The Beautiful Little Model

Bald Bezos was right; compared to the major film studios, Zucker's Wald Pictures held no real advantage.

"Haha~!"

Suddenly, Victor chuckled and said, "Mr. Bezos, you are the president of Amazon, so you naturally have the right to make your own choices. Regardless of whether this partnership goes through or not, our boss will not mind."

He paused, then continued, "As far as I know, you and your Amazon Store have already approached the major Hollywood studios dozens of times, but the results don't seem to have been very satisfactory."

"Hmph~!" Bald Bezos's expression soured instantly.

Victor was right.

This information was something Zucker had seen in his past life, as well as something Victor had been collecting for many days.

The Amazon Store was currently just a small, inconspicuous company in the internet industry. It was true, as Victor said, that Bezos and Amazon had contacted the major Hollywood studios more than once, seeking to sell their merchandise on the internet platform.

However.

He had been rejected more than once.

They said, "Oh, you want our products sold on your online platform? That's fine, but you must pay us an additional fee."

It was just like a shelf-stocking fee in a supermarket.

Bald Bezos was a shrewd man!

It was true that he was wealthy, and it was also true that he enjoyed living well. After he made his fortune, his lifestyle could only be described as extravagant—yachts, planes, mansions, luxury cars, model girlfriends, and so on; these were all small potatoes. Yet, when it came to others, his stinginess was even worse than Zucker's!

The demand for a stocking fee was, of course, rejected by Bald Bezos.

No one was going to take advantage of him.

Look at other internet technology companies; after going public, how many founding teams were able to retain a large amount of equity? Many bosses were considered successful if they held more than 10% of the equity after their companies grew, but look at Bald Bezos—even in 2020, he still held a massive amount of Amazon stock.

Bald Bezos was extravagant, so what did he do if he ran out of money?

He sold stock!

Before Zucker transmigrated, in late January and early February of 2020, Bald Bezos sold off a large amount of stock over just four days, netting $3.4 billion in cash.

What was this money for?

Naturally, it was for "buy, buy, buy"—buying mansions, buying art, and changing girlfriends!

Therefore, from the very beginning, Zucker had no intention of trying to get his hands on Amazon's original shares—at least not yet. Once the internet bubble swept across the globe, Zucker might just be able to get a foot in the door.

"Jeff, you've seen the true colors of the big Hollywood studios. When it comes to greed, they are no worse than Wall Street. They are the type who won't release the hawk until they see the rabbit. If you partner with them, you will definitely have to pay those stocking fees," Zucker said firmly.

Bald Bezos shook his head and smiled. "They are big companies, so it's understandable. I could pay them the stocking fees; you have to realize that for the development of the Amazon Store, the benefits still outweigh the costs."

Old Billy, standing to the side, nodded in agreement.

"Mr. Bezos, regarding the stocking fees, I, Victor, fully believe you might do that, but what about the rest?" Victor asked.

Zucker chimed in, "For example, they want Amazon's original equity!"

Equity?!

"You...!"

In an instant, Bald Bezos's face turned quite ugly.

The Amazon Store was currently a small newcomer; that was true.

However, its potential for development was quite impressive, and many with a keen eye could see it. Given the greed of the big studios, it was no surprise that they would try to squeeze Bezos. This was their standard operating procedure and their way of squeezing out competitors!

In Hollywood, if a small company produced a few good films and showed promising potential, the big studios would be at their door immediately.

The big studio representative would say, "We want to buy into your company. You get the advantage of our distribution channels, and we gain a company with potential. It's a win-win."

The small company boss would say, "We don't accept outside investment!"

The big studio representative would say, "In that case, we are enemies from now on."

What kind of existence were the Big Six Hollywood Studios?!

They were behemoths!

If the big studios moved even slightly, they could run a small company ragged. Take Zucker's Wald Pictures, for example: for their first film, Run Lola Run, just one word from a mid-level executive at MGM—a studio that was already down on its luck—was enough to nearly prevent the film from securing enough screens.

Their immense influence was evident.

This was why, after the 21st century, the Big Six remained the Big Six, and small companies could never get ahead! Even when Disney acquired 20th Century Fox in 2018, it was merely a game between big companies.

Buying into companies with potential was a standard move for the Big Six.

(This is true; for instance, DreamWorks Animation and Paramount—after collaborating, DreamWorks Animation was eventually absorbed by Paramount; the same goes for Pixar and Marvel under Disney. There are simply too many examples like this.)

"Jeff, do you really want to use Amazon's equity to secure a partnership with the big Hollywood studios?" Zucker smiled. "If that were the case, you wouldn't be the Jeff Bezos I know!"

Victor added, "Our Wald Pictures may be inconspicuous now, but we will be dazzling in the future. Even the BBC is our partner."

Old Billy also chimed in, "The big Hollywood studios are people who eat you without spitting out the bones. I wouldn't dare work with them, but I think Zucker's Wald Pictures is quite good."

After a long period of contemplation, Bald Bezos finally agreed!

The three parties joined forces to launch film merchandise on the Amazon Store!

Of course, Bald Bezos never imagined that Zucker was also hell-bent on getting Amazon's equity! This partnership was merely a step toward further contact.

The next day.

Under the witness of lawyers, Zucker, Bald Bezos, Old Billy, and the logistics company owner's son—who was also named Old Billy—signed the contract together.

Once the contract was finalized, Zucker hurried off to the set of Wrong Turn.

That's right, today was the official start of filming for Wrong Turn.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Wald!"

Upon entering the set, the entire crew greeted Zucker one after another.

Director M. Night Shyamalan was making final preparations before the shoot; seeing Zucker arrive, he walked over to chat.

"Mr. Wald, you haven't met the lead actors of this film yet, have you? Come, let me introduce them to you."

M. Night Shyamalan said, then signaled for a man and a woman to come over.

A handsome man!

A beautiful woman!

That was Zucker's first impression of the film's leads.

The male lead said, "Mr. Wald, it's a pleasure to meet you. I am Joaquin Phoenix."

The female lead said, "Adriana Lima. I am an actress, and also a model."

Holy crap!

Zucker remained calm on the surface, but his heart skipped a beat!

Joaquin Phoenix, isn't that the guy who played the Joker in Joker 2019? Who would have thought that at this point in time, he was still such a fresh-faced youth. Before Joaquin Phoenix played the Joker, Zucker had never even heard of him, but after watching the film, he was stunned to discover that this guy's acting skills were truly incredible.

Adriana Lima?!

Damn, she's beautiful, and what a figure!

Looking at Adriana Lima, Zucker couldn't help but feel a surge of desire. This wasn't love; Zucker was purely lusting after her body!

Man, this is Adriana Lima!

A future world-class supermodel!

At that moment, Zucker couldn't help but glance at director M. Night Shyamalan, never expecting that this guy would have such an excellent eye for casting.