Chapter 584

At the London Hotel in West Hollywood, during the premiere party of Sherlock Holmes, Charles Capet was chatting with the movie's director, Guy Ritchie, and main actors Christian Bale, Jude Law, and Emily Blunt.

"Bale, your portrayal of Batman is my favorite version, really awesome. Is The Dark Knight Rises starting filming soon?" Charles raised his wine glass and clinked it with Christian Bale's.

Christian Bale smiled, "We should be starting this year, once director Nolan finishes promoting Inception, he'll dive right into The Dark Knight Rises project!"

...

Kate Beckinsale, who was filming The Green Hornet in Los Angeles, also attended the Sherlock Holmes premiere. She was chatting with Emily Blunt at the moment.

"The movie is pretty good. Capet Pictures and BBC's co-produced British miniseries, Sherlock, is also premiering next month. Sherlock Holmes' timing couldn't be better," Kate Beckinsale, who was also British, was very familiar with Sherlock Holmes along with Emily Blunt.

Emily Blunt smiled and replied, "The film version of Sherlock Holmes is set in Victorian London, but the series version, Sherlock, is set in modern-day London.

Oh, by the way, I've heard Marvel Studios is currently filming The Avengers in Atlanta, with many superheroes gathered, right?"

Kate Beckinsale nodded, "Definitely a big ensemble, everyone who should be there is there. I'll be joining the set soon too. However, my role isn't that big; the main characters are still Iron Man, Thor, Hulk, Black Widow, Hawkeye, and Loki."

"Sounds great," Emily Blunt was Charles Capet's choice for Captain Marvel, but her time to appear had not yet come. However, Marvel was also preparing for a new superhero, Namor the Sub-Mariner, potentially considering Emily Blunt for the lead female role.

Kate Beckinsale hugged Emily Blunt and reminded her, "You should ask Charles about the arrangements; he's like a god in movie production!"

Though Kate Beckinsale wasn't sure how many women Charles had, she definitely knew Emily Blunt was one of them.

As fellow Brits, Kate Beckinsale hoped Emily Blunt would advance further.

...

In the business car, Charles leaned against the seat, enjoying Dona Williams' attention while listening to Phyllis Jones' movie report.

"Skyfall, for the female agent assisting James Bond, I recommend casting Gal Gadot. Her movie, Captain America, is releasing this year, and her scenes in Fast Five are almost done. Filming at the end of the year would be perfect," Charles thought of Gal Gadot after hearing about MGM's Skyfall project. She had previously failed to secure a Bond girl role, losing to Olga Kurylenko in Quantum of Solace.

"Gal Gadot!" Phyllis Jones quickly agreed, considering Gal Gadot a perfect fit for the role that was originally intended for British actress Naomie Harris. Now that the boss suggested Gal Gadot, she was undoubtedly the best choice.

"Uh," Charles felt Dona Williams' increasing speed and turned to kiss Phyllis Jones, slipping his hand into her shirt to feel that 32D.

Scarlett Johansson, Phyllis Jones, and Ivanka all had 32D figures, with Scarlett Johansson standing at 5'3", Phyllis Jones at 5'7", and Ivanka at 5'11".

"Mmm," Phyllis Jones responded passionately...

Finally, Charles let go of the exhausted woman, leaning back on his seat.

"Boss," Phyllis Jones, aroused as well, watched Dona Williams stand up and kiss her on the lips.

Feeling the foreign object in her mouth, Phyllis Jones saw Dona Williams' mischievous eyes...

...

Sherlock Holmes had an opening weekend in North America of $62 million. With a production cost of $85 million and an additional $45 million for marketing, Capet Pictures was quite confident in Guy Ritchie's new style of detective film.

At the same time, Tesla went public. Capet Capital owned 22% of Tesla's shares, but Charles looked forward to Tesla's future. He definitely wouldn't cash out after the IPO, especially considering Tesla's current market value was only $1.5 billion!

In Los Angeles' financial district, at the new headquarters of West Pacific Union Bank, Charles had just signed an agreement with Tom Barrack, president of Colony Capital, to acquire shares in Las Vegas Sands.

"By the way, Charles, Michael Jackson's Neverland Ranch is still mortgaged to us. Are you interested in acquiring it?" Tom Barrack suddenly asked as he was leaving.

Charles shook his head, "Michael said that place only has bad memories for him. Colony Capital can handle the ranch themselves."

Charles wasn't interested in Neverland Ranch either. Although it was large, it had a zoo and amusement park that lost money every year.

