"Let's talk about the future. ◇↓◇↓Xiao◇↓ said,"

Eric shook his head and smiled, but he was not too worried about this issue. MGM's fundamental problem is still in its business philosophy.

Until now, MGM still maintains the vertical business philosophy passed down from the era of the big studios. However, since the 1980s, several other major Hollywood film companies have begun to try diversified development one after another, striving to open up surrounding industrial chains such as audio-visual, books, records, toys, theme parks, etc. related to movies, maximize the "locomotive effect" of the film business, and increase the ability of film companies to resist risks through the development of profit channels.

But at the same time, MGM fell into the hands of the casino tycoon Cork Corkerian, who prefers to play capital operations. The casino tycoon's interest in transforming MGM into a hotel is obviously much greater than making movies, which led to the veteran film giant missing the best opportunity to transform.

Now, Hollywood Film Company, which has opened up the industrial chain, has begun a new round of integration with the media group. Once this trend is completed, MGM will be completely abandoned and will not have the opportunity to catch up with the pace of those peers who integrate with the media group.

In this case, Eric provides some high-quality film projects for MGM, which will only make the film company prosperous for a while. When everyone is busy and dividing the interests in the future, MGM will still be the decline of MGM.

After saying goodbye to Chris, Eric returned to his room to change his clothes and took a bus to a restaurant in New York on the Seine. What he was going to meet tonight was a vice president of Marcel Novare, an investment department of Credit Lyon Bank, and John Cali, the current president of MGM Pictures.

In 1990, Cork Corkrian sold MGM to Italian investor Giancarlo Pareti for $1.3 billion, but not long after, the US Federal Securities and Exchange Commission discovered that there were major problems in the transaction. Giancarlo Pareti, the Italian investor's company, was just an empty shell, and the entire transaction process was a fraudulent way of defrauding funds to acquire MGM.

Giancarlo Pareti was eventually sent to prison for this fraud case, but the biggest bitter fruit was swallowed by Credit Lyon, because Credit Lyon was the financing party of the transaction. At the end of last year, the verdict of the fraud case was finally announced. Giancarlo received the punishment he deserved, but the transaction was still declared valid. The 75% of the shares of MGM obtained by Giancarlo Pareti from Corkerian was transferred to Credit Lyon, France. Credit Lyon organized an auction in order to get rid of MGM, but no one dared to take over the mess. Credit Lyon could only reorganize MGM's management and poached Frank Macasso and John Cali to form a new management team, hoping to improve MGM's performance. Then he successfully found the takeover.

But the result is that the two new helmsman have made a bad start, and the two movies "Jueling Xiong Peak" and "The Last Action Hero" released in the summer season all ended in failure.

Eric was thinking about a plan to match the cooperation between European Film Company and MGM. After the hotel car stopped, Eric just got off the car when he saw two white men coming up enthusiastically.

Eric recognized John Caley, who was about 60 years old and had gray hair. Eric had met each other at some events in Los Angeles before, but neither of them had any intersection until the celebration of "Fangfang". John Caley was originally an executive of the local production department of Warner Pictures. He started working in Warner since the late 1960s and was an old man in the Steve Ross era. After Steve Ross' death, the infighting between Warner's two co-presidents in order to compete for the position of CEO. In addition to the invitation of Credit Lyon Bank, John Caley left his old club who had worked for many years and served as the president of MGM Pictures.

Eric put the hype of "Jurassic Park" on the unlucky CEO of Carlock Pictures, so he didn't know that it was actually a trick caused by the two helmsmen of MGM. However, even if he knew, Eric wouldn't care too much now. Anyway, both MGM movies ended in a miserable way and did not have any impact on "Jurassic Park".

Seeing John Cali coming up enthusiastically with another Frenchman with a big nose in his forties or fifties, Eric walked up quickly with a smile.

"Eric, I'm glad you'll come tonight." John Cali hugged Eric with a very familiar face, and then introduced: "This is Mr. Marcel Novare of Credit Lyon."

"Hello, Mr. Novare," Eric reached out toward the other party.

Marcel Novare exchanged greetings with Eric, and the three of them walked towards the restaurant. The waiter guided the three of them into a quiet corner and ordered the dishes. Marcel Novare couldn't wait to start straight to the topic.

Although MGM ranks last among the top seven Hollywoods, compared with any European film company, MGM is the largest.

What surprised Eric but felt reasonable was that Credit Lyon actually hoped that Firefly could take over MGM in full.

After Marcel Novare made this suggestion, he noticed Eric's slightly surprised look and continued: "Eric, as long as you promise to take over MGM, Credit Lyon is willing to give a very reasonable price. Moreover, we will also be responsible for lobbying the Federal Securities and Exchange Commission to pass this transaction request."

