Chapter 947： trouble

The streets of Manhattan can give people a very wonderful sense of time and space. Walking on the street, maybe just next to a broken red brick building that may have a hundred years of history, there will be a 70-80 layer in the next step. Modern building.

Vera Famega walked beside Eric, looking at his eyes and looking at the scattered lights around the night, feeling that Eric had not spoken for a while, and asked: "Eric, What are you thinking?"

"Here is the Hell's Kitchen?" Eric retired his thoughts and said nothing, but did not wait for Vera Famega to answer, turned to look at the girl next to her eyes and smiled: "I also said to send you home. Just forgot to ask, where do you live?"

The two left the Auguste Theatre and walked along West 52nd Street for a while. Vera Famega just had some embarrassment to think about Eric Williams. This is where I want to take myself. Listen to him asking, and quickly replied: "I live on West 55th Street, from the front. The 10th Avenue goes north."

Eric nodded, hands in his windbreaker pocket, noticed the doubts and hopes of Vera Famega in his eyes, smiled and said: "Forget about business, there is a movie, I want you Come and try."

Feeling Eric's understatement, Vera Famega suddenly didn't have much excitement and asked: "Eric, is the film you directed?"

"No," Eric shook his head and said: "The director is Gore, the guy you just saw."

Vera Famega nodded, learning Eric's appearance and putting his hands in the pocket of the down jacket, but the footsteps were inevitably lighter, hesitating, said: "That, Eric, why are you tonight?" come?"

Eric explained: "Although I personally directed it, this is a very important project for Fireflies. I intend to let you be the heroine. Of course, come and see your performance."

"My performance is OK?" Vera Famega's eyes lit up, and some asked without confidence.

Eric nodded with a smile: "If it doesn't work, I will definitely leave early, and someone will contact you in the next few things."

Vera Famega sighed, and the two went to the tenth road and turned to the north. Inadvertently seeing a black car stepping on the road next to the two, Vera Famega knows that it is Eric's bodyguard, think of something, said: "Eric, you come here personally, I pick up There are troubles in the days that come down."

Eric smiled and asked: "What trouble?"

Vera Famega: "I don't know yet, but the competition on Broadway is very intense."

Eric heard the hints of Vera Famega and understood. Vera Famega suddenly had a good chance. Her colleague in the theater would not give her any shoes because of her martyrdom: "In this case, you will not be resigned tomorrow?"

"Can't do this, I have to wait until Andrew finds a substitute actor, and," looked at Eric, Vera Famega: "I don't know if I can do this role, sure. , definitely still have to audition?"

"Of course, however, your acting is fine, and the image is no problem. If you don't want a lion to open the sky, this character is probably yours."

"Oh, what qualifications do I have to pay for the sky-high price? The last time I participated in the TV series, I paid only $2,000 per episode."

"It's the "Roar", I just saw you in that TV show yesterday. You are not the heroine, why is the film pay so low?"

"This is a group play. I am only one of the two heroines, and I am a newcomer. The $2,000 is not low." Vera Famega explained, and smiled again: "However, listen. If you have just said, this TV series will bring me good luck. Even if there is no pay, I am willing to play."

So casually chatting, the two people have unwittingly arrived outside a red brick apartment on West 55 Avenue.

"I have lived here," Vera Famega pointed to the apartment. The thick-soled boots were gently kicked on the ground, and her eyes flashed. "Eric, are you going to sit up?"

Eric smiled and said, "You are not afraid that I will not go away after sitting for a while?"

Vera Famega’s face was a little rosy, and she didn’t dare to look at Eric’s eyes. He whispered: “Today, you can only sit for a while.”

"Although I really want to pretend that I don't understand, but, well, this is really regrettable."

Vera Famega lowered her head in shame and said: "A few days is the New Year. If you are free, you can call me."

"Oh, let's talk about it later," Eric smiled. He will leave Manhattan and return to East Hampton tomorrow. The New Year must be with the children: "So, today, you go up, I should gone back."

"That, goodbye," Vera Famega nodded. She just stepped onto the steps at the entrance of the apartment and turned back. She took out a business card from the bag and handed it to Eric. "I almost forgot, this has my cellphone number."

Eric took the business card and watched Villa Famega enter the apartment before he left.

The first week of Jurassic Park 3 spanned the New Year, and the final box office for the first week was $86.61 million, which was higher than the Thanksgiving Museum’s Wonderful Night 2, but it was noticeable compared with the previous two. The fall.

A few new films, including Jurassic Park 3, the peak of the second week of "Rush Hour 2" fell 55%, and then received 45.22 million US dollars.

However, because of the strong first-week box office, the movie with a budget of $70 million has accumulated $149 million in box office in two weeks, because it is divided into a step-by-step box office, which means that the fireflies will be in two weeks. The full cost of Rush Hour 2 has been recovered, and the next North American and overseas box office, as well as other channel revenues, have entered the net profit stage.

In addition, the "Monster Power Company" released by the Firefly Thanksgiving Day, entered the sixth week, although the weekly box office fell to 8.04 million US dollars, but the cumulative box office also successfully broke through 200 million, becoming the third box office in 1997 to break through 200 million US dollars. movie of. Both Rush Hour 2 and Jurassic Park 3 have the potential to hit the US$200 million box office in North America, but as of December 31, 1997, the box office of both films remained within $200 million.

MGM's "Museum of the Museum 2" was released for five weeks, and the weekly box office also fell into the $10 million range, with a cumulative box office of $159 million. According to the current decline, the possibility of hitting $200 million is not significant.

