America: Starting with the acquisition of MGM

Chapter 187 186. Transformers take over the world

Los Angeles, Sunset Strip.

This is the city's Star Street, home to various commercial facilities. Anyone traveling to Los Angeles must pass through it, and the daily flow of people is huge.

When the new week comes, Ecker Park next to Sunset Boulevard is packed with people. A large number of people gather, taking photos and exclaiming.

In the center of the crowd, a silver-white robot more than two meters tall was standing in the center. It was Megatron, the leader of the Decepticons and the boss of the Decepticons.

This robot was carefully crafted by the MGM props department and has various built-in mechanisms, although it cannot move.

But through remote control, Megatron's hands and feet can already make small movements.

Coupled with professional voice actors speaking in the dark, the effect is definitely far different from the later Universal Studios version.

But in today's era, it is beyond people's imagination.

"Stupid humans, I come from the planet Cybertron, which is 30 billion light years away from the earth. You can call me Lord Megatron."

"My source of fire was stolen by a despicable thief. Now I am looking for a pair of glasses with the coordinates of the source of fire etched on the lenses."

With a mechanical voice, Megatron's eyes suddenly glowed blue.

Some people immediately screamed and backed away. It was unclear whether they were deliberately cooperating or were really frightened.

After all, the latter is not absolutely impossible to happen, because happy education really gave birth to many idiots.

The blue light is naturally not a weapon, but a holographic projection built into Megatron's head.

The camera projects a pair of glasses in the air through the eyes, the same glasses Sam wears in the movie.

A website address was clearly displayed on the lens, which was a Transformers promotion website specially established by MGM. The whole show was done to give everyone a sense of participation.

"You little bugs, write down this URL and leave a message on the website after you find the clues."

"Everyone who leaves a message will be regarded as a slave to the Decepticons. When I conquer the earth, I will spare you a small life!"

The two mechanical arms danced, and in the domineering voice, Megatron was coaxing.

A young man came out and asked: "Megatron, I am a fan of Transformers. Can I take a photo with you?"

Megatron waved his hand and said with some disgust: "No, humans are low-level carbon-based organisms. There is a natural gap between us and advanced mechanical life forms like me. You are not worthy of taking a photo with me."

The young man was a little disappointed. He was unsure whether he should get closer. After all, he had never seen such a big and moving robot before. The unknown was mixed with fear.

When his girlfriend saw this, she stood up and said, "Mr. Megatron, I have written down the website address and will definitely help you find glasses. Can we take a group photo now?"

Megatron nodded slightly: "Okay, because you are so sensible, I allow you to come within one meter of me."

When the young people finished taking the photo, another little boy with a runny nose jumped out and shouted: "Mr. Megatron, I also want to take a photo with you, is that okay?"

"Well, come here, but don't put snot on my skin, it will rust."

Ha ha ha ha

The onlookers burst into laughter.

"You also have to take medicine and get injections, so that your cold can be cured. Do you understand?"

"Yes, sir!"

After a few questions and answers, everyone realized that this was the movie promoting itself. Such a unique promotional method was indeed very eye-catching.

Not long after, reporters who received the news rushed over and captured the lively scene on camera.

"Megatron, I hate Decepticons, I'm a fan of Optimus Prime."

"Hmph! Then you should go to Boston, that damn red truck landed in that city."

"Megatron, how many times has Starscream betrayed you?"

"countless times."

"Then why didn't you kill him and ask him to rejoin the Decepticons again and again?"

“Because the manufacturer wants to sell toys, and there’s nothing I can do about it!”

Ha ha ha ha

Two more young men came closer and bowed to Megatron.

"Lord Megatron, we are willing to be your loyal servants."

"Hmph! Very good, then do you know the Decepticon slogan?"

"of course I know."

"Shout it out loud and open the eyes of these ignorant humans."

I saw one of the young men raised his arms and raised his head: "Decepticon!"

The one next to him shouted loudly: "Retreat!"

After shouting, the two people immediately ran away, and the crowd burst into laughter.

Megatron shook his head speechlessly, and after a while he finally managed to say: "Very good, with a loud voice and great energy!"

