Chapter 251 Black Brother’s Spring Is Here

Some are happy and some are sad.

Spielberg thought "Pearl Harbor" was lucky, but Eisner didn't think so. The movie "Pearl Harbor" suffered a huge loss. The North American box office was more than 100 million, and the global box office was less than 300 million. Now it can only rely on discs to slowly recover.

What's even more uncomfortable is actually not how much the project itself lost. The entire movie only lost more than 100 million at most. This is not really serious for Disney, a big business, but the fall in stock price caused by it is fatal. .

Since the failure of "Pearl Harbor", Disney's stock has been falling, falling 40% in just 3 months. What is this concept? This is equivalent to a loss of nearly 20 billion US dollars in market value!

Of course, this is not just because of "Pearl Harbor". The market saw that Disney's various businesses were not operating well, so it started to fall due to this failure. In short, the market has little confidence in Disney...

If that was the case, forget it. However, Disney stock suffered another cruelty. The sudden occurrence of 911 caused a fund holding a position in Disney stock to liquidate. Naturally, the result was that its holding of Disney stock was also forced to close its position. In one fell swoop, it was forced to close its position. More than $1 billion worth of stocks were sold off, immediately triggering further declines. In other words, in less than half a year, Disney's stock fell by 65%, which means its market value dropped by nearly US$30 billion.

At this time, Disney's shareholders, big and small, were all panicked. All shareholders and directors immediately called Eisner. Although Eisner explained that no one could have predicted such a thing as 911, he would not take the blame. , but shareholders don’t care about this...

"Eisner, you earn a high salary of over a million dollars every week, and you will receive tens of millions of dollars in dividends at the end of the year. We are not letting you sit in this position and lead us to lose money! If you can't let Disney If the business situation improves, you will know the consequences!"

Eisner hung up the phone with an ugly face. This was no longer the expression of a shareholder. He knew that if he could not bring the stock price back up, then this would be a really difficult time.

In the past two years, shareholders have pinched their noses and accepted Disney's losses. On the one hand, it is because the general environment is not good, and on the other hand, Eisner is deeply rooted in Disney. If he is replaced, Disney does not know how long Disney will be in turmoil. The cost is too great, so Shareholders and directors haven't done anything to him yet.

But Disney has fallen so hard in the past six months that a group of shareholders can no longer bear it. If there is another black swan, who knows who will be liquidated next? At this point, who cares how big the tree is and how deep its roots are, everyone has to vote with their feet.

Therefore, Eisner now knows that he has reached a dangerous point and must take some measures to bring back Disney's stock.

From the perspective of company performance, it is nothing more than increasing revenue and reducing expenditure. As for open source, there is nothing that can bring significant growth in performance in a short period of time, so we can only reduce expenditures.

How? Layoffs!

And there are ready-made reasons to use it. The number of visitors to Disneyland dropped sharply after 9/11, and it has not yet recovered to 60% of the previous level. In order to maintain the normal operation of the amusement park, it can only lay off employees and reduce costs.

The more important point is to create successful cases and restore the market's confidence in Disney.

Confidence is the key to the stock market. If the market has confidence in you, even if you lose performance, the stock will continue to rise. But when confidence is gone, it will be like the failure of "Pearl Harbor" last year, and all kinds of problems will explode.

There are not no examples of success...

Pixar's just-released animated film "Monsters, Inc." grossed US$62 million at the box office in the first three days of its first weekend and reached US$130 million in the first ten days of release. It sparked a revival in movie theaters and was undoubtedly a hit and a hit.

According to the previous agreement signed between Pixar and Disney, Disney not only had half of the investment in "Monsters, Inc.", but during the agreement period, Disney had the license to use its character peripherals, making a lot of profits from it.

Eisner made a direct call: "Let the company increase the publicity of the success of "Monsters, Inc."!"

After hanging up the phone, Eisner thought about Pixar animation. In recent years, Disney's own animation has been ineffective, even if he supports it many times. It seems that Pixar must be dealt with now. But when he thought of Pixar's boss, Steve Jobs, he frowned again. This guy was not easy to deal with.

Afterwards, Eisner picked up the phone and called again. As soon as the call was connected, he heard the voice from the other side:

"Ah ha, my dear Mr. President, what do you do for a living?"

