Exploiting Hollywood 1980.

Chapter 1598 Acquisition and Rebirth

What Kerkorian was interested in was the filming rights of several series of films under United Artists. Before United Artists went bankrupt and was reorganized and acquired by MGM, there were many hit series of films that could continue to be filmed as sequels.

Among them, the most famous is the Rocky series starring Sylvester Stallone. As of today, five films have been shot. As long as Stallone is happy, he can continue to shoot.

Of course, if he doesn't want to continue being the boxer Rocky, after a few years, according to Hollywood tradition, he can remake the most classic first film and restart the entire movie.

Another movie with potential to be a hit is the Pink Panther. This series of movies directed by Blake Edwards and starring Peter Sellers has been filmed for eight years. The latest one was just released in 1993.

This series is also a classic comedy detective movie, which is very well-known among movie fans. There is great potential for remakes in the future.

These two series of films were both produced and distributed by United Artists before the merger of United Artists and MGM. Therefore, the company logos in their film titles are the classic UA letters of United Artists, instead of the roaring lion - MGM.

After the two companies merged in 1981, many of United Artists' distribution forces were merged with MGM. Therefore, the hit movies produced and distributed by United Artists, including Rain Man, were all marked with the United Artists logo, and the distributors on the posters were generally signed as MGM/UA.

There are also some classic non-series films, such as Apocalypse Now, West Side Story, Midnight Cowboy, Some Like It Hot, etc. Kerkorian also wants to take their remake rights away from United Artists and have them belong to MGM.

In addition to the income from selling home entertainment (videotapes) and TV broadcasts, these classic movies that sold well in the past also have another important potential income, which is remakes. Hollywood has always been remaking movies on the spot. As long as it is a classic movie, half of the cost can be recovered after remaking it 20 years later. It is also an important bargaining chip to attract stars.

For example, the most classic western movie, The Magnificent Seven, is very attractive to new male stars. Do you want to play the role of Yul Brynner in The Magnificent Seven, or the role played by Steve McQueen?

Such a sentence can arouse the interest of popular stars, which is much more powerful than simply giving away an unknown script. Most movie stars are also fans of old stars. After entering the industry, they have watched many classic films of the past, so this sales method is very effective.

Ronald also wanted the rights to remake these classic films, especially those made before 1970. Because at that time the big studio system was still in place, the rights to the films were relatively complete and belonged to the studios, without the trouble of sharing with producers, directors, and others as in the later new film era.

The two had a heated discussion about this. Although Kerkorian was not very good at making movies, as a boss in the gambling business, he had a good idea of ​​what was valuable.

Ronald also secretly complained that maybe Kerkorian, the owner of the MGM Hotel, had done too much and was very picky about the valuables on the guests who had lost all their money.

In short, Kerkorian just won't give in. These movies don't seem to have any profit prospects now, but no one knows if a star or director takes a fancy to them and they can immediately make a comeback and remake them to make tens of millions of dollars.

Finally, Ronald got annoyed. After all, his main purpose was still the United Artists label, so he decided to agree.

"You are such a tough negotiating opponent, but at the same time, I can't go home empty-handed, right?" Ronald responded with the same words that Kerkorian had used to talk to him. In America, not leaving any benefits to others in a negotiation is not considered respectable, except for Jews.

"Okay, take a look and see what you want." Kerkorian touched his nose. Anyway, he had kept all the profitable ones, so you just had to pick the ones that didn't make money.

"How about you leave 007 to United Artists?" Ronald brought up the film that was once the most profitable for United Artists, the series of films about the British spy James Bond.

"Haha, were you willing to give in before, just waiting for this?" Kirkorian said with a smile. You are so concerned about the most profitable series of movies of United Artists.

"Come on, you were once the boss of MGM/United Artists. You know who made most of the money from 007, right?"

Ronald was tired of bargaining with this businessman from the gambling industry. United Artists only had the distribution rights for 007's movies. This was related to the unique label United Artists' tradition of respecting creators.

The copyright to Ian Fleming's novels eventually went to EON Productions, a company founded by Albert Broccoli and now managed by his daughter Barbara.

EON and Ian Fleming's descendants signed a long-term licensing agreement, which means that all creative content must be approved by EON Productions. United Artists only plays a role in coordinating distribution.

They work hard and only make a profit from the distribution. When the 007 movies were still popular, this kind of work was a guaranteed income project, but since the last two 007 movies starring Timothy Dalton met with box office famine, even such privileges are gone.

The new GoldenEye has been filmed and is preparing for special effects and final editing. During the internal preview, it is said that many old employees who have always participated in the production of 007 have expressed dissatisfaction with Pierce Brosnan's gentlemanly 007, believing that he has lost the cold and decisive characteristics of 007 and has become a bit too effeminate.

Moreover, after the end of the Cold War, the villain became 006, who used to work for the Queen but defected. This also made some people feel that the audience of the 007 series of films would not accept such an adaptation, and that the usual "classic spy" atmosphere of Bond movies was lost.

Kerkorian, who was preparing to acquire MGM, was also aware of these developments. He asked this question because he was afraid that someone with a unique vision like Ronald might have really seen some clues and take advantage of him.

"I want to know why you want the distribution rights for 007?" Kerkorian changed the topic and mentioned the distribution rights. The main revenue of this movie does not really belong to United Artists/MGM.

"Why? Don't you know why?" Ronald thought, isn't it because you don't give me anything else? But seeing Kerkorian's unconvincing look, he blurted out, "Okay, I'll tell you the real reason, because the Queen and I are related, and she wants to see it, so I want this movie to help her."

