Chapter 440: Just the Two of Us

[Chapter 440: Just the Two of Us]

Eric finished cleaning up the recording and casually handed the tape recorder to his bodyguard, Carter Moen, who sat in the passenger seat. He turned to Tina Fey and said, "You can have it back when we leave; there's no need to hold onto it right now."

Hearing the tone in Eric's voice made it clear he had no intention of negotiating. Tina realized her earlier cleverness had rubbed him the wrong way. She awkwardly mumbled a few words in acknowledgment.

The car drove for over twenty minutes when Carter Moen received a phone call. He turned to Eric and said, "Mr. Williams, there are reporters gathered outside the hotel. They're asking whether we should go in through the front entrance or take the parking garage elevator."

Eric didn't want to get cornered again and responded, "Let's take the parking garage elevator."

After the two finished speaking, Tina couldn't help but ask curiously, "Where are we headed?"

"We're going to celebrate the Disney acquisition, of course," Eric replied, glancing at Tina. "Are you interested in checking it out?"

Tina hesitated for a moment; the allure of a Hollywood party was hard to resist. She nodded gently. ...

She thought it would be an easygoing celebration. Instead, when she followed Eric into the Hilton Hotel ballroom, she discovered it was far from what she had expected.

The ballroom, which spanned hundreds of square feet, was packed with people. The men were dressed in formal suits, while the women wore elegant or glamorous evening gowns. When Tina looked down at her beige short trench coat and washed-out jeans, she felt a sudden urge to turn and flee.

As Eric reached the entrance and was about to step inside, he noticed Tina had stopped, her face showing embarrassment. Understanding her predicament, he waved over a hotel manager and whispered a few words. The manager politely addressed Tina, saying, "Miss, please follow me."

Tina shot a puzzling glance at Eric, who nodded. Although she had no idea what was happening, she obediently followed the manager away.

Well, it was certainly better than staying here. She thought to herself, feeling so awkward in her outfit that even if Eric hadn't spoken up, she planned to leave anyway.

...

As Tina's figure disappeared, the crowd in the ballroom began to notice Eric.

Eric flashed a polite smile and moved forward to greet everyone.

In addition to executives from Firefly Films, CEOs and high-ranking officials from major studios like Fox, Paramount, and Universal appeared in the ballroom. It was another major gathering of Hollywood's elite.

Eric didn't feel surprised by their presence.

After Firefly acquired Disney, it not only strengthened its own position but also inherited Disney's standing within the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA). Before the acquisition, Firefly was merely a pawn in the Hollywood chess game; now, by joining the MPAA, it transformed into a player that can set the rules for the Hollywood chessboard.

The MPAA held a position in American entertainment similar to that of a certain bureau across the ocean; it controlled the rating power for all films in Hollywood. Take Terminator 2, for example. If Firefly had initially held a seat at the MPAA, the movie would likely have received a PG-13 rating instead of an R. With the youth audience ongoingly growing, being rated R meant losing a significant portion of viewers before the film had even been released. Luckily, Terminator 2 was exceptional enough to counterbalance the box office hit caused by its rating.

Of course, America claimed to be a land of freedom, allowing any film the right to forgo rating. However, all mainstream theaters agreed to only show films rated by the MPAA. If a movie chose not to participate in the rating system, it effectively lost the opportunity for mainstream release, relegating it to showings in poorly conditioned underground theaters. This form of 'freedom-seeking' would lead to losses greater than if a film had been rated NC-17.

The fallen MGM was still called one of Hollywood's big seven, not just because of its half-century legacy but mainly due to its seat in the MPAA. Even though its financial performance was surpassed by many second-tier studios, nobody could shake MGM's status. For Firefly, if it hadn't managed to acquire Disney, securing a place in the MPAA would surely have involved a challenging negotiation.

Aside from the film rating authority, another primary function of the MPAA was to lobby on behalf of Hollywood to amend federal laws protecting the business interests of its seven members.

Looking at Eric, now officially one of Hollywood's key players, the executives from other major companies felt an inexplicable nostalgia, inevitably recalling their own situations at twenty.

Eric could certainly sense the complex emotions from these people. After greeting them, he raised his glass and said, "I truly appreciate everyone coming to this celebration. I hope you all have a wonderful evening."

Nodding in agreement, several executives dispersed, and Eric quickly moved to catch up with Barry Diller, who had been walking nearby.

...

"Barry, can we chat over there?" Eric pointed to a nearby round table.

Barry nodded and followed Eric to the table, where Eric asked, "Barry, you're leaving mid-next month. Have you thought about what you want to do next?"

Barry chuckled, "Eric, I know what you're getting at, but I won't be signing any employment contracts again."

Since the 1970s, Barry Diller had guided Paramount and Fox back to prominence. With Firefly acquiring Disney and Michael Eisner's departure becoming inevitable, Barry was undoubtedly the best candidate to replace Eisner.

Eric tried to persuade him, "Barry, why not at least hear out my terms?"

"Eric, let's not discuss this anymore. Ever since I decided to leave last year, I committed to no longer just being a well-paid employee. I'm approaching fifty and want to try building something of my own."

"Well, okay. If you need help, like funding or something, just reach out any time," Eric raised his glass toward Barry.

Barry lifted his own goblet, taking a sip of red wine. He said, "If Michael can't stay, maybe you should consider Jeffrey Katzenberg. He was once my assistant, and I think he's ready for the CEO position at Disney."

Eric acknowledged, "Actually, I've thought about that. But you know, Jeffrey is a workaholic. I heard he used to show up at the office at five every morning and worked seven days a week. It's one thing for him to set such a demanding standard for himself, but he demands the same from his staff. While he's indeed achieved impressive results as head of Disney Studios, it has led to a lot of complaints from the production department. Handing Disney over to him is a bit of a gamble; I wonder what might happen."