Just after the New Year, with the latest week's box office data released, the media also began to count the 1997 box office data, and then, a box office data that made Hollywood a stunned appearance appeared in front of everyone.

Throughout 1997, even with the December 31 deadline, it was only the Firefly Group, and the top ten movies in the box office list were "Nemo", "Monster Power Company" and "Rush Hour 2". Three, this is not the North American box office is expected to be about 200 million US dollars "Jurassic Park 3".

MGM's "The Royal Casino of 007" and "Museum of the Museum 2" also squeezed into the top ten in the box office. Fox's 3D animated film "Ice Age" and Julia's love comedy "My Best Friend's Wedding" Also entered the list.

As a result, as of December 31, 1997, the top ten box office data list in North America in the year, only the three major movie companies of the Firefly system, occupied as many as seven.

The non-firefly system on the list is only Universal's Air Force One, Paramount Pictures' Lion King 2, and Sony Pictures' Godzilla.

"Batman and Robin", which was highly anticipated by Time Warner, under the secret operation of Warner Bros., the North American box office barely broke through 100 million US dollars, temporarily only ranked 13th in the annual list, and even fell to MGM. After "Screaming 2". However, the production cost of "Batman and Robin" is five times that of "Scream 2". Two films with similar box office data, one lost a lot, and one earned a lot of money.

In recent years, it has been a critical moment for the global rise of Hollywood. In the face of the strength of the firefly system, several other major Hollywood studios have begun to increase their pace of expansion. In the face of the current fireflies, some unconventional means of competition have not played any role. What other major film companies can do is to imitate the development model of the firefly system as much as possible.

Since the top ten in the box office rankings in 1997, there were four animated films, which were stimulated by lucrative profits. For a time, Time Warner, Universal and Sony all increased their investment in the animation department that they did not pay much attention to. And once again began to wave the hoe, madly dig from the animation studios of the firefly system. In the end, even MGM did not hold their breath. After Amy Pascal talked with Eric several times, MGM also began to set up its own 3D animated film department.

In terms of live-action movies, with the support of several other major film companies, Hollywood special effects companies have sprung up. In 1997, the fifth element, "Godzilla", "Star River" and other special effects box office lost, did not hinder the development of special effects industry.

After all, in addition to the animated films that have sprung up everywhere, this year's box office list, "Museum Night 2", "Jurassic Park 3" and other films also shine.

Moreover, even in North America, it is not possible to open a significant distance from the popular non-special effects movies such as "Rush Hour 2" and "My Best Friend's Wedding", but in the global box office, the special box office overseas box office far exceeds North America. Local, special effects videotapes and peripheral products are also more popular than ordinary non-special effects movies.

For these reasons, in the recent period, the hot money from North America and Europe from Southeast Asia and Southeast Asia also gave up the strategy of big star production in the past, and began to be keen to invest in special effects.

Eric remembers the original time and space, with a series of annexation of Pixar animation, Marvel Entertainment, Lucas film, Disney's film business has become more and more powerful, often occupying half of Hollywood on the annual list. Even because it was too commercialized, it got the nickname of 'Toxo Di'. The market value of the entire Disney Group was once close to 200 billion US dollars, far exceeding the old rivals of Time Warner and Viacom, which have only a few tens of billions of dollars.

However, from the current situation, it is only in the late 1990s that the fireflies have completed the layout that Disney had completed in more than a decade.

In the latest issue of BusinessWeek's article on the Firefly Group, the valuation of the Firefly Group has reached $100 billion, and this valuation data is generally recognized by Wall Street.

In comparison, whether it is accompanied by the wave of new technology, Dongfeng's share price has begun to soar, Time Warner, or Viacom, which has just annexed CBS Group, the market value is still less than 50 billion US dollars, less than half of the Firefly Group.

With the disclosure of the valuation data of the Firefly Group by BusinessWeek, many media have once again turned their attention to Eric's personal prediction.

Eric’s shareholding in the Firefly Group remains at 73.7%, which means that Eric’s share of the Firefly Group is worth $73.7 billion, a total increase of $10 billion compared to last year.

Moreover, in the case of the new technology wave continues to ferment, Eric's other important industry, the high-tech companies under the firefly investment, the market value has also risen sharply.

Eric did not hesitate to take all the information of the media. After the New Year, he quickly returned to Los Angeles.

Although the media's valuation of the Firefly Group has reached a new high, however, since Eric's investment in the Nasdaq market exceeded $3 billion this year, the company's profit this year has been greatly reduced, which inevitably caused the Firefly Group. The worries of some other shareholders.

Last year, Eric’s investment in technology stocks has significantly reduced the annual profit of the Firefly Group. This year, although the Firefly Group’s business is more robust, because Eric has increased its investment in technology stocks, the Firefly Group The expected profit for the year may even be hundreds of millions of dollars.

After all, not everyone is optimistic about the continued rise of the Nasdaq market, Wall Street has seen a lot of short-selling Nasdaq index funds.

Eric’s total investment in the Nasdaq market for two years has reached $5 billion. Although the funds purchased by this fund have basically received very good returns, this is only a very unstable book wealth. Once the Nasdaq market crashes, it may take only a few days for the stocks held by the Shamrock Fund to become worthless.

Burbank, Firefly Headquarters, Eric returned to Los Angeles just a few days later, Warren Buffett, as a representative of other shareholders, came to discuss with Eric about the large number of technology stocks in the Shamrock Fund.