Firefly Pictures has reached a peak in Hollywood. If it continues to expand its film business, it will definitely involve monopoly issues. It can be imagined that if Firefly Pictures acquires several other major Hollywood film companies again, it will definitely receive pressure from all parties. However, Eric is very clear that among the film companies other than Firefly Pictures, other goals are difficult to achieve at present, but only if they initiate an acquisition of MGM, the resistance will be much smaller, and some people will even secretly cause this.

The Federal Securities and Exchange Commission's ruling is also greatly affected by capital power. If Firefly acquires MGM at this time, it is equivalent to taking a big burden into his arms. This big burden will definitely drag down Firefly's expansion and will also affect the investment institutions' evaluation of Firefly Pictures.

If it was another time, facing MGM's rich film library resources, Eric would not mind taking over MGM and slowly adjusting it, but Fireflies will continue to increase their expansion in the next few years, and it is absolutely impossible to take over the mess of MGM at this time.

Since Marcel Novare is so direct, Eric did not beat around the bush and refused straightforwardly: "Marcel, I'm so sorry, I can't agree to your request, because I can't think of any reason to take over MGM now."

Of course, it was impossible for Lyon Credit to guess Eric's strong interest in MGM film library. Therefore, Eric's reaction was not beyond Marcel Novare's expectations. He had no high expectations for Eric's promise to this matter. He made this suggestion to Eric, which was more due to the idea of ​​seeking medical treatment in a hurry.

Credit Lyon is one of the three largest French banks. It not only operates traditional banking business, but also involves investment banks and insurance fields. Due to the economic recession caused by the turmoil in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe in the early 1990s, Credit Lyon has been in huge losses for several consecutive years. The loss limit this year is expected to be as high as 11 billion francs (equivalent to US$2.2 billion). Among them, MGM, which was taken over by the fraud case, accounts for a large part. Credit Lyon is now eager to cash out this hot potato.

Because he didn't have expectations, Marcel Novare didn't bother him after hearing Eric's rejection. He waited for the waiter of the restaurant to serve the dishes one after another. Marcel Novare gently winked at John Cali.

John Cali nodded slightly, put down his knife and fork, turned his head to Eric and said, "Eric, I wonder if you are interested in the 007 series?"

Eric smiled slightly and thought that it was still the case. However, MGM really couldn't come up with any bargaining chips to cooperate with him. The only thing Credit Bank of Lyon wants to do now is to revive MGM, and it does not want to invest in Firefly movie business like other European film companies.

For MGM, the 007 series is like a life-threatening ginseng. Whenever you get terminally ill, you will cut a piece of it and then you can survive for a few years.

Before the 16th part 007, whether in the United States or the MGM era, the production cycle of 007 was two years. The reason why this long-lasting series was suddenly suspended four years ago was not only because of the continued turmoil of MGM and copyright disputes, but the box office and reputation of the 16th part 007: The License of MGM was too bad. The budget of "License of MGM" was $32 million at the time, but it only earned more than 33 million in the United States, if it were not for the global reckoning of losses. "Making Manufacturing of MGM" almost became the first sequel to the loss in the 007 series.

For a classic series of legendary agents, the loss of investment is of course nothing, but what MGM is even more afraid of is that the reputation of this series is completely ruined. If the seventeenth or even the eighteenth still cannot be recognized by movie fans, then the series is likely to be completely terminated. Therefore, MGM hesitated repeatedly during the production of the seventeenth 007 for several years, but there has been no results yet.

"When it comes to the last "Murder License", the reputation of this sequel is very bad, but I think one of the settings is still very interesting," Eric replied, and couldn't help but think of Kelly Love, who once played Sam's deceased wife in "Sleeping in Seattle". Kelly Love is the Bon girl in "Murder License". Eric and Kelly Love had a night of fun in Seattle, but the girl left after that night, and Eric never saw each other again.

When John Cali heard Eric say this, he asked naturally: "What's the setting?"

"The setting of the two Bond girls, "Murder License" is the only time that two Bond girls were jealous of Bond and shed tears for Bond. Unfortunately, the plot conceived by the screenwriter of the previous movie focuses more on revenge, but instead loses the essence of Bond movies, so the two points of the two Bond girls are not highlighted. Moreover, I also think that the setting of the two Bond girls is somewhat problematic."

John Cali hesitated for a while, and chose the first focus in Eric's words and asked: "Eric, what do you think is the essence of 007 movie?"

Eric smiled with some bad taste and said, "Of course it's saving the world."

John Cali and Marcel Novare on the other side were both stunned, and then laughed with Eric. But after laughing, John Cali realized that although Eric just now, although his words were a bit hilarious, they hit the core of the 007 series. So he immediately asked again: "Then there is a problem with the two Bon Girls you just mentioned, what does it mean?"

