Chapter 708: Delivered to the Door

[Chapter 708: TDelivered to the Door]

The optimal production time for Transformers would certainly be ten years later, but if Eric were to say that now, he believed Allen Hasenfeld would likely walk out on the spot.

"How about five years?" After a moment of consideration, Eric suggested to Allen Hasenfeld, his words not merely a way to placate him. Advancing the production to around the year 2000, there wouldn't be too many technical issues, just that costs might be a bit higher. "I have several high-tech companies backing me, so I'm quite knowledgeable in this area. Given the current pace of technological development, starting Transformers five years from now would keep costs within a manageable risk range."

Last night's comments didn't completely quash the enthusiasm of the film companies vying for the Transformers rights, but they had certainly had a noticeable impact. Before arriving that morning, Allen Hasenfeld had called several top executives from the film companies he had been negotiating with, and their enthusiasm was no longer what it had been just days earlier. Allen understood that these parties were not losing interest in the Transformers rights, but rather, they were apprehensive due to Eric's remarks.

Since Eric had openly suppressed the Transformers copyright at the party, it was almost certain that he didn't want others to vie for the rights. If he was doing this while the copyright battle was still ongoing, one couldn't rule out the possibility that he would act against them during the film production.

Thus, Hasbro's best potential partner at this point was Firefly. Of course, they could keep the Transformers rights tightly in their grip, but that wouldn't align with Hasbro's fundamental interests either.

Once Eric finished speaking, Allen Hasenfeld didn't hesitate, saying, "Eric, Firefly has always been Hasbro's most desired partner. We've discussed in detail that if you could personally direct this film, Firefly would only need to pay a $5 million licensing fee for the rights. However, Hasbro would like to make a joint investment; our request is modest, just a 30% investment stake."

"Allen, I can't guarantee that I could direct this film, but I will definitely be personally involved as a producer. As for Hasbro wanting to invest, I'm open to considering it," Eric replied without hesitation. It wasn't that he couldn't direct, he simply didn't want to take on the role for Transformers.

For Eric, the Transformers films were best positioned as popcorn blockbusters filled with special effects and explosions, and that was good enough. In his previous life, the Transformers series had received poor ratings from both media and film critics largely because of this positioning, and Eric cared about maintaining his reputation as a director. Thus, he preferred to leave the directing role to someone less concerned about negative critiques.

They went back and forth in negotiations and finally reached an agreement. Hasbro would license the film adaptation rights of Transformers to Firefly for $3 million, with a term of ten years. Firefly committed to developing the film version in five years, with Hasbro able to participate in up to 25% of the investment.

Allen Hasenfeld wasn't really concerned about the few million dollars in licensing fees. So, when Eric lowered the price to $3 million, he didn't press the issue too much. Instead, Eric permitting Hasbro to participate with a 25% investment caught him by surprise. In previous discussions with other film companies, the main sticking point had been the investment ratio from Hasbro.

At first, Hasbro dreamed of splitting the investment for a live-action film right down the middle with their partner. But they quickly realized that such terms were out of the question for most film companies. Before arriving, Allen's bottom line had been 20%, and Eric's willingness to allow for 25% made him wish he had known that earlier, thus saving time with the others.

Seeing the expression on Allen's face, Eric couldn't help but chuckle inside. Even if that buried thought of getting one over didn't pan out, Hasbro would eventually experience the financial reality of Hollywood.

Certainly, the details of the contract would need detailed discussions between both sides. Yet, with the outcome now assured, Eric became even more enthusiastic and opened a bottle of champagne for a simple celebration.

Holding the champagne, Allen Hasenfeld and Eric looked ahead at the movie prospects for Transformers, and seemingly casually, he broached another topic, "Eric, if I may say so, Firefly has been falling short in the development of movie-related merchandise in recent years compared to those blockbuster films. Take Disney's 3D animated films -- Firefly produced a part of the merchandise but confined it to sales within Disneyland and Disney stores. For merchandise types that Firefly couldn't produce, your loose application-based licensing approach was also a significant waste of the brand."

Firefly had indeed recognized this issue, but in recent years, both Firefly and Disney had focused on film operations. After acquiring Disney, Eric had immediately pursued the acquisition of a television network, diverting much attention from taking care of this matter. Meanwhile, Katzenberg had begun seeking solutions. Recently, Eric had seen several related documents where the brand operations department was discussing a bundled licensing agreement with fast-food giant KFC, where KFC would pay $100 million annually for the rights to feature Disney cartoon characters on their restaurant merchandise. Once this partnership took shape, Firefly could expand on this model, establishing more efficient branding strategies.

However, Eric would not share such thoughts with Allen. He understood Allen's intent behind those comments, simply nodding in acknowledgment while other considerations flickered in his mind.

As expected, Allen continued, "Since we're on the subject, I think, why don't we cooperate more deeply in this area? Firefly is a media conglomerate, and I suspect you wouldn't be aiming for a broad expansion of Disney stores, as that's not Firefly's focus either. Hasbro can completely fill the market gaps outside of Disneyland and Disney stores. We not only possess a robust product distribution system in North America but also have significant reach in European and Asian markets."

