Chapter 449 Acquire MGM?
In the fall season, Guess Pictures has two movies released, "The Ice Storm" and "Guess·Love·Search".
"The Ice Storm" was screened in three theaters in its first week, earning $75,000, with a single-theater box office of $25,000, which was an average performance.
In its second week, it earned $3.78 million in 483 theaters, and in its third week, it earned $4.66 million in 591 theaters. The box office growth was relatively slow.
The film cost $15 million to make, and judging by current box office figures, it won't make much, if any, of a profit.
"Guess What You Want" is a film project recommended by Ben Affleck last year. It is a love movie directed by Kevin Smith and starring Joey Lauren Adams, Ben Affleck, Jason Lee and others. It tells the story of cartoonist Holden falling in love with a lesbian and having a conflict with his friends.
The film cost only $250,000 to produce and was screened in three theaters in its first week, earning $52,400, which is a pretty good result.
The number of theaters showing the film in the second cycle increased to 671, with box office revenue of $8.24 million for two consecutive weeks, and a box office revenue ratio of 30 times, making it a box office dark horse in the fall season.
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"Link, phone! Hey, why did you fall asleep here? I told you not to play with Monica, Sandra and the others too late at night, but you just loved to play with them."
In the baby room, Liu Xiaoli walked in carefully with the phone in hand. She saw Link asleep beside the cradle with several newspapers already fallen on the floor. She couldn't help but laugh.
Link sat up and stretched. "I'm not sleepy. I just watched the little things sleeping. I felt sleepy for some reason, so I took a nap here. Who's calling?"
"I didn't answer it, you can see for yourself."
Liu Xiaoli handed him the phone, tiptoed to the cradle, looked down at the sleeping little ones, and a gentle smile appeared on her round face.
Link opened his phone and saw that it was Greg Davis, the chief investment officer of Vanguard Capital Management.
After Pixar Animation Studios went public, Greg rarely called to bother him.
Link didn't understand what the man was calling about. He kissed Liu Xiaoli on the face, went outside to answer the call, and asked Greg Davis what was the matter.
Greg first talked about the performance of Guess What Pictures during the summer, which was ranked first in the industry with excellent results. Then Greg talked about MGM Pictures, which ranked last in the summer box office.
MGM Studios released eight films before September, with the best-performing "Mobster," which grossed only $23.49 million in North America, while costing $38 million to produce.
The second-best performing action movie, "The Last Airbender," was released in January and only grossed $11.53 million in North America, while the film cost $55 million to produce.
MGM Studios' films released this year have been a series of failures, and its fiscal deficit continues to grow to $3.8 billion.
Also because the company was short of money and its films often lost money, MGM Studios had to reduce the number of films it produced, from nearly 20 films a year to about ten.
Judging from the current situation, MGM is only one step away from bankruptcy.
"Link, I remember you said two years ago that you wanted to acquire MGM. I think now is the right time to do so. Would you like to consider it?"
Greg Davis asked.
"Buy MGM? MGM's current situation isn't too bad. It's not at the end of its rope. If they're lucky and encounter a hit movie project, they might be able to reverse their decline and revive. It's very difficult to acquire MGM at this time. It's better to wait until MGM goes bankrupt before acquiring it. The price will be lower then."
"Link, many people are eyeing MGM right now, waiting to acquire it after it goes bankrupt. If we acquire it in advance, the chances of success will be higher."
Greg Davis said.
Link heard the hidden meaning in the other party's words and smiled, "It doesn't matter. MGM is not a necessary part of Guess What Pictures' business portfolio. Whether the acquisition is successful or not will not have a big impact on the company. So the company will continue to wait and see about the acquisition of MGM. If the price is right, we will take it. If the price is not right, we will give up. There is no need to force it."
Greg Davis was silent for a moment, then changed his tone and said, "Link, I know Kirk Kerkorian, the major shareholder of MGM Pictures. If you want to acquire MGM, I can be the middleman to help you make the connection."
Link smiled and said, "Acquiring MGM would be good for Guess What Pictures, but the current price of MGM Pictures is too high, and it still has $3.8 billion in debt. No matter which company takes over, it will be a huge burden."
"The price is negotiable. As long as you have the idea of purchasing, you can leave the rest to me. I guarantee to give you a suitable price."
Greg Davis said confidently.
"Is that so? I can consider it."
Link smiled. He heard that Vanguard Capital was also a shareholder of MGM Pictures. Now that MGM Pictures was in a mess, their investment would also become a mess. Greg Davis asked him to take over, probably because he wanted to recover the investment through him.
"Haha, that's great. Link, what's your target price for acquiring MGM? Knowing your bottom price will help me negotiate with Kirk Kerkorian."
Greg Davis asked.
Link thought for a moment and said, "I heard that MGM Pictures' debt has reached 3.8 billion US dollars, which means that the majority of MGM Pictures' shares are in the hands of banks. During the negotiation, you can tell the bank that if you hand over MGM Pictures to me, I can guarantee that the debt and interest will be paid off within 10 years."
"Uh, Link, I'm asking about your offer, how much you are willing to pay to acquire MGM, not about handling the loan."
Greg Davis reminded.
"My offer is to pay off the 3.8 billion debt. I think no one in Hollywood can guarantee to pay off the 3.8 billion loan within 10 years except me. I think this number is very sincere."
"Well, Link, the market value of MGM Pictures is over 5 billion US dollars. If you include the value of other industries, it is at least 5.5 billion. You only agreed to repay 3.8 billion of the loan. I'm afraid that won't work."
“This number is very appropriate. If MGM goes bankrupt, the value of its properties will be greatly reduced. No one will want $3 billion, not to mention $3.8 billion. All shareholders’ shares will become worthless.
If I take over MGM and revive it and turn it into a profitable company, MGM's shares will become more valuable, and it will also be an opportunity for those shareholders who have not exited to turn losses into profits. Greg, I think you should not doubt my ability. "
Link said calmly.
Greg was silent for a few seconds and said he could give it a try and call him back if he had any news.
After hanging up the phone, Link smiled lightly. He had been thinking of considering acquiring MGM Pictures in a few years, but he didn't expect Greg to jump out and say he would help him with the acquisition. If the acquisition was successful, guess what? The strength and influence of the studio in the film industry would increase a lot.
After finishing the call, Link returned to the nursery.
The nursery was quiet. Liu Xiaoli had just laughed at him for dozing off while coaxing the baby, but she sat by the cradle and watched for a while, then she also put her arms on the cradle, covered her mouth and yawned. She looked a little cute.
Link smiled softly and gently picked her up from behind.
"What? You scared me."
Liu Xiaoli patted his chest and quickly glanced at the crib, "Put me down quickly, don't wake up the little ones."
"Then let's go out and play."
Link carried the limp woman out and asked the babysitters to look after the children.
"Don't make trouble, Monica and the others will be back soon."
Liu Xiaoli knew what he was going to do and punched his chest with red cheeks.
"They haven't come back yet, don't you want to let's make love before they come back?"
Link kissed her lips.
Liu Xiaoli rolled her eyes at him, her beautiful peach-like eyes suddenly filled with spring water, her round cheeks were filled with shyness and enthusiasm, and the milky scent on her body became more intense and charming.
Link stopped talking and walked quickly into the bedroom with Liu Xiaoli in his arms.
(End of this chapter)
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