Chapter 577: Just Buy It

[Chapter 577: Just Buy It]

After a quick chat with Amy Pascal, Eric set aside the matters related to Firefly Films for the time being.

Once Halloween slipped by, November 1993 arrived, and the global box office total for Jurassic Park edged closer to the $1 billion mark. This once again sparked intense media scrutiny, similar to the frenzy it had caused when it initially broke the box office record set by E.T.

During those days, Eric led a busy life, darting between different film sets and studios. While overseeing the preparation and production schedules for Firefly's major projects, he also had to juggle the process of acquiring a television network and occasionally attend some unavoidable party invitations.

Fortunately, Firefly's film marketing department had matured into a well-oiled machine under the guidance of Michael Lynn and Jeffrey Katzenberg. Eric didn't have to worry about the distribution of films slated for the end of the year, or else he'd be swamped with work.

After another day filled with activities, Eric reviewed the production progress of Men in Black. He exited the Columbia Pictures lot in Culver City while chatting with Peter Goober. Just as he was about to leave, his mobile phone rang.

It was Michael Lynn on the line. They exchanged a few brief words, and Eric decided not to head back to Malibu just yet. Instead, he instructed the driver to take him to the Firefly Films headquarters in Burbank.

...

Upon entering the conference room at Firefly's Burbank headquarters, Eric noticed that Michael Lynn and Jeffrey Katzenberg, along with other top executives, were already present.

However, he keenly observed that everyone wore subtle expressions of delight, alleviating his initial concerns. After a quick exchange of greetings, Eric took his seat and cheerfully asked, "Is there some good news?"

Sitting next to Eric, Michael Lynn handed him a document, a hint of excitement in his voice as he said, "The latest box office statistics just came in. Jurassic Park's latest total is $1,023,000,000. Eric, your prediction has come true. Today being Wednesday, we won't have the weekday box office report until Friday, which means most people don't know about this yet. But we can announce it to the public tomorrow."

Eric flipped through the document and saw box office earnings from over fifty countries, with the prominent figure of 1 billion standing out at the end. Satisfied, he nodded and set the document aside. He then asked Michael Lynn, "I can't imagine you called me here just for this?"

"Let Jeffrey explain," Michael Lynn gestured toward Katzenberg.

Katzenberg handed over an envelope. "Eric, this is a handwritten letter we received from Warren Buffett this afternoon. You should take a look."

Upon hearing Buffett's name, Eric wasn't particularly surprised. Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway was one of the largest shareholders in ABC Television, holding over 25% of the company's shares. Firefly's intention to acquire ABC clearly couldn't bypass Buffett.

Opening the envelope, Eric found nothing but a simple note inviting him to Omaha for a discussion regarding ABC. The envelope bore no postal marks, indicating that it was hand-delivered by someone else, not sent through the mail.

After reading the letter, Eric looked up. "You all have seen this, right?"

Michael and the others nodded in agreement.

Katzenberg, being the lead on the ABC acquisition, said, "From this letter, it seems Buffett has caught onto our intentions."

Eric neatly folded the letter and put it back into the envelope. He asked, "Jeffrey, how are things progressing on your end?"

Katzenberg replied, "To avoid raising too much suspicion, we've quietly acquired shares from the three major networks on the secondary market. Currently, we hold about 7% of ABC stock, while the other two networks are below 5%. ABC's stock price has climbed from $43 three months ago to $47 now, giving it a total market value of $9.67 billion."

Firefly had initially planned to acquire about 10% of ABC's stock and then publicly disclose this while joining ABC's board. However, with Buffett already aware, moving forward with their initial plan would not be straightforward.

After pondering for a moment, Eric said, "Let's sell off the other two networks' stocks for cash as soon as possible. Announce the news of Jurassic Park crossing the $1 billion mark tomorrow. Also, let's send a response to Mr. Buffett, inviting him to the celebration party for Jurassic Park's global box office success."

"Eric, this may not give us the upper hand," Frank Wells, who had been quiet until now, interjected. "Even though Berkshire Hathaway only owns 25% of ABC, ABC's chairman, Tom Murphy, is also a major stakeholder and a good friend of Warren Buffett. If we mean to acquire it, you should personally visit Omaha."

After Frank's words, none of the other executives over fifty spoke up, but Eric could see the approval on Jeffrey, Michael Lynn, and others' faces. For their generation, Buffett represented a financial legend, and Eric could grasp their admiration for him.

However, Eric had some other considerations. During this time, he had devoted a significant portion of his focus to the television network acquisition. With Buffett controlling substantial shares in ABC, Eric definitely couldn't afford to be ignorant about him.

Buffett was undoubtedly a strategic thinker. If he hadn't made any decisions, Eric believed he wouldn't have received Buffett's invitation letter today. Furthermore, Buffett's investment approach was highly rational. Eric was confident that Buffett wouldn't easily change his stance on him just because of a shift in venue.

Outside of that, Eric certainly wanted to maintain some control. While Michael Lynn and others were skeptical, Eric was determined to give it a try.

"Alright, we'll settle on this. Everyone, get ready," Eric said, waving his hand lightly, finalizing the decision.

...

The next day, Firefly announced the news of Jurassic Park crossing the $1 billion mark at the global box office. However, the celebration party was scheduled for a week later, mainly to allow time for executing the deals regarding NBC and CBS stocks.

