America: Starting with the acquisition of MGM...

Chapter 10. Eric's Advantage

Judy: "OMG! This is outrageous! Absolutely outrageous! I've never seen such a profitable business."

"30 million, increased 11 times in one game, becoming 330 million. If gambling were a woman, I would definitely fall in love with her."

Warren kept sending silly laughing emojis: "11 times, my God, I should have bet more, I should have bet my entire fortune."

Eric: "Don't you only have $1000?"

Warren: "Hehe. Actually, there was still a little left. I was worried I'd lose it all, but it seems my worries were unnecessary. Eric, you're fucking awesome!"

Seeing that these guys were getting carried away, Eric quickly tried to calm them down, knowing how harmful gambling, drugs, and prostitution were.

Once you get involved with gambling and drugs, you're ruined. As for prostitution, it's nothing to rich people, since they have plenty of time and money to take care of their health. That's why I say I'm mortal enemies with gambling and drugs!

Eric: "Wake up, everyone. Gambling is just a crooked path. Even if you win once in a while, no one can guarantee that they will keep winning."

"So this is the only time, because I need to quickly accumulate initial capital, but I hope you remember that in the long run, you will lose."

"After this World Cup, anyone who touches gambling will no longer be my friend, Eric Cooper!"

Eric made a strong statement, and he promised to keep his word.

However, these close friends are no ordinary people either. With their intelligence, Eric believed they would know what to do.

In just two games and a week, Eric's wealth reached an astonishing $5 million, which is simply a dream come true.

In 2002, $500 million was a fortune that surpassed that of the vast majority of Hollywood stars.

Even 20 years from now, $5 million would be enough to invest in two Hollywood blockbusters, big-star, big-budget productions.

In today's context, Sony's "Spider-Man," for example, has been in theaters for a month but is still showing in a small number of theaters, and this superhero blockbuster cost less than $1.4 million.

MGM's "Windtalkers," a war epic, had a production cost of only $1.3 million.

While this cost figure may be inflated, the amount of inflation is extremely small, because these are all listed companies, and shareholders are watching closely. What's even more alarming is that the tax bureau will investigate the accounts.

If you lie and exaggerate your costs by three to five times, you'll be crying your eyes out when the tax bureau comes knocking.

In the United States, never mess with the IRS. Even if Hollywood dares to fool Wall Street, it wouldn't dare to fool the IRS.

Besides production costs, there are also marketing and distribution costs, which are the two major expenses for releasing a movie.

Eric estimates that the total cost of Spider-Man and Windtalkers should fluctuate around $1.8 million.

However, this is relative to the fees required by ordinary filmmakers. If Eric were involved in the entire production, the cost could be reduced by at least $3000 million to $4000 million.

Because there are many scraps during the filming process, for example, a 120-minute movie may have a shooting time of more than 1000 minutes, and the final version is edited to look like what the audience sees.

As a time traveler, Eric knew exactly what the final cut of each film should look like, so unnecessary filming could be omitted.

This will greatly shorten the production cycle, reduce costs, and allow for earlier release, which is its advantage.

However, while $5 million is enough for him to make several blockbusters, it is still a huge shortfall in funding for acquiring MGM. He needs more and more!

However, you can't fleece people to death.

The last time they siphoned off $190 million, it halved the profits of many small online gambling companies in just a few days.

This time, with a loss of 330 million, even large betting companies like Pinnacle and Ladbrokes will likely see their profits drastically reduced.

As for those small companies, they're lucky if they can even keep a small profit margin.

These companies need to catch their breath, otherwise the game can't continue.

Eric: "Same old rules, no more betting for the next few days, and I'll cover all your food, drinks, and entertainment."

"But we need to keep a low profile. We've pulled off two major upsets in a row, and I'm worried that it has already alerted some casinos. Anyway, we need to be careful."

Time flies, and June 14th is fast approaching. There are two important things to do today.

Firstly, Windtalkers has been released, and Eric plans to go to the cinema to watch it, just for fun.

Secondly, there is an important match today: South Korea vs. Portugal.

That's right, the Koreans are finally going to make their move, and the biggest scandal of the 2002 World Cup is about to be unveiled.

Eric went into the movie theater alone, ordered a soft drink and popcorn, and waited quietly for the movie to start.

During this time, he secretly observed the front desk and found that the vast majority of those who chose "Windtalkers" were men, many of them in groups of friends, while couples or girls were rare.

Nearby, a black guy was muttering to his companion, "I like John Woo's style. Nicolas Cage will become a war god on the battlefield and send all the enemies to hell."

Another Black guy was using his racial talent: "Bullets, doves, explosions, blood, bang bang bang!"

A white office worker not far away was discussing John Woo with his companion: "I've seen 'Face/Off,' 'Mission: Impossible 2,' and 'Hard Boiled.' I like this guy's movies. I hope I can enjoy a violent blockbuster this time too. Work is so tiring, I need to relax."

Everyone around him shared this view, but Eric knew they were going to be disappointed. Audiences wanted to see action-packed films with a strong sense of individual heroism, which was the impression John Woo had left on the public, but Windtalkers was clearly not one of them.

This is an Eastern film disguised as a Hollywood movie, but its emphasis is not on individual heroism, but on dedication to the country.

It's ridiculous that Native Americans were supposed to be contributing to America, and that this was done in 2002. It's clearly premature.

Let alone 2002, even in 2022, at most it will be Black people making sacrifices, when will it be your turn, Native Americans?

Do you have any free shopping deals? Do you have any Black Lives Matter deals? Not a chance, bro!

Upon entering the screening room, the lights dimmed, and the movie officially began.

Eric's attention was sometimes on the big screen and sometimes on the audience around him. Although Nicolas Cage's acting was still excellent, the plot was full of flaws.

By the middle of the film's run, many viewers had begun to frown, finding it completely different from what they had imagined.

Some viewers have already gone to the restroom, and some have even stayed there and never returned, which shows just how appealing the movie is.

Needless to say, tomorrow will see a large-scale barrage of criticism from the media and the public.

Amidst the audience's jeers and curses, Eric walked out of the theater happily. "Windtalkers" was doomed, and it was time to harvest his third crop of fans.

Back home, the South Korea vs. Portugal match had already ended, and just as I remembered, Portugal had two players sent off.

South Korea's 12-man team defeated Portugal's 9-man team, and Portugal's golden generation ultimately failed to advance from the group stage, suffering a heartbreaking defeat in the Northwest!

Now I just hope the holiday ends quickly so the editor can give me a definite answer on whether or not they'll sign off when they return to work. Please bookmark and follow this post; that's the editor's standard for evaluation.

(End of this chapter)