Hollywood Hunter

The news in the circle is actually very difficult to keep secret, not to mention the Disney that Michael Eisner has been in charge for ten years.

Michael Ovitz heard Eisner ask, and said calmly, knowing that he had looked away, nodded, and said the truth: "I'm still hesitating."

Esna took a sip of red wine and said, "If you decide, I can openly support you."

In the past history, after Kasenberg left, Eisner invited Ovitz to join Disney. The two men turned against each other in less than a year because of the power struggle.

Now, many things have changed, and this friendship lasting more than ten years has been successfully maintained.

A few months ago, during Eisner’s heart surgery, as a close friend, Owitz flew to New York with his family, staying in front of his bed for more than a week, even Eisner and Disney’s last generous compensation agreement It is also Ovitz who came forward to help him. In order to avoid stimulating Eisner, during that time, Ovitz will always deny it whenever he is asked whether he will join Disney.

Such a friend is enough for Eisner to let go of his heart and support each other.

Owitz is very aware of the stubbornness of the old friend’s character for many years. He thought that it was enough to get Eisner’s understanding. He didn’t expect him to say this. He looked at the old friend unexpectedly and smiled quickly: "Thank you, Mike."

Eisner also smiled and turned again: "Aside from the section where I was kicked out of Disney, Mike, purely from a friend's point of view, I don't actually recommend you to join the Disney company now, you want to listen The reason?"

Owitz made a gesture of please.

Eisner pulled the blanket over her knees and seemed to organize the language and said: "I am a bystander now, so some things should be more thorough than you. Just like this time, do you think Viven How did Di’s acquisition of Disney go smoothly? Oh, I mean the review process by the Ministry of Justice.”

Eisner reminded him that Ovitz quickly found a problem in the process of Vivendi's acquisition of Disney.

When Sony acquired Colombia in that year, it actually caused a lot of public opinion.

Most U.S. media are opposed to this transaction, because the logo of Columbia Pictures is the Statue of Liberty. Newsweek also published a statue of Liberty on the cover of the kimono afterwards to remind the federal government to be wary of Japan. The invasion of capital.It is also under this pressure of public opinion that the Japanese have to say that Colombia will continue to be managed by local professional managers, thus triggering a disaster.

Later, MGM was acquired by Australian Capital, and everyone knows that Simon Westero is behind the deal, and ultimately it is in his own hands.Seagram Group acquired Paramount because it was a neighbor, and the rebound was not so dramatic.

However, the French acquisition of Disney is completely different.

The contradictions between the United States and France have been on the table all these years. The anti-American sentiment in France can be seen from the local media that opened Disney Disney in Paris a few years ago.

Moreover, compared with Columbia, MGM and Paramount, Disney's attributes as a symbol of American culture are stronger. Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck have been accompanied by generations of American children in a row. Disneyland in Los Angeles and Orlando is even more It is one of the important classics that Americans must visit in their lifetime.

Such a company with many special meanings, it stands to reason that even if the Ministry of Justice passes the acquisition review, in the face of fierce public opinion, someone in Congress should jump out to stop it. As long as this is done, in many voters who do not want their childhood memories to be sold to the French Eyesight, this is capital.

As a result, everything seemed to be unusual.

Eisner looked at his old friend's expression and said after a moment: "You feel it?"

Owitz nodded and looked at Eisner: "Someone pushed the deal behind the scenes."

Eisner said: "Think again, you know who did it."

Ovitz thought a little,

Eisner nodded and said, "I don't have any evidence, but, according to various signs, it should be the case."

Ovitz subconsciously said: "But why did Westeros do this?"

Eisner noticed the gaffe in the old friend's tone, and smiled bitterly, said: "So, this is the young man's most powerful place. If it is not for the recent batch of cooperation projects of Daenerys Entertainment, I I almost didn't understand it."

Ovitz has a good memory, and Eisner said that the corresponding information immediately appeared in his mind.

Daenerys Entertainment’s latest batch of external cooperation projects, which has been finalized, is a total of four: "Thunderbolt" and "Spy" with MGM, "The Brave Game" with Warner Brothers, and with "Mummy" by Fox.

At first glance, there seems to be no problem.

Ovitz also knows that this is a way for Daenerys Entertainment to alleviate its pressure on other Hollywood filmmakers.

However, after Eisner's wake up, look at this time, the problem came out.