Meanwhile, upon receiving Firefly's response, Buffett, as Eric had anticipated, accepted the invitation to the Jurassic Park celebration party.

As Thanksgiving approached, the holiday season kicked off, with Firefly releasing Ace Ventura 2, the final collaboration with Jim Carrey, on November 19. Not surprisingly, it grossed nearly $30 million over its opening weekend. The films aiming for Oscars, Interview with the Vampire and Quentin's Pulp Fiction, were slated for December.

Columbia Pictures likewise released John Woo's second Hollywood-directed film, Broken Arrow, that same week. Although it didn't perform as well as last year's Mr. & Mrs. Smith, John Woo cemented a decent following in North America due to last year's hit. Broken Arrow earned $32 million in its first weekend, and because the film was relatively low-cost -- under $50 million -- recouping costs was no problem.

Interestingly, the surprise hit of the year-end box office turned out not to be Ace Ventura 2, Broken Arrow, or any of the other expected films, but rather a project from 20th Century Fox -- a family comedy titled Mrs. Doubtfire starring Robin Williams. This movie grossed nearly $20 million in its opening weekend and garnered stellar reviews, leading box office forecasters to project a staggering $200 million haul in North America -- ten times its production budget.

This development got Elisabeth puffing up her chest every time she met Eric, until he gave her a thorough dressing down, after which she calmed down.

...

On November 22, as evening approached, though the party hadn't yet started, the Liberty City Estate was already packed to the brim. Eric pulled Jeffrey aside in an outdoor seating area of the villa and joked, "Jeffrey, I think insisting on hosting the Jurassic Park celebration at Liberty City is a huge mistake. You do know, Warren Buffett is quite a frugal man and despises extravagance, right? Perhaps he'll see everything here today and decide he doesn't want to sell ABC to us after all."

"Buffett's good friend and partner, Charlie Munger, not only owns a private plane but also a private island. Yet, Buffett hasn't cut ties with him. As far as I know, Buffett is indeed frugal, but he doesn't impose it on others. Look, Eric, I know you're not fond of throwing parties at your estate, but today is different, isn't it? Today is the celebration for Jurassic Park reaching a global box office of $1 billion -- this occasion deserves to be celebrated properly."

Just then, Drew, dressed beautifully in a red gown, walked up with Amy Pascal. The little lady warmly hugged Jeffrey before sidling up to Eric.

Noticing that Amy seemed to want to speak with Eric, Jeffrey politely excused himself and moved aside.

Eric gestured for Amy to sit down. "Amy, what's on your mind?"

Amy Pascal replied, "We've been in touch with all the companies holding the Spider-Man rights, Carolco Pictures, but they refused to transfer the rights to us."

Eric thought for a moment and asked, "Is Carolco still under Mario Kassar's leadership?"

Amy nodded and said, "Since the summer release of Cliffhanger and Last Action Hero flopped, Carolco has been in a semi-bankrupt state for the last six months. However, when I approached Mario Kassar, the moment I mentioned our interest, he outright refused our request to purchase the Spider-Man rights."

"Is that all?" Eric inquired.

"Not at all. He said he could collaborate with us on developing Spider-Man but would absolutely not sell the rights."

"He must have guessed you were the mastermind behind this," the little lady joked as she playfully nudged Eric with her shoulder.

Eric tugged her ear and pushed her away, contemplating. "What kind of agreement did Carolco have when they acquired the Spider-Man rights?"

"It was for five years, from 1990 until 1995. However, I found out there are some clauses stating that if Carolco develops the Spider-Man film during that period, the rights will automatically extend for another five years. Also, the contracts for Captain America and Fantastic Four are similar to Spider-Man's."

This turned out to be quite a troublesome situation.

Eric remembered that, in the original timeline, Carolco had declared bankruptcy around 1995, leading to Spider-Man's rights reverting back to Marvel Comics. However, Marvel was in dire straits at the time and was forced to sell it to Sony, making Spider-Man's return seemingly a distant dream due to Sony's eventual massive success with the films.

Quickly, Eric thought of other matters and asked, "Where do the majority of Carolco's shares lie now?"

"I'm not too sure, but the controlling interest is likely with some investment funds on Wall Street. Eric, I worry that if Mario Kassar spills the beans, it could attract other studios to compete for the Spider-Man rights and potentially create problems for Marvel."

Eric didn't acknowledge Amy's concerns but asked, "How much would it cost to acquire Carolco Pictures entirely?"

"Probably several million dollars. Although Carolco released and produced a number of films in recent years, very few succeeded, or it wouldn't find itself in this sort of semi-bankrupt position now."

"Gather more information. If Mario Kassar won't budge, let's buy Carolco entirely. I bet the people on Wall Street are eager to cash in on this mess."

Amy raised the earlier question again, "But what if they catch on to your interest in the Spider-Man rights?"

Eric shook his head and smiled. "Don't worry. It's simply not the right time to develop Spider-Man. Superhero movies have high demands for special effects. Otherwise, do you think the top five studios would allow Marvel's major superheroes to end up in the hands of second or third-tier studios? So even if another studio snags it, it's not a big deal. We can always stage another acquisition later. I still have plenty of years ahead of me."

*****

https://www.patreon.com/Sayonara816.