Listening to Dunn, Michael Ovitz widened his eyes in shock. "No voting rights? How's that even possible?"
Shares mean votes—that's just common sense.
Dunn shrugged casually. "It's totally normal. In Silicon Valley, this setup's been standard for ages."
Michael Ovitz shook his head repeatedly. "Silicon Valley's one thing, but Hollywood's a different beast! Silicon Valley's all about new industries and tech companies. The decision-makers there need a deep understanding of tech trends—something capitalists aren't great at, so they can't meddle even if they want to. But Hollywood? Let's be real—investing in movies doesn't have any technical barriers."
He wasn't wrong. Hollywood's film companies are a far cry from Silicon Valley.
Hollywood's nearly a century old—conservative, traditional, rigid, and stuck in its ways. Its business model is ancient.
Silicon Valley, on the other hand, is the poster child for new industries. It's buzzing with energy. They even hand out equity to startup teams and set up stock options to share profits with employees, all to boost creativity and motivation.
That's unthinkable in Hollywood!
In Hollywood's movie companies, even the chairman or CEO is just a salaried worker unless they hold shares. At best, they get a cut of the profits per their contract, but stock rewards? Forget it.
Take Dunn Films, for example. Dunn's the sole shareholder!
Everyone else, including Bill Mechanic and the other execs, are just employees living off salaries and bonuses.
That's why Silicon Valley companies have come up with ways to protect founders and keep them in full control—think Steve Jobs getting booted from Apple. To avoid that kind of drama, they sign contracts with investors upfront, using multi-tier voting rights to lock in the founding team's dominance.
But that's not Hollywood's style.
Dunn didn't care, though. He snorted, "I don't give a damn about Silicon Valley or Hollywood. My turf, my rules!"
Michael Ovitz's mouth twitched slightly.
He'd worked with Michael Eisner before, but honestly, when it came to sheer guts in big decisions, Dunn blew Eisner out of the water—bold and unshakable!
Taking on Wall Street head-on, no politeness required!
The kicker? This could mean walking away from a $500 million investment.
"Michael, there's no room for compromise or negotiation here. Legendary Pictures—we've got to have absolute control!" Dunn's face was dead serious as he continued calmly, "Wall Street banks, private equity funds, whatever—if they're cool with our terms, they can invest, and we'll all make money together. If not, they can get lost!"
"Dunn, what if they just team up with other studios instead?" Michael Ovitz cautioned.
Dunn burst out laughing. "Partner with Hollywood studios? Without us as the middleman to vouch for them, Wall Street stepping into Hollywood alone is a death wish! No worries—we've got time."
Michael Ovitz mulled it over for a moment before nodding slowly. "Alright, I'm on board with your plan."
"Thanks for backing me up." Dunn let out a relieved breath.
"But…" Michael Ovitz paused, his expression cooling, "we've got to be ready for Wall Street's pushback."
Dunn nodded. "I know. Wherever there's profit, capital's never far behind. Movie investments are hot right now, and slate financing's all the rage. Even with our tough terms, I bet they won't pass up a chance to invest in Legendary Pictures."
Michael Ovitz agreed. "Legendary's the only company doing slate financing right now. It's Wall Street's only shot—they can't afford to miss it. But the investment might shrink big time, or they'll lean harder into debt financing."
Dunn shrugged. "Debt or equity, doesn't matter to us! Sure, debt's riskier, but I'm confident enough in the slate financing model. We'll make even more!"
"Hmm." Michael Ovitz went quiet for a long stretch. "I'm just worried Wall Street might play both sides."
Hollywood's notorious for chewing up outsiders. Over the years, it's buried a ton of German investors, and Wall Street's taken notice.
Right now, they wouldn't dare ditch Legendary Pictures as their go-between and dive into Hollywood solo for slate deals.
They'd get eaten alive!
But slate financing is too juicy to ignore—Wall Street won't let that cash cow slip away.
If Legendary Pictures digs in its heels and won't budge, Wall Street's only way to maximize profits would be to bypass us and carve out their own space in Hollywood.
That'd take time, though. Without two or three years of market research and networking, Wall Street setting up its own slate financing outfit in Hollywood? Not a chance.
For now, Legendary Pictures is their best bet.
A confident smirk spread across Dunn's face. "Relax, they won't get far!"
"Oh?" Michael Ovitz gave him a half-smile, half-skeptical look. "Wall Street's not Disney. If those capitalists team up, they could drown Hollywood in money."
Dunn stayed cool. "The richer they are, the more they hate losing! Let Wall Street stir things up. Maybe in two or three years, they'll pull off a new slate financing company. But by then—heh!"
A sly, knowing grin crept onto his face.
By that point, Dunn's plans for the film industry would be locked in. If Wall Street got greedy and barged into Hollywood, he wouldn't mind rallying his resources to teach them a lesson!
Michael Ovitz could tell Dunn didn't want to dwell on it. He chuckled and switched gears. "By the way, congrats! This year's Golden Globes could be a big win for you!"
The Golden Globe gala was set for January 21st.
Dunn Films' movies were lighting up the nominations.
*Girl, Interrupted* and *Traffic* snagged nods for Best Motion Picture – Drama.
Sam Mendes and Steven Soderbergh got Best Director nods for those films.
Nicole Kidman earned a Best Actress – Drama nod for *Girl, Interrupted*.
Benicio del Toro was up for Best Supporting Actor for *Traffic*.
Natalie Portman scored a Best Supporting Actress nod for *Girl, Interrupted*.
Dunn Walker and Stephen Gaghan nabbed Best Screenplay nods for *Girl, Interrupted* and *Traffic*, respectively.
And Hans Zimmer got a Best Original Score nod for *Spider-Man*.
Dunn kicked back, crossing his legs with a grin. "Whether we sweep or not, doesn't matter. As long as Nicole and Nat win, they'll be happy—that's enough for me."
Michael Ovitz blinked, then laughed and shook his head. "Young guys and their energy! How about I hook you up with a list?"
"What list?"
"A detailed rundown of all the actresses at my agency. If you're interested, just set up a meeting—I'm sure they wouldn't say no."
Dunn cracked up, half-joking. "Your agency's too small-time—how many real stars could you have? I'd rather hunt them down myself!"
Michael Ovitz glared, annoyed, then waved it off. "Forget it, doesn't matter. I've already decided—I'm stepping away from the agency."
"What?!"
Dunn gasped. "Michael, you're kidding, right? The agency's your life's work!"
Michael Ovitz sighed and shook his head. "If I had a choice, I wouldn't. But it clashes with Legendary Pictures' business. I checked with my lawyers—it could brush up against monopoly laws. Better to get out now and avoid headaches later."
Legendary Pictures handles film production, while the agency manages talent contracts. If Michael Ovitz ran both, it could look like insider dealing, pissing off competitors and even shareholders—especially Legendary's private equity investors.
Dunn nodded. "Fair enough. Then let's just focus on building Legendary Pictures. Trust me—"
---read more inptreoon
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