Eisner asked directly: "Harvey, how is your new project going?"

This is another project that he thought could be successful in a short period of time. This guy Harvey spent his energy this year to create a movie that will compete for the Oscars. If it can win a big win at the Oscars, it will also be a very impressive result. It’s time to spread the word.

"Wow, it's really rare. Eisner actually cares about me so much. I'm really flattered. Tsk, tsk, tsk~" Harvey Weinstein said on the other side of the phone.

But at this time Eisner didn't care anymore and said calmly:

"Harvey, are you confident about this year's Oscars? If you can succeed at this year's Oscars, I will provide more financial support to Miramax in the next two years."

When Harvey Weinstein heard this, his attitude immediately changed:

"Hahaha, Mr. Eisner, things are going very well for "Chicago" right now! We won a big win at the Chicago Film Critics Association Awards yesterday, winning Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actress! This year’s Oscars will not escape my grasp!”

Hearing Harvey's confidence, Eisner also replied: "Okay, I will let Disney's public relations team fully cooperate with you!"

…

"Oh, Wu, you are finally back!"

Glazer, the producer of "Beautiful Mind", hugged Wu Yuchen and patted him hard.

In the past few months, Wu Yuchen has been busy in China, and he has led and participated in all the public relations activities of "Beautiful Mind". From the Toronto Film Festival in September to subsequent Film Critics Association Awards.

"Hahaha, Glazer, I feel at ease with you. I have 100% trust in your abilities!" Wu Yuchen boasted with a smile.

To be honest, Oscar's public relations trip was as tiring as last year, and he didn't want to do it again. Fortunately, Glazer is taking over the show this year, and he is also a producer with relatively wide connections in the industry. It took a lot of pressure off of Wu Yuchen, so much so that Wu Yuchen didn't come over until December.

But now that Wu Yuchen is here, he will definitely be involved in this public relations. This is also the main purpose of his trip to the United States.

"Oh, if you, the director, were here, I think we could win a few more Best Director awards!"

Wu Yuchen smiled and then asked: "Glazer, how have things been in the past few months?"

The smile on Glazer's face disappeared when he heard this: ""Beautiful Mind" has been favored by many people and won many awards, but at the same time we also have a very strong opponent now..."

"Is it "Chicago"?" Wu Yuchen asked proactively.

Glazer nodded: "Harvey deserves to know Oscar best. "Chicago" is adapted from the classic Broadway musical. It can easily arouse the nostalgia of a bunch of old men, and it also makes people laugh through its bitter satire on ugly social phenomena. The movie has both depth and a great threat to us!”

Wu Yuchen also rubbed his chin when he heard this. Although he hates Harvey Weinstein, he has to admit that this guy is indeed capable.

He wanted to buy scripts from himself before, but Wu Yuchen didn't sell any to him. Unexpectedly, he went directly to get the rights to adapt "Chicago". The movie that was supposed to be released next year arrived early. In this year. "Chicago" is indeed a strong rival. In its previous life in 2003, it was nominated for 13 Oscars and won 6 awards.

Wu Yuchen filmed "Beautiful Mind" to earn awards. He originally thought that this year would be relatively stable, but unexpectedly, a strong enemy suddenly appeared, and this strong enemy seemed to be created by himself, which also made him a little bit dumbfounded.

But he is not afraid of trouble. Although his opponent is strong, "A Beautiful Mind" is not weak either. It is also Oscar's favorite theme. Now that we have all met, naturally the brave will win when we meet on a narrow road. Who loses and wins has to do it again!

Wu Yuchen cheered:

"Glazer, don't increase the popularity of others and destroy your own prestige. The last time "Shakespeare in Love" was pushed to the top of the Oscars by Harvey and won so many awards, many members of the Academy who prefer art were dissatisfied with him. Yes, we must seize this point and focus on attacking the opponent when the time comes!"

In 1999, "Shakespeare in Love" defeated "Saving Private Ryan" to win the best picture, which caused an uproar in the public opinion. Gwyneth won the best actress and was also called the most popular actress in history. At that time, blockbusters Voices have questioned the fairness and value of the Oscars.

