Hollywood Director 1992.

Chapter 339: Conspiracy, open plot, open struggle, covert struggle, keeping a low profile is the way to go

"Link, the board meeting just ended, and I was successfully elected as the president of CAA. Thank you, thank you very much!"

At noon, Link was watching a movie at home with Michelle and others when he received a call from Jay Maloney. Maloney excitedly said that he had got the position of president of CAA and also told him about the CAA board meeting.

Before the meeting, he only won the support of one-third of the board members and had no chance of getting the position of president.

When the meeting was at a stalemate, Michael Ovitz praised him and recommended him for the position of president. Other members of the board also turned to support him, and he was elected with a high vote of 72%.

"That's great news, congratulations."

"Thank you! Link, I know you helped me, but how did you do it? Why did Michael Ovitz listen to your advice?"

Jemaloney asked curiously.

"I made a deal with him, about movies, you'll find out later."

After chatting for a few words, Link hung up the phone and continued to watch the movie with Michelle and Brooke Shields.

On Tuesday, Disney updated its list of senior executives, and Michael Ovitz's name was prominently listed as co-CEO of Disney with Michael Eisner.

After the list was released, the rumors that Ovitz would jump to Disney became true.

The news caused a huge shock in Hollywood.

Ovitz founded CAA in 1975. It took him ten years to surpass WMA in performance and become the largest agency in the entertainment industry. In 1985, he successfully convinced the former King of Hollywood, Lew Wasserman, to surrender by monopolizing artist resources.

Starting in the late 1980s, Ovitz's power in Hollywood reached its peak.

But now he is leaving CAA and working somewhere else.

This is tantamount to the king leaving his territory, and his status and power will inevitably be affected.

Many people were curious about the reason why Ovitz changed jobs, and many reporters stayed outside the CAA and Disney buildings day and night, hoping to interview the parties involved.

Disney and Ovitz himself then held a press conference to publicly explain the matter.

At the press conference, Ovitz's response to the reason for his job change was basically consistent with the analysis of the Los Angeles Times.

He claimed that CAA was already the most powerful agency on the planet, and that he could no longer create greater success in this position, and that his career had hit a bottleneck.

It’s just that he is still young and doesn’t want to grow old resting on his laurels.

After receiving Disney's invitation, he gladly accepted it and looked forward to working together with Disney colleagues to make Disney a better place and usher in a second spring in his career in this position.

A reporter asked him on the spot whether the reason for his job switch to Disney was related to his repeated defeats to Link?

Ovitz vehemently denied it.

He claimed that his defeat to Link was a rumor and that he had never lost to Link. He also mentioned that Link's collaboration with many actors under CAA was decided by him personally.

If the two are in a hostile relationship, it is impossible for CAA's artists to cooperate with Guess Pictures.

The reporters did not give up and kept asking him whether he would continue to compete with Guess What Pictures after becoming the CEO of Disney.

Ovitz said that after more than three years of development, Guess What Pictures has become one of the most powerful film companies in Hollywood, with production and distribution capabilities not inferior to the Big Seven studios.

Disney is the company with the highest market value in the film industry. Competition between the two parties is inevitable, but there is also the possibility of continued cooperation.

Ovitz's answer was flawless and did not leave the media with much new material worth exploring.

After the press conference, the news of Ovitz's job change made the front pages of major American media, triggering a new round of heated discussions in the entertainment industry.

"I didn't expect Ovitz to really change jobs. I would never do that if it were me. Being the president of CAA not only gives me power and money, but I can also take advantage of those female stars at will."

At Miramax Films, Bob Weinstein saw the press conference on TV, stroked his fat chin and let out an obscene laugh.

Harvey Weinstein held a cigarette between his fingers and looked at the TV screen through the light blue smoke.

"I understand his approach. Among all industries in the entertainment industry, the film and television industry has the largest industrial chain, from film production to distribution and peripheral products. Last year, the output value of the film and television industry reached 525 billion US dollars. Including the export value, the total output value is even higher.

The total output value of the brokerage industry is less than $80 billion, which is only a small pond compared to the vast ocean of the film and television industry. Ovitz's move to Disney, the most powerful company in the film and television industry, is also a very wise choice."

