America: My Time

Chapter 410 The Temptation of Vanity Fair
Chapter 410 The Temptation of Vanity Fair
It's not that the so-called reconciliation by those old guys like Rockefeller would make John give up his overseas expansion; at least not until we see results. Agreeing to their conditions is not just a compromise, but more importantly, it's about interests. The Permian Basin holds enormous profits that John covets, and that's the most important thing.

Everyone only saw the frenzied expansion of Western Energy, Quantum Mining, and shipping companies overseas. Who cared about the expansion of 7-Eleven convenience stores across the United States? Who cared about the frenzied expansion of Global Online? Nobody cared. They instinctively ignored it because they hadn't seen the profits of these two companies. All these companies had was debt, huge debt. Does that mean they had no potential? No, they had enormous potential, just overlooked. The performance of Dreamworld, Game World, and Nvidia was so crazy, and the performances of Legendary Entertainment and Phoenix Media were also impressive. This made people instinctively ignore their existence. Nobody paid attention, which gave them the opportunity for frenzied expansion.

However, it's not just the old guys who are eyeing John now; there are also plenty of beautiful women. John used to be in school and had academic issues, but now that's no longer the case. Naturally, there are more beautiful women who want to climb the ladder, especially in the modeling world, where there are countless examples. Many people want to use the Victoria's Secret stage to further their careers, and this is well exemplified by Linda Evangelista.

Elite Model Management now has new talent joining the Victoria's Secret runway. The emergence of Cindy Crawford and Christy Turlington has made Linda Evangelista feel a sense of crisis and pressure. The modeling industry is ruthless; the turnover rate is too fast. Linda Evangelista became a sensation through the Victoria's Secret runway, but this was largely due to a rumored affair with John, which was completely unfounded. It's just that John rarely visited New York, leaving her no opportunity to even meet him.

If there's no opportunity, you have to create one. Linda Evangelista could only try every means to get in touch with this big shot during her trip to San Francisco, hoping to gain more resources and avoid being replaced.

While Linda Evangelista was on her way, someone else acted even faster: Sophie Marceau. Upon entering the industry, she understood its cutthroat nature. Initially hesitant, her exposure to Hollywood changed her mindset. Moreover, the French beauty didn't seem to care about such matters. Not long after Naoko left the US, seeing that John was alone, this stunning French beauty seized the opportunity to tie herself to this powerful figure.

Riko is right. How could a big shot like John not have women around him? There are no beautiful women. Before, because of his studies, many people had such thoughts but no opportunity. Now it's different. Naturally, countless beauties want to get into John's bed.

Hollywood is a place of fame and fortune, full of endless temptations. Countless beauties seek opportunities to become famous, and Sophie Marceau has an enviable opportunity. Originally, because of Naoko's presence, she hesitated a little, but now that the problem is gone, she naturally becomes John's woman. Who can resist a great beauty who offers herself up?

John was a dazzling young man with a string of titles, including Wall Street crocodile, media mogul, Silicon Valley tycoon, and mining magnate. Due to family ties and personality traits, he quickly won over the French beauty Sophie Marceau, making her his prize.

Although she knew John would be surrounded by countless beauties, Sophie Marceau, the stunning French beauty, still succumbed to their charms. French beauties are willing to give everything for 'love,' but how much of it is truly 'love' is something only she knows. After all, Hollywood is a place of fame and fortune, a place that devours people without spitting out the bones.

Looking at the beautiful and luxurious surroundings, Sophie couldn't help but sigh. This was the residence John had prepared for her in Los Angeles. After moving in, she felt that many of her former ambitions had dissipated. Perhaps if things continued like this, she might not even want to continue this arduous path in Hollywood.

Even if you make it big in Hollywood, even if you become a top Hollywood star, at most you can only live in a house like this and enjoy such services. Now, he can enjoy such conditions without doing almost anything. He has already achieved more than half of his ultimate goal in life, which makes Su Mo feel that striving is meaningless.

Getting something for nothing is certainly not good, but it's so tempting. Who could refuse such a good thing? All I got was to climb into his bed. Although he's not married yet, and it might not last, from what I know, he's a very sentimental person, which is evident in his relationships with his other women.

