Chapter 225 224. Wavy hair, black eyeliner, small red lips
After being blown up by Liu Xiaoli, there was another hour of fierce battle before Eric let the old woman go. When she left, her walking posture was deformed, which made the waiter laugh.
He had already figured out this woman's character. Liu Xiaoli's desire to protect her daughter was genuine, and she was willing to sacrifice herself for it.
But it is also true that she is profit-driven. As long as you put a piece of meat on the hook, she will take the bait without hesitation.
Moreover, Liu Xiaoli's own level is actually not very high. Her vision, IQ and EQ are all average. The only outstanding things are her figure and face.
It is so easy to deal with someone like her. All you have to do is take out a peach and hang it there, and she will jump up and pick it by herself.
Her ferocity is limited to her mouth and expressions, but she lacks fangs and claws. In other words, she has no underlying strength.
Even if he was fooled in the end, he had to swallow his anger. What else could he do? Eric was already a very reasonable player. He helped Liu Yifei plan her future. Which boss would do this? Look at Weinstein. How many actors slept on the red sofa? How many of them got really good roles? The proportion was shockingly low.
As for Liu Yifei, since it had been started, the little girl had no objection. If she couldn't sleep with him this time, she could just find another chance.
The Olsen sisters can sleep in the same bed, and they can also comfort each other and perform for Eric's enjoyment. There is hope that the mother and daughter can be trained to sleep in the same bed in the future. They have been in the United States for so many years, and their thoughts have been more or less contaminated.
As for Zhou Wenqiong's Hudson Theater, buying it was actually a good deal.
Disney has been acquiring theaters and starting to plan stage plays and dramas since the year before last. It is not too late for MGM to catch up now.
But Eric was very upset with Zhou Wenqiong's deceptive behavior, and he had to teach her a lesson.
February 17th is the day for recording the finals of "The Voice of America". Michael informed Eric in advance and Eric came out specially to show his support.
In the car, he looked at the box office performance for the week.
"The Lord of the Rings 3" continues to perform well in theaters around the world, with box office revenue exceeding $1 billion.
Middle-earth Knights defeated Transformers and officially took the throne of global box office champion in 2003, and the box office figures are still increasing.
"Sharknado 2" has been taken off the screens worldwide, and has only been released in 22 countries overseas, making it the MGM blockbuster with the narrowest distribution channels, probably because the subject matter is too restrictive.
In the end, it took in $131 million in North America, and the box office was basically the same as in 2002. The ceiling is here.
It earned $43 million overseas, despite being released in a few more countries and earning a few million dollars more at the box office, but the gap with North America is very obvious.
Foreign audiences still don't buy into this, or they are unwilling to spend money to go to the cinema for a bad movie. For such movies, they can just rent a DVD.
In 2002, "Sharknado 1" finally ranked 18th in the North American box office, while "Sharknado 2" was squeezed out of the 30th place in 2003, which indirectly proves the booming film market.
"Blue Is the Warmest Color" and "Monster" are still being screened on a small scale. The former has grossed $256 million worldwide, making it a veritable dark horse, and a dark horse that combines both commercial and artistic success. There is no need to mention the box office of the latter.
The main reason why the two films have not been released yet is to promote the upcoming Oscars. In just over a week, this annual film and television festival will be held.
Therefore, Ashley, Mary and Theron are now busy attending various ceremonies and activities every day to show their presence, and they can't even take care of Eric's needs. The outside world generally believes that the Best Actress will be decided among the three of them.
"Saw 2" continues to reap box office revenue, while "The Hangover", MGM's only film to be released in February, is also about to be released.
Ryan Reynolds is really busy now. He has not had a vacation for 4 months since the release of "Transformers" in mid-November last year.
But if you ask him if he is willing, he will nod immediately. He has experienced the pain of being silent for ten years and no one cares about him. Even if he is kept busy, he will be happy to do it.
Eric held a family party as usual a few days ago, and both he and Chris Evans said that they had received many movie invitations.
20th Century Fox was planning to start filming "Fantastic Four" and invited the two to audition for the roles of Mr. Fantastic and the Human Torch.
Warner Bros. hired Steven Soderbergh to shoot the sequel to Ocean's Eleven, Ocean's Twelve. This series has always been full of big names, and this time they also extended an olive branch to the two.
Warner is also preparing to reboot "Batman" and has invited the two to audition for the role of the comic's No. 1 detective and other roles.
