Chapter 217 Afternoon

The reason why Wu Yuchen came over in person was to show his sincerity and to end the battle quickly.

Because in two months, "X-Men" will be a huge success after its release, and the prices of Marvel superheroes will usher in a wave of price increases. Although the increase was not too much, the major shareholder, Baobuqi Ike Perlmutter, did not want to sell his shares.

Now the team's offer for the entire Marvel is 150 million, and Ike Perlmutter in front of him holds 80% of Marvel's shares. At present, the majority of Marvel's assets are not the copyrights of superheroes, but the comics and toy companies they own. Marvel still has many comic fans who continue to buy their comics.

For Wu Yuchen, he has two plans. The first plan is to directly buy Marvel and become its majority shareholder.

The second plan is to only buy the copyrights of Marvel's superheroes if they can't buy Marvel.

To be honest, at the current price, Marvel’s remaining copyrights combined won’t cost much. However, there is a drawback to this, and that is that you cannot let Marvel Comics act in unison with your movie. As time goes by, as the movie makes more money, Marvel will become more jealous. Maybe in the future, Marvel will be unhappy with you making too much and they get nothing, and simply write the hero to death, which will lead to a lose-lose result. .

Ike pondered for a while, and then said to Wu Yuchen:

"Wu, this is indeed a good investment for me, but I don't want to sell it all. I have a hunch that your arrival will make Marvel better. I will sell you 65% of the shares for US$100 million. I How about I keep 15%?"

Wu Yuchen thought about it and realized that buying 65% was actually about the same. There was still 10% of Marvel shares in the hands of the executive Avi Arad, and the other 10% was scattered in the hands of small shareholders. He could contact them and learn from them If you buy a little more, you should be able to collect more than 70% in the end, which is enough.

Wu Yuchen stretched out his hand and shook Ike Perlmutter: "Deal!"

In the end, Wu Yuchen bought 5% from Avi Arad and 3.4% from others. He held 73.4% of Marvel shares and became the real major shareholder of Marvel.

After he bought Marvel, the first thing he did when convening the board of directors was to ask Marvel to take back the sold sons. This was naturally in line with the wishes of some old internal employees. After all, they were all created by them. Sons!

But there are also some executives who are opposed to it because Marvel simply has no money. To this end, Wu Yuchen provided another three-year interest-free loan of US$20 million to Marvel, specifically for the repurchase of copyrights. This move naturally won the hearts of many within the company.

The first target to talk about is Spider-Man. Although I don’t know if Sony is willing to sell it back, I have to give it a try. If I can get it back, it’s worth it. After all, the little spider is too tempting!

There is still some hope in talking about it now. Once we see the box office success of "X-Men" in two months, Sony will definitely start preparing for the "Spider-Man" movie.

The Marvel superhero copyrights will really make the whole of Hollywood take notice, and we have to wait until "Spider-Man" is released in two years' time. Taking advantage of the current time, if you can spend some money to redeem it, try to redeem it.

As for the daily management of Marvel, it still maintains its previous operations. Marvel has its own committee, and the executives are still Ike Perlmutter and Avi Arad. At the same time, Justin Wu also plans to poach Kevin Feige, who is now one of the producers of "X-Men", and poach him specifically to put him in charge of Marvel's superhero movie business.

However, for the board of directors and the committee to agree to Kevin Feige taking on this important task, it will have to wait until "X-Men" is released. With this result, these people will trust Kevin Feige.

After initially settling matters on Marvel's side, Wu Yuchen immediately flew back to Los Angeles, and "Pirate King" was about to start filming.

At the launch conference of "Pirate King", not only Wu Yuchen and the protagonists of the crew, but also Spielberg came to support it. After all, DreamWorks invested so much money and had to do enough marketing from the beginning.

"Mr. Spielberg, what makes DreamWorks willing to spend huge sums of money to make a pirate-themed movie?"

"It's very simple, because Wu and his interesting stories moved me. I have always followed one principle when making movies, which is to be interesting. DreamWorks is a place where dreams are made, and we are very willing to turn "Pirate King" into an interesting movie. The story is brought to the big screen. As for the subject matter of the film, it is not a problem at all for a good director. "The Sixth Sense", a film with horror elements, also created a super high box office. We believe that Wu can create a miracle again!"

Reporters wrote down words such as pirate theme and miracle director.

Then, many reporters focused their questions on several leading actors. In fact, why Depp and Keira Knightley were used. Wu Yuchen's answer was very simple and appropriate.

At this time, a reporter raised his hand and asked:

"Director Wu, some people are comparing your upcoming film "The Pirate King" with "Pearl Harbor," both of which cost 140 million yuan. What do you think?"