"No, I can't go on like this, or I'll really sink into it." Sophie gritted her teeth, thinking to herself, but her resolve was quickly shaken, and her ambition was extinguished once again.

Because her personal housekeeper had arrived, followed by maids, to attend to her washing and grooming needs. This was a treatment Sophie had never experienced before, and such a luxurious lifestyle was naturally eroding her ambitions.

After washing up, Sophie casually asked, "Where is the gentleman?"

"The gentleman left early this morning, but said he would come back tonight!" With some time on his hands, John began to learn about Universal Pictures and Paramount Pictures and make arrangements, especially since Paramount was now facing more challenges, not only in the film industry but also in the integration of television networks.

Most importantly, John needs to make arrangements for Universal Pictures, Paramount Pictures, Legendary Pictures, and Phoenix Pictures, to plan their development direction, and to make arrangements from a professional perspective.

With the continuous development of Hollywood and the rapid expansion of major film studios, Universal Pictures and Paramount Pictures inevitably face awkward confrontations during crucial summer release periods. This necessitates advance planning and communication. Sitting down and having a talk is absolutely essential.

It was for this reason that John appeared in Los Angeles to discuss countermeasures with Barry Diller and Robert Eglar. If it were just a small investment, it wouldn't matter if the two films were of similar quality, but blockbusters are a completely different story. Both Legendary Entertainment and Phoenix Media are moving towards an era dominated by blockbusters and film series, so such communication is essential.

There weren't too many issues with the selection of blockbusters. Universal focused on science fiction and fantasy, while Paramount opted for action and disaster films. However, the two sides had disagreements on mid-range and low-budget dramas.

Although the two sides reluctantly reached an agreement, neither Barrydiller nor Robert Eglar was willing to concede to the other. Even though Legendary Entertainment was clearly in a better position than Phoenix Entertainment, Barrydiller was still unwilling to admit defeat and had various ideas, believing that given enough time, he could definitely catch up with Legendary Entertainment.

John finally breathed a sigh of relief after managing to calm the two guys down. Both of them were very capable, but they were both very confident and unwilling to bow down to each other, each believing that they could definitely be stronger than the other.

Competition is a good thing; at least it keeps the two major media and entertainment groups thriving and prevents them from stagnating, which is exactly what John wants to see. The reason he brought these two down for a talk is because John wants to see competition between them; only in this way can the development of the two major media and entertainment groups be guaranteed.

While it seems that Hollywood's focus is now on Columbia Pictures, those behind the scenes don't think so. They are wary of Legendary Entertainment and Phoenix Media, because the latter are true media and entertainment giants. Therefore, they are most concerned about Universal Pictures and Paramount Pictures, as these are the most threatening companies.

However, during this conversation, Barrydiller proposed restarting the production of DC Comics movies, which surprised John. But since Barrydiller had made this suggestion, he must have been prepared, so he agreed to the development of DC Comics movies. Although DC Comics had been ruined before the acquisition, time heals all wounds, and DC Comics movies have their own market. Most importantly, DC Comics has now changed. After being rebuilt, it has endless vitality and no longer has the problems of the past, truly becoming a complete DC universe.

Paramount's intention to reboot DC Comics also reminded John of Marvel, which is a considerable asset. Acquisition was included in Legendary Entertainment's plan. Paramount could reboot DC movies, and Universal Pictures could launch the Marvel project, bringing Marvel characters to the big screen.

Robert Iger fully agreed with John's request. Both DC Comics and Marvel have a large audience, and if they could complete the acquisition of Marvel, Legendary Entertainment would have more material to work with. However, making such a film would require more preparation; at the very least, it couldn't be exactly the same as the comic book.

When this idea emerged, Legendary Entertainment acted swiftly. Before other companies realized Marvel's value, and before DC Comics was rebooted, they began the acquisition. They completed the acquisition with lightning speed, bringing Marvel Comics under their control and making it another major IP for Legendary Entertainment. Only after Legendary Entertainment had finished everything did Americans realize that both major comics were now in John's hands.

(End of this chapter)