"Batman" is now in the final stages of editing, with Simon spending the morning busy with post-production and the afternoon in back-to-back distribution meetings.
Today is August 7th, Monday.
After the last new film "Uncle Buck" is released this Friday, Daenerys Entertainment's summer distribution work for this year will officially come to an end.
So far, Daenerys Entertainment has released a total of seven films this year, including "Blue Thunder," "Metropolitan," "Sisters," "Ghostbusters II," "The Help," "The Bodyguard," and "The Sixth Sense," with "The Bodyguard" and "The Sixth Sense" alone being enough to support Daenerys Entertainment's performance for the entire year, not to mention the other released films also have their highlights.
Next, including "Uncle Buck," there are ten more films related to Daenerys Entertainment waiting to be released in the second half of the year.
Of these, "Over the Moon" and "Batman" will be distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, with release dates set for November 17th and December 22nd, respectively.
The other eight films "Uncle Buck," "Sweet Little Sister," "The Woman on the Roof," "Angel's Mission," "Scream 2," "My Left Foot," "The Gucci Documentary," and "Driving Miss Daisy" will be operated by three of Daenerys Entertainment's labels, covering all five months of the second half of the year.
Additionally, because Daenerys Entertainment has established subsidiaries in major overseas ticket markets such as the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Japan, and Australia, starting from the four films of "Scream" at the end of last year, Daenerys Entertainment's overseas distribution work has been continuously ongoing.
The focus of overseas distribution in the second half of the year will be on the three summer films.
Burbank.
The Daenerys Entertainment division, at five o'clock in the afternoon, a four-hour meeting comes to an end.
Most people start to leave for home, but Simon and Ella Doitchman have agreed to review a sample of "Driving Miss Daisy" and will stay for another two hours.
Inside the meeting room.
Amy notices Simon has been in a notably good mood since breakfast today. After everyone leaves, she calls Simon aside, signaling Ella to leave first, and pulls up a chair next to the conference table.
Simon, aware that Amy has something to discuss, sits down again, smiling, and asks, "What's up?"
Amy starts carefully, "Simon, Rem came to me this morning."
Simon roughly guesses what she's about to say and gestures for her to continue.
Amy goes on, "I've heard recently that Sony was originally planning to invite Bob to take over TriStar Pictures after this acquisition. Because of the recent situation with the ten films, Sony seems to have changed its mind. Bob is no longer asking for a raise. However, he hopes the company can help purchase a property he likes in Manhattan's Upper East Side, priced at $3 million."
Robert Rem's contract just completed its first year at the end of July, and he had already received the full $3 million bonus stipulated in the original contract last week.
Simon has also been paying attention to Rem's actions.
If it weren't for Sony's effort to secure a slot for Daenerys Entertainment's ten films, Rem might have already submitted his resignation to Simon.
Seeing Simon tapping his fingers lightly on the table without immediately responding, Amy continues, "Compared to the $15 million extra bonus plan for 'The Sixth Sense' creators, Rem's request isn't excessive. His contributions over the past year are evident."
"The Sixth Sense" has been in theaters for six weeks.
Last Friday, according to the tiered profit-sharing agreement with cinemas, Daenerys Entertainment received the first $106.13 million from the total $150.02 million box office revenue over the first four weeks. With "The Sixth Sense" expected to gross $600 million worldwide, it will bring Daenerys Entertainment at least another $150 million in revenue just from box office sales.
Excluding all costs, Daenerys Entertainment will net at least $220 million from "The Sixth Sense" theatrical release alone within the next year, with substantial revenue also expected from video rentals and TV broadcasts.
Altogether, "The Sixth Sense" is expected to contribute a net profit of no less than $500 million to Daenerys Entertainment over its entire profit cycle.
On the other hand, recent events have started changing some of Simon's perspectives.
Billions of dollars accumulated overseas and the continuously appreciating vast assets under Westeros Corporation have made Simon realize that he probably couldn't spend all his wealth in a lifetime, even though some plans are still not feasible for now.
Then, the frenzy in Hollywood triggered by Daenerys Entertainment's plan for ten collaborative films made Simon understand that sharing benefits not only protects oneself but can also yield unexpected power and more profits.
The announcement of the ten-film plan instantly resolved the WGA's investigation, led Orion Pictures to settle the outstanding profits for "Pulp Fiction," stopped MGM from pursuing the lawsuit over "Rain Man," and saw Sony, which was about to complete the acquisition of Columbia, voluntarily abandon its plans to poach from Daenerys Entertainment. Moreover, the more enthusiastic reception Simon received at last night's party than ever before signifies Daenerys Entertainment and Simon's suddenly increased immense influence in Hollywood.
Clearly, this is an implicit form of power.
Also, with the ten films, although Daenerys Entertainment only covers half the investment and has given up on distribution profits, thanks to Simon's foresight, the selected projects were bound to be successful. Now, it's as if Daenerys Entertainment is taking nearly half of the profits that should belong to other Hollywood studios.
Furthermore, hearing about Steve Ross gifting sports cars to the "Lethal Weapon" crew yesterday also taught Simon another lesson: spending money is not just about acquiring goods. Investing money in people is a form of 'consumption' that often yields unexpected returns.
Therefore, Simon discussed an extra bonus plan for "The Sixth Sense" creators with Amy this morning, totaling $15 million.
De Niro would receive $5 million, making his total compensation from the project reach Hollywood's top tier of $10 million, with $2 million for the producer, $2 million for the director, $1 million for the young actor playing Cole, and the remaining $5 million shared among the other actors and main creators.
