Domination in America, Starting from being a Boxing Champion-Chapter 543 - 420: Angry Jealousy

"Haha, dear Bob, you've done a great job on this, and I'm very satisfied,"

In the afternoon, as soon as Bob Weinstein walked into the CEO's office, he was embraced by his elder brother Harvey who had rushed over to him.

Harvey's hug was enthusiastic and he lavished praise on him in his words.

However, as both men had large bellies and rather short arms, when they embraced, their enormous bellies pressed together, making it awkward and the sour smell of Harvey's breath was somewhat displeasing to Bob.

"Harvey, how was the trip to Cannes?"

After Harvey let go, Bob stepped back and asked.

"Very good, 'The Artist' won Best Actor, 'Seeking Justice' won a Catholic Humanitarianism award, and I picked up two pretty good films at the festival."

"How are those two films, can they make money?"

Bob asked excitedly.

"They're not bad. If the promotion is done well, making a few million won't be a problem. Haha, speaking of buying film rights, that bastard Link also bought the distribution rights for two films at the festival."

"Which films? Can they make money too?"

Bob asked curiously.

Harvey sat in the office chair, patted his belly and laughed.

"At first, I heard that Link requested Lionsgate to buy the rights for two films, and I was curious like you, thinking they must be good films. But when I went to see them, I found they were two Huaxia films.

One was a thriller with a bland story and full of plot holes, wasting over ten minutes of my time; the other was an art film with decent acting but an obscure theme and language I couldn't understand. Such movies have no market in the United States.

I was originally planning to intervene and make Link spend more money, but I worried he would back off if he thought the price was too high, so I didn't get involved. Haha, but I'm sure, Link is definitely going to lose this time; he simply doesn't understand movies."

Harvey laughed heartily.

Bob nodded; in this aspect, Harvey was the expert, and he trusted Harvey's judgment.

"Bob, tell me about Ivanka's scandal, you handled this one well. Is this news true?"

Harvey pointed to the Los Angeles Times entertainment section headline 'Ivanka finds new love, Playboy Link painfully dumped.'

"Fake! I had detectives follow Ivanka for days and discovered she only goes to work and spends most of her time in the bay villa. Even when she goes out, she brings along assistants or secretaries, and hasn't any male friends.

According to informants, when Ivanka is at the company, she also doesn't meet male employees alone, nor are there any unsavory rumors about her.

After days of investigation without finding anything worth leaking, as a last resort, I had a photo cropped of Ivanka and Pam Abdi meeting and published it in the news,"

Bob said helplessly.

"Haha, that works too, even if it's fake, no problem. Now the newspapers discuss how Link is a gold-digger, not worth a dime without Ivanka and the Thompson family.

Link, being young and impulsive, seeing this news, will surely be furious and start to doubt Ivanka. Over time, their disagreements will intensify, and I can almost witness their relationship falling apart,"

Harvey laughed heartily.

"Harvey, this matter may not be so simple."

"Oh, what happened?"

Harvey lit a cigar and asked.

Bob turned on the TV, switched through a few channels, and played a video clip of an interview with Ivanka.

In the interview video, Ivanka, dressed in a sleek professional outfit, fully displayed her tall and elegant figure, coupled with her cold yet exquisite face and elegant demeanor, she seemed like she was highlighted by a dazzling halo, making her shine brightly.

Harvey frowned as he watched, initially unconcerned.

Although Ivanka's responses in the interview were clever and reasonable, most netizens are a mob primarily surfing the web to vent emotions and pass time.

Not many people would listen to reason or care about the actual truth of a matter.

As for the affairs of Link and Ivanka, as long as they kept stirring things up, it would definitely cause a rift between them.

However, as he listened, Harvey suddenly heard a reporter from Hollywood Reporter ask about Warner Bros. Pictures' box office theft, and he immediately sat upright with a look of surprise toward Bob.

"Is this news real?"

"It should be real, according to what I've learned. 'Bridesmaids' in the fourth week should have a North American box office of over 120 million, but the current data is 70.5 million, Warner swallowed over fifty million of the box office."

"Hiss!"

Harvey couldn't help but gasp, his greasy forehead furrowing tightly.

He wasn't exclaiming about Warner's severe box office theft but rather astonished that 'Bridesmaids' real box office in North America was actually over 120 million.

"What's the overseas box office of 'Bridesmaids' now?"

"158 million US dollars!"

"That much?! So you're saying 'Bridesmaids' global box office has already exceeded two hundred million US dollars? A movie with a 30-million investment, global box office exceeding 200 million, maybe even 300 million?!"

Harvey shouted angrily.

Bob shrugged his shoulders, indicating his helplessness.

'Bridesmaids', with an investment of 32.5 million, had a global box office of over 200 million US dollars, possibly even 300 million.

This profit ratio in the movies released this year, if not the first, was definitely in the top three.

There was no doubt that Palm Beach Films had backed another dark horse movie, and Link would make another hefty sum in the film market through it.

