At the Shrine Auditorium, as the award presenters spoke, the camera focused on the five nominees.
Each person's portrait photo occupied a corner of the screen, with Liu Yifei looking particularly striking, as she was the only yellow-skinned woman.
This was also one of the few opportunities for Chinese people to be nominated for a major American award, and it had attracted attention in mainland China when the shortlist was announced.
Recently, cultural exchanges between the two sides have deepened. Last year, CCTV broadcast the Oscar Awards, and this year, even the Emmy Awards were broadcast live.
Sohu and Sina had long since played their cards, inviting industry veterans like Zeng Zihang to discuss the possibility of winning. The consensus was that it was unlikely she would win.
"I think getting a nomination already means being recognized by the mainstream, but the probability of winning directly isn't particularly high. It's not impossible, just not high."
"Zihang makes a good point. We can't just focus on Liu Yifei's popularity in China. While 'supernatural' did achieve very good ratings in China, America has its own situation, and she's still considered a newcomer there."
"That's right. Whether she wins or not depends on her opponents' performance. 'the west wing' has always been a popular show, and Tyne Daly is a veteran actress. Liu Yifei's advantage is her popularity among young people."
"I remember after 'supernatural' finished airing a while ago, MGM released a survey showing her popularity was second only to the two male leads. She has great potential, but her journey has just begun."
Host Dou Wentao suddenly asked, "I saw a piece of news a few days ago that Liu Yifei terminated her contract with her company. Do you know about that?"
"Yes, we know. Since last year, her appearances in China have decreased, and her focus has shifted to Hollywood. MGM is very willing to promote her. A big production, 'the hunger games,' is coming out next month, and from the trailer, she's a significant supporting character."
"Now Liu Yifei only has 'chinese paladin' left in China. I heard she even turned down director Zhang Jizhong's 'the return of the condor heroes.'"
"It looks like she's going to give up the mainland market. Do you think that's the right thing to do?"
"It's not giving up, is it? If she were truly giving up, she wouldn't even have filmed 'chinese paladin.' It's just a shift in focus, and I think it's good. Hollywood has always had a tradition of factions."
"Australia has the Australia gang, England has the England gang, and Canada has one too. They're all about older generations bringing in new ones, forming circles to support and help each other."
"If this group, like Liu Yifei and Daniel Wu, can establish themselves there, it will help actors from China who want to develop in Hollywood."
"We are in a honeymoon period of cooperation with MGM. Now is a good time to leverage the power of this lion for development. I think it's very good."
"It's just a pity for Daniel Wu. If it weren't for the Bar Refaeli incident, 'the walking dead' Season 2 would have finished filming and aired a long time ago, and it wouldn't be missing this year's Emmy Awards. Otherwise, he might have even gotten a nomination for Best Supporting Actor."
The camera swept across Little Liu's face. She was biting her lip, a little nervous. The nomination must have been arranged by Eric with money.
An Oscar Winner could be lobbied, so an Emmy for Best Supporting Actress was naturally not a problem. She just wondered if his intensity was as fierce as he was in bed; he had exhausted her these past few days.
Despise Weinstein, understand Weinstein, become Weinstein.
"And the Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series goes to... Crystal Liu, 'supernatural.'"
OH!
Upon hearing the result, the three people in the Sina live broadcast room instantly fell silent. They had just said the probability of winning was not high, and in a blink of an eye, they were proven wrong.
Nicole, Theron, Gadot, and the Olsen sisters all turned their gaze to Eric.
"You... why are you all looking at me?"
Chicken soup is here... bah, bah!
"Hmph hmph... that depends on what good deeds you've done," Nicole said with a smile, though her smile was a bit eerie, her facial skin not moving at all.
"I can at least understand the nomination, but winning is too much, Eric. What trick are you up to now?" Theron asked coldly.
"What trick could I be up to! Everything is for the company's strategic service. You all know MGM's investment in China."
"Crystal Liu is a key card I'm playing. Spending some money on her now will earn me back dozens of times later."
"Originally, Daniel Wu was a more suitable candidate, but 'the walking dead' hasn't aired, so she's just lucky."
"Is that so?" Gadot asked suspiciously.
"That's how it is. How could I have time for such frivolous things right now? Not long ago, I attended Nicky Hilton's wedding, and all her wild friends were trying to seduce me."
"But I stood firm. The most devout pastor is not as steadfast as I am. If I wanted to, you would have seen it in the newspapers long ago."
"Hmph! Suspicious!"
"Shady!"
"Something's fishy!"
"Hey... I have a clear conscience!"
At the awards ceremony, the moment the result was announced, Liu Yifei instantly stood up excitedly, covering her mouth with a look of disbelief.
Hmm, the action was practiced, she had rehearsed it many times in private.
In contrast, the other four nominees' expressions were somewhat unnatural. Fortunately, they weren't greenhorns and still offered polite smiles and applause.
After hugging the Winchester Brothers, Little Liu hurried onto the stage.
"Congratulations, young lady. Say a few words."
"Thank you!"
Taking the trophy, and looking at the thousands of big and small stars below, her vision suddenly went black for a moment, feeling like she was about to faint.
