Chapter 688: Disney's Projects

On the office floor of Sky Film Studio in Beverly Hills, a middle-aged man in glasses hurried down the corridor to the end office. He knocked lightly twice, and after receiving a response from inside, pushed the door open and walked in.

"David."

After greeting him and receiving permission to sit, he settled across the desk and got straight to the point. "I just received the latest news. It's about Duke Rosenberg."

Hearing that name, David Ellison immediately looked up. "In what regard, Bill?"

"Business directly competing with ours."

The middle-aged man, Bill, said solemnly, "Didn't you remind me that Tina Fey is also keeping an eye on those Hollywood slate projects that Relativity Company and Dune Company want to unload?"

David Ellison nodded. Since the end of last year, he had been raising capital to take over projects from several Wall Street film funds whenever they could no longer sustain them.

He knew very well that despite having financed and produced several films—including a massive box office hit like I Am Legend—Sky Film Studio was still largely ignored by mainstream Hollywood. To become a force the industry couldn't overlook, he needed more than just capital; he needed a corresponding track record.

At the same time, he needed to forge stronger ties with the major studios.

Taking over these projects was undoubtedly the best opportunity to do so.

Recent developments had proved him right. The economic crisis had dealt a massive blow to Wall Street, directly impacting Hollywood. Many companies were facing severe cash flow problems, resulting in a drastic shortage of new projects entering production.

However, he wasn't the only one who saw this opening; Duke Rosenberg had spotted it too.

Sky Film Studio was making moves, but the other party's film fund wasn't acting slowly either. Although both sides exercised restraint to prevent those funds from driving up the prices, a definitive competitive dynamic had still formed between them.

Ever since learning that Duke Rosenberg was making similar moves, David Ellison had been using every possible method and channel to find out exactly which film projects his rival was eyeing.

The last film the other party had taken an interest in was The Man from Earth. After buying it, the film bombed horribly in theaters, but once he sold the offline rights to Netflix, Duke reaped a considerable harvest in the rental market. While it couldn't compare to films boasting tens of millions of dollars in budget, its rental revenue was absolutely outstanding for its genre, and a segment of cult film fans even hailed it as a masterpiece.

Thinking back to Duke Rosenberg's remark that it was unsuitable for theaters, David Ellison understood it deeply. The man clearly never intended to push the film into a wide theatrical release.

Facts had also proved that a film like that only had one path in theaters: a total box office bomb.

Even though he disliked Duke Rosenberg more and more, David Ellison knew full well just how exceptional the man's eye for films and the market was.

Looking at his capable subordinate, David Ellison asked, "What projects does he have his eye on?"

"Twentieth Century Fox's Avatar and the X-Men reboot, Walt Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean 4..."

Hearing these names, David Ellison wasn't surprised at all. The latter two were sequels to massive blockbuster franchises, while the former was a major production from James Cameron.

He was equally optimistic about these three films, but getting his hands on the investment shares held by Wall Street capital wasn't going to be easy. This was especially true for the Twentieth Century Fox projects; Fox was one of Duke Rosenberg's closest partner companies, and they likely wouldn't want to see Ellison meddling in their affairs either.

"Are there any other projects?" David Ellison asked.

Bill adjusted his glasses and said, "There are a few more, and they're all Disney projects."

David Ellison raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Disney projects?"

After losing Pixar Studio, Walt Disney's animated films had fallen into a slump. They began shifting more of their focus toward live-action movies, becoming one of the companies collaborating most closely with Wall Street. They had even offered up nearly ten major projects for slate financing with film funds.

"Disney's TRON: Legacy, which is currently in post-production," Bill said, listing the projects with the highest investments. "Robin Hood, directed by Ridley Scott and currently filming; Alien Battlefield, adapted from the works of famous sci-fi author Edgar Rice Burroughs; and Battleship, the toy adaptation Disney bought from Hasbro."

David Ellison nodded slightly.

These names weren't surprising either. They were all famous, massive productions within the industry. He had looked into them himself; if just two of these films became hits, it would guarantee a massive profit for Disney.

High-budget blockbuster productions were the mainstream of Hollywood, and David Ellison understood this very well.

"Do you know the investment status of these films?" he asked.

"I had someone check just before I came here." Bill recalled the figures for only a moment before saying, "The production budget for TRON: Legacy is 170 million dollars, utilizing the latest filming and production technology. The estimated cost for Robin Hood is 200 million dollars; not only did they get Ridley Scott to direct, but they also secured Russell Crowe and Cate Blanchett as the leads. Alien Battlefield..."

