American Gossip King

Chapter 209 You Can't Do Business Like This

Hollywood, 20th Century Fox.

In the CEO's office, Tom Jack Boson greeted Ian with a broad smile—he was succeeding Tom Rothman.

Britney Spears was also with Ian.

She linked arms with Ian, looking every bit like a new lover.

Ian did not announce any news of breaking up with Scarlett, but as a celebrity himself, he still had countless scandals, especially after the Megan Fox incident, everyone tacitly assumed that he and Scarlett had broken up.

But after that, neither Anne Hathaway nor Megan Fox pursued Ian... the relationship wasn't really there; it was more about transaction than emotion.

Only Britney Spears, like Scarlett Johansson, Kate Winslet, and Ivanka Trump, was truly infatuated with Ian Smith and seized every opportunity to be with him—after all, she had nothing better to do during her low period.

Sitting in Tom Jack Borson's office, Ian got straight to the point: "I'm here to acquire Blue Sky Studios, as well as the rights to X-Men and Planet of the Apes."

Tom Jack Boson shook his head repeatedly: "You can't do that, Mr. Carl."

Blue Sky Studios' Ice Age has already been released, and Ian missed the cheapest time to buy it, but that's okay, it's still cheap even if you buy it now.

As for X-Men and Planet of the Apes, they are already well-established IPs and won't be cheap.

So Ian said directly, "My conditions are simple. The copyright belongs to me, and the development rights belong to you... I promise that unless you decide not to develop it yourself, I will not hand it over to others for independent development, but you must grant permission for my other film and television works to use the characters in it."

Marvel's biggest problem at the time was that it sold too many IPs, so it later had to work hard to get them back.

What Ian means is: the copyright belongs to me, and the right to use is yours, but at the same time, other films and television shows can use the characters in it if necessary.

This last part was designed for Marvel, something that 20th Century Fox couldn't possibly have realized—nobody has the concept of such a super franchise yet.

Tom Jack Boson shook his head and smiled wryly: "You are a shareholder of Fox Entertainment Group, and Mr. Murdoch signed an agreement with you."

"That doesn't include that part," Ian replied seriously. "Besides, even if there are items that aren't for sale, we can still negotiate. What we call 'not for sale' is just a matter of price, isn't it? I'm not using my shareholder rights to do anything; this is just a normal transaction."

Tom Jack Borson said helplessly, "I need to report to Barrymeyer and Elson."

Barrymeyer and Elson are the heads of Fox Entertainment Group and CNN.

The sale of assets of Blue Sky Studios' scale requires the approval of these two important figures, but no longer needs to go through Murdoch.

Murdoch makes decisions on mergers and acquisitions, transfers, and so on at the group's industry level, but he will also inquire about matters at a lower level when the mood strikes.

Ian shook his head slightly: "No, you need to talk to me first. If you don't agree, there's no point in talking to you upstairs."

He smiled slightly and said, "I'll offer two hundred million."

Tom Jack Borson was taken aback: "That's not a good price, Mr. Carl."

Leaving aside copyright, Blue Sky Studio alone is worth more than this price.

Ice Age caused Blue Sky Studios' value to skyrocket, although it's not as valuable as Pixar, it's still worth a considerable amount.

Two hundred million?

That's going too far!

Ian downplayed it, saying, "This does not include the subsequent profits from the Ice Age."

"That won't do either!" Tom Jack Boson was speechless.

Of course, this doesn't include that. Ice Age alone earned more than 2 million. Even though it's no longer available, VCDs are still making money.

"You'll agree." Ian smiled slightly and casually handed Tom Jack Borson a document.

Upon receiving the documents, Tom Jack Borson's expression changed drastically: "Oh, no!"

Ian slowly rose to his feet: "I need you to tell Barrymeyer and Elson that Blue Sky Studios is a dead-end animation company. Chris Wedge is too stubborn; his success once doesn't guarantee he'll succeed many times. What good is spending years making an animated film, even if it grosses three or four hundred million? You're not Disney; your peripheral product utilization isn't as high. Selling it while it's at its peak is the smartest thing to do! Sell Blue Sky Studios to me, the Ice Age VCD profits are yours, and you can continue selling peripherals. I only need to take 10% of the copyright. As for subsequent development, we can discuss that later; I'll still give you a good price. As for X-Men and Planet of the Apes, I've already said the development rights are yours—it's practically free money!"

