[Chapter 414: Diana Shows Up Again, Toy Story Released]
After Link left London, Ms. Spencer called to apologize, admitting that her previous actions were ill-considered and had caused a lot of trouble for him and the crew. She took responsibility for it.
She promised that next time he came to London, she would apologize in person and explain the reasons.
Link didn't understand why Diana was doing this or what burdens she carried, but whatever the reasons, they were none of his concern. He was very busy and didn't want to waste time and energy on this matter.
Once the crew moved to the Ireland set, he threw himself into the movie and no longer paid attention to anything outside it.
---
By the end of November, the box office data for films released a few weeks earlier came out.
In November, Guess Pictures released a new film -- Pixar Animation Studios' Toy Story.
This was a fully computer-generated animated film.
The protagonists were two toy cowboys, Sheriff Woody and Space Ranger Buzz Lightyear, and their adventures in the human world.
The idea for this movie came from Pixar's 1992 animated short Tin Toy, which won the Academy Award for Best Animated Short in 1991.
Starting in 1994, Pixar set out to expand Tin Toy into a full-length animated film, a process lasting two years, encountering funding shortages and technical challenges.
But under the leadership of Steve Jobs and director John Lasseter, the animation team overcame numerous obstacles and finally completed Toy Story in early 1996.
In the second week of November, Toy Story opened in 2,471 theaters across North America, grossing $41.83 million in its first week, securing the box office crown.
Second place was the thriller crime movie Ransom, starring Mel Gibson and Rene Russo, directed by the famous Hollywood director Ron Howard.
The film was produced by Disney's subsidiary Touchstone Pictures and distributed by Disney, with a budget of $65 million.
Before the release, all media predicted this film would take the weekly box office crown and would outshine Guess Pictures' animated film.
But no one expected Toy Story to be warmly embraced by audiences, with daily box office numbers rising and word-of-mouth continuously improving. Within just one weekend, it took in over $40 million in North America.
In contrast, Ransom only earned $24.62 million, which was not bad for a November release, but still paled compared to Toy Story's performance.
...
This box office success stunned all Hollywood studio executives; they couldn't understand how this film could become such a hit.
When Guess Pictures acquired Pixar Animation the previous year, no one was optimistic about the deal.
On one hand, the mainstream animation was Disney's hand-drawn style, which audiences preferred. Some companies experimented with CGI animation in the last two years but barely made profits.
No one believed Guess Pictures' release of Toy Story would succeed.
On the other hand, Guess Pictures had mainly built its reputation on live-action films, lacking familiarity with animation and audience preferences. Releasing an animation so boldly seemed very risky.
Yet, no one expected Toy Story to make $41.83 million in its first week.
...
"Toy Story cost only $30 million to make but pulled in over $40 million in its first weekend. North American box office is expected not to be less than $200 million, and worldwide gross will reach $300 to $400 million. Guess Pictures really got a steal this time," said Terry Semel from Warner Bros. after seeing the numbers.
He expressed shock at first, then envy and jealousy watching Guess Pictures' hit movie, and finally regret because Warner Bros. had once considered acquiring Pixar to boost their animation department, but Jobs' asking price was too high and was rejected by the parent company.
Guess Pictures eventually acquired Pixar for $300 million and 10% company shares.
Many thought it was an unreasonable deal and that Guess Pictures would take a huge loss.
The executives of the Big Seven studios were waiting for a joke.
But now, Toy Story was a blockbuster. Just from box office shares and related merchandise, Guess Pictures would earn at least $200 million.
If they released more hit animated films afterwards, Guess Pictures would have basically acquired a highly promising animation studio for free.
Terry Semel deeply regretted Warner Bros.' missed opportunity.
"At this moment, I think Michael Eisner and Michael Ovitz must be the most helpless. Animation movies are Disney's territory, and with Pixar's CGI success, Disney's hand-drawn style may soon be outdated. If they don't find a breakthrough, Disney's animation market share might gradually be eaten up by Guess Pictures," Richard Fox noted.
Terry Semel nodded; Richard was right. Disney had held a strong position in global animation markets that other studios couldn't match.
Now, Pixar's CGI films were well-received and box office hits.
This meant Disney's animated film earnings would undoubtedly significantly decline.
Disney's future development faced a serious challenge.
Whether Disney could beat Guess Pictures or maintain its animation competitive edge in the coming years remained uncertain.