"Really? Disney is Eisner's territory. Michael Ovitz can only be the second in command after he goes there. The former king of Hollywood becomes the second in command. I don't think this is a good idea. It's not as good as Ron Meyer jumping to Universal Pictures."

Bob said, shrugging his shoulders.

“Not necessarily. Disney has serious internal struggles, and many people on the board of directors are disgusted with Eisner’s long-term monopoly of the position of president and his dictatorship within Disney.

After Ovitz joins, these shareholders may support him in his internal struggle with Eisner, and Ovitz may not be unable to surpass Eisner and become the real person in charge of Disney. "

"Is it possible? Eisner has ruled Disney for more than a decade, and the company's management is almost entirely his people. Before, Frank Welsh and Jeffrey Katzenberg couldn't defeat him together, so how could Ovitz succeed?

Another point is that since Eisner dared to invite Ovitz to work at Disney, he could not have been unprepared to allow Ovitz to divide his power.

Bob said.

"What you said makes sense. Maybe Eisner has his own plans."

After the TV news ended, Harvey picked up the phone and called Michael Ovitz to congratulate him on becoming the president of Disney and to prepare to visit him in his office the next day.

After being acquired by Disney last year, Miramax Films has become a subsidiary of Disney, and they will have more cooperation in their work in the future.
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"Michael actually changed jobs. This is really not good news."

In the office of the president of Paramount Pictures, Tom Cruise frowned as he read the news in the newspaper.

"It's nothing. If he had moved to another company three or four years ago, it would have had a huge impact. But it's not a big deal now."

Ms. Shirley Lansing shook her head dismissively.

Three or four years ago, CAA's reputation in Hollywood was at its peak. It controlled most of Hollywood's top directors and actors, and the seven major film studios had to look to Ovitz for approval if they wanted to make a movie.

Ovitz gained great reputation and made a lot of money in Hollywood by monopolizing artist resources.

However, this tyrannical and overbearing approach also caused dissatisfaction among many film companies, and they began to support brokerage companies such as WMA, UTA, and ICM to compete with CAA.

After several years of competition and development, WMA regained its strength, and brokerage companies such as UTA and ICM rose one after another. CAA lost a lot of resources, and Ovitz also lost a lot of power.

By 93, Link and Guess What Pictures had risen strongly, once again dealing a heavy blow to Ovitz's authority and status.

Ovitz was unwilling to accept defeat and tried his best to fight back but was defeated repeatedly. The little authority he had left was gradually consumed in the failure.

There was no hope for him to continue staying at CAA, and switching to Disney would give him more opportunities.

"So that's how it is. I used to see him trying his best to suppress Link and treating him like his mortal enemy. I thought he did this because he lost the bet to Link and was unwilling to accept it. It turns out that he wanted to maintain CAA's influence and status in Hollywood."

Tom Cruise said, stroking his chin.

"The only thing that Hollywood executives are fighting for is power."

Ms. Shirley Lansing said calmly. Tom Cruise nodded, "I don't know who the president of CAA is. I hope it's Mr. Ron Mayer, not Maloney. Maloney and Link have a good relationship. If he becomes the president of CAA, Link will have more power in Hollywood."

Ms. Shirley Lansing did not respond.

"I'm going to call him to congratulate him on his new job and ask who the president of CAA is?"

Tom Cruise said while holding his mobile phone, when Shirley Lansing did not respond, he walked to the window and quietly called Michael Ovitz.

"Hi Mike, I'm so happy to see you join Disney. I want to ask who will be the new president of CAA after you leave. Is it Mr. Ron Mayer?"

Tom Cruise asked.

"CAA will announce the new president in a couple of days, but no matter who it is, it will not affect your position in the company."

Michael Ovitz's voice came through the receiver.

"Okay, I believe you, but after you join Disney, will you continue to deal with Link?"

This is Tom Cruise's biggest concern.

"Of course, my purpose of switching to Disney is to defeat him and take back what belongs to me. This goal will never change until Link falls."

Ovitz snorted.

"That's good. As the co-president of Disney, you can mobilize more resources to compete with Guess What? Pictures. We will also be more powerful against Link. I really hope that one day we can defeat him and watch him leave Hollywood in disgrace."

"Don't worry, Tom. It's going to happen."

Ovitz said in a firm voice.

"hope so!"