You're all talk and no action!

You're robbing me!

Tom Jack Borson looked at Ian with a pale face: "Mr. Carl, you can't do business like this?"

Ian laughed: "So you can?"

Britney leaned closer and whispered, "What did you give him?"

Ian sat on the sofa, legs casually crossed, and gave Britney a light kiss: "Our Mr. Jack Borson used his power to rake in no less than thirty million from Fox... You know, most professional managers have this problem, right?"

The biggest advantage of becoming a major shareholder of Fox Entertainment Group is that Ian Carr can freely enter and exit Fox Studios, making it easier to obtain various inside information... This kind of internal information cannot be easily solved by sneaking in and taking photos; it requires the cooperation of multiple information sources.

There are parts that need to be secretly filmed, and parts that require shareholder authorization, and then it is handed over to the company's professional auditors to complete... High-end smear campaigns require high-end talent and even the cooperation of a team!

Compared to scandals and other negative information, this kind of negative information is the most fatal for executives, since it can lead to imprisonment!

Although Tom Jack Boson only took over this year, he was a senior executive before.

Since Jim Genebris had voluntarily yielded to him, Ian felt too embarrassed to blackmail him. The key issue was that he hadn't found any dirt on Jim yet, so he had no choice but to turn to this new boss.

"Wow," Britney exclaimed, "You even know that?"

"More than you think." Ian hugged Britney and kissed her sweet lips.

Then he turned to Tom Jack Borson: "As a major shareholder of Fox Entertainment Group, I won't hold your past actions against you, but you can't do this again. After all, 40% of what you stole was my money! As for the acquisition price... I can add another 50 million. All you have to do is help me get Barrymeyer and Elson interested!"

"To sway them?" Tom Jack Boson was taken aback.

What kind of request is that?

Ian smiled.

He nodded: "Yes, I don't care what reasons you give, just make him think the plan is feasible, and leave the final execution to me!"

Just like when Israel helped persuade the Acton family, the most suitable excuse was still for these people to come to them.

It's at least easier than Ian having to find a suitable excuse himself.

Once you have a reasonably plausible reason, you can initiate hypnosis, and the matter will be settled.

The latest novel is first published here!

………………

After leaving 20th Century Fox, Ian and Britney wandered around.

Hollywood film sets are always teeming with countless stories.

Compared to the past when he could only rely on Weinstein, Howard and Dan to get inside information, Ian Carr, who has become half the owner of 20th Century Fox, can now act more freely in Hollywood.

Everywhere you look, you see inside stories!

So occasionally, Ian would tell Britney some interesting stories; of course, to others, they were just stories too. Before long, news would break that Ian Carl had broken up with Scarlett and was now dating Britney.

Ian doesn't care about that.

He had his arm around Britney, and they walked like that, occasionally pointing and gesturing.

"See that room across the street? There are three people... no, all of them are men."

"There were two people in that car, and they weren't on the right track."

"There are a bunch over there too. Damn Hollywood, is there nothing else to write about besides this kind of thing?" Ian sighed and shook his head.

You are someone else's news, and someone else is your news!

Britney was speechless. What else could you possibly expect?

Suddenly, Ian covered his eyes and cried out, "Oh, f***ing! My eyes!"

Britney looked at Ian with concern: "What's wrong, Ian?"

Ian shook his head and pointed to the room across the street: "It's nothing, it's just that room... there's only one person there. Damn it, she poisoned my eyes."

Britney asked, puzzled, "Alone? What's wrong?"

Ian sighed and shook his head: "There's also a dog... a male dog."

Britney was stunned for a moment, then realized what was happening.

She covered her mouth and exclaimed softly, "Oh my God, I thought this kind of thing only happened in the San Fernando Valley."

Ian was horrified: "You've seen that?"

Britney chuckled and snuggled into Ian's arms: "It was just for fun."

She looked at Ian with a puzzled expression and asked, "Why can't I see it?"

Ian hugged Britney and kissed her, saying, "Because I have a keen eye for observation."

A soft hum came from not far away: "So, did you spot me?"

Ian laughed when he heard this.

He slowly released Britney and looked back.

There stood Anne Hathaway.