"That's just because of the different contexts he's operating in. Right now, he leads a production department, so it's natural he'd be aggressive. If he were to take over as Disney CEO, he'd surely adjust his management style," Barry explained as he looked at Eric. "Plus, with you supervising him, he probably wouldn't get away with too much chaos."

"I will have a talk with him," Eric nodded and then asked, "What about you? What are you planning to do after you leave?"

Barry answered, "I'm thinking I might travel a bit, visit some tech companies. Now that I'm nearly finished with most of my responsibilities, I suddenly realize how much the world has changed in the last twenty years. I recently bought an interesting little item -- the Apple PowerBook. You know about that? I think it could change the world."

"Of course, I know! I've been using a laptop for some time now. I started with an IBM, and I just bought a PowerBook 140 too," Eric replied, surprised at Barry's keen insight.

He had always kept a close eye on Apple. When they launched the first PowerBook 100 last year, he had bought one to play around with. It cost $2,500 -- not cheap but not outrageous either. The configurations of today's laptops were still frustratingly low; even the latest PowerBook 140 only had a maximum of 4MB of RAM and a 120MB hard drive.

Barry looked at Eric, taken aback. He quickly realized that Eric, being younger, would naturally be quicker to embrace new technologies compared to him. He let that thought slide.

They talked for a little longer about personal computers and networking before Barry finally got up to leave.

...

"Eric, congratulations!" Barry had barely walked away when Drew Barrymore rushed over in a rose-colored little dress.

Eric wrapped his arm around her waist and seated her next to him. Just then, another tall woman approached, smiling and greeting them, "Claudia, how did you end up here?"

"I just passed the audition for The Mask," Claudia Schiffer explained as she sat down next to Eric.

Eric hadn't been following The Mask's developments closely, so he turned to Drew and asked, "Did you finalize the contract with Jim Carrey?"

Drew's face lit up with a hint of pride as she wiggled two fingers, "Yep, two films for $8 million."

Eric raised his eyebrows, surprised. "Wait, I told you to aim for a package deal of $10 million, didn't I?"

"That was all on him," Drew explained, her expression becoming annoyed. "After the project was initially set up, we gently discussed it with him three times, but he wouldn't budge. He wanted $6 million per film and only wanted to sign for one."

"Oh, so what happened then?" Eric asked.

Drew shrugged casually, "I just sent him the contract. The first offer was for two films at $10 million. The second time, I lowered it to $9 million, and when I sent the third offer at $8 million, he came forward to sign."

Eric burst out laughing and ruffled Drew's hair, saying, "Nice work, you've got a bright future ahead! By the way, how come I didn't see Liz? Did Mr. Murdoch not come either?"

"They all went back to Australia; I think her grandma's birthday is coming up," Drew explained before asking, "So, Eric, who was that girl over there? Is she someone new?"

Eric instinctively asked, "What girl?"

Drew pouted slightly, "The one in the beige trench coat."

"Oh, her," Eric started to clarify, just as Tina Fey, now in a sky-blue dress, appeared in his line of sight, and he waved at her.

Tina Fey carefully lifted her borrowed dress and approached somewhat hesitantly.

"Hey, you look great," Eric said, looking her over as she came closer.

But Tina didn't feel any of the Cinderella joy of transformation. If this borrowed Armani dress got dirty or torn, she wouldn't even know how to repay for it.

Drew quickly picked up on Tina's anxious demeanor as she walked and laughed merrily, not minding that Eric was right there. On the other side, Claudia, having spent years modeling, was well-acquainted with the delicate nature of high-end designer pieces. She could easily relate to Tina's feelings and discreetly masked her amusement with a sip from her wineglass.

"Eric, this is a bit petty, isn't it? When did you start liking this type?" Drew leaned in, whispering to Eric as Tina settled down with them.

Eric shot a glare at her, silencing her, before introducing, "This is Miss Tina Fey; she's a reporter. Tina, this is Drew and Claudia."

Tina wanted to correct him that her name was actually Elisabeth Fey, but seeing Eric being so presumptuous, she let it go and politely greeted the two women.

Eric didn't want Tina to remain in an awkward position before them, so he got up and extended his hand to Tina. "Let's go dance."

"Sure... okay," she agreed timidly.

...

Seeing Eric drag Tina off to dance, Drew blinked at Claudia, scanning her from head to toe.

"What's wrong?" Claudia glanced down at her attire.

Drew shook her head, lamenting, "Men are utterly impossible; you, a stunning beauty, are sitting right here, and he drags off some little unknown to dance instead."

Claudia paused for a moment, looking toward Eric in the distance. She felt a twinge of disappointment but couldn't help defending Eric. "Mr. Williams is a gentleman; he's just helping that lady out."

Drew giggled softly, leaning closer to Claudia. "You'll see. He can be far from a gentleman at times."

Claudia felt her cheeks flush slightly but curiously stammered, "You..."

"Yup!" The girl didn't wait for Claudia to finish her sentence; she admitted without hesitation and then smiled at Claudia, "You wouldn't want to report him, would you?"

Claudia quickly shook her head, regretting she ever asked. She knew this wasn't beneficial to her at all.

Drew didn't say much more. She stood and extended a small hand to Claudia. "Beautiful lady, may I have this dance?"

Claudia took Drew's hand and smiled, "Just the two of us?"

"Of course! I wouldn't want to dance with those stinky men anyway. You're the best, smelling so nice!"

Claudia reluctantly stood up and let Drew pull her toward the dance floor.

*****

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