
Reflecting on the past three years, even the resolute Claude couldn’t help feeling like he was dreaming.
“I want to take control of Hollywood!” Adrian had once said to him. At the time, Claude had thought it was a joke, but now, they had their own career and had taken a solid step toward that goal.
Claude remembered the cold smirk Adrian had when he asked whether Claude wanted to follow his father’s plans or have a business of his own, the disdain as he pointed to the lights outside the floor-to-ceiling glass, and the spirited way he spoke about the prospects of the internet.
Honestly, for a while, Claude felt quite estranged from his best friend. It suddenly dawned on him that it was completely understandable for Adrian to want to pull himself together and set lofty goals for himself. However, a guy who had never touched film production making low-budget, high-box-office movies repeatedly was truly incredible.
“I never knew this kid had such talent; perhaps it really is a divine gift?” Old Ronris had once said to Claude, half amazed and half curious.
However, this feeling of estrangement didn’t last long. Although Adrian’s speech, demeanor, and habits had changed a bit, he was still the same guy Claude knew, especially when asked why he could make films, Adrian cheekily replied, “Because I’m a genius.”
If this were still during their Stanford days, Claude would have knocked him down, though more likely, Adrian, who was good at fighting, would have turned the tables.
But that wasn’t the most important reason. The most important thing was that Adrian’s penchant for womanizing hadn’t changed at all; he just took a trip to the United Kingdom and came back with a pretty girl.
Adrian was notorious for flirting during their Brotherhood days in college; at every Brotherhood party, he always brought a different girl, or took one away. Although for wealthy scions like Claude, such chaotic and even somewhat decadent college life was normal, rumors that “almost every good-looking girl at Stanford had slept with Adrian” still spread widely.
These were indeed rumors. As a close friend, Claude knew Adrian’s movements well; although Adrian loved flirting, it hadn’t reached that extent. However, the reason such rumors spread so widely was not unfounded; during one NCAA match when the University of Washington visited Stanford, and while the teams outside fought fiercely, he and the cheerleaders’ captain also had their fierce battle in the locker room. It ended up taking a long time to find the captain when it was time for the cheerleaders to perform, leading to a very messy halftime show. Fortunately, few knew the specifics, and neither Adrian nor Gia, the cheerleaders’ captain, was punished.
Of course, initially, Claude didn’t think so because Adrian never used to bring girls home, so he just thought Adrian wanted to settle down. But this thought was overturned after Monica appeared by Adrian’s side. Claude realized that his best friend had changed, yet hadn’t.
Not only did Adrian bring Kate home, but he also maintained a relationship with Monica and occasionally engaged in one-night stands—although he wouldn’t bring it up himself, he wouldn’t hide it if Claude asked. In this situation, Adrian still maintained his… well… “principled jerk” characteristics.
The title “principled jerk” wasn’t given by Claude but was the cheerleaders’ captain’s description from back then. If Adrian hadn’t requested the Student Council president’s help with that NCAA incident, Gia might still have faced punishment. However…
“Since this mess started because of me, of course, I have to take responsibility.” Back then, Adrian wasn’t as mature and confident as he is now. His lazy demeanor gave him a somewhat unrestrained air, which was very attractive to young girls, so after expressing her gratitude, Gia immediately began to undress again.
It’s interesting that this review had received unanimous approval from the girls who had been involved with Adrian, showing just how good Adrian’s charm was with women.
“If they truly want to leave, I won’t stop them,” he said now.
Damn, why am I remembering this? Claude, driving the car, suddenly burst out laughing. Probably because the most important acquisition deal was finally about to be settled, which, after all, was an essential part of the blueprint they had constructed. To develop a completely newly established media company to this extent within three years was considered a miracle by anyone who knew about it.
“I am proud and proud of you, son, for both of you,” his father said seriously.
If Adrian hadn’t persuaded him to start a business together, he might still be struggling in his father’s company. Claude thought this to himself. Since the ’90s, Adrian had been continuously surprising him, and he was curious to see what other surprises would come. Although he wasn’t as confident about the internet as Adrian was, he had studied it early on under Adrian’s influence and was still very optimistic about the future of the internet.
“I’m waiting for the arrival of the internet wave, hoping it won’t disappoint,” Claude murmured, a slight smile appearing on his face, feeling an inexplicable surge of immense confidence: We will continue to create miracles!
However, the next second, Claude glanced at the time and shifted his focus to other matters. The German model Heidi Klum probably was returning to New York tomorrow; he still had time to meet up with her today. As Adrian’s close friend, how could he not be interested in women, but unlike Adrian, he didn’t have lots of spare time, so most of the time he just dallied with models—these women were the easiest to get involved with.
In contrast to Claude, although Adrian was also on his way to a meeting, he was thinking about the company. The method of massively distributing low-budget or independent films was something he had dug out of his memory after a long search. Lionsgate had established and grown strong in Hollywood by stacking up B-movies. If Miramax hadn’t already been highly renowned in the independent film circle, with Weinstein’s deep Hollywood credentials, perhaps Lionsgate could have been a more formidable competitor.
Now using this strategy for Bossworth would surely be even more effective. With Adrian’s few low-budget independent films, Bossworth had already taken at least half of Miramax’s influence in the independent film circle. If Laverne played his cards right, he might even be able to extend this influence further. At the same time, it could also fill the film source library, losses could be minimized by distributing videotapes, and casually restrain their own rising momentum—it was a perfect multiple gain strategy, so why not go for it?
As for the negative impacts this strategy brought, such as Lionsgate occupying a position among second-tier movie companies but becoming almost synonymous with B-movies, without any major productions, don’t forget what Adrian does.
“If we had thought of this earlier, shouldn’t the film company have grown even larger by now?” Adrian thought, shaking his head and pulling out his phone to make a call.
This negotiation thus ended, and a significant issue was settled, but the final outcome still needed time. As for other matters, with the arrival of March, articles foresaw the Oscars increasingly, and although many understood that “Schindler’s List” had incomparable advantages over other films, to show fairness they still vigorously analyzed the strengths and weaknesses of other films.
Yet under “Schindler’s List,” the most likely to win Best Film was “The Piano Lesson.” Bossworth, which produced and distributed these two films, inevitably attracted a lot of attention. Some enthusiasts in the articles lamented: while other film companies fretted about how to canvas for their films, Bossworth Film Company was worried about which film to support. They were like this last year, and the same this year—it really is surprising.
This, in turn, pushed Bosworth Film Company even higher, but Adrian wasn’t worried. It had already reached this stage; why bother hiding anymore. Besides, the solution was already decided, it just took time to implement—on this, there was no immediate solution.
Laverne continued to handle public relations for “Schindler’s List” as instructed by Adrian, and also for Tom Hanks as Best Actor. Although Hanks had advantages at this Oscar, they weren’t absolute. Meanwhile nominated Liam Neeson, the Irish, was a first-time nominee and represented a film produced by Bossworth Film Company, which could basically be overlooked; as for Anthony Hopkins, he had already won an Oscar once, winning again would be difficult unless it had been a long wait or his performance was impeccable; regarding Lawrence Fishburne, his skin color had already made it currently impossible; thus the main competition remained Daniel Day-Lewis.
This guy had both credentials and acting talent, and “In the Name of the Father” also had received a lot of praise, posing a significant threat to Hanks. (To be continued—if you want to know what happens next, please visit www.qidian.com, more chapters are available, support the author, support legitimate reading!)
