My 1999

The car drove slowly through this heavily guarded manor. Although the scenery outside was beautiful, Lang Meyer was not interested at all.

The tumultuous Vivendi Global acquisition case has finally come to an end after more than a year of turmoil.

The high-quality asset of Universal Entertainment has finally fallen into the hands of Hongmeng, an Internet giant from China.

As the CEO of Universal Pictures, his knowledge of the new boss was limited to the media.

Young and rich, he has become a global super-rich like a comet in just over four years. His talent in finance and business operations, especially in the Internet industry, is unparalleled.

Sighed.

"I hope the new boss can be more at ease."

He hasn't had a good night's sleep in more than two years since Vivendi's financial explosion.

The car parked in the square in front of the villa.

The car door opened, and as he stepped out, a young woman wearing a cream-colored women's suit and short ear-length hair came up to him.

"Mr. Meyer, welcome to the Xu Manor, my name is Lu Hui."

Ron Meyer quickly held the other person's hand. He already knew the name of the personal assistant next to the big boss.

Although the other party's level and power are not as good as mine, no matter in the East or the West, no one around this BOSS can be offended.

"Hello, Miss Lu."

"Mr. Meyer, please come with me. The boss is already waiting for you inside."

"Please lead the way."

Climb up the stairs, pass through the huge living room, pass through a long corridor covered with oil paintings, and come to a small study.

After knocking on the door and entering, a tall young man wearing a loose white long-sleeved T-shirt, gray sweatpants, and flip-flops greeted him.

Having seen the photo a long time ago, Ron Meyer naturally knew who the person in front of him was.

"BOSS, hello."

"Lon, thank you for your hard work coming all the way from Hollywood."

"You're welcome."

"Please take a seat."

After a brief polite exchange, the two sat down.

Looking at the gray-haired old man in front of him, Xu Liang smiled and poured him a cup of tea.

In Hollywood, although Ron Meyer is not as famous as Shirley Lansing, his business ability is much stronger than the latter.

Since the 1980s, Universal Pictures has returned to the top ranks of Hollywood under the leadership of each other.

Mainly through cooperation with powerful production companies such as Amblin and Morgan Creek, Universal has shot a large number of blockbuster films.

These include the "Jurassic Park", "Gladiator" and "The Mummy" series that Xu Liang is familiar with.

After entering the new century, although Universal failed to sell it several times, it was developing in full swing in the film industry.

From 1999 to 2003, classic films such as "A Beautiful Mind", "Gladiator", "Never Compromise" and "The Pianist" were filmed.

The sales of DVDs produced by Universal such as "Red Dragon", "8 Mile", "Bean Agent", "The Incredible Hulk", etc. also rank first among all film companies.

In 2003, Universal Pictures' box office revenue ranked third in the United States, with nearly US$1.7 billion.

It can be described as infinite scenery.

With such an experienced and capable person managing Universal Pictures, Xu Liang would naturally not replace him.

"Lang, it's 2004 soon. Does the company have any filming plans for next year?"

Ron Meyer knew he would be asked, so he prepared for it.

After waving, the accompanying secretary quickly handed over the briefcase in his hand.

After taking it, Ron Meyer took out a document from it.

"This is the list of films the company is preparing to shoot and release this year, a total of thirteen films."

Xu Liang took it and took a look.

The information is very detailed. In addition to the name of the movie, it also includes the main actors and detailed investment shares.

If it is a sequel, it will also have the box office of the previous film.

In this list, Xu Liang found several familiar names.

"Meet the Father-in-Law" and "The Bourne Supremacy" are both second installments.

"'Van Helsing'?"

"This is the company's S-class large-scale production this year, with a total investment of US$160 million. The director is Stephen Sommers, who has directed the "Mummy" series and "The Scorpion King."

Xu Liang frowned, "How far is the filming now?"

"After a year of filming, the filming has been completed and is currently being edited in preparation for its official release in April next year."

Xu Liang sighed inwardly.

That's too late.

"Van Helsing" is a famous bad movie in Hollywood and even around the world.

The production cost of US$160 million, including publicity and distribution, must exceed US$200 million.

To recover the cost, the box office must exceed US$600 million.

Although Xu Liang doesn't remember how much the box office of "Van Helsing" was, it is definitely less than 600 million, or even far away.

Otherwise, if the peripherals can make money, there is a high probability that there will be a second part.

But he had never heard of it until he was reborn.

“Who directed this film?”

Ron Meyer is not a fool, and you can tell he doesn't like this movie just by looking at the look of The Big Boss.

"It's Lil Bannings, the company's vice president, and it's written and directed by Stephen Sommers."

Xu Liang glanced at him, unable to comment.

He didn't believe that Ron Meyer would not know about such a large investment.

But after he said this, Xu Liang couldn't easily get angry, and the company had just been acquired, so the most important thing was stability.

"Compress the publicity and distribution costs of this film."

Xu Liang thought for a while and did not specify a specific number.

He didn't understand the rules of Hollywood, so he let Ron Meyer figure it out.

"BOSS, you haven't seen the content of this movie yet..."

Meyer expresses his dissatisfaction at the right time. How would you know if you haven't seen the movie?

Looking at the slightly stubborn old man in front of him, Xu Liang understood him very well.

If he were a successful person in the film industry, suddenly one day someone would come up to him and say that the film you were in charge of shooting would be bad, and he wouldn't be willing to do it.

"Lon, has there ever been a successful vampire movie in Hollywood, or even in the entire West?"

"Yes, Francis Ford Coppola spent US$1 million to shoot "The Last Day of the Vampire" in 1992, and it ended up earning US$215 million at the global box office."

Xu Liang:…….

He really didn't remember such a movie.

And he also discovered that when it came to movies, he, a layman who was just scratching his head, was not as good as Ron Meyer, an insider.

So I don’t bother to debate anymore.

"I'm not optimistic about the prospects of this "Van Helsing", but since it's already been filmed, let's go with your plan, but the publicity and distribution costs must be reduced."

"BOSS, "Van Helsing" is an S-level production, and it is Universal's most important film in 2004. If such a film does not have more than 30 million US dollars in publicity, the theaters may have doubts, which will affect the film's success. Arrange films.”

"So, I'll let you figure it out yourself."

Xu Liangdao.

Looking at this stubborn old man, he had a headache.

You have to respect talented people.

If it were an ordinary person, if he opposed his opinions again and again, he would have told the other party to get out.

"Ok, I see."

Ron Meyer is not a fool, he also knows how to take care of the temper of the big boss.

Xu Liang did not continue this topic. "Van Helsing" has been filmed. The overall situation has been decided and no one can change it.

“Do you know Hasbro’s Transformers?”

Ron Meyer nodded, "Do you plan to adapt it into a movie?"

"Yes. It has a huge influence around the world. I grew up watching the "Transformers" cartoon. If it is made into a movie, I believe it will have a lot of box office."

He originally asked Lu Xiaobo to contact Hasbro, but MGM's acquisition has not been successful.

Without a reassuring film and television company, Hasbro is naturally reluctant to hand over its most valued Transformers copyright to Hongmeng for operation.