Eric also became interested. He simply put down the tableware and said, "In the traditional production idea, Bond has always been the role of Bond's assistant or lover. Even if there are two Bond's protagonists in the 16th, they still cannot escape this fixed mindset. But why don't we go the other way, setting two Bond girls, one is good and one is evil, one is auxiliary Bond, and the other is Bond's enemy. Just like Warner's two recent films "Batman", although Batman's actor Michael Keaton is very popular

But whether it is the first or second part, the villains in it attracted more attention from the audience. Needless to say, the clown played by Jack Nicholson will definitely become a classic imitation for latecomers, and the Catwoman and Penguin played by Michelle Pfeiffer and Danny DeVito also left a deep impression on the audience, which shows that after watching too many of the protagonists with a sense of justice in the movie, the audience is still looking forward to the villain screen roles with a distinct personality, which gives the 007 series a great inspiration."

Marcel Novare subconsciously felt that it made sense and did not feel it too deep when he listened to Eric's words. But John Cali, who had been working as a producer for more than 20 years, lit up his eyes. As a former executive of Warner's production department, John Cali also experienced the joy of the first successful "Batman", but Warner only attributed the achievements of the "Batman" series to the popularity accumulated by decades of comic series, but did not think too deeply.

Eric's chatting words at this time made John Cali feel a sudden enlightenment in his heart. Perhaps it was not unfair to pay more than $50 million in payment for the clown character Jack Nicholson. At the same time, John Cali couldn't help but admire Eric's keen thinking and vision, and sighed that this young man had achieved such dazzling success at such a young age.

Although he sighed in his heart, John Cali did not forget to strike while the iron was hot: "Eric, since you have such an idea, why not just serve as the director of 007 in the 17th Part 17? MGM will definitely offer a quote that satisfies you?"

Eric picked up the red wine beside him and took a sip, but did not directly answer John Cali's invitation. Instead, he said: "John, has MGM been willing to keep the strong 007 series since then?"

John Cali's heart moved slightly, but on the surface, he sighed softly and said, "Eric, you know. We don't have many choices."

"There's a good opportunity right now," Eric put down his glass and looked at Marcel Novare again. "However, it requires Credit Lyon to make a connection."

Although Marcel Novare knows little about the movie, he also sensitively realizes that Eric's next words will definitely have a great impact on MGM's current situation: "Eric, if Credit Lyon can help, we will definitely do our best. Let's talk about your ideas."

Eric said: "Recently, several film companies and film foundations want to invest in Hollywood, but Firefly's production plans within two years have been confirmed, which will be inconvenient to adjust and cannot maximize benefits. So I think maybe everyone can cooperate. I am responsible for selecting suitable projects and participating in production appropriately. European film companies and foundations are responsible for investment, and MGM is responsible for production and distribution. This can not only solve MGM's current operating difficulties, but also make full use of European financial advantages."

Marcel Novare kept nodding throughout the whole process. After listening to Eric's words carefully, he turned to John Cali. John Cali also had a look of intention in his eyes, but compared to Marcel Novare, John Cali knew better about the difficulty of implementing Eric's suggestion. Although Eric's personal efforts seemed to be the least, in fact, his personal participation was the most valuable part, just like in the original time and space. Because of Steven Spielberg's strong appeal, not long after DreamWorks announced its establishment, investors from all over the world rushed to send more than one billion US dollars in startup capital. At this time, if Eric had not come forward, perhaps those European film companies would not have considered cooperating with MGM any longer. After all, the two blockbusters in the summer season had already scared them.

But at the same time, MGM's current situation is the most clear about the major European film forces. However, even with Eric's lead, the possibility of their agreement is still very slim.

"Eric. Personally, I am looking forward to this kind of cooperation, but..." John Cali was about to continue speaking, and noticed that Marcel Novare winked at him. He stopped talking. After all, his identity was just a professional manager at MGM. Seeing that Marcel Novare seemed to be very enthusiastic about this plan, John Cali didn't want to pour cold water immediately, so he could only change his mouth: "But we still have to negotiate with all parties."

Marcel Novare immediately interrupted: "Eric. We will reply to you as soon as possible. In addition, Lyon Credit will do its best to promote this."

"Then I'll wait for your good news," Eric nodded.

The topic of the following was much easier. John Carly curiously continued to ask Eric about his opinion on the villain's screen role just now. Eric was not stingy and shared some of the theories he saw in his previous life with John Carly. It was not until half past nine that the three people ended the dinner.