It is precisely because of this that Harvey stopped a little bit in the next two years, and the Academy did not let Miramax win any awards. Although the Oscars pay attention to public relations, there are also many Academy members who have certain artistic pursuits and are disgusted with Harvey's hard push. This is a major weakness of the other party.

Glazer patted Wu Yuchen on the shoulder: "Yep! Wu, you think the same as me. We must seize this point and attack hard this time! We cannot let the Oscar become 'Harvey's Oscar'!"

"This slogan is very good! 'Harvey's Oscar' will definitely cause dissatisfaction among many people, hahaha!" Wu Yuchen laughed.

The two of them had already decided on the policy while talking and laughing. Since the quality of your film is high enough, let's make a fuss about it from other aspects. Oscar public relations use their own methods. The causes you planted before Harvey will have the current results.

But then, Glazer said to Wu Yuchen: "By the way, Wu, there is another point. I think we can consider giving up the Oscar for Best Actor and Actor this time."

"Huh? Why? What happened?" Wu Yuchen asked in confusion.

Glazer nodded: "A piece of gossip."

Although the other party said it was gossip, Wu Yuchen would not take it lightly at all. Many of the gossips were very accurate.

"It has something to do with the U.S. sending troops this time. The higher-ups hope that this Oscar will give more care to black people."

"What? Send troops? Black people?" Wu Yuchen was stunned and didn't react.

Glazer explained: "Although our troops have now conquered Afghanistan, they may still need reinforcements. Therefore, the United States is now actively recruiting soldiers. As you know, white people's willingness to join the army has dropped a lot than before. Naturally, we need to put more effort into black people.

It is hoped that at this time, all aspects can transfer certain benefits to black people and enhance their sense of belonging and identity. And we in Hollywood have always been at the forefront in terms of equal rights, and the best actors and actresses at this Oscar are likely to be affected by this. "

All of a sudden, Wu Yuchen figured everything out in his mind. It’s no wonder that in a previous life, this year’s Academy Award for Best Actor and Best Actress was unprecedentedly awarded to black people at the same time. Because this requires the black brothers to go to the battlefield and fight to the death!

And Glazer doesn't know, but Wu Yuchen knows that a year later, the United States will launch a war with Iraq, and then the dependence on the Black Brothers will be even stronger. In other words, the upper echelons of the United States are now extending an olive branch to black people and uniting can use the power.

If you want a horse to run, you must let it eat grass. In this process, the upper echelons of the United States must give certain benefits and power to black groups. As long as the war drags on for a longer time, the black brothers will continue to gain more benefits.

At the same time, Wu Yuchen thought that after Xiao Bu, the next commander-in-chief would also be the first black commander-in-chief in the history of the United States. He must have used this momentum to directly reach the top. These are all interrelated!

Wu Yuchen took a breath. The impact of this 911 incident was indeed huge. It was not just as simple as counter-terrorism. The chain reaction it had really changed a lot.

Awards are indeed inseparable from social trends. In the past, it was said that the Oscars were mainly about art and were the pioneers in satirizing and criticizing the old American government. Now it seems that this is just because the old American government usually ignores you. If it really wants to use you, the Oscar Academy has to keep its head down and do its job. ?

For a moment, Wu Yuchen had a lot of emotions again. This is actually what all the major awards are about. It's just about comparing one's skills.

Maybe others may still take a chance and feel that this may not be the case. But based on his previous life experience, Wu Yuchen knew that all the best actors and actresses this year must be black, so he nodded directly and said:

"Then just give up on the Best Actor and Best Actress, but to be honest, it has no impact on us, so we don't need to worry about comforting the hero and heroine."

Russell Crowe, the actor of "A Beautiful Mind", just won the Best Actor for "Gladiator" last time. It is basically impossible to win the Best Actor this time, and the heroine Jennifer Connelly has too few roles to compete for the movie. There was no chance of it happening in the end. This time, she was supposed to be nominated for Best Supporting Actress.

Glazer laughed and said: "You're right, we don't have to worry at all. On the contrary, "Chicago" doesn't know how Harvey should deal with his male and female protagonists. Maybe there might be internal strife. , I really hope he can spend more energy and resources on the best actor and best actress!"

Wu Yuchen raised his lips and smiled: "Then it's not something we need to worry about!"