America: My Time

Chapter 231 The Calculations Behind the Counterattack

Chapter 231 The Calculations Behind the Counterattack
"Okay, Phoenix Group won't let you down. I understand the creative process, and we will absolutely not affect you or your team in this regard. We will only help you, not interfere. However, you can't rely on the group for manpower. Phoenix Animation itself is short of talent, so you have to solve this problem yourselves. At most, we can only provide some help with the music. That's the limit of what the group can do right now!"

Funding is not an issue; there will be no problem with Shanghai Film Studio or publicity, as Phoenix Group has its own distribution channels and theaters. Distribution throughout Asia is not a problem, and Legendary Entertainment will assist with distribution to Europe and America. Of course, with the group's continued expansion, manpower will also be a significant help in the future!

Regarding the film industry in Japan, John prioritizes animated films over live-action films. Japan is still too weak in live-action films. Although Nikkatsu Pictures is starting to recover, most of its efforts are still focused on its collaboration with Hong Kong's Phoenix Pictures. It will take time for it to truly grow stronger.

It was precisely because John understood the state of the Japanese film market that he valued animated films so highly and wanted to meet with the animation master Hayao Miyazaki to bring him under Phoenix Media Group's umbrella. Once the shareholding agreement was reached, Phoenix Media Group would undoubtedly provide full support in distribution and promotion; they possessed this capability, which was the main reason Miyazaki approached them. If Miyazaki had insisted on 40% of the studio's shares, everything would have been different, and Phoenix Media Group might not have been so dedicated, as promotion and distribution also incur costs.

And so, in a pleasant atmosphere, both parties reached an agreement. John would no longer need to intervene; instead, Matsumoto Taro would handle the rest of the work. This was a special case and would not be repeated in the future. As time went on, Phoenix Animation's talent pool grew, and they would no longer need the assistance of other studios.

Studio Ghibli has officially joined Phoenix Media Group, becoming a subsidiary of Phoenix Comics and Animation. It seems that Phoenix Media Group offered very good terms and paid a considerable price, but John believes that this deal will bring huge revenue to Phoenix Media Group and accelerate its development and expansion.

Japan's animation production has accelerated due to its battle with Warner Bros., attracting many talented individuals from Japan. However, Legendary Entertainment has not benefited as much. Legendary Entertainment's animation strategy is much weaker, a point I learned during a previous conversation with Robert Iger.

John's demands included releasing one animated film every year and maintaining a consistent level of television animation production. This was something Legendary Entertainment Animation couldn't achieve; they would have to work hard for at least two years, let alone one. Legendary Entertainment simply lacked the experience and scale to achieve significant economic benefits from animation. Without releasing one animated film a year, it was difficult to put pressure on Disney, hinder its development, or impede its film distribution.

In the mid-1980s, the release time for animated films was very long, sometimes several months. If one couldn't release an animated film every year, it would be difficult to stop Disney's growth. Therefore, John placed great importance on the production of animated films by Legendary Entertainment. Unfortunately, Legendary Entertainment failed to meet John's requirements.

The Japanese side is unreliable because Phoenix Media itself lacks talent, and the role played by Taiwan is also limited. This made John think of Shanghai Film Studio. If he could recruit some talent from Shanghai Film Studio, or establish an animation studio in China, perhaps he could realize his plan and deal a heavy blow to Disney.

Establishing an animation company in China would not only accelerate the production of animated films but also alleviate Legendary Entertainment's pressure in the animation field, given the unimaginable difference in labor costs between China and the US. It's a pity I hadn't considered this before; otherwise, I should have pursued this expansion during my investment exploration in China.

However, it's not too late to think about it now. I still have time to plan and enough time to target Disney. This time, neither John nor Legendary Entertainment will back down. Whether it's Warner or Disney, they will do everything in their power to suppress each other, even to the point of forcing them into bankruptcy. Warner might be difficult to force into bankruptcy, after all, Warner is a giant in the record industry, and now the record industry is more profitable than the film industry. Even if Legendary Entertainment and Phoenix Media join forces, they can't kill them. But Disney is different. As long as I lock down Disney in animated films and deal a heavy blow to it in toys, Disney could easily collapse. At this point, Disney is in a bad situation, burdened with huge loans.