Even if they could, the losses would likely be heavy.
Michael Eisner and Michael Ovitz surely had headaches, but Terry Semel wasn't feeling good either, since Guess Pictures was already strong in live-action films and was now expanding greatly in animation.
Who could stop Guess Pictures from dominating the North American movie market?
...
"If I had known Pixar's animation would be this popular, I would've insisted on overriding those dissenting shareholders to acquire Pixar first," Michael Eisner said darkly at Disney.
Michael Ovitz frowned.
Actually, Disney was the first to consider acquiring Pixar, with two goals: to expand Disney's animation dominance and to eliminate competition early.
But Pixar's asking price was high, and acquiring it would dilute shareholder equity, causing dissent.
Plus, Disney's revenue had dropped significantly due to Guess Pictures' competition, so buying Pixar would increase financial burdens.
In the end, two-thirds of shareholders opposed the deal, forcing Disney's Pixar acquisition plan to fail.
Now that Pixar's first CGI animation was a hit, Disney's foundation was seriously threatened, and in facing Guess Pictures' competition over the next years, Disney would be in a more passive position.
"Link's luck is unbelievable -- he doesn't understand animation but blindly entered the field and succeeded easily. Damn it, God must be watching over him," Ovitz angrily grumbled.
Eisner sighed and said, "No use complaining now. We need to think about how to handle the current situation."
With Pixar's success, it became clear that making animation with computer technology required relatively low investment but brought high returns.
Driven by profit, more studios would enter this field, increasing the number of animated films on the market, severely challenging Disney's traditional hand-drawn animations.
They had to devise strategies to overcome this crisis, or Disney's presence and influence in film would continue to decline sharply.
"Maybe we should talk to Link and try to buy Pixar back at a high price. Guess Pictures has capital, creativity, and distribution channels for animation, but their merchandise business is average, limiting the full economic value of animation films. Making Pixar Disney's subsidiary might help us earn more," Ovitz suggested.
"Buying Pixar back could work, but after Toy Story's success, Guess Pictures won't sell easily and would set a sky-high price we might not afford," Eisner said slowly, puffing a cigarette.
"Michael, you should personally contact Link to see if he plans to sell Pixar. If so, we can accept up to $1 billion. If not, we switch from acquisition to cooperation, including joint film distribution, merchandising, theme parks, etc. Disney is the world leader in animation and can help Link make more money. He might accept our offer," Ovitz nodded.
"But if so, Guess Pictures will earn even more this year," Eisner grimaced.
...
In its second week, Toy Story was shown in 2,676 theaters in North America, earning $36.25 million and remaining number one at the box office. Total North American gross reached $78.08 million.
Total Film magazine predicted it would exceed $200 million and become the fifth Guess Pictures film this year to gross over $100 million in North America.
Also, the October thriller Scream had been out six weeks with $94.64 million in North America and was expected to surpass $100 million by the eighth week, with estimated total box office over $120 million.
Total Film marveled at Guess Pictures' unstoppable growth momentum, warning the Big Seven studios to prepare for elimination.
...
"Link, many media now hype the Guess Pictures threat, saying we're squeezing out the Big Seven and other studios," Lewinsky reported with a smile and admiration in her eyes.
Link flipped through box office data and nodded. "Not bad, but the media is exaggerating. Guess Pictures is developing fast and making money, but there's still a large gap compared to old-school studios like Disney, Warner Bros., and Universal, especially in film libraries, merchandise, and IP rights. We still need to work hard and not be complacent."
"Should PR counter these claims?"
"No need. Our movies are selling well; even PR wouldn't help much. Let others talk. We focus on promoting films and getting more box office," he said.
"Okay!" Lewinsky said and prepared to leave.
...
Her cellphone rang; after listening, she hesitated and said, "Link, Diana's here. She's asking when you have time; she wants to invite you for coffee."
"Diana? What's she doing here?" Link was helpless.
The recent scandal still hadn't died down, and media kept speculating about their relationship.
Was she impressed by his charm?
"Diana says she came alone, no one else with her, no paparazzi following. She hopes to see you and explain some things in person," Lewinsky asked.
Link shook his head. He was too busy to deal with this but out of courtesy told Lewinsky to meet Diana and persuade her to go back to London and stop making trouble.
He definitely didn't want to get targeted by 007 or Agent Bean.
*****
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