In the new box office week starting July 15, two major new releases hit North American theaters: "Romeo in Blood," produced by Highgate Pictures under Daenerys Entertainment, and Paramount's children's baseball-themed film "Little Big League."
Last year, Daenerys Entertainment acquired the team from Working Title Films, known for producing notable films like "Four Weddings and a Funeral," "The Big Lebowski," "Fargo," and "Notting Hill." Simon selected the first three projects from their script reserves: "Four Weddings and a Funeral," "In the Heart of the Sea," and "Romeo in Blood."
The first two films had already been released. "Four Weddings and a Funeral," released during the Valentine's Day slot, was a huge box office hit and subsequently sparked a global viewing frenzy.
"In the Heart of the Sea," thrown into early March due to poor quality, was a complete failure.
The last project, "Romeo in Blood," was given to Quentin Tarantino, whose career trajectory had been drastically changed by Simon. This was his second project following "Reservoir Dogs."
"Romeo in Blood" tells the story of an FBI agent who, after selling information on the whereabouts of a whistleblower for dirty money, finds himself embroiled in a series of conspiracies.
Tarantino, who took on the script that already matched his personal style, made extensive modifications according to his preferences.
Although the budget was only $15 million, thanks to Daenerys Entertainment's extensive network, the film attracted a string of famous Hollywood stars for low-pay or even free cameos alongside lead actor Gary Oldman. These included Robert De Niro, Famke Janssen (known for playing Wonder Woman), Madonna (who loved Tarantino's "Reservoir Dogs"), and John Travolta, who was originally supposed to make a comeback this year with "Pulp Fiction," all making appearances.
The drastically revised "Romeo in Blood" received an 8.7 average score from North American media on its opening day.
If it hadn't been for the positive internal screenings, Highgate Pictures wouldn't have placed this film in the summer slot.
Despite being a niche crime thriller that relied on word-of-mouth, "Romeo in Blood" still managed to open on 2,031 screens.
At the same time, Paramount's "Little Big League," centered around the "Home Alone" trope of a clever child, tells the story of a boy who inherits his grandfather's baseball team and uses his youthful ingenuity to lead the team to victory.
The script clearly attempted to draw from the success of films like "Back to the Future," "A League of Their Own," and "Home Alone," but failed to replicate their success.
With an overall media rating of 3.3, it quickly became another summer box office casualty.
Paramount didn't have high hopes for "Little Big League," giving it only 1,532 screens and clearly pinning their hopes on next week's Harrison Ford film, "Clear and Present Danger."
On July 16, Simon returned to Los Angeles. As the fervor of Daenerys Entertainment's IPO began to wane, many turned their attention to DreamWorks, spearheaded by Spielberg and others, and Vivendi's acquisition of Disney.
The biggest recent news about DreamWorks was undoubtedly the announcement that software tycoon Bill Gates had personally invested $500 million in the company.
After the fallout from the IE browser pre-installation partnership, Gates increased Microsoft's footprint in the internet industry and constantly sought to eliminate the Westeros system's influence over Microsoft, even excluding Westeros representatives from key board meetings.
Simon simply watched coldly.
If Microsoft were to fully oppose the Westeros system, it wouldn't be a bad thing, provided Gates could buy back the nearly 20% of Microsoft stock held by the Westeros system.
With the tech boom on the horizon, Microsoft's stock had already surpassed $50 billion. Though still far from its previous peak, if Gates could come up with $10 billion to buy back the stock, Simon wouldn't refuse.
Unfortunately, $10 billion in cash isn't something just anyone can come up with.
Even if Microsoft wanted to pool resources with other companies, given Wall Street's current view that tech stocks were overheating, few would be willing to invest in Microsoft's "overvalued" stock.
Only Simon knew how crazy the tech stocks would become in the coming years.
However, $500 million wasn't much for Gates, whose personal fortune already exceeded $20 billion.
The software tycoon seemed to be seeking the fame that many wealthy individuals pursued after amassing their fortunes.
As for the outcome, Simon's memory had already shown it once.
A dismal failure.
On the Disney front, after news broke of Vivendi's approach to Disney executives about a takeover, Michael Eisner was quick to deny it.
However, subsequent reports confirmed the news.
Following Jeffrey Katzenberg's departure and considering that a takeover would likely lead to a management shakeup, Michael Ovitz, who was eyeing the president position vacated by Frank Wells, resumed his watchful stance.
Disney, now largely a public company, still had two major shareholders: the Bass family from Texas and the Disney family, who collectively held 36% of the shares (25% and 11%, respectively). Their support would determine Disney's fate in any acquisition attempt.
According to Simon's sources, the Disney family was strongly opposed to a takeover, while the Bass family was not as resolute.
Disney's recent decline, ongoing management turmoil, and the financial disaster of Euro Disney made the Bass family consider cashing out while the company still had value.
Currently, both Vivendi and Disney's management, along with the Disney family, were vying for the Bass family's support.
After revising the media consolidation ban lobbying strategy with Joseph Shrap, Simon returned to Los Angeles and pondered how to help the Bass family make their decision.
Daenerys Studios.
It was Monday, July 18.
In a conference room at the administrative building, the group's weekly high-level meeting was underway, and with Simon in Los Angeles, he naturally attended.
