In the early morning, at Capet Manor, Charles, dressed and ready for work, leaned down and kissed Scarlett Johansson, who was still asleep in bed.
"Darling, I'm off to the company!"
Scarlett Johansson, still sleepy, wrapped her arms around Charles's neck and responded with a passionate kiss for a while before letting him go and saying, "Go on, I'll book a table at the Chinatown restaurant tonight, you just come over then!"
"OK!" Charles, before leaving, also indulged in a few more touches on the Lady's body.
Capet Pictures' New York Manhattan branch office was already fully operational, now boasting several major divisions including Capet Pictures, Matrix Pictures, Capet Home Entertainment, Cape Television Company, and the Cape Investment Department.
"Darling, aren't you on vacation anymore?" Charles saw Donna Williams as soon as he entered the office and gave the Lady a hug.
Donna proactively offered a sweet kiss, and after a moment of intimacy, she explained, "The Facebook equity transfer agreement has been signed, and I've also had people help them set up YouTube, so I'm not needed there anymore!"
5% of Facebook shares and 40% of YouTube shares were truly fantastic; it didn't matter if they were diluted later.
Charles remembered that YouTube would soon be acquired directly by Google with cash, bringing in another large sum of cash flow.
"Oh, by the way, Annie Depp is very concerned about the company's current cash flow; we have quite a few projects to operate in the next two years!"
Annie Depp, the Chief Financial Officer hired by Capet Pictures, was formerly a partner at an accounting firm in Los Angeles.
"Didn't Annie say we could get a large credit loan from Wall Street investment institutions? At that time, even a debt-for-equity swap would be possible," With Capet Pictures' current momentum and impressive box office performance, banks would be eager to lend heavily!
"Annie Depp is currently in discussions with Credit Suisse Boston and Merrill Lynch on Wall Street regarding this, to issue convertible bonds as operating funds for the company going forward," Donna replied.
Charles nodded, "This year, all the films we're self-distributing are low-budget; wedding crashers and mr. & mrs. smith are films under our distribution contract with Universal;"
"The main concern is next year's films; besides the contract film the departed, all of them need to be operated by us, and the production and distribution budgets are indeed significant expenses."
the pursuit of happyness, the da vinci code, and 300; Charles was also preparing to develop the devil wears prada this year!
"Annie Depp said that at least 200 million US dollars in cash is needed as reserve capital, but she said she would try to increase the limit as much as possible," Donna added.
Charles chuckled, "The more, the better. Currently, Saw II has grossed 90 million US dollars in North America and 65 million US dollars in overseas markets, so we can expect about 50 million US dollars in cash from box office alone;"
"Next, there's DVD and television, plus the audiovisual copyright revenue from the first film has already exceeded 100 million US dollars, so the company's cash flow is quite good;"
"Once wedding crashers and mr. & mrs. smith are released, another large sum of funds will flow back!"
"Boss, are you thinking...?" Donna Williams seemed to have guessed.
"That's right, didn't I ask you to also pay attention to the internal shareholders of Marvel Company? This year, I'm going to acquire Marvel Company with cash," Charles already knew that Marvel Company's internal situation was unstable, and the conflict between major shareholder Ike Perlmutter and second shareholder Avi Arad had reached an irreconcilable stage.
Avi Arad was the Chief Creative Officer of Marvel Entertainment and the head of Marvel Studios, while Ike Perlmutter was the Chairman and ceo of Marvel Entertainment!
"Avi Arad is determined for Marvel Studios to develop its own films, but Ike Perlmutter is unwilling to bear the risk of developing films. David Mesel's lobbying on Wall Street also seems to be unsuccessful, and many of Marvel Entertainment's heroes are currently outside," Donna Williams was not foolish; Marvel's internal situation was not just unstable, it was on the verge of collapsing.
Charles's eyes narrowed, and he instructed, "You keep a close eye on Avi Arad. If he expresses any intention to sell Marvel shares, buy them immediately. Then, we will begin a full acquisition of Marvel Entertainment."
Ike Perlmutter and Avi Arad had been working together for many years; they were already shareholders during the Toy Biz toy company era. When Marvel Entertainment went bankrupt and suffered internal divisions in the 90s, Toy Biz merged with Marvel Entertainment, leading to the current situation.
Ike Perlmutter and Avi Arad together owned more than half of Marvel's shares. Charles would not currently put external pressure on Marvel Entertainment to force Ike Perlmutter and Avi Arad to unite against him.
Only when one of these two guys withdraws will Charles have a chance; he has to wait for the right time.
"I will pay attention," Donna Williams had now shifted her focus to Capet Pictures' investment department and assisting Charles with Cape Fund matters.
This was also considered specializing in her professional field; now, Phyllis Jones was primarily reporting on film and television progress to Charles.
After Donna Williams left, Charles took out the script for the devil wears prada; it was basically ready for development.
Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway, these two actresses must be used because they are too valuable. As for the director, David Frankel, who is skilled in directing fashion dramas, would be ideal.
David Frankel had directed HBO's Sex and the City and Entourage, so directing the devil wears prada would not be a problem.
"Next, we need to quickly discuss the live-action film adaptation of transformers toys with Hasbro Company," Charles murmured, "We can't let DreamWorks get a head start; Steven Spielberg's fame and prestige are not something I can compare to."
"Phyllis, come in!"
Phyllis Jones, summoned by phone, quickly appeared in Charles's office.
"Boss, is there something you need?"
"First, send the script for the devil wears prada to director David Frankel. Capet Pictures invites him to direct this film. Ask the production department to prepare a budget report as soon as possible;"
"Second, I need to meet with the person in charge of Hasbro Toy Company soon. Please arrange that!"
Phyllis Jones nodded, then prepared to carry out the tasks Charles had assigned.
"Oh, by the way, also arrange a meeting with Anne Hathaway for me to chat. The role in the film should be suitable for her!" Charles added.
"Understood!"
After Phyllis Jones left, Charles leaned back in his chair, thinking that DreamWorks and Paramount's most important cash cow in the future, the transformers film IP, was about to be taken by him.