The funny reaction caused the originally subdued laughter to rise again.

And Megatron is just one of many Transformers, and similar situations are happening in major cities around the world.

Times Square in New York, Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, Arc de Triomphe in Paris, Big Ben in London, Tokyo Tower, Red Square in Moscow, Kingdom Building in Riyadh, Oriental Pearl Tower in Shanghai

As long as you pass by nearby, you will be attracted by the tall and domineering Transformers.

This on-site interaction is part of viral marketing.

The so-called viral marketing, simply understood, is to use all resources to fully mobilize consumers' enthusiasm and relationship network to achieve rapid replication and dissemination of information.

All the resources here are literal, both on the Internet and in reality, so that wherever consumers see them, they are filled with marketing information.

Whether it's active or passive, you have to accept it even if you don't accept it.

Therefore, MGM also spent money on this promotion and provided the treatment that a blockbuster film should deserve. Eric directly approved the budget fund of 70 million US dollars, which was not enough for additional funds.

Including production costs, the total cost of a "Transformers" from filming to release has exceeded 220 million US dollars.

Let alone 2003, even in 2023 it will still be an A-level large-scale production.

However, this money is not actually spent, because you can ask for a tax refund from the government, and the preferential terms vary in different regions.

After getting the returned money, the actual total cost was less than US$150 million.

But when promoting to the outside world, it is natural to use the slogan of 220 million yuan to make it sound bluffing, so that the audience will be interested.

So for example, the official publicity costs of many movies are very high. Don’t believe it. Anyone who believes it is a fool.

The numbers advertised all include water. After wringing it out, cut off 30% first. If you have a wider network, you can save 50%.

For example, in the late Marvel period, the cost of a movie often exceeded US$200 million. In fact, it was all fake and not that high at all.

When the cost is reduced, the corresponding pressure to recover the capital is much smaller.

Unlike China, which can only recoup its profits if its box office reaches three times the cost, Hollywood can recoup its costs if it reaches two or just over two times.

Coupled with Hollywood's complete copyright protection and development system, as well as the ultimate peripheral development capabilities.

Even if a movie loses more than 100 million US dollars at the box office, it can usually make back its money during the golden period of copyright within five years, and the good ones can even make a profit.

And well-known large-scale productions such as "The Lord of the Rings", "The Matrix" and "Titanic" can sell for more than 100 million US dollars in various copyright fees every year.

Therefore, even if a large company produces several blockbusters a year and seems to be making huge losses, under the protection of a series of systems, it is difficult to go bankrupt.

After viral marketing started, movie theaters, stations, subways, shopping malls, supermarkets, restrooms, roadside billboards, and electronic screens were used.

In reality, wherever you can see, you can always notice the Autobots and Decepticons inadvertently.

Some are large posters that say that on November 16th, the Decepticons will attack the earth.

Some are just Transformers avatar logos.

Hasbro has also started to take action, launching pre-sales of movie version toys and linking up with KFC, McDonald's, and Coca-Cola.

As long as you buy it, you have a chance to win a movie ticket. Whether you can win or not is a matter of personal luck.

Transformers cosplayers have also appeared one after another at various comic exhibitions and COS exhibitions.

Cosplayers in Europe and the United States have always been good at props, and they have exerted considerable influence in the industry.

On the big screens in Times Square and Nasdaq in New York City, the second trailer for Transformers began to play on a loop.

In addition to a lot of adrenaline-fueled robot fight scenes, there are also battles between human armies and Decepticons.

Various main battle aircraft, tanks, and ships appeared, and the ultimate explosion turned the entire city into a sea of ​​flames and ruins.

At the end of the trailer, Megatron transformed into a huge silver-white alien fighter plane and slammed into two very close skyscrapers.

There is no doubt that this shot alludes to the 911 incident, a scene that the whole world will never forget.

On the Internet, major portals, forums, and chat rooms have gradually begun to be occupied by related topics.

In addition to buying space and resources, MGM's main publicity strategy is still to hire a large number of trolls.

Even the words the trolls want to initiate are prepared in advance. As long as a few people crowd into a social group, the topic can quickly be distorted.

