Chapter 200: Financing Plans
[Chapter 200: Financing Plans]
"Cunning guy!"
At CAA headquarters in the Death Star building, Michael Ovitz watched Link on TV with a complex expression.
Ron Meyer, smoking a cigarette, said lightly, "We really underestimated him."
Michael snorted, his demeanor growing darker.
Before getting involved in the wager, he knew Link as a young, smart, wealthy, and capable individual. However, he had never taken Link seriously nor considered him a rival, so joining the bet was merely a spur-of-the-moment decision to have a little fun.
Considering the quality of The Firm and the fame of Tom Cruise, the group believed they wouldn't lose.
But after The Firm was released, influenced by films like The Wedding Banquet and Ace Ventura: Pet Detective, he had started to feel anxious and made a series of less-than-rational decisions. This included investing heavily in promoting The Firm while trying to undermine the box office performance of Final Destination.
His stake in the wager kept increasing until he found himself outmatched, ultimately losing to Link and his Final Destination.
This led to losses exceeding a hundred million dollars for him, Ron Meyer, and several key clients at CAA. It indirectly resulted in Richard Gere suffering severe injury, Robert Downey Jr. facing jail time, and Dustin Hoffman suffering reputational damage. Tom Cruise, a marquee client of CAA, also saw his work affected.
The losses for CAA were staggering.
In hindsight, Michael regretted participating in the wager. If he hadn't, he wouldn't have lost so much money. If he had refrained from escalating the bet to boost The Firm's box office while undermining Final Destination, he wouldn't have lost as much, and Robert and Richard wouldn't have clashed, nor would Tom and the others have faced repercussions.
The more Michael thought about it, the more he regretted his decisions.
"Michael, Link has already established himself in Hollywood. Guess Pictures has grown increasingly stronger after successfully distributing seven films, becoming a powerhouse in the independent film sector. I suggest we actively improve our relationship with Link; having a potential powerhouse as a partner is more beneficial for CAA than having another competitor," Jay Moloney pointed out.
Michael knew Jay was right. CAA was a talent agency, generating profits from the earnings of its clients and movie project shares. This profit model required maintaining close ties with film studios.
From a corporate perspective, it was imperative to improve relations with Link and Guess Pictures.
But personally, for him, the top guy in Hollywood, to proactively engage with Link -- someone whose actions had caused significant losses for the company and himself -- was something he couldn't bring himself to do.
"Restoring relations with Link is indeed necessary," Ron Meyer stated. "Link prefers to work with new actors. Our lack of collaboration won't impact him much, but his films are highly popular, and the stars he elevates benefit us even more."
Michael took a few deep drags of his cigarette, nodding slowly.
...
On TV, Larry King continued, "Link, I heard your third movie has wrapped. What's the genre, and can you share a bit about it?"
Link replied, "It's a thriller that deals with themes of religion and crime. John Milton mentioned seven deadly sins in Paradise Lost: gluttony, greed, sloth, pride, lust, envy, and wrath. This film revolves around those seven sins and will be just as intense as my previous two films."
"A crime thriller? I have a bad feeling that once this movie is released, there might be more trouble on the way," Larry said seriously.
"Larry, you need to trust science."
"Ha! Link, want to place a bet? If you lose, you buy me a drink?" Larry joked.
"I'm pretty sure I'll win."
Link laughed and bumped fists with Larry.
Larry continued asking other questions.
...
After finishing his CNN interview, Link went on to chat with The Hollywood Reporter, Vanity Fair, and CBS about the wager and the controversies with Robert Downey Jr. He clarified some rumors, but the media still circulated numerous malicious reports.
During this time, Link received investment inquiries from numerous firms, including CAA, Time Warner, Vanguard Group, BlackRock, J.P. Morgan, Morgan Stanley, and Goldman Sachs, all giants in the financial world.
Link understood that Guess Pictures had become highly desirable in Wall Street's eyes.
The negative press was likely linked to these investment firms.
Continuing to refuse could lead to complications and delay his filmmaking.
...
Link called in several top executives for a meeting and decided to accept financing. However, he set the valuation of Guess Pictures at $500 million instead of the $220 million suggested by Wall Street.
If others believed in Guess Pictures, it indicated that the company's shares were indeed valuable. Doubling the initial valuation didn't seem unreasonable.
...
"$500 million?"
Michael Ovitz frowned when he heard the offer. "Link, are you joking? Columbia Pictures has been around for over 70 years and has released thousands of films, yet its valuation is only $3 billion. Why does Guess Pictures warrant $500 million?"
Michael Ovitz was not only the founder of CAA; he was also a power broker in the financial community.
He had previously utilized his resources to assist Sony in acquiring Columbia Pictures in 1989 and helped Panasonic Pictures purchase Universal Studios' parent company MCA in 1990.
Now he was hired by Vanguard to discuss financing with Link.
But it seemed Link was reluctant to accept any financing, opting instead to go it alone, which frustrated him.
Link smiled. "The valuation of film companies isn't determined by how long they've been around -- it's based on performance. Since our founding, every film we've released has been a box office hit, often yielding thousands of times the budget. Last year, our profits even surpassed those of the major studios. This shows that Guess Pictures is just as capable of making money as the big players. My valuation of $500 million is actually quite modest.
Do you know how many parties wanted to invest in Guess Pictures since last year? One hundred and twenty-seven, including individuals and investment firms. This indicates the immense potential of Guess Pictures; we might grow to rival the major studios. Investing now is a fantastic opportunity, and missing out could be a mistake."
"Rivaling the majors?" Michael dryly chuckled. "Link, I'm trying to have a serious negotiation here. I hope you can match my tone."
"Michael, as a Hollywood veteran, I have great respect for you. I wouldn't joke about this. To be frank, Guess Pictures is worth $500 million now, and by the end of the year, we aim to push that to over $1 billion. If you want to invest in Guess Pictures, it would be wise to act quickly; otherwise, you may miss the chance."
Link leaned back in his office chair, smiling.
"$1 billion? That's an ambitious goal." Michael said, "I'll rethink the financing matter and get back to you in a couple of days."
Michael snorted and hung up the phone decisively.
His initiation of a discussion with Link was also meant as an olive branch, but Link clearly didn't appreciate it.
Michael wouldn't hesitate to play hardball now.
He picked up the phone and called Vanguard, suggesting they continue undercutting Guess Pictures and pressure Link into submission.
Link had no strong footing in Hollywood and wouldn't last long.
Vanguard was the most powerful entertainment capital in Hollywood, a significant shareholder in companies like Warner Bros., Disney, and 20th Century Fox.
As long as Vanguard was willing to suppress Link, the future for him and Guess Pictures would be grim.
...
"Link, is this really the right move?"
In the office, Lily looked at Link with concern.
Recently, there had been rumors in the industry that Guess Pictures was making too much money, attracting the unwanted attention of the major studios and Wall Street investors. The powers that be were preparing to team up to swallow Guess Pictures whole.
In light of this, Link not only showed no intention to compromise but also planned to leverage the situation to his advantage.
She was worried the Wall Street tycoons might abandon negotiations and resort to other means to take on Link.
"Relax. We still have plenty of cards to play; we won't lose."
Link confidently chuckled as he flipped through the newspaper.
*****
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