If Disney's cash flow could be cut off, it could absolutely be forced into bankruptcy. At that point, Phoenix Media might even have the opportunity to acquire Disney and take control of the Hollywood studio. As an animation-focused film company, even if acquired by Phoenix Media, it wouldn't face opposition from Hollywood. Disney's presence in Hollywood is currently very low, so a acquisition wouldn't cause much of a stir, since its current presence in Hollywood is even less than MGM's.

Of course, this is only a possibility. For Phoenix Media, Disney is not a necessity. Paramount Pictures is John's target. Disney is not very attractive to Phoenix Media. If possible, Phoenix Media would choose Paramount Pictures instead of Disney. Phoenix Media has its own animation production, so the presence or absence of Disney will not have a significant impact!

If Phoenix Media acquires Paramount Pictures, it will truly establish itself in Hollywood and become a genuine global entertainment giant, a Hollywood behemoth. However, achieving this won't be easy; Hollywood giants won't let Phoenix Media succeed so easily. It requires advance planning and preparation. If Legendary Entertainment can directly bankrupt Disney, it will avoid many future troubles in Hollywood. Although Disney isn't even as powerful as MGM in Hollywood, it's still one of the Hollywood giants. Destroying a Hollywood giant earns a reputation for ruthlessness and inspires fear.

However, whether it will succeed is hard to say. After all, many things are beyond our control. If Legendary Entertainment cannot meet the requirements for animation production, no matter how many ideas they have, they cannot be realized. Currently, Legendary Entertainment and Phoenix Media are targeting Warner Bros. Since animation production takes time, starting with Warner Bros. is the best choice.

With Legendary Entertainment and Phoenix Media joining forces, along with their combined efforts in the apparel industry, Hollywood fell silent. No matter how much the big stars protested or how arrogant the unions were, they couldn't change Legendary Entertainment's decision. As more and more unfavorable news emerged, those who had been protesting the most were now suffering the most.

Even the Writers Guild has been split up, which shows how domineering Legendary Entertainment is. No matter how angry the guys in the Writers Guild are, it's useless and they can't change anything. All the editors at Legendary Entertainment and Phoenix Media have left the Writers Guild and formed their own guild, parting ways with the Writers Guild.

Initially, all parties in Hollywood were trying to reach an agreement, and even the Writers Guild members were willing to back down. However, Legendary Entertainment and Phoenix Media chose to stick to their decision and part ways with them. At this point, John didn't want to get involved in the Writers Guild's mess anymore. Those guys were no good; they would cause trouble from time to time and stage a major strike, something that had happened many times in Hollywood.

Having finally seized such a golden opportunity, and with such a legitimate reason, how could John abandon his plans just because of the advice of some outsiders, and let Legendary Entertainment and Phoenix Media get back into the murky waters of the Writers Guild? Staying independent of the Writers Guild is the best choice, so as to avoid being influenced by these guys.

At this point, the Donkeys were getting increasingly angry because their plans had failed repeatedly, and now they were also suffering a fierce counterattack from Legendary Entertainment. The situation was becoming more and more unfavorable for them, and some people were even calling for a boycott of the Donkeys, since the Donkeys had interfered in the Jeep issue, leaving them with no way to defend themselves.

"Jimmy, what do you think John, that little fox, is up to? He's clinging to the donkey even though the donkey is about to give up, and he still insists on doing it?"

"Boss, perhaps the donkey has crossed his bottom line, which is why he suffered such a blow, just like Warner. This time, the little fox has gone all out, trying to strangle Warner from all sides. Warner has suffered great losses in Asia. Perhaps this is his way of showing off, warning those who have designs on him."

"That's right. This little fox is indeed putting on a show of force, using a donkey to intimidate. However, his counterattack against Warner has had a significant impact this time, giving other media and entertainment companies an opportunity to see through the little fox's scheme. Nowadays, many people in Hollywood are starting to learn from Legendary Entertainment and are expanding rapidly. It's just unknown whether these companies can have the same strength as Legendary Entertainment. If Legendary Entertainment were to dominate Hollywood, I'm afraid some people wouldn't be able to tolerate it."

"Boss, are you worried that those guys from Seli will intervene? Wasn't this lesson enough? How dare they be so arrogant? Don't they have any sense of respect at all? Do they really dare to act recklessly?"

"Nobody knows how crazy those guys are. I have a feeling that if things continue like this, there will be more trouble. I don't want the game world's listing to go wrong. If anyone still doesn't know when to back down, I can only give them a warning and make them behave themselves. You can send someone to warn those guys in Hollywood to behave themselves and not cause trouble!"

(End of this chapter)