"Pearl Harbor" was launched a month ago, and it is also a big deal. It is the highlight of Disney's investment this year. And just a month later, DreamWorks and Wu Yuchen also launched a 140-million-dollar "Pirate King", and many people couldn't help but compare the two movies together.

Wu Yuchen smiled when he heard this, and then said loudly into the microphone: ""Pirate King" will crush Disney's "Pearl Harbor" dream next year!"

As soon as these words came out, the atmosphere among the reporters in the venue was immediately ignited. Originally, they all thought that Wu Yuchen would also speak in an official tone and say a few words of humility. After all, everyone is usually like this. But I didn't expect that Wu Yuchen would declare war on "Pearl Harbor" so straightforwardly, and the smell of gunpowder was quite strong!

"Wu, may I ask why you are so confident?"

"Wu, what is your expected box office?"

"Wu, do you have any conflict with Disney?"

"Wu, may I ask if you don't take Michael Bay seriously?"

Wu Yuchen did not continue to answer these questions, and the press officer also announced that the press conference was over.

Walking to the lounge at the back, Spielberg couldn't help but said to Wu Yuchen: "Wu, you are really direct..."

Wu Yuchen chuckled and said: "Steven, I'm doing this all for the benefit of the crew. In this way, the attention of our "Pirate King" will rise. From now on, whenever people mention "Pearl Harbor", they will definitely Thinking of our "Pirate King", I saved a lot of promotional expenses for the crew!"

Although Wu Yuchen's words were very reasonable, Spielberg knew that he was going to Disney. He shook his head, and then asked Wu Yuchen:

"Wu, this is an investment of 140 million, so don't be arrogant. If you say it now and it doesn't come true next year, there will be a backlash. There is no need to really confront "Pearl Harbor"..."

In Hollywood, although these big studios or big productions sometimes jointly promote things, they rarely face conflicts. Many schedules are staggered and agreed upon by everyone.

"Why not? I am a person who sticks to my word. "Pirate King" will be released on the same day as "Pearl Harbor". We will defeat "Pearl Harbor" head-on. We will win everything!"

Wu Yuchen left a confident smile on Spielberg and turned around and left, leaving Spielberg with his hand on his forehead. He felt that he still underestimated the young man's enthusiasm. I thought that even if Wu Yuchen wanted to take revenge on Eisner and Disney, his first goal would be to make money. I didn't expect that the young man would be so arrogant!

"Wow, Wu, what you just said made me admire you with admiration!"

Depp seemed to have entered the state of Captain Jack Sparrow, twirling his index finger in the air, and said to Wu Yuchen.

Wu Yuchen smiled and said: "It's just a "Pearl Harbor", Depp, if you don't want to be ridiculed and unable to take the leading role, then give me a performance during the filming that will impress me~"

Depp snorted slightly, but his fighting spirit was also aroused.

Keira Nutley asked in a low voice: "Director, are we really going to face "Pearl Harbor"?"

"What? Are you not confident in yourself, or in me and "Pirate King"?" Wu Yuchen asked.

Kayla quickly waved her hand: "Oh, no, no, Mr. Director, I just feel a little... nervous and excited, yes, I am excited!"

She didn't dare to really speak her mind. In fact, she didn't even think that the pirate theme could be used in any way. She had also read the script and found that it was nothing too different. Would the audience really like this thing?

Only Hugh Jackman said to Wu Yuchen: "Director, I believe you can do it!"

Hugh Jackman is one of the first people to know Wu Yuchen. Over the past few years, he has watched him continue to create miracles. He himself is the beneficiary, so naturally he firmly supports Wu Yuchen.

Wu Yuchen smiled when he heard this: "No, we can do it!"

…

""Pirate King" challenges "Pearl Harbor", a big competition between two 140 million blockbusters!"

"Wu Yuchen is not afraid to challenge the pirate theme and openly provokes "Pearl Harbor"!"

In the Disney President's Office, Michael Eisner frowned while looking at the report in his hand, and asked Miles in front of him: "DreamWorks and this Wu are in trouble?"

"Pearl Harbor" is Disney's biggest movie project this year, and it is also one that Michael Eisner attaches great importance to. Not only did he invite Hollywood's gold medal producer Jerry Bruckheimer, the director is also Michael Eisner, who has been a hit at the box office in recent years. Bay, the target is "Titanic", with a box office target of US$1 billion.

As a result, DreamWorks and John Woo have produced a pirate-themed movie that is poisonous at the box office. How dare they challenge Disney?

