"To be honest, ITV's offer of £20 million completely exceeded our expectations."
After the signing ceremony, Zucker returned to the hotel and told Martha all about it. He was still in shock.
Twenty million pounds!
Compared to the later licensing deals for The Voice and American Idol in the United Kingdom, the price was nothing at all. But there was a catch: those huge sums came only after the shows had aired. Wald Pictures had no experience producing variety shows, and the program hadn't even been completed, let alone broadcast.
Given all that, ITV's willingness to pay £20 million showed just how bold they were.
Martha said solemnly, "Boss, no wonder ITV is called the second-largest television network in the United Kingdom, and the largest privately owned one. They really know what they're doing."
"Mm, that's right."
Zucker agreed.
Holy crap! In the original timeline, Britain's Got Talent was produced and broadcast by ITV. I never thought it would circle back into their hands. Still, this middleman just made £20 million.
ITV had tremendous influence in the United Kingdom!
They had produced and broadcast everything from Mr. Bean in the past to Downton Abbey in the future.
They were the BBC's biggest rival, and every move they made drew everyone's attention.
Sure enough, not long after the signing ceremony, news of the Britain's Got Talent rights deal spread like wildfire across the British Isles.
University College London.
Christopher Nolan was resting in his dorm when he read the report in the Evening News. He was utterly stunned.
"Brother, is the Wald Pictures mentioned in the article Mr. Zucker Wald's company?" his younger brother, Jonathan Nolan, exclaimed.
Though Christopher was still reeling, he gave a firm nod.
"Wow!"
"Mr. Wald is amazing!"
"They sold the rights to a single variety show—and only for the United Kingdom and Australia—and got £20 million for them. That's incredible!"
"With that kind of money, they could make a mid-budget movie!"
His younger brother Jonathan grew excited and chattered on.
BBC.
Bang!
Klaus Tang, head of the Variety Department, slammed his hand on the desk in a fury. "Damn Wald! Damn Cindy! They took Britain's Got Talent, which should have belonged to us, and handed it to ITV!"
He paused, turned to Dakota, and cursed, "You idiot! Didn't you say you could secure the rights once I put you in charge? Well, look at what happened!"
Dakota was deeply frustrated.
He'd never imagined the prize that had been within his grasp would vanish into thin air.
Worst of all, the ones who had snatched Britain's Got Talent away were the BBC's biggest rivals, and the person who'd made the deal was Cindy, with whom he'd had a longstanding grudge.
Those two things combined only made Dakota angrier.
"Wald Pictures, just you wait. I'll make sure you regret this. Don't think I don't know people in Hollywood!"
The Evening News report stunned Britain's major media outlets. By the next morning, the story had swept through the public as well.
The Daily Telegraph reported, "ITV Makes a Bold Move, Teams Up with Hollywood Company to Create a New, Powerful Variety Show."
The Daily Mail reported, "A Record-Breaking £20 Million Rights Deal Has Us Eagerly Awaiting Britain's Got Talent."
The Guardian reported, "ITV has earned its reputation as Britain's largest privately owned television network. Its willingness to take risks and fight hard is one of the hallmarks of a new era."
The London Evening Standard reported, "Wald Pictures? It's not some completely unknown company. The rights to Teletubbies, which aired on the BBC earlier and caused a sensation, came from them."
Strictly speaking, these reports were positive, or at least fairly measured and neutral.
But some newspapers went for cheap sensationalism.
The Sun reported, "A Record-Breaking Rights Deal?! Just a Gimmick."
The Daily Express reported, "ITV Becomes a Laughingstock! Its Stupidity Will Drag the Entire Network into the Mire."
The Daily Mirror reported, "Britain's Got Talent Is a Lowbrow Show That Exists Only to Grab Attention. Thanks to ITV and Wald Pictures' Arrogance, It's Destined to Become a Laughable Joke. Their Only Possible Fate Is Failure!"
Compared with the public's reaction across the British Isles, the reports in the newspapers—positive, neutral, and negative alike—were nothing.
"Oh? You want to know what I think of ITV's record-breaking rights deal?"
"What do you think?"
"I'll wait until it airs and then decide. Are you stupid or something?!"
The young man's answer to the interviewer left the street reporter dumbfounded.
The reporter wore a smile, but inside, he was cursing.
Holy crap!
I've practically spelled it out for you, and you still say you'll wait until it airs?
You idiot!
Sure, the United Kingdom and the United States were developed countries with high literacy rates and plenty of educated people, but they also had plenty of illiterates—a whole bunch of uncouth louts.
"You're asking me about Britain's Got Talent?"
"Of course! I saw ITV's report last night!"
"What? You think ITV are idiots?"
"Mate, are you out of your mind?"
"Britain's Got Talent has such a great concept! It's a stage where ordinary people can show off their talents. Of course I'm going to enter. I'm sure I'll be the champion!"
A young, beautiful woman kept telling the interviewer about her future on Britain's Got Talent. The reporter, who had wanted to leave for ages, was more exasperated than ever.
While in Britain, after wrapping up the signing, Zucker had also called the Nolan brothers and invited them to dinner.
Zucker had made a deliberate effort to win them over. The excited Nolan brothers had wanted to fly straight to Hollywood and start working themselves to the bone for him.
With their business in Britain concluded, Zucker and the others returned to Los Angeles.
"By the way, how much has Hard Candy made at the box office so far?"
The first thing Zucker did when he saw Victor was ask about Hard Candy's box-office take. Sure, the film had cost very little, and compared with what Zucker had earned on this trip to London, its returns seemed insignificant. But that wasn't the point.
How much money it made was secondary.
From the moment he'd crossed over, Zucker had understood that his film company was his foundation. It was also the business he knew best, not to mention the one he loved.
He couldn't give it up!
And he didn't want to!
"Boss, Hard Candy has been in theaters for ten days, and its box-office total has reached $3.1 million. We expect it to finish at around $5 million," Victor replied.
Zucker nodded. "No matter where Hard Candy's final box-office total lands, make sure you keep Zack Snyder on our side. We're counting on him to make great movies for us in the future."
"Yes, I think so too," Victor agreed.
Hard Candy alone wouldn't make much money, but winning over a future superstar director was a huge coup any way you looked at it!
END
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