Chapter 10 10. Eric's Advantages

Judy: "OMG! Huge profits, really huge profits, I have never seen such a profitable business."

"30 million, one game increased it 11 times, becoming 330 million. If gambling was a woman, I would definitely fall in love with her."

Warren kept sending out silly smiley faces: "11 times, my God, I should have bet more, I should have bet my entire fortune."

Eric: “Don’t you only have $1,000?”

Warren: "Hey, actually there's still a little left. I was worried about losing it all. Now it seems that my worry was unnecessary. Eric, you are fucking awesome!"

Looking at this group of guys who were a little too drunk, Eric hurried to put out the fire for them. He knew how harmful pornography, gambling and drugs were.

Once you get involved in gambling and drugs, you're ruined. As for pornography, it's nothing for rich people. After all, rich people have plenty of time and money to take care of their bodies. That's why I can't live with gambling and drugs! Eric: "Wake up, gambling is just a crooked way. Even if you can win once in a while, no one can guarantee that you will win all the time."

“So this is the only time because I need to accumulate initial capital quickly, but I hope you remember that if you gamble for a long time, you will lose.”

"After this World Cup, anyone who gambles is no longer my friend, Eric Cooper!"

Eric meant what he said, and he made sure he kept his word.

However, these best friends are not ordinary people. With their wisdom, Eric believes that they will know what to do.

After two games and just one week, Eric's wealth reached an astonishing $500 million, which was simply a dream.

Half a billion dollars in 2002, a fortune that surpassed that of most Hollywood stars.

Even 20 years later, $500 million would be enough to invest in two Hollywood blockbusters with big stars and big productions.

But now, for example, Sony's "Spider-Man" has been released for a month, but there are still a few theaters that have not taken it off the screen, and the cost of this superhero blockbuster is less than 140 million US dollars.

MGM's "Windtalkers", a war blockbuster, cost only 130 million to produce.

Although the cost is inflated, the amount of inflation is definitely not large, because they are all listed companies and shareholders are watching closely. What is even more frightening is that the tax bureau will audit the accounts.

If you make up lies and lie about the costs, exaggerating them by three or five times, you'll be crying when the tax bureau comes to your door.

In America, never mess with the IRS. Even if Hollywood dares to fool Wall Street, it dare not fool the IRS.

In addition to the production costs, there are also certain publicity and promotion costs, which are the two major expenses for releasing a movie.

Eric estimates that the combined cost of Spider-Man and Windtalkers should be around $180 million.

However, this is relative to the cost required by ordinary filmmakers. If Eric participated in the production throughout the whole process, the cost could be reduced by at least 30 to 40 million US dollars.

Because there are a lot of scraps during the filming process. For example, a 120-minute movie may take more than 1,000 minutes of shooting time, and finally it is edited into what the audience sees.

As a time traveler, Eric knew very well what the final film of each movie should look like, so unnecessary shooting could be completely omitted.

This will greatly shorten the production cycle, reduce costs, and allow the film to be released earlier, which is his advantage.

However, although $500 million was enough for him to shoot several blockbusters, it was still far from the funds needed to acquire MGM. He needed more and more! However, you can't take advantage of others.

The last time a profit of $190 million was made, many small gaming companies’ profits were halved in a few days.

This time, they lost 330 million. Even large gambling companies such as Pinnacle and Ladbrokes will probably see a sharp drop in profits.

As for those small companies, it would be good if they can still make some profit.

These companies need to be given a break, otherwise the game cannot continue.

Eric: "It's still the same old rules. No more betting these days. I'll pay for all your food, drinks and entertainment."

"But we need to keep a low profile. We've had two big upsets in a row. I'm worried that this has alerted some casinos. So be careful."

Time flies, and soon it is June 14th. There are two important things to do today.

First, "Windtalkers" was released, and Eric planned to go to the cinema to watch it, just for fun.

Second, there is an important match today, South Korea vs. Portugal.

That’s right, South Korea is finally making a move, and the biggest scandal of the 2002 World Cup is about to begin.

Eric walked into the cinema alone, ordered a soda and popcorn, and waited silently for the movie to start.

During this time, he secretly observed the front desk and found that the vast majority of people who chose "Windtalkers" were men, many of whom were friends, but there were very few couples or girls.

Next to him, a black guy was mumbling to his companion: "I like John Woo's style. Nicolas Cage will turn into a god of war on the battlefield and send all the enemies to hell."

The latest novel is published first on Liu9shuba!

Another black guy used his racial talent: "Bullets, white doves, explosions, blood, bang bang bang"

A white office worker not far away was discussing John Woo with his companions: "I've seen Face/Off, Mission: Impossible 2, and Hard Boiled. I like this guy's movies. I hope I can enjoy a violent blockbuster this time. Work is so tiring and I need to relax."

Everyone around him held the same view, but Eric knew they would be disappointed. The audience wanted to see a thrilling movie about personal heroism, which was also the impression that John Woo had left on the public, but Windtalkers was clearly not one of them.

This is an oriental film in Hollywood disguise, which highlights not personal heroism but dedication to the country.

It's the Indians' contribution to America, but it's obviously too early to do this in 2002.

Don't even mention 2002, even in 2022, at most it will be the black people who contribute. When will it be your turn, Indians?

Do you have a zero dollar purchase? Do you have Black Lives Matter? Not even close, brother! Entering the theater, the lights dimmed and the movie officially began.

Eric's attention is sometimes on the big screen and sometimes on the audience around him. Although Nicolas Cage's acting skills are still excellent, the plot is full of flaws.

Halfway through the movie, many viewers had already frowned. It was completely different from what they had imagined.

Some viewers have already gone to the toilet, and some have simply never returned. You can imagine the appeal of the movie.

Needless to say, there will be widespread criticism from the media audience tomorrow.

Amid the audience's curses, Eric walked out of the cinema happily. Windtalkers was doomed, and it was time for him to reap his third crop of profits.

When I got home, the match between South Korea and Portugal was over, and just as I remembered, two Portuguese players were sent off.

The South Korean team of 12 players defeated the Portuguese team of 9 players. The golden generation of Portugal failed to qualify from the group stage and suffered a bitter defeat!

Now I hope the holiday will end soon, and the editor will give me a definite answer when he returns to work. Please collect and read it, this is the criterion for the editor to judge.

(End of this chapter)