Myers smiled apologetically at Eisner and said: "Mr. Eisner, this must be a marketing strategy formulated by the other party. They just want to ride on the popularity of our "Pearl Harbor" and enter the public eye in one fell swoop."

Eisner nodded after hearing this, and asked slightly unhappily: "What's the opponent's lineup?"

After listening to Myers' introduction, Eisner couldn't help but smile contemptuously: "Ha, a weirdo, an Australian guy who has just emerged, and a 15-year-old stand-in girl. This kind of protagonist lineup, coupled with the pirate theme, Who gave them the confidence to shout about our "Pearl Harbor"!"

"You are right. This Wu is too young. The box office has been inflated by several consecutive high-profile movies. Even Spielberg has lost his mind. "Pirate King" is not worthy of being our opponent at all. When the movie is released next year, they will cry. when.

But Mr. Eisner, I think this topic is also very beneficial to us. The two 140-million-dollar productions have been hostile since the filming, so this year-long period will definitely attract a lot of attention.

I believe that the duel between our two blockbuster movies will definitely become the focus of attention in Hollywood and even the world next year. The traffic of any other movie cannot compare with ours. When the time comes, our "Pearl Harbor" will take advantage of the trend to launch a general attack on "The Pirate King", defeat them in front of the whole world, become the winner, and hit the box office. What a perfect script! "

After hearing this, Eisner's eyes lit up and he nodded with satisfaction. He was also looking forward to the scene described by Miles. The key point was that it could improve the box office of "Pearl Harbor".

"Yes, Miles, I will do as you say and let the "Pearl Harbor" crew cooperate with the relevant hype and heat up step by step."

"Of course, Mr. Eisner, the publicity department will take care of it."

Not long after the "Pirate King" press conference, the crew of "Pearl Harbor" also responded. It was none other than the film's director Michael Bay, known as Explosive Bay.

"Michael, have you heard about the challenge that Wu Yuchen and "Pirate King" made to you?"

Michael Bay smiled and said to reporters in a relaxed manner:

"Oh, we didn't receive anything as formal as a challenge. But I heard what Wu Yuchen said. He is a good director. "Pearl Harbor" and I are looking forward to his challenge~"

He didn't say more, just responded simply as the publicist said, and he was the only one who spoke, and no other crew members spoke. This is also the promotional strategy of the crew. After all, it has just started filming, so it is useless to make such a big noise. From time to time, they will fight and bicker with each other to keep the heat. When it is released soon next year, they will really start to fight with each other. Have a fight.

But even so, it has attracted the attention of many movie fans. Michael Bay and John Woo are both the youngest representatives of Hollywood's first-line directors. Since Michael Bay's debut, "Bad Boys", "The Island" and "The End of the World" have all been box office hits, and he is especially good at shooting big scenes. .

Now these two people are actually facing each other, and they are both big productions worth 140 million yuan, so it will be really interesting!

Many people immediately started discussing the two works "Pearl Harbor" and "Pirate King".

Although the box office performance of Wu Yuchen's three works is better than that of Michael Bay, because these movies of his have never been big productions, and the pirate theme has been in the market in recent years, so this time we will focus on Michael Bay and " There were more calls for "Pearl Harbor".

However, Wu Yuchen did not respond to these public opinions. He was already busy filming in a studio in Los Angeles, and he had no time to keep chatting with each other.

It was impossible to shoot "The Pirate King" this time. It would have been really laborious, and it would probably take more than a year to finish.

The route has been planned. First we will shoot part of the studio in Los Angeles, then go to San Pedro Port in Los Angeles to shoot, then go to the scenery set up in the South Bay to shoot, and then go to St. Vincent Island in the Caribbean. Here It will be used as the main shooting location, and finally the treasure cave where we go to the climax scene.

"Go! Take a 20-minute break."

The crew has been filming for more than half a month, and everyone has gradually entered the state. Overall, Wu Yuchen is satisfied.

Taking advantage of this moment, Wu Yuchen was explaining the effect he wanted to the special effects team:

"It's not a purely romantic style, what I want is a sense of historical fantasy. And the data on the pirate crews, has the collection been completed?"

When the time comes to create the image of each person turning into a skeleton, it will not be just a simple computer special effect. The production team will input the scanned data of the actors' bodies into the computer to make each skeleton image conform to the character's appearance and movement characteristics.

"It will take some time, the process is not that simple."

Wu Yuchen nodded, and then asked the makeup and styling staff: "I want their eyes to look more sinister and sinister. Is there any way?"

"You can try wearing passivated contact lenses."

At this time, Wu Yuchen's phone rang. He waved his hand and asked someone to do it, and picked up the phone himself.

