Chapter 609: Persuading George

When Charles Capet was having a great time in Simi Valley with Kristen Stewart and Blake Lively, NBC and TNT together announced that they had secured the broadcasting rights for NCAA March Madness for the next fourteen years with a 10.6-billion-dollar deal.

This left ESPN, CBS, and Fox staring in disbelief.

In Beverly Hills, Disney CEO Robert Iger's villa, director Steven Spielberg paid a special visit.

Ever since DreamWorks signed a film distribution agreement with Disney, Spielberg had already started several collaborative projects with them.

Firstly, the war drama War Horse, directed by Spielberg himself, had just started filming. Spielberg had specially invited British actor Benedict Cumberbatch, who had gained massive popularity from the British series Sherlock, to guest star as a German officer in War Horse.

Secondly, Spielberg served as the producer for the film Real Steel, which was adapted from a game, and both films were primarily distributed by Disney.

"Steven, it seems you've directed two more movies this year," Robert Iger chuckled.

Steven Spielberg shook his head and replied, "I'll try to direct just one movie from now on. It really is exhausting."

Earlier this year, Steven Spielberg, along with Peter Jackson, had just co-directed the 3D animated feature The Adventures of Tintin. However, this was a collaboration between DreamWorks and Paramount.

Adding to his role as producer for Cowboys & Aliens and Real Steel, along with a couple of series, Spielberg was known for his prolific output. He was also willing to put his name on the producer's list for the right price.

Robert Iger took a sip of his coffee. "Disney's film success this year includes Pixar's Toy Story 3 making a huge impact, and the live-action adaptation Alice in Wonderland achieving massive success."

"This is indeed something to be happy about," Spielberg nodded in agreement. "It also shows the future path for Disney: live-action adaptations of animated works."

Spielberg agreed, after all, Alice in Wonderland had grossed over $1 billion worldwide.

"Unfortunately," Robert Iger continued, "Disney's shortcomings in developing live-action films are still very apparent. This summer's The Sorcerer's Apprentice, developed by Touchstone Pictures, only brought in $60 million domestically, and just $150 million worldwide, with the film's cost being $150 million.

Additionally, the $200 million Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time brought in $90 million domestically and around $345 million worldwide, but advertising for this film cost $60 million.

To add to it, the fantasy film A Christmas Carol, released last year, cost $200 million to produce and only grossed $325 million worldwide."

Robert Iger's point was clear: Disney's losses on live-action films in the past half-year were alarming.

Otherwise, they wouldn't be rebooting the already concluded Pirates of the Caribbean 4, the production of which had already been completed and was set to be Disney's flagship summer release next year.

"Robert, trust me, DreamWorks and I will surely bring success to Disney," Spielberg reassured.

Robert Iger smiled but wasn't convinced internally. He knew how much Spielberg's Amblin Entertainment took from each film.

Disney valued Spielberg's celebrity status for boosting stock prices. They didn't expect to make money directly from Spielberg, especially with Paramount's recent experiences.

"I know you're always Hollywood's brightest star, Steven," Robert Iger said after some thought. "This time, I'm hoping you can persuade George Lucas, isn't he thinking about retiring? Disney hopes to inherit George Lucas's legacy and manage Lucasfilm."

Spielberg understood. Robert Iger wanted him to help convince George Lucas to sell Lucasfilm to Disney.

It seemed Disney's eagerness for Star Wars was growing stronger.

"Robert, you should understand," Spielberg hesitated. "If George really retires, he will definitely sell Lucasfilm. But even though Lucasfilm has only produced Indiana Jones 4 in recent years, who can be sure he will actually retire?"

Robert Iger looked at Spielberg. "George Lucas will only retire if he lets go of Lucasfilm, not the other way around."

"Got it," Spielberg understood what Robert Iger meant.

Would George Lucas retire? Yes, but only after finding a successor for Star Wars.

In other words, as long as Lucasfilm was under George Lucas's management, he wouldn't retire.

"I've talked with George Lucas several times recently. I can tell he has the intention to retire, just lacks the right opportunity," Robert Iger hoped Spielberg, as a long-time friend of Lucas, could persuade him.

Disney was not in the best shape, feeling increasing pressure from Capet Universal.

In live-action production, Disney lagged behind Capet Universal, not to mention Capet Universal holding Marvel Entertainment, which Disney desired.

Now, the expanding Universal Studios posed a challenge to Disney. The opening of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Orlando was truly impressive.

The re-purchase of stocks and significant investment in expansion were filling up Universal Studios' slate, and even the once-weak animation market had become unpredictable with Capet Illumination's emergence.

Then there's the competition between ABC and NBC, with ABC falling behind across the board. Although ESPN and Disney Channel held significant advantages in their respective markets, Charles Capet's focus on TV stations and Universal Studios resorts signaled NBC Sports' major action in the sports market.

Disney had to consider these moves. Capet Universal was starting to attack Disney's strongholds.

Disney couldn't remain idle in the film and TV production business, but to compete with Capet Universal's enviable movie IPs, they needed their own series of IPs for security.

Lucasfilm became Disney's trump card to counter Capet Universal.

*****

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