Of the ten projects, four were launched in the first batch. This is no problem. They are all blockbuster movies. There are too many at one time, and the schedule cannot be eaten at all.However, Daenerys Entertainment would rather give MGM two projects at a time, and did not let the remaining Disney, Sony and Paramount take a piece of the pie. This is obviously not in line with Daenerys Entertainment's early cooperation strategy.

You know, Disney released a "Sea Sleepless in Seattle" in collaboration with Daenerys last year. The previous relationship between the two parties was also very harmonious, and there is no reason to be suddenly cold.

Well, obviously, this arrangement was deliberately done by Daenerys Entertainment.

But what is the purpose of this?

Eisner looked at the hesitation in Orwitz’s expression and took the initiative to help him uncover the mystery: “It’s normal that you don’t understand it for a while, but from the end of the last century, the Los Angeles film industry has risen to the present. I am used to the coexistence of many big studios in Hollywood. However, in recent years, the pattern of Hollywood is showing a fundamental change. The city can't accommodate the coexistence of the seven major studios."

Owitz suddenly understood something. He felt a pot of cold water pouring down his heart and asked subconsciously: "What does this have to do with Westeros secretly pushing Vivendi to buy Disney?"

Eisner smiled bitterly again: "It's very simple. If Disney is still in the hands of the Federation, once Daenerys Entertainment suppresses it too hard, we will definitely rebound. Everyone will make a fuss, neither the White House nor Congress. Will sit back and ignore. Now, Disney is sold to the French, whether this company will go bankrupt or go bankrupt in the future, do you think Washington will come forward? So, in my opinion, severing cooperation is only the first step. Hollywood is still The Seventh Congress, in the next five to ten years, may become the Fiveth Congress, or even the Third Congress, and the surviving large studios can never compete with Daenerys Entertainment."

The voice fell and the atmosphere was silent for a moment, leaving only the slight sound of burning wood coming from the fireplace occasionally.

After a while, Eisner finally sighed: "Hollywood is no longer our world."

Ovitz also rarely had some sullen emotions, took a sip of red wine in his hand, looked up at Eisner, and asked, "Mike, what are you going to do in the future?"

Eisner is only 52 years old this year. For the social elite of their class, they are still at a very young age. With his heart recovering very well, Ovitz does not believe that his old friends will enjoy their retirement.

Hearing this question, Eisner shook his head slightly to get rid of some of the emotions he had just said, "I was recently reading about the investment in the new technology industry, and I also invited a computer teacher. I plan to try this aspect in the future. investment."

"New technology, we are not familiar with these, and now, many media are saying that the new technology bubble is already very serious and may burst at any time."

"Nothing is familiar from the beginning, and I won't overwhelm all my net worth," Eisner said, smiling again. "And, following Westero's pace is always right The Westeros system has been increasing its layout in the field of new technology, indicating that the bubble is not as serious as described by the outside world. I can’t play that much, and investing in small projects is still okay, and it’s better than idle.”

Over the past ten years, Eisner has made the original tepid and ruined studio prosperous, and was eventually bought by Vivendi Group with nearly ten billion dollars in cash. In fact, it has a beginning and a end. He himself is a professional manager. No doubt about it.Therefore, these days, some companies have issued invitations to Eisner, most of them are serving as directors or consultants, and there are also some temptations such as core executives.

However, after several months of twists and turns, Eisner has become disheartened to continue to work as a professional manager to work for others. In addition to some idle jobs such as directors and consultants being considered, the future plan is to invest and take care of the past The tens of millions of dollars worth of money accumulated over the past ten years can be regarded as your own boss.

Ovitz heard Eisner talk about investing in new technology, but couldn't help thinking of his previous contact with Bill Gates.

At one time, the two sides almost reached a cooperation. Orwitz hoped that CAA would become the exclusive agent of Microsoft in entertainment, advertising, and media in Hollywood. However, he could only raise US$50 million for this cooperation. This is actually for CAA. It was a large sum of money, and most of it came from external investors. As a result, Gates simply did not look at it, and soon switched to DreamWorks.

Already hesitant about joining Disney, and fully understanding the layout of a young man, Owitz was even more hesitant.

Perhaps, you should also consider new technology.