Facebook is an important platform for publicity. At present, the goal of the middle school promotion plan has been achieved.

Facebook’s registered users are approaching 40 million, of which approximately 35 million are active users, with a very high retention rate.

Mainly because under Eric's guidance, there is a major update every month and the version iteration speed is very fast.

Especially since the like function was just updated at the end of September, the Fitz team was initially confused and confused about this function.

They believe that the like function will distract users and reduce them to a tool that only knows how to like, thus weakening the sharing and sociability of Facebook.

However, under Eric's strong request, the function was launched.

Facts have proved that after the like function was launched, although users began to have a tendency to ask for likes, their desire to share also became stronger.

In just one week, the average number of updates posted by users per day increased by 2, because more posts can lead to more likes.

The next step is a promotion plan for working-class people. After young people and children are dealt with, it will be much easier to attract their parents.

Beverly Hills, Cooper's House.

After dinner, Eric sat on the couch and watched the news.

On the NBC channel, the male host looked at the script and said, "Betty, on the way to work today, I discovered something very interesting."

"When I was passing by Lincoln Avenue, I saw a large crowd. Out of a reporter's sense of smell, I got in close."

"Then I saw a scene that I will never forget. Bumblebee was standing in the middle, calling on mankind to jointly resist the Decepticon attack."

"OMG! My favorite childhood cartoon is brought to life, look at it, just like this."

As he spoke, the TV screen switched to live shots, showing Bumblebee interacting with the crowd, making everyone laugh out loud from time to time with his humorous remarks.

The scene cut back to the studio, and the female host said cheerfully: "It's so interesting. Is this a new promotion method launched by the mall? I want to take my son to see it."

The male host waved his hand and explained to her: "No, it's an Autobot, and its name is Bumblebee. Haven't you seen Transformers?"

"No, I'm a girl." The hostess shrugged.

"Okay, then you must go and see them, you will fall in love with them."

"Oh my God, it's like a childhood dream come true. It's such a great day. It's the best day."

After watching it for a while, Eric switched to other channels. Not only NBC was reporting on it, but many TV stations could not ignore this hot topic.

What he didn't know was that not only American TV stations could not ignore it, but also the United Kingdom, France, Japan, China, Russia and other countries.

The living Transformers, although they are pseudo-alive, still bring a huge sense of freshness to society, which is so damn interesting.

The media coverage is equivalent to advertising for the movie, and you don’t have to pay a dime.

With MGM's heavy investment, the bombardment of publicity lasted for nearly a month.

Transformers in major cities have suddenly become a gathering place for crowds, just like the check-in spots for Internet celebrities in later generations. It would be a shame not to go and see them.

The most popular one is naturally Megatron. The contrast between his humorous gossip and the ultimate villain’s personality makes him loved by everyone.

"Legally Blonde 2" hit theaters in mid-October. Based on the success of the previous film, the second film attracted attention without any publicity.

MGM also held a premiere for it, and arranged for Gadot, Chris Evans, and the British trio to go to the stage, and took advantage of this opportunity to continue to promote Transformers.

The film has been released for half a month, and has taken in 60 million US dollars in North America. It has just been released overseas.

This data is not as eye-catching as the first one, and the reputation has also declined compared to the first one, but it is definitely making money.

But when the producers offered Reese Witherspoon a contract for the third film, she turned it down.

The reason is also very simple. I don’t want to continue consuming this IP. I hope to settle down for a few years and wait until everyone is more prepared before shooting.

The heroine quits acting, and without the soul character, the sequel will definitely be shelved.

But now MGM has too many money-making projects, including this one, and Eric doesn't even take it seriously at all.

"Happy Death Day" was a complete flop, with a global box office of $152 million.

Although Gadot was a little disappointed, she couldn't care less. Now she is fully focused on promoting Transformers.

Amidst the busy schedule, as time enters November, major companies begin to exert their efforts.

"The Matrix 3", "Christmas Elf", "The Last of Us", "Kill Bill" and "Transformers".

The most intense box office battle of 2003 is about to begin.