Chapter 290: Matsushita's Dilemma
On the sunlit shores of Ibiza, Aaron lounged on a beach chair beside Joey Wong, soaking in the warmth of the Mediterranean. After all, he owned a luxurious vacation villa here.
Turning his head slightly, Aaron glanced at her.
"When are you planning to head back to Hong Kong?"
"This month," she replied. "I've got another film lined up."
She had taken quite a long break this year—it was time to return to work.
"Oh right," she added, "I saw in Canada that Rumble in the Bronx is doing pretty well. A lot of newspapers gave it strong reviews. The North American box office has already passed $17 million—so it's a success, right?"
Aaron smiled.
"Of course. Martial arts films have a solid market, especially in home video. And projections put its North American total above $30 million."
He continued,
"Dawnlight only invested a little over $5 million in it."
Dawnlight held the distribution rights for North America, Latin America, and Europe, while Golden Harvest handled Asia and Australia. For Jackie Chan, successfully breaking into Hollywood was already the biggest win.
"Come on," Aaron said, stretching as he stood up. "Let's grab something to eat, then check out a bar nearby later."
Ibiza wasn't just known for its stunning scenery—whitewashed buildings, deep blue seas, and golden sunlight—it was also famous for its nightlife and as a global hub of electronic music culture.
Meanwhile, back in the United States, construction had officially begun on Dawnlight's New York headquarters—a 60-story skyscraper designed by I. M. Pei.
Planned as a mixed-use complex integrating offices, residences, and retail spaces, the project carried a budget exceeding $400 million. Following the completion of its Burbank studio headquarters in Los Angeles, Dawnlight was now making another major move in New York.
At the same time, trouble was brewing within MCA Universal.
The large-scale production Waterworld, directed by Kevin Reynolds and starring Kevin Costner, had run into serious issues during filming in Hawaii.
Repeated hurricane damage destroyed the elaborate ocean sets, sending the budget spiraling out of control. Costs had already reached a staggering $150 million.
Worse still, tensions between Reynolds and Costner escalated into open conflict. Reynolds ultimately walked away from the project, leaving Costner to take over directing duties himself—despite the film not yet being completed.
Elsewhere, MCA executives Sidney Sheinberg and Lew Wasserman were facing setbacks of their own.
After failing to convince Panasonic's new president Yoichi Morishita to build Universal Studios Osaka as a rival to Tokyo Disneyland, they shifted strategies—proposing a joint acquisition of CBS alongside ITT.
The reasoning was simple: Universal lacked a strong television distribution network.
But once again, Panasonic rejected the proposal.
Frustrated, Sheinberg and Wasserman escalated the matter by writing directly to Panasonic chairman Masaharu Matsushita—only to receive a firm rejection.
Furious, Sheinberg publicly criticized Panasonic in The New York Times.
At that point, it became increasingly clear to both executives: Panasonic was preparing to sell MCA.
In Los Angeles, at the headquarters of Creative Artists Agency, Michael Ovitz sat in his office with Ronald Meyer.
Despite his growing ties with Disney chairman Michael Eisner, CAA remained his core business.
He looked at Meyer and said bluntly:
"Panasonic is putting MCA up for sale."
Michael Ovitz let out a quiet sigh as he spoke. After all, just a few years earlier, he had personally acted as an advisor in Panasonic's acquisition of MCA.
"Lew and Sidney don't seem to trust us," Ronald Meyer pointed out. "They've been in contact with Herbert Allen Jr. instead."
In truth, it was Sidney Sheinberg and Lew Wasserman who didn't trust Ovitz.
Ovitz smiled faintly.
"Herbert Allen has already called me. He said if I'm not involved in the sale of MCA, he won't be either."
He leaned back slightly.
"So right now, the ones under pressure are Panasonic. They want to sell MCA as a whole—and get out as quickly as possible."
Among the potential buyers Ovitz knew of were Seagram from Canada, PolyGram from the UK, Bertelsmann from Germany, and even News Corporation and Walt Disney Company.
However, Rupert Murdoch and Michael Eisner were more interested in acquiring Universal's film library for 20th Century Fox and Disney rather than taking over the entire company.
A moment later, Ovitz's assistant delivered a fax.
He glanced at it, and a smile immediately spread across his face.
"See? It still comes down to me."
Meyer took the fax and read it—it was from Herbert Allen. He was inviting Ovitz to fly with him to Osaka, Japan, to meet with Masaharu Matsushita and Yoichi Morishita for direct negotiations.
Deep down, Ovitz actually preferred that Seagram acquire MCA Universal. Its head, Edgar Bronfman Jr., had already told him he was the ideal candidate to run the company.
No matter how successful Creative Artists Agency was, it was still just a talent agency. Ovitz's ambitions had grown—he wanted to become a true entertainment mogul.
He couldn't help but think of Dawnlight Entertainment and its meteoric rise. Aaron Anderson, still so young, had already become one of the most talked-about figures in Hollywood. Dawnlight's valuation was soaring, rivaling the six major studios.
"When are you planning to go to Japan?" Meyer asked. As president of CAA, he worked directly under Ovitz, the CEO.
"As soon as possible," Ovitz replied. "There's a lot to negotiate—and we'll need time to evaluate MCA's assets."
He began listing them off:
"Universal's film library, projects in development, MCA's music division, and the Universal Studios theme parks…"
The losses MCA had brought to Panasonic in recent years had become unbearable. They wanted a clean break—and fast.
Meyer chuckled.
"Seagram has a huge advantage. Edgar Bronfman Jr. is willing to sell off shares of DuPont to raise tens of billions in cash—no need for bank financing."
He shook his head.
"Can any of the other buyers match that?"
Seagram had made a similar move when attempting to acquire Time Warner earlier, though that effort collapsed after Steve Ross passed away.
Meyer understood Ovitz's intentions clearly—he was looking to leave CAA. Both Disney and MCA were potential landing spots.
The reason Ovitz hadn't yet accepted Eisner's invitation to join Disney was simple: Bronfman had already promised him leadership of MCA Universal.
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