"Wu, Sony has let go!"

When Wu Yuchen heard this, he couldn't help but perked up. After all, that was a little spider!

"How to say?"

"Sony said that if Wu is willing to direct "Spider-Man" himself, then they will agree to us redeeming half of Spider-Man's film and television rights."

After hearing this, Wu Yuchen smiled bitterly and shook his head. It seemed that Sony was not a fool. He would naturally be happy to redeem half of the copyright of Little Spider, but let him be the director. He is busy enough as the director of the "Pirate King" trilogy. If he makes another "Spider-Man" trilogy, he will not make other movies in the next five years, and his time will have to be devoted to these two series. .

Although both the "Pirate King" trilogy and the "Spider-Man" trilogy are box-office hit series, he doesn't want to be completely tied to them in the next few years!

Wu Yuchen sighed, then thought about it and said:

"I can't be the director of "Spider-Man," but you can tell Sony that I will personally tailor the most suitable script for "Spider-Man," not one, but a trilogy. I already have a complete script in my mind. Plan, and I can also be the project producer and will control the direction of the entire project. Go and talk to them."

Wu Yuchen felt that this was the maximum he could do, and he just had to wait and see if Sony would be tempted.

…

Sony Columbia, a discussion about "Spider-Man" and Justin Wu is also ongoing at this time.

"What do you think of this proposal from Marvel?"

"It would be best if Wu is willing to be the director. If he can't come, then I think it doesn't make much sense to give half of the copyright to Marvel. Besides, can they afford so much money now?"

Returning half of Marvel's film and television rights, of course, also has requirements, that is, no matter who shoots the personal movie of "Spider-Man", the other party is entitled to half of the investment rights, which is equivalent to risk sharing and profit sharing.

"We bought the rights to Spider-Man last year because we saw the results of "Blade Runner" and regarded it as a casual move. But I didn't expect that Wu Yuchen would now become a new shareholder of Marvel, and he would also develop a film and television version of "Spider-Man" ideas and mature planning.

I think we can cooperate with him. After all, a good copyright is a copyright that can be successful at the box office. Otherwise, it would be a waste to keep it in your hands. What's more, we signed an agreement with Marvel that we must produce a "Spider-Man" movie and release it within 5 years, otherwise we will have to return the Spider-Man copyright. Isn't now a good opportunity? "

"I also agree to cooperate with Wu. Judging from his current performance, this can improve the success rate of the project. However, I think since he cannot be the director himself, the proportion of copyright redemption can still be adjusted."

"Then let's negotiate with Marvel again."

…

"30%?" Wu Yuchen asked with a frown.

"Yes, Sony agreed to us redeem 30% of Spider-Man's film and television rights for 2 million. The condition is that you must make a complete plan for the "Spider-Man" project, provide a script, and serve as one of the producers. "

"Can't we talk anymore?"

It was still 50% before, but now it has dropped to 30%, which makes Wu Yuchen feel a little worried.

"This should be the other party's last condition, unless you are willing to direct it yourself."

Wu Yuchen rubbed his chin, walked back and forth for a few steps with his cell phone, and then said:

"You tell Sony that I can agree to this condition, and at the same time I will create the script of the "Spider-Man" trilogy and serve as a producer, but I personally want to take 3% of the North American box office share of the "Spider-Man" movie."

In fact, as screenwriters, the Writers Guild of America stipulates that screenwriters can get a 3% share of net profits. However, net profits are easy to account for and make losses, so for most screenwriters, it is a castle in the air. What Wu Yuchen asked for was a share of the box office, and this was a real deal.

Then he added: "Also, I want back the rights to film and television adaptations of Spider-Man as a non-protagonist."

"Non-protagonist film and television?"

"Yes, that means allowing Spider-Man to appear as a supporting character in our own Marvel movies. Sony can't stop that."

Wu Yuchen made this request, of course, to prepare for Spider-Man to join the "Avengers" in the future. In his previous life, Marvel had begged Sony for a long time, so he would just negotiate it in one step now to save himself the hassle of wrangling in the future.

Sony Colombia.

"3% of the North American box office share? This is a condition that many screenwriters dream of."

"Promise him, as the total remuneration for the producer and screenwriter. Anyway, if his script and plan cannot convince us, we can refuse it. But for the rights to this non-protagonist film and television, do they still want to make other superhero movies? ?”

"Haha, this doesn't matter at all. The only thing Marvel can attract people's attention is Spider-Man. You can add a restriction. Spider-Man's total appearance time in a single movie cannot exceed 20 minutes."

"Yes, Not Bad."