He paused briefly before continuing. "That project is still in the preparation stage, but Disney and Relativity have already invested a combined 80 million dollars in startup capital, and the preliminary production cost is estimated to be no less than 250 million dollars. Battleship is in a similar situation to Alien Battlefield; Relativity Company has only invested a certain amount of startup funds, and the project is also in the preparation phase."

Slowly tapping his fingers against the armrest of his chair, David Ellison thought for a few minutes before suddenly smiling. "Duke Rosenberg is pressuring Disney and Michael Eisner."

He continued, speaking more to himself, "If he can secure the corresponding shares of these Disney films, what will Michael Eisner do? If the films succeed, his own projects will bring massive profits to his rival. But if he sabotages them and makes the projects fail, how is he, as the Chairman and CEO, supposed to explain that to the shareholder meeting?"

"Duke Rosenberg thought this through very well!" David Ellison scoffed coldly, then added, "Bill, have someone carefully investigate these projects. Also, make appointments for me with Michael Eisner and Ryan Kavanaugh from Relativity Company. I want to speak with them individually."

As long as the investigation results were promising enough, he would inevitably step in to stop Duke Rosenberg's scheme!

Los Angeles in July was still sweltering. Bright sunlight spilled from the sky, bringing a burning sensation that made the already arid climate even more unbearable. Fortunately, the seaside in Malibu was slightly better than inland. The occasional sea breeze always managed to bring a hint of coolness.

"Did that big guy really arrive?"

The air conditioning in the Rolls-Royce was blasting at full power, but even so, Scarlett Johansson still held an embroidered fan she bought from China, fanning herself from time to time. "Have you seen it? Does it have enough horsepower when it gets going?"

"Darling, I haven't seen it yet either." Duke quietly turned the air conditioning down a bit. "You just came back from promoting Captain America in Argentina, and I just returned from the Western Pacific. I haven't had the time to take a look yet."

"Thinking about riding the world's number one yacht at any minute..." Scarlett's eyes curved into crescents as she smiled. Touching her chest, she said, "My heart rate is already speeding up."

Duke immediately poured cold water on her excitement. "It's not the world's number one anymore."

"It's not the number one anymore?" Scarlett asked. Seeing Duke nod, she added dismissively, "Well, at least it was the number one once."

After more than two years of waiting, the yacht Duke had ordered finally sailed into the Malibu marina last month. However, just as he said, this yacht—which held the record for the world's longest length when its construction began—couldn't even rank in the top three today. The yachts currently being built by the wealthy Russian oligarch Abramovich, as well as the Crown Princes of Dubai and Abu Dhabi, had all surpassed his in length.

The Rolls-Royce stopped in front of the Malibu marina. The moment she pushed the door open and stepped out, Scarlett looked toward the west. Parked in a deep-water berth at the pier was a massive white behemoth. It was the exact yacht she had seen multiple times in photos and blueprints.

Docked at the pier, the big guy, over five hundred feet long, looked like a small white mountain. It wasn't that there were no larger ships around—there were cargo ships displacing tens of thousands of tons off in the distance—but not a single one was as captivating as this.

"Let's head over."

Closing the car door, Duke called out to Scarlett before taking the lead and walking toward the yacht. Scarlett quickly caught up to him.

The two boarded the yacht, where the captain was already waiting for them. With him leading the way, they took a rough tour around the vessel.

This was a yacht capable of ocean-going voyages. Both the crew and the captain needed excellent skills and absolute reliability. A few friends from the military had recommended this retired Navy officer to Duke. At the same time, the rest of the crew were also mostly retired Navy personnel, and the ones acting as security were retired special forces from the Navy SEAL Team.

Naturally, maintaining the operation of a yacht like this also required a hefty sum in annual expenses.

After touring the deck, bar, dance hall, master bedroom, swimming pool, and private theater, Duke and Scarlett stepped into the yacht's main living room. The design here was quite distinctive. A loggia spanning the entire width of the yacht connected the main living room to the banquet hall. The curved structure at the stern was fitted with large glass windows, providing an unbeatable 270-degree panoramic view.

Standing in front of the glass windows, Scarlett looked out at the ocean. As if thinking of an important question, she suddenly asked, "Have you named this yacht yet?"

Standing beside her, Duke shook his head and said, "Not yet."

He took Scarlett by the arm. "Darling, that right belongs to you."