And just moments ago, Harvey was mocking Link for not understanding movies.

Bang!

Another ashtray shattered.

"Why, why does this happen? Link, a newcomer who knows nothing, why does he keep succeeding in his investments?"

Harvey roared, his face darkening.

"Harvey, don't be angry; this is the merit of the production department at Palm Beach Films. It has nothing to do with Link; he's not that great."

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Bob consoled him.

Harvey clenched his teeth viciously, biting his cigar in half, "Find out who is advising him on investing in movies; this person absolutely cannot stay at Palm Beach Films and we must not let Link make any more money."

This was not just about making money, but also a struggle for power and prestige.

If the movies invested by Link continued to sell well, not only would actors flock to him hoping to collaborate, but film companies would also eagerly seek partnerships.

Should this trend continue, Link's influence in Hollywood would grow more substantial, and his status would rise even higher.

Eventually, Link would replace him as the most powerful person in Hollywood, becoming the center of everyone's attention.

Women would also be eager to be at his service, crowding at his feet.

As these thoughts filled his mind, a surge of intense anger overwhelmed Harvey's heart.

His face gradually turned ferocious, and his body fat trembled non-stop, like a frenzied Canadian wild boar.

"Harvey, don't rush; it's possible that Palm Beach Films just got lucky with two movies in a row. It's not possible for all their films to succeed—nobody can achieve that. Maybe their next movie will incur losses."

Seeing his changed expression, Bob hurriedly spoke up to soothe him.

"No, we can't rely on luck. Go and find out about the movies Palm Beach Films invested in this year, especially the low-budget ones; we must find a way to take them over."

Harvey shouted, clenching his fists.

"I know; Palm Beach Films invested in four movies in the first half of this year, 'The Silver Linings Playbook,' 'Beasts of the Southern Wild,' with the remaining two being the arthouse films 'The Master' and 'Lawless,' in collaboration with Annapurna Pictures."

Bob mentioned 'The Master' and 'Lawless,' both having budgets around thirty million US dollars.

Harvey had read the script for 'The Master' and liked it, but with such a high investment, he felt it was hard to make a profit and after serious consideration, decided to pass.

Now hearing that Link was investing in this film, with director Paul Anderson, the lead actor Joaquin Phoenix, and the female lead Amy Adams, who had been nominated twice for the Best Supporting Actress at the Oscars, and Philippe Seymour Hoffman, the Oscar Best Actor from 'Capote.'

From the primary creative team, he faintly sensed a potential for a blockbuster.

"How's the preparation for this movie going? Is there a chance to take it over?"

"No chance, 'The Master' began preparations last year, but was suspended mid-way due to financing issues. Joaquin brought the project to Link, and after reading the script, Link decided to invest and brought Megan Ellison on board. Casting has finished, and they plan to start shooting next month."

Bob explained.

Harvey furrowed his brows, stood up, and paced around his office. After a while, he entrusted Bob with a task to talk to Link.

Using assistance with public relations at the Oscars as leverage, try to secure a portion of the investment in 'The Master' and 'Beasts of the Southern Wild.'

If Link dared to refuse, they would use 'The Silver Linings Playbook' to threaten him by indefinitely delaying the movie's release date.

As Weinstein Company was also a producer of the movie, he had the right to demand this.

"Great! I'll arrange it later."

Bob readily agreed.

Actually, he was pleased that Harvey had this change of heart; rather than causing conflicts and harm with Link, he preferred to cooperate with Link for big profits.

"Also, don't stop recommending large productions to Lionsgate Films. We need to find a way to get Lionsgate to invest in big productions to speed up its decline."

Harvey said.

Bob nodded, understanding that cooperation is one thing, competition another.

Since Link took over handling Lionsgate Films, he recommended through Lionsgate's internal contacts several large productions with investments over eighty million dollars, including 'Battlefield Earth,' 'Battleship,' 'After Earth,' 'Sword of the King,' hoping Lionsgate would get involved.

Whether these films would be profitable, Bob didn't know, but he and Harvey were clear on one thing.

Independent production companies compared to the 'Big Six' lacked sufficient funds and marketing capabilities, and once they rashly entered the domain of large productions, the outcomes were often tragic.

For instance, Carlock Pictures which went bankrupt, New Line Cinema before it was acquired by Warner, the once fifth-largest Hollywood company Orion Pictures, the eighth-largest United Artists, and the seventh-largest MGM Studios—all without exception fell because of large productions.

Large productions can bring in quick money, but losses come even faster.

As long as Lionsgate's upper management got hooked on investing in large productions, even if the first movie sold well, there would inevitably be losses later.

Unfortunately, both Link and Ivanka were smart; they hadn't fallen for the trick easily.

The moves he made had also not yet been effective.

Leaving Harvey's office, he arranged for his secretary to contact Link, suggesting a talk. Initially, he thought Link would decline or schedule their meeting several days later.

However, the secretary told him that Link was available for lunch tomorrow.