Eric feigned intense interest yet lamented, "Allen, after hearing you say this, I would love for us to collaborate, but I must discuss this with management before making any decisions. Regardless of the outcome of that discussion, I'll get back to you as soon as possible."

Allen hadn't expected Eric to provide an immediate answer, but he was thrilled at the sentiment.

Throughout the rapid expansion of Hasbro in the '80s, they often took a clumsy route of acquisitions to enrich their toy offerings.

In recent years, Firefly's strong emergence in CG blockbuster films and 3D animated movies had unveiled a new development route for Hasbro. If a close partnership with Firefly could be formed, the CG films and 3D animated movies produced by Firefly would provide Hasbro with a continuous stream of toy designs. Hasbro had long coveted toys from films like Toy Story, Jurassic Park, and The Lion King; however, Firefly had always been very conservative in collaborations on this front, leaving them without opportunities.

With this intent developed, Allen heartily approved. He glanced at the time -- a little past eleven. Lunch was still some time off, and since Eric didn't extend an invitation to join him, Allen graciously took his leave.

...

After seeing off Allen Hasenfeld, Eric didn't return to the villa terrace to relax; instead, he dialed Katzenberg's number.

Allen Hasenfeld's cooperation proposal also opened his eyes to another opportunity.

The potential value of the merchandise surrounding Firefly's films could be seen from KFC's willingness to pay $100 million annually for Disney cartoon character licensing.

The idea Eric previously suggested to Fox to acquire Hasbro wasn't just about the Transformers rights; he was also interested in Hasbro's extensive toy production and sales system. Fox was hesitant to take the risk, prompting Eric to contemplate acquiring Hasbro himself. However, due to significant investments in high-tech industries in recent years, Eric lacked the necessary funds to seize Hasbro.

Now, Allen Hasenfeld's proposal felt like Hasbro was proactively coming to him.

As long as a close partnership with Hasbro could be established, given Firefly's commanding brand presence, this world-class toy giant would eventually develop a reliance on Firefly's brand image.

Additionally, all contracts come with expiration dates. Eric predicted that Firefly's investments could see a large return around 2000, coinciding with the peak of the internet bubble, at which point he would have sufficient strength to acquire Hasbro.

Thus, all Firefly needed to do was to sign a five-year contract with Hasbro. The closer their partnership became in those five years, the stronger Hasbro's reliance on Firefly would become. When the contract expired, Firefly would naturally initiate an acquisition offer, and Hasbro, now tightly bound to Firefly Group, would know exactly how to choose, or they would find themselves with little choice.

After sharing his thoughts over the phone with Katzenberg, who was quite enthusiastic and declared he would immediately gather the management team to discuss the matter, Eric hung up. He looked at the time -- 11:30 AM.

Gathering others for a meeting close to lunchtime was... well, complaints would certainly not rest on his shoulders.

Having secretly grumbled about a certain workaholic, Eric made a call to Elisabeth, briefly explaining the recent developments. Elisabeth had already heard about last night's events, and although there was a tone of regret in her voice, the situation unexpectedly winding up this way was probably the best outcome. After all, without Eric stepping in directly, the chance of Fox snatching up the Transformers rights was slim.

...

After finishing the two calls, Eric returned to the villa terrace, only to notice several women approaching him with curious looks. He smiled and said, "Everyone, it's noon; let's get ready to eat... wow."

With a splash, before Eric could finish his sentence, five women swiftly picked him up and tossed him into the swimming pool.

Gasping a bit, Eric steadied himself in the water.

Hearing the splashes, the five women laughed and jumped into the water, cheekily calling out, "Hey, Mr. Shark, leaving us hanging for so long is a punishment!"

Eric wiped the water from his face, feigning anger as he glared at Cindy Crawford, quickly swimming toward her. "In that case, you all should get ready to face a punishment too."

"Whoa, ah..."

"Ha ha!"

"Run, run!"

After splashing around for a bit, Eric finally caught hold of a soft, delicate body. To prevent her from escaping, he applied just enough pressure to lift her out of the water and pinned her against the pool's edge. Shaking his wet hair, when Eric opened his eyes, he found himself staring at Linda Evangeline.

Instead of acting as a 'captive,' Linda stretched her long, graceful legs, boldly wrapping them around Eric's body, her gaze fiery.

As Eric's hands began to move, he suddenly recalled something, locking eyes with Linda and asked, "Linda, if I remember correctly, you should be married, right?"

Linda had divorced her husband two years prior, but at that moment, she showed no inclination to explain. Instead, she provocatively licked her lips, looking at Eric and said, "What's the matter? Are you scared?"

Recognizing that the woman in front of him had no reservations, Eric dropped any pretense. The fire inside him only grew stronger as the other women nearby widened their eyes, gasping in either genuine or feigned shock.

Once the dam of desire was opened, it was hard to close. For the next two days, the five women did not leave and indulged in all kinds of shameless debauchery.

...

By Monday morning, with the Oscars coming up that evening, Cindy Crawford once again forgot to inform her agent about her whereabouts, leading to her agent nearly losing his mind trying to track her down.

Simultaneously, the five women realized they had a few important matters to wrap up before departing hastily from the estate.

*****

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