Tom Cruise smiled, hung up the phone, and spread his hands to Ms. Shirley Lansing, "Ovitz didn't tell me."

"Don't contact him anymore. He won't play a big role in Disney."

Shirley Lansing said.

"why?"

"Both Ovitz and Eisner are very keen on power, and their work styles are equally overbearing. It's only a matter of time before the two of them will have conflicts when working together. After they have a conflict, choosing to cooperate with Ovitz would offend Eisner, and Disney is Eisner's territory, so he has a better chance of winning."

Shirley Lansing said calmly.

Tom Cruise frowned, "Can you get them to stop fighting among themselves? Guess What? is developing very fast and is grabbing more and more box office shares. Both Disney and Paramount should make defeating Guess What? their main goal right now. If they start fighting among themselves at this time, the person who will be happiest is Link."

Shirley Lansing shook her head and continued to work without answering the question.

Tom Cruise shrugged his shoulders, walked behind her, carefully squeezed her shoulders, and when he saw that she didn't object, he applied a little more force.

"How are you and Nicole?"

Shirley Lansing asked without looking up.

Hearing the name Nicole, Tom Cruise's face instantly turned ugly, "Don't mention her, that bitch only has that bastard Link in her heart now, and she's asking me to divorce her every day."

"Doesn't she know that Link has many girlfriends?"

Shirley Lansing asked curiously.

"She was poisoned by Link and didn't care what kind of bastard Link was."

Tom Cruise said angrily.

"It is rumored that Link is very charming and has a fatal attraction to women. It seems to be true."

"Fake! What's the charm of a yellow-skinned boy? The reason why those women like him is because he has money and resources, and they can get more resources from him. If he was just a small director, no woman would pay attention to him."

Tom Cruise said disdainfully.

Shirley Lansing made no comment and continued to work.
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After Michael Ovitz jumped to Disney, the most pressing issue in the industry has become the selection of the new president of CAA.

Some believe it was Ron Mayer, one of the founders of CAA and long-time chief marketing officer of CAA, responsible for marketing and brand promotion, and who has a close relationship with Ovitz.

Some people also believe that it was Vice President William Hubble, who has long served as president of CAA Europe and has performed outstandingly in expanding CAA's overseas territory. He is one of Ovitz's confidants.

Others believe it is Richard Lovett, a senior partner who has performed outstandingly in recent years.

Some media reporters wanted to interview CAA and Ovitz, but did not get accurate answers.

While everyone was talking about it, the CAA board of directors announced the appointment of Jay Maloney as the new president.

"Jemma Ronnie?"

"How could it be him?"

There was an uproar in public opinion after the selection of CAA president.

Jay Maloney’s election came as a surprise to many.

Although he has worked at CAA agency for 15 years and served as the head of CAA's agency affairs department for a long time, he is known for his excellent negotiation skills and social prowess and has strong business capabilities.

But he and Ovitz did not get along.

Before Ovitz left, the two had a violent conflict on the board of directors.

He was almost fired by Ovitz.

Just a few days later, the situation suddenly changed and Maloney became the new president of CAA.

How could such a person become the new president of CAA?

Roland Perkins, chairman of the CAA board of directors, praised Jamalone in response to reporters' questions, saying, "He is an experienced leader who has a deep understanding of CAA's values and vision. I believe that under his leadership, CAA will continue to move forward and maintain its leading position in the entertainment and sports agency field."

This answer sounds reasonable, but people who know the inside story think that this matter is not that simple and there is more to explore.

There are rumors that Jay Maloney has a good personal relationship with Link, and that Maloney was able to become the president of CAA with Link's help. Link wants to use this method to control CAA, continue to compete with the seven major film studios, and ultimately achieve his ambition of dominating Hollywood.

Since Link is rich and powerful, the most powerful man in Hollywood, many people believe that the rumor is true.

Many media outlets hinted in their reports that this incident was related to Link.

However, Liu Xiaoli denied the rumor at a press conference, saying that this was an internal matter of CAA and that Guess What Pictures never interfered with the work of other companies. Link was on vacation in Hawaii and had no time to care about other things.

Although Link has not admitted it, everyone knows that after Jay Maloney becomes the president of CAA, Link's power in Hollywood will be further enhanced and he will become the true king of Hollywood.

(End of this chapter)