Compared to the huge expected profits from "The Sixth Sense," this bonus is not much. But a film company offering extra bonuses after a box office hit is rare. From Simon's memory across two lifetimes, there are many instances of movie companies trying to swallow the deserved profits of creators after a hit.
Hollywood's current top stars are already reaching the $10 million mark for a single film.
To control budget costs and prevent movie companies from becoming mere wage earners for stars, Simon still plans to suppress star salaries but also intends to set up more reasonable profit-sharing schemes, allowing creators to earn more from box office hits.
As for the current situation.
Although some of Simon's perspectives have started to change, one thing remains the same: he still dislikes those who break contracts.
The fundamental reason for Daenerys Entertainment's smooth expansion in the distribution network over the past year is the support of a series of box-office hits. Without these assets, Daenerys Entertainment couldn't have attracted major North American cinemas nor quickly established a foothold overseas.
Simon indeed has a positive view of Robert Rem's achievements and is also someone who values loyalty and the old saying, "new friends are silver, but old friends are gold." If Rem diligently completes his three-year contract, Simon will surely offer a renewal salary package that satisfies him.
Now, stopping the gentle tapping on the table, Simon nods and says, "If he wants it, then let's give it to him. Additionally, I plan to consolidate our various overseas subsidiaries into a single subsidiary responsible for operating the overseas distribution network and investing in overseas film projects. As for the name, let's call it Daenerys International. Start looking for management candidates. Also, the theatrical window for films like last year's 'Scream' series has ended, and our company is about to see a surge in video tape business. Daenerys Home Entertainment also needs a dedicated person in charge."
Amy, understanding Simon's words, realizes he's truly irritated and suggests, "Could we space out these two tasks?"
"If Sony hadn't backed off, I'd probably have received a resignation letter by now," Simon shakes his head, looking earnestly at Amy. "I'm someone who really dislikes owing others, as it makes me uncomfortable. So, whenever possible, I'll give you more. However, I also dislike when someone overestimates their importance and seeks to obtain what they shouldn't."
With that, Simon stands up and walks out without waiting for Amy's response.
Arriving at the screening room, Simon and Doitchman finish watching "Driving Miss Daisy" by seven o'clock. After having dinner together, Simon doesn't return to his Beverly Hills residence but instead goes back to his Malibu villa.
It's Monday night in Los Angeles, and it's already Tuesday afternoon in Melbourne, with most Asian stock exchanges closed.
Calling over, Janet informs Simon that the Nikkei 225 index closed above 38,000 points on Tuesday afternoon local time.
For caution, they only briefly touch on this topic.
Simon's intentions are too clear, and given America's long history of eavesdropping, it's hard to say whether his home phone might be bugged. Lately, some crucial information has been conveyed using the most primitive human methods, with staff commuting daily between Melbourne, Los Angeles, and New York.
After chatting with Janet for over two hours mainly about vacation plans for the next month, Simon hangs up around eleven o'clock. He reviews a script for an hour before resting.
The next morning, he sees more detailed information.
The Japanese stock market closed at 38,076 points on August 8th local time. The Cersei Capital Funds 1 to 5, ostensibly still operated by Janet and Anthony and not following Simon's plan to exit the market but instead maintaining a net long position, now have a net asset value of $3.29 billion.
Due to strict confidentiality measures, the news of the funds changing hands hasn't leaked at all.
With the current growth momentum of the Japanese stock market, Simon believes there's no issue in the Nikkei 225 index hitting the 40,000-point mark, but all of this no longer concerns him.
According to the established plan, Cersei Capital Funds 6 to 10 have recently started establishing short positions against junk bond-related companies in the North American stock and bond markets.
Unlike stock index futures, short-selling stocks and bonds is much more complicated and can easily alert the target companies to retaliate. However, the North American junk bond market, totaling $200 billion, and the equally sized related company stocks, provide ample room for Cersei Capital, with only $5 billion in funds, to set up positions without raising too much suspicion.
This is also why Simon initially limited Cersei Capital's size.
With Simon's current influence, if he were to open up for investment, Cersei Capital could easily gather a huge fund of several tens of billions of dollars. However, doing so would make Cersei Capital so large that it could itself stir the market, thereby limiting its potential for significant impact.
During the last trip to Melbourne, combining his memory and the data collected by Janet, Cersei Capital had already finalized its operation plan for North America. Simon now only monitors the situation broadly without intervening in the specifics.
As for the Writers Guild of America investigation,
After several negotiations over two weeks, Daenerys Entertainment finally reached an agreement with the WGA. Daenerys Entertainment admitted to violating WGA regulations on the scripts for "Scream" and "The Sixth Sense," paying a total fine of $200,000 for both scripts to gain the WGA's forgiveness.
Everyone understands that this was just a way for Daenerys Entertainment to give the WGA an out.
As for the compensation Bruce Joy Robin sought, since both parties voluntarily signed the agreement during the dispute, the WGA ruled that Bruce Joy Robin also engaged in voluntary violations, thus not supporting his claims.
Since the agreement signed by both parties didn't violate any federal regulations, the dispute hinged on the union's stance.
Now, without union support, even if the dispute were taken to court, Bruce Joy Robin couldn't possibly obtain any compensation. Moreover, lawsuits in the U.S. are notoriously expensive, and it's clear that Bruce Joy Robin doesn't have the financial resources to sue Daenerys Entertainment. After the WGA's decision, he had no choice but to give up.
Many understand the origins of Daenerys Entertainment's plan for ten collaborative films. With the dispute with the union resolved, the entire Hollywood's attention has shifted to this matter, with the media also paying more attention. Because Simon has yet to announce the selected script projects, some are even starting to worry he might renege on his promise.
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