But both of them have concerns. They both have contracts for "Transformers 2", and there is also "The Hangover 2" which is likely to start filming, and "Captain America" which is currently in preparation. They are worried that the schedules will conflict.
Eric told them to go for the audition boldly. If they were chosen, it would not be too late to negotiate the schedule. Anyway, a superhero blockbuster would be completed in three months at most. If you don't mind the work, you can join another group after the filming. He is not the kind of boss who restricts the development of his subordinates.
In addition to these two, other unknown stars who were promoted also obtained very good resources from the market and were promoted to competitive young actors and actresses.
Both Ashley and Mary received audition invitations to play the Invisible Woman in "Fantastic Four" and voice acting invitations in "The Chronicles of Narnia".
Gadot also received an audition invitation to play the Invisible Woman in "Fantastic Four" and an invitation to "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory".
The British trio received an audition invitation for "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" together. It is said that British actors who have not played in "Harry Potter" are not good actors. Now these three have got the opportunity.
Even Evangeline Lilly, a girl who made her debut on the big screen, gained market recognition for her outstanding performance in "Don't Breathe" and received audition invitations for major and minor roles in movies such as "50 First Dates" and "Blade 3".
Many people realize that starring in MGM movies can really make you popular, especially its ability to promote newcomers.
"Boss, this is the last inspection report."
Co-pilot, Chen Xing handed over the report on his recent visit to the Hudson Theater. Eric didn't care much about this matter and hadn't read it yet.
He simply flipped through it and threw it aside: "It's been too long, you tell me."
"Okay, it's the boss. The general situation is similar to what Zhou Wenqiong said. Mrs. Valentine, the owner of the Hudson Theater, does want to sell the theater."
"She has had this idea for a long time, but no one has ever been willing to take it over because it is not a small theater and its area is the second largest in the entire Broadway."
"The large area means high costs, and the equipment inside is relatively old, so a large-scale renovation is required after taking over."
"I estimated the cost of the renovation based on market prices and it would not be less than $15 million. Adding the cost of buying the theater, I'm afraid the total cost would not be less than $50 million."
"Then I calculated the revenue based on average ticket prices, attendance, number of performances, etc."
"If the company really buys the Hudson Theatre, it will take about one and a half to two years to get its money back, assuming the business conditions are ideal."
"If you only consider it from the perspective of revenue, to be honest, this may not be a very good deal."
He only said half of the sentence, so Eric motioned for him to finish.
"Of course, boss, the development of a company cannot be based solely on money. Making money is the ultimate goal, but there are many ways to do it."
"Entering Broadway can bring many indirect benefits, such as the further expansion of the influence of the IP, which will naturally make it easier to sell peripheral products."
"And I also looked into the data when Disney chose to enter Broadway."
Hearing Mickey Mouse, Eric's interest suddenly increased: "Tell me, what data?"
"Disney chose to buy the Amsterdam Opera and announced a high-profile adaptation of its classic films and TV series, and its stock price rose by 4.1% in response."
"And judging from the business performance in recent years, it is indeed a good move. Even Finding Nemo has embarked on the path of stage play adaptation and will be released soon."
"If this is a good move, why don't other film and television companies follow suit?" Eric asked.
"Because their leaders are not as courageous and visionary as Disney, and they don't have as many IPs that are suitable for all ages to develop as Disney does."
“So what do you think MGM should do?”
Chen Xing had already organized his words: "I think we should follow the path of Disney, boss. One and a half years have been sufficient to prove that you have a vision far beyond ordinary people. We can continuously create high-quality IPs."
"Double Star Entertainment has independent processing capabilities, and Hasbro and we are also in a honeymoon period. The situation is very good. With the support of Broadway, the profits we will eventually gain will definitely far exceed the costs."
Eric smiled and said, "Chen Xing, you are growing very fast and have learned to consider things in a comprehensive way. Are you interested in working in different departments?"
"Hmm? Is it okay?" Chen Xing asked hesitantly.
"It depends on your willingness. Your service makes me feel comfortable, but if you want to grow more comprehensively, you should learn and exercise in more positions."
The driver Peter said, "Go ahead, Chen. The boss is training you, unless you want to be a secretary for the rest of your life."
Chen Xing nodded immediately: "Thank you, boss. I'll follow your arrangements."
"Well, we are looking for a new secretary recently. You can train him for a while, and when he is familiar with the work, he can report to the new position."
"You are a bit reserved and shy, so put aside the HR, finance, marketing, PR and other departments for now and go into production."