“Hahahaha…” Kerkorian burst into laughter. Ronald had a pretty good sense of humor. “Come on. Give me a real reason, otherwise I won’t…”

"You Armenian peasant..." Ronald said as he got angry. "You want everything. I can only pick up this rubbish that doesn't even have the production rights and the right to review the script. Since you like it so much, I'll give it to you. You can give me The Pink Panther in exchange. That movie was directed by Blake Edwards. I have a good relationship with his wife Julie Andrews. He is very interested in making another one..."

Ronald seemed really angry. Kerkorian was a bit shameless, so he had to give him some emotion.

"I can't give it to you. The Pink Panther is an indispensable asset of MGM..."

"Forget it. Come back and tell me when you've made up your mind. I have to go back to be with my wife and children. Anyway, you have to give me one of the two series of movies. I'll give you 48 hours... If you still can't decide, I'll give up this acquisition. Richard, let's go."

"Hey, wait, I don't need 48 hours..." Kerkorian panicked when he heard that Ronald actually had the option to give up the acquisition. If he didn't sell the dead asset of United Artists, he would have to spend a lot of money to acquire MGM. This was something he was unwilling to do.

After much deliberation, Kerkorian decided to give up the 007 series. If the series remained at MGM, it would not make much money. Even if the new 007 was a box office hit, MGM would not be able to gain much profit from it.

"Okay, James Bond is yours, but it's a pity that so many stars want to be Bond girls..." Kerkorian's shrinking energy came out again.

"Very good, you finally made up your mind, Kirk. Well, let's have our lawyers continue the meeting and discuss the acquisition contract..."

Ronald stopped pestering and left the conference call after making his promise.

"Richard, get me Barbara Broccoli's phone number and tell her that I will buy the rights to the 007 series from MGM/United Artists and her EON Productions. I want to see the latest GoldenEye film and discuss the next steps in its distribution.

You can hint to her that my relationship with the Queen means that the quality of the film must be guaranteed. If there are any inappropriate parts, I will invest more to reshoot some parts. "

It just so happened that Barbara Broccoli's EON production company was in financial trouble. They were not financially able to support the filming of GoldenEye, the latest 007 movie. Ronald's request to review the movie was also to put pressure on her. If she couldn't afford the reshoot, then they could discuss the possibility of the new United Artists injecting capital to acquire part of EON's copyright for the 007 series of movies. At that time, 007 would no longer be an unprofitable project.

……

Barbara Broccoli reacted quickly, she didn't mind Ronald's investment and co-production with her for a new 007 movie. Her father Albert made money from 007, but all other investments were losses. The cost of making movies is too expensive nowadays, and the investment for the new GoldenEye is as high as 6000 million US dollars, which is relatively shabby in commercial action productions, but it is the highest level that EON can afford.

In order to keep the Broccoli family's cash cow growing, Barbara Broccoli didn't think there was anything wrong with letting a Hollywood tycoon like Ronald come in to produce the film together.

Unlike her father Albert, who was an old-fashioned person, Barbara deeply understood that nowadays, big scenes and big productions like 007 are no longer projects that can be taken advantage of by lucky people like EON, but can be achieved by some cost-saving methods.

The time she spent in Hollywood over the past two years made her deeply understand that action movies now require hundreds of millions of dollars in funding, the participation of top male stars, and many particularly beautiful female stars. Otherwise, James Bond, like other Cold War spy films, will be defeated by upgraded products such as True Lies.

However, Barbara Broccoli did not meet with Ronald to talk in person. She only spoke to him on the phone and decided on the general framework of cooperation between the two parties.

Ronald is now busy with another big thing. After signing the initial agreement with Kerkorian and Credit Lyonnais, he is trying to show the MPAA board of directors that United Artists is back as one of the eight major film companies, hoping to get a seat on the board so that he can influence the people responsible for ratings.

The members of this board are all old-fashioned large studios, equivalent to the so-called Big Eight, which control the important screening process of raters. Those medium-sized studios have little influence on this.

This time, United Artists has recovered from being merged with MGM and has become an independent large studio. Whether it, as one of the former Big Eight, can obtain the same rights as the Big Eight back then, or be reduced to the same status as a medium-sized studio, is still under discussion within the MPAA.

Jack Valenti, the chairman of the MPAA, was an old acquaintance of Ronald. After receiving Ronald's call, he took time out to have a face-to-face interview with Ronald.

"You have to know that even though these people have a good relationship with you, it's a different story when it comes to their core interests."

Valenti still hopes that Hollywood can have one more big studio, which will not only increase the number of big productions each year, but also bring more job opportunities to members of many unions. However, these directors, who are involved in monopoly interests, are unwilling to have one more person compete out of thin air.

DreamWorks, which was established last year, has the support of many big names and is managed by former Disney executive Katzenberg. However, it is now just an ordinary MPAA member and does not have a seat on the board of directors.

"I have communicated with Mr. Sheinberg, and he supports me." Ronald responded. Sheinberg retired from Universal, but was newly elected as a director of the MPAA because of his seniority and the fact that he had invested in many big productions and projects. Like Jack Valenti, he is one of the few directors in the MPAA who has no corporate background, and plays a key role in voting.

"That's not enough. The MPAA represents all film companies. Our main service targets are all Hollywood practitioners. Do you understand?"

"Hmm..." Ronald understood a little. Whether to let you come in and become a member of the board of directors. In addition to voting, it also depends on the number of projects you bring to Hollywood every year. Although DreamWorks has the support of people like Spielberg and Katzenberg, the projects it invests in are not significant, so the opposition can have various reasons not to let them in.

Spielberg himself is also continuing to cooperate with Universal on his new film, the sequel to Jurassic Park. DreamWorks only invests in small and medium-sized productions and lacks the right to speak.

It seems that in order to get the position of the boss in MPAA, one has to be the one who brings projects and jobs to the vast number of Hollywood practitioners.