"The investment plan for the group's cash reserves is as follows: To mitigate risk and prepare for the next phase of expansion, we'll only invest the funds from the IPO and existing cash reserves in low-risk, short-term fixed-income products. On Wednesday, BlackRock Asset Management CEO Laurence Fink will personally brief the board. Next, about Universal Studios Osaka, Theme Park President Bruce Peck submitted a proposal last week suggesting we add attractions with local Japanese cultural features. He also made several other suggestions. You have the documents; please review them."
As Amy Pascal finished speaking, the core executives who could attend the meeting lowered their heads to review the materials.
Though each managed different areas, Simon believed in collective decision-making. To avoid the company being led astray by one executive's erroneous ideas, many significant issues were discussed collectively at high-level meetings.
The final stages of the IPO were completed recently, leaving Daenerys Entertainment Group with over $5.4 billion in cash after various commissions and fees. Before the IPO, the group's cash reserves were already $2.7 billion. This $8.1 billion alone exceeded the market value of several other major Hollywood studios.
Simon didn't intend to use this money to pay down Daenerys Entertainment's debt. With no large projects to invest in shortly, he planned to place the funds with BlackRock Asset Management, investing in low-risk fixed-income financial products like government bonds, time deposits, and AAA-rated corporate bonds for some returns.
The main goal was to hedge against inflation, with profits being secondary.
There were, of course, more lucrative investment channels, but since Daenerys Entertainment was now public, its capital flow was subject to oversight by the board, shareholders, and the SEC, and couldn't be freely used. Moreover, such a large sum would draw significant attention if invested in specific areas, requiring public disclosure and potentially attracting unwanted attention. Thus, stability was best.
As Simon mulled over this, he flipped through Bruce Peck's proposal for Universal Studios Osaka.
The Osaka Universal Studios planning began in 1991, construction started mid-1992, and it's expected to be completed by the end of this year, with a planned opening during next year's Easter.
Although there was a comprehensive plan at the start, making last-minute additions wasn't typical. However, a recent "Space Fantasy Train" project was deemed unsafe. In theme parks, safety is paramount, even if the attraction isn't as thrilling. This isn't a core attraction like "Jurassic Park" or "Jaws Water Park," so Simon personally approved its cancellation, creating a vacancy.
As he reviewed the documents, Simon had a sudden flash of inspiration about another matter.
In the conference room, Nancy Brill was the first to speak: "I think this isn't feasible. In theme park operations, we need to align with Japanese cultural habits to better localize, like Tokyo Disneyland. However, for attraction settings, I believe Japanese visitors want to see American culture, not something they already have at home."
"I think it's worth a try," said New World Pictures President Danny Morris. "Nancy has a point, but we can Americanize Japanese elements. Hollywood has always embraced world cultures."
"The more pressing issue," said Highgate Pictures President Ella Deutschman, "is whether there's enough time to re-plan a Japanese-themed attraction. It's mid-July, and re-planning, not just building, will be very complicated. We should move an existing mature project from our other theme parks to ensure the Easter opening isn't delayed. Disneyland Paris's disaster was largely due to delays, a lesson we should learn."
Global Operations VP Mark Belford added, "I agree with Ella. Ensuring the planned completion and opening of our first overseas theme park is crucial."
The discussion continued for over ten minutes, and the consensus was to reject Bruce Peck's suggestion and transplant a mature attraction from Los Angeles or Orlando.
When Amy finally looked at Simon, he nodded in agreement.
With the decision made, Amy moved on to other agenda
items.
The meeting lasted until 11:30, after which the others left for lunch. Simon asked Amy to stay.
From the Universal Studios Osaka topic onward, Amy had noticed Simon seemed distracted. With just the two of them left in the room, she spoke first: "Simon, Matsushita invited you to visit Japan during the IPO process. You might want to go, considering Universal Studios."
During the IPO, according to the agreement signed three years ago when Matsushita abandoned its MCA acquisition, Matsushita converted its $1 billion loan investment in Daenerys Entertainment into shares at the offering price. As a result, Matsushita is now a minor shareholder in Daenerys Entertainment, holding 45 million shares, equivalent to one-fifth of the 250 million new shares issued, representing 1.9% of the total shares.
The continuous rise in Daenerys Entertainment's stock price post-IPO is partly due to many new shares being taken by interested parties, including Matsushita, which acquired 20 million shares, and BlackRock Asset Management, which acquired another 20 million shares. Coupled with the significant pre-IPO stock grants to Daenerys Entertainment employees, most of which have a 3-6 month lock-up period, few shares have reached the secondary market.
With demand outstripping supply, the stock price has steadily climbed.
Having spent much of the first half of the year entangled with the Hearst family, Simon had barely left the U.S. Hearing Amy's suggestion, he nodded and joked, "The Japanese might just be being polite. They may not really want me as a guest."
Amy laughed.
She hadn't forgotten the "Westeros Effect."
After the joke, Amy asked, "You seemed distracted earlier, Simon. Is something wrong?"
Miss A brought in coffee at that moment. Simon took a sip and replied, "You know, I've been thinking about how to convince Disney's shareholders to sell the company, and I just had an idea."
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