"Also, we need to strengthen communication with the Hudson Theater, strive to acquire the theater at the lowest price, and then arrange a time to sign the contract."
The latest novel is published first on Liu9shuba!
"Okay, boss!"
There is a saying in the workplace that there must be changes in position or salary within two years. If not, you'd better change jobs quickly. Of course, the premise is that you work hard.
Chen Xing has a very positive work attitude and has worked diligently for a year and a half. It's time to give him a move.
Wait for him to work in a few departments, preferably for three years, and then go to China to bring Susan back. It would be too unkind to separate the family for such a long time.
Good Voice recording site.
Eric was led by the staff to the lounge. It was not yet time for the official recording, and the four mentors were helping their contestants adjust their states.
"How are the contestants and mentors divided?" Eric asked.
The staff hurriedly explained: "Michael chose Bruno Mars, JAYz and Xilin are in the same group, Jenny is in the same group with Katy Perry, and Celine Dion chose the little girl Taylor Swift."
As I walked, I came to the first practice room. I could hear singing from inside through the door.
"Looks like we made it."
"Look how far we've come, my baby."
"We mighta taken the long way."
"We knew we'd get there someday."
"Boss, this is Celine Dion and Taylor Swift's practice room."
Eric nodded, and instead of knocking on the door in a hurry, he stood outside the door and listened carefully.
The song they sang was by Shania Twain, the Canadian country music queen. At the time, Eric was still struggling over who to choose as the final female singer, and Shania Twain was one of the candidates.
But in the end, considering popularity, schedule, etc., Celine Dion was chosen, even though the sketch queen was more expensive.
Now the two of them are singing Shania's representative songs in the finals, which can be regarded as a kind of fate.
Suddenly, the singing stopped, and then Celine Dion was heard saying, "Very good Taylor, but don't try too hard to use techniques."
"Your voice is not fully developed yet, and you are at a technical disadvantage compared to our opponents, so you must fully mobilize your emotions."
"Imagine yourself in the mood of the lyrics. This is the key to our success."
"Yes, teacher."
Knock, knock, knock. Hearing the knock on the door, Celine Dion said, "Come in," and then a young, handsome man walked in.
She was very familiar with this face. Even though this was the first time they met officially, this handsome face with sharp edges had already been imprinted deep in her mind.
Because just recently at the Grammy Awards, she saw Eric go on stage and take away a golden gramophone.
An outsider helped Michael Jackson win the award for his first song. Those people in the circle may have only been pursuing this in their dreams for decades. Who wouldn't be confused after seeing this?
Of course, the Grammy Award was just a small episode. What really made Eric's name spread throughout the music circle was the establishment of Art Records.
When the company's equity structure was dug out, especially the cooperation between Meiyi Records and YouTube, the creation of Good Voice almost pointed the finger at Eric.
He was the one who helped Michael Jackson get rid of Sony. Without him planning all this behind the scenes, Sony would never have been forced to compromise.
So indirectly speaking, Eric is also half of Celine Dion's boss.
Because Michael holds half of her copyright, the profits Michael earns will be shared equally with Eric, which is equivalent to Celine Dion working for Eric.
However, the remuneration for this Voice of China contest does not belong to the song fee and does not need to be shared with others.
Therefore, when she received the invitation, she was extremely happy. I'm working for you for free, so I must make a lot of money this time.
"Hello Siddy, nice to meet you."
"I'm glad too. You're as handsome as you look in your online photos, Eric."
"Hahaha. You are very beautiful too, Siti. But I know that praising a singer's songs is the best compliment. I must say that 'My Heart Will Go On' is so beautiful. I have listened to it no less than a hundred times."
Unexpectedly, Celine Dion rolled her eyes and said, "OMG! It's this again. Ever since Titanic came out, no one remembers my other songs."
"It's all Cameron's fault, right?"
"Yeah, it's all Cameron's fault!"
Celine Dion is famous for her humor and her ability to make jokes. It is very comfortable and smooth to communicate with her.
After the two chatted for a while, Eric turned his attention to the blonde girl next to him.
Wavy curls, shoulder-length hair, black eyeliner and red lips.
His height is estimated to be about 170cm, and he is quite mature.
It was warm in the practice room, and through the not-so-thick sweater,
Eric couldn't help but think of Ao Mei's face. How could their development speeds differ so much? "Hello, boss, this is Taylor Swift!"
"This child is good, he is not afraid of birth."
(End of this chapter)