Michael Jackson owed West Pacific Union Bank quite a bit of debt. How could he have money to redeem it?

"Is that so, what a pity," Tom Barrack said as he left the company.

Charles walked to the window. The high-rise buildings of Los Angeles were all concentrated in the financial district. West Pacific Union Bank's investments in Starbucks, Lululemon, and Las Vegas entertainment companies were progressing smoothly and showing significant results.

Political consultant Arianna Huffington, California Senator Gavin Newsom, Senator Dianne Feinstein, and Speaker Barbara Boxer all had investment accounts at West Pacific Union Bank!

"The three big casino bosses: Sheldon Adelson of Sands Entertainment, Steve Wynn of Wynn Resorts, and Kirk Kerkorian of MGM Grand."

"Boss, it's time to go back to Burbank," Phyllis Jones entered to remind Charles.

"Let's go," Charles quickly left West Pacific Union Bank with his bodyguards and headed straight for Capet Pictures' headquarters in Burbank.

"Ms. Langley said George Lucas didn't seem to approve of us acquiring Lucasfilm. He's been close to Disney, and Steve Jobs also advised him to sell Lucasfilm to Disney."

On the car ride, Phyllis Jones relayed the information about Lucasfilm to Charles.

"I guessed it. Disney's consumer products market is the best in the business, and with the Star Wars IP, their main focus would definitely be on the consumer merchandise market," Charles had guessed this outcome, but it still made him uncomfortable to hear it.

"How did Disney's Toy Story 3 do with its opening last Friday?"

"Oh, $110 million, opening weekend!"

"Pixar always does great. Disney already has one movie, Alice in Wonderland, with over one billion dollars in global box office this year. This one looks like it'll be the same," Charles scoffed.

"But Disney's Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time has only made $80 million domestically and $200 million overseas. It's definitely a flop. Our Thor 2, which came out the same time, already has $180 million in domestic box office and $400 million overseas!"

Charles nodded. Disney's big movies all had $200 million production costs, while Capet Pictures' most expensive Thor 2 only cost $150 million.

"Next month, Capet Illumination's first 3D animated feature, Despicable Me, will be released. Really looking forward to that," Charles smiled.

"By the way, Emily Blunt went to the East Coast with the crew for promotions, right? I saw her at the Sherlock Holmes premiere but didn't have time to chat."

"Yes, and she will go to Europe too," Phyllis Jones moved closer to Charles, "Boss, weren't you satisfied with Donna and me these past two days?"

"Of course I was," Charles said as he reached for Jones' thigh, "You two, how could I not be satisfied? You are handpicked assistants of mine!"

Charles then kissed Phyllis Jones on the lips. Her office attire only enhanced her allure.

"Roar, roar, roar! Lakers! Lakers!" a frenzy of chants came from a distance.

"Oh, today is the Lakers' championship parade. The city is full of celebrating crowds!"

Sitting on Charles' lap, Phyllis Jones quickly remembered upon hearing the chants.

"Almost forgot, you're right. And the NBA Draft is the day after tomorrow," Charles, caressing Phyllis Jones' thigh, also recalled.

"Let's go take a look!"

Soon, Charles had the car stopped, and they arrived at a vantage point to watch the flood of people along the street and the slow-moving buses.

"Boss, we'll need to take a detour," head bodyguard Larry Burke reminded him they couldn't pass through in this situation.

Charles waved his hand with a smile, "Actually, I used to be a Lakers fan too. No rush; I want to feel the championship parade's vibe. So that when my team wins the championship parade in New York, it won't seem so strange!"

Larry Burke chuckled, "Boss, shouldn't we aim to make the playoffs first?"

You should know, the Nets were sixth to last in the league last season.

"Playoffs? Last season was tanked, otherwise it would have been possible. We have the third pick this year and will introduce some new players," Charles stuck out his tongue.

"This year's parade is huge because they're avenging the 2008 Celtics championship win?"

Charles looked at the crowd filling the street and commented, "The whole street is packed with people!"

"I heard at least two million people came out to celebrate in LA today," Phyllis Jones nearby explained.

Charles folded his arms and watched the parade, then asked with a laugh, "After I suggested betting on the Lakers to win after Game 5, did everyone win some money?"

"Oh, I bet $50,000!" Jones' eyes sparkled, "Others bet a few thousand or a few hundred; I won the most. Haha, some even bet on the Celtics winning. They didn't trust the boss's insight!"

*****

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