He has always been a person who dared to try new things, and, in fact, has accumulated a good net worth over the years.Think about the gossip about the creation of the Instagram website some time ago. This is just a picture sharing website established by a maid beside Westeros and a few vases to invest millions of dollars. The valuation has reached the number in just over half a year. One hundred million dollars is simply huge profits.

However, Ovitz is also not a fickle person.

It has been quietly planning for joining Disney for a while, and suddenly changed his mind, which does not meet his rules of conduct.

Eisner has been paying attention to the expression of his old friend, and then said: "Mike, if you insist on joining Disney, I can give you some suggestions."

Overitz looked over.

Eisner didn’t sell it, saying: “First of all, sign a long contract as much as possible and attach enough compensation agreements to ensure that Vivendi cannot easily fire you.”

Owitz nodded.

He already thought of this.

According to the relevant federal and California laws, if you want to join a large studio as an executive, Ovitz first needs to sell his shares in CAA and completely cut off the association with this talent agency to ensure that no benefits will be generated. conflict.Once this step is taken, it means that he can never look back. If he cannot succeed at Disney, he will be defeated.

Therefore, in the negotiation process with Vivendi, he first thought of ensuring his own interests through strict breach of contract clauses.

In the history of the past, Owitz did just that.

Later, he turned against Eisner, and only took a huge amount of compensation of more than 100 million US dollars when Owitz left for Disney for more than a year. However, Ovitz was not excited because of the interview. Abandoned the talent agency company he founded, and was dismissed by Disney. His personal career was completely ruined.In comparison, the difference between a tens of millions of dollars and a billion or two hundred million dollars is not much.

Eisner nodded when he saw Orwitz, and then said, "Second, just wait."

Owitz couldn't help but ask: "Wait?"

"Yeah, wait, when Vivendi can't hold it, I'm forced to choose to sell Disney again. By then, with the lifting of the media integration ban, I think the possibility of federal investors taking over will be very likely. Big. At that time, if you can continue to control the position of Disney’s person in charge, maybe you will have room for it."

Ovitz understood this and couldn't help smiling: "Mike, how long do you think I need to wait?"

Eisner said: "It won't be too long. I think three to five years is enough."

"At that time, do you think the new Disney boss will keep me in charge?"

"All, I just said, sign a long contract as much as possible. At that time, you will have one to two years, as long as you can prove your strength, it is not a problem to continue to stay."

Ovitz just smiled bitterly.

If he can give up his CAA, which has been established for many years, to join Disney. If he can make a difference, even if the final conditions given by Vivendi at noon still do not meet his expectations, he will agree.

However, the current situation is that Disney is basically an existence destined to be suppressed by Daenerys Entertainment. Ovits does not feel that he can compete with Simon Westeros after joining, but instead will make the two sides not. The awkward relationship gets worse.

After weighing for a while, Owitz finally made his choice.

Refused Vivendi's invitation.

Eisner also saw Ovitz's final decision at a glance, just saying: "Mike, I hope you won't complain in the future I will tell you this tonight."

Owitz smiled and said, "If you don't tell me this, I will blame you in the future."

Eisner raised a toast to Owitz and said, "Let’s do it like this. Let’s set up a new technology investment company together. You can still run CAA. You just need to help me maintain my network in Hollywood. Specific things. I’m in charge. Although it’s an emerging industry, we can’t be worse than the Silicon Valley guys.”

Ovitz did not hesitate this time. He had already been a little emotional just now. Now that he has decided to give up the opportunity to join Disney, he must also find some other interesting things to do, so he nodded and smiled: "It seems I also want to hire a computer teacher."

"We don't have to spend too much time on this, professional things only need to be left to professional people to do, and Westeros is not necessarily a computer expert."

"It's hard to say, from what I heard in the past few years, I haven't found that the young man is not good at."

After thinking about it, Eisner had to nod and acknowledge: "I really don't understand how such a freak can appear in this world. I often think about these rumors about him, psychic and aliens, are they really true? of."

"Who knows, but the psychic master's career has been very popular in recent years. Shi Cuishan quietly asked me to help her contact a psychic some time ago, which is said to be very effective."

"Do you believe?"

"I haven't tried it, but it is said to be very effective. There are always things in this world that we don't understand."

The two old friends became more and more partial, and began to talk aimlessly.

Neither of them can know it anyway, because of their decision tonight, the history of the entire Hollywood has also increasingly deviated from the track in Simon's memory.