After checking out, John Cali and Marcel Novare sent Eric out of the restaurant together and left the restaurant. Eric was standing on the side of the road and saying goodbye to the two of them, when he saw another beautiful figure walking out of the bright restaurant hall. It was Sophie Marceau who had not seen for a few days. At this time, the girl was also following a tall middle-aged man in his forties, with a typical French appearance. The middle-aged man walked out with Sophie while chatting.

John Cali and Marcel Novare looked at Eric almost at the same time. That night, John Cali also participated in the Cedu family's "Fangfang" celebration. He learned some of the inside story and gave a wink at Marcel Novare. John Cali said to Eric: "Eric, since that's the case, we will say goodbye first."

Eric didn't mind the teasing and ambiguity that appeared at the same time by John Cali and Marcel Novare, and said goodbye. Then he took the initiative to walk towards Sophie.

When they approached the two of them, although Eric could not understand French, he could clearly recognize Sophie's impatient expression. After adapting to the dark light outdoors, Sophie also saw Eric at first. The girl's expression was a little surprised, and then blinked at Eric mischievously. She then thrust her mouth at the middle-aged man beside her, obviously signaling Eric to help her.

The middle-aged man noticed the change in Sophie's expression and looked forward. He then found that a young man in his twenties was walking towards him. The young man was wearing a decent black suit, with a clear face and a calm temperament, but gave people a faint sense of oppression that was difficult to ignore. Although he felt that the young man had a familiar appearance, the middle-aged man could not recognize Eric's identity for a while, but he instinctively felt a little vigilant.

Seeing Eric walking to the two of them, the middle-aged man took a little step forward, reached out to Eric, and said in French: "Hello, my name is Frederick Bron, who are you?"

What surprised the middle-aged man was that a look of confusion appeared in the eyes of the young man in front of him. He looked at his hand, but had no intention of responding, but turned his eyes to Sophie.

Sophie knew that Eric couldn't understand a few words of French, so she smiled hurriedly, but now she was going to Kaurik to rescue her. Sophie had to quickly say to the middle-aged man: "He doesn't understand French, you can use English."

When Frederick Bronn heard Sophie's words, a trace of contempt flashed in his eyes, but he still introduced himself in English again.

Then Eric reached out to him and grabbed it: "Hello, I'm Eric Williams."

If Eric just looked familiar, after saying his name, Frederick Bron immediately remembered his identity. He is also a person in the film industry. Of course, he could not have known Eric, a young Hollywood tycoon who created the miracle of Firefly Pictures in just a few years. Thinking of this, Frederick Bron immediately put away the trace of contempt that had just emerged and said eagerly: "Mr. Williams, I'm glad to meet you. I'm a producer at TF1 Film Production."

"Oh, tf1, I know," Eric nodded, just about to blurt out names such as "Paddington Bear", "Air Rescue", "Super Body", but immediately realized that these were movies that were more than ten years later. When his thinking was stagnant, he felt a little embarrassed. He looked at Sophie and said, "That, Sophie's "The Feeling of Heart" belongs to your company, right?"

Sophie noticed Eric's awkward look and burst out laughing. Frederick Bron did not dare to be so scruples with Sophie, and nodded and said, "Yes, that was jointly invested by us and Gaomeng."

"Oh," Eric nodded, no longer trying to pull it off with the other party. He pointed to Sophie, who was still grinning in a small mouth without any image, and said, "Sofi and I have been missing for a long time. Don't you mind letting us chat alone?"

What does it mean to be a long time no see? Do I know you very well?

The girl thought so in her heart, rolled her eyes at Eric, but did not deny it.

"Of course, since that's the case, I'll say goodbye first," Frederick Bron said a few more words to Sophie, said goodbye, and walked towards the parking lot.

"Huh, fortunately I met you, otherwise I wouldn't know how to get rid of this annoying guy," Sophie said relaxedly until the middle-aged man disappeared into a white BMW sedan.

Eric made a gesture to the hotel driver not far away and pointed to the Seine River on the other side of the road: "Let's go there and have a walk."

"Ah, that, okay," Sophie realized something, but did not refuse Eric's invitation. She followed him across the road and came to the Seine River. The two of them went down the steps to the embankment of the Seine River. The night was dark, and there were many lovers walking on the embankment, but no one focused on them.

Looking at Sophie, who seemed to be slightly shrank due to the coolness of the night, Eric asked, "Since you hate that guy, how could you have dinner with him?"

"It's my agent who just took me a movie," Sophie seemed to remember the unpleasant experience just now and said angrily: "I suddenly received an invitation tonight, saying that I wanted to talk about the script. As a result, the director and screenwriter left very early, leaving only the annoying guy who just now kept pestering me. If I had known I would have been here, I had just taken over the script because of Dumas."

Listening to Sophie's arrogant tone, Eric chuckled softly and said, "Which is Dumas' work?"
Chapter completed!