If it were a Chinese person, there would naturally be no special emotion, because they would most likely only know about the Oscars.
But don't forget Liu Yifei is American, growing up watching the Emmy Awards, and deeply aware of the importance of this award. Winning an award already surpassed ninety-nine percent of actors.
"Steady! Steady! This is just the Emmy Awards, not the Oscar. You are a woman destined to become an Oscar Winner."
Taking a deep breath and patting her heaving chest, Liu Yifei shook her head slightly: "Oh my god! This moment feels like a dream. I almost fainted just now, fainted from happiness."
Ha ha ha.
A ripple of soft laughter filled the room.
"Winning this award is very important for an Asian girl like me. I want to thank many people."
"First, my mother. She sacrificed so much for me. When I was very young, she brought me to America by herself, and life made her suffer a lot."
"I want to thank the Academy, and all the judges for choosing me. My opponents are all excellent actors who delivered wonderful performances. I was just a little lucky."
"I also want to thank everyone in the crew. They diligently helped me and taught me the rules of Hollywood."
"Finally, I also want to thank Mr. Eric Cooper, for investing in this show and for choosing me for the role. Thank you, thank you very much!"
Clap, clap, clap, clap.
As Liu Yifei gave her acceptance speech, the BGM of 'supernatural' played again, but Eric's figure was still nowhere to be found.
In the hotel, watching her daughter stand under the myriad stars, Liu Xiaoli's eyes did not blink once. Unbeknownst to her, her clothes were already stained with tears.
Eric watched the scene expressionlessly. Today was her big day, after all.
But he certainly couldn't appear beside her. Surrounded by evil women, he had to be careful!
Next, the Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series was won by Sarah Jessica Parker for 'sex and the city,' with Jennifer Aniston once again failing to win.
The Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series was won by Kelsey Grammer for 'Frasier,' with Joey Matt LeBlanc failing in his bid.
This result broke the hearts of countless 'friends' fans, especially since this was the final season, and they would never again see the six of them attend an awards ceremony together.
Let alone an awards ceremony, they probably wouldn't even have the chance to attend an event together anymore.
"Damn Academy, why won't they choose 'friends'?" Ashley said, unhappily hitting the sofa.
"Exactly! It's like those judges have a grudge against 'friends.' Although the quality of the tenth season did decline, they didn't give it an Emmy last year either. It's too much!"
Eric was also indignant about this, but unfortunately, he was powerless to change it. It would be great if one day he could acquire NBC; then the copyright for 'friends' would belong to him.
One should know that in terms of commercial value, 'sex and the city,' 'the sopranos,' and 'Frasier' combined couldn't beat 'friends.'
Netflix once released statistics showing that global audiences watched a total of 54.3 million hours of 'friends' on its platform over three years, which is equivalent to 62,000 years.
And the copyright for 'friends' was sold for an astronomical price of $100 million in 2019, and after that, it continued to exceed $80 million annually. Keep in mind this is an old show that ended more than a decade ago. How many shows can remain so enduringly popular?
And this $100 million was only for the US copyright. NBC could also sell it to various places around the world, earning nearly $1 billion annually through copyrights, almost a no-cost business.
The six cast members also received 2% of the copyright fees annually, so don't be surprised that Ross and Chandler didn't take on many acting roles later, but they still earned several to tens of millions of dollars a year just by sitting back.
More than an hour later, Best Production Design was again won by 'house of cards,' and 'american horror story' received Best Makeup.
At this moment, Donald Trump appeared as a presenter.
As a successful businessman, Donald Trump's business scope was very broad, involving entertainment, real estate, hotels, casinos, and all aspects.
Starting last year, he produced the variety show 'The Apprentice' and achieved quite good ratings.
Originally, he was aiming for this year's Emmy Awards, but who knew Lionheart Network would emerge halfway through, with several hit variety shows directly dominating the field.
Let alone winning, even the nominations were squeezed out.
But Donald Trump had no complaints whatsoever. The reason was simple: who in the world didn't know that he and Michael were very good friends?
"I know, I know you all want me to say something, just like I told the reporters."
"That I will definitely win, that I will definitely beat everyone else into a frenzy, but... not tonight!"
Hahahahaha.
"Because among the nominees is my good friend, you know who he is, the King of Pop, Michael Jackson."
"Yes, I will always use this prefix, and it will never change."
"If he wins, I will be happier than anyone. Although he couldn't be here because of his tour, and Eric Cooper also didn't attend."
"But Michael asked me, if 'The Voice of America' wins, I will accept the award on his behalf."
"Now, let's reveal the mystery together."
"Nominees for Outstanding Reality-Competition Program are 'The Amazing Race,' 'The Voice of America,''Survivor,' 'American Ninja Warrior,' and 'Last Comic Standing.'"
As he spoke, he opened the envelope, took just one look, and immediately laughed loudly as he announced, "The winner is 'The Voice of America.'"
OH!
Woohoo!
The venue erupted in enthusiastic applause, and even the competitors cheered and clapped.
Well-deserved, undisputed.
Donald Trump pulled a piece of paper from his pocket: "Now, on behalf of Michael and Eric Cooper, I will deliver the acceptance speech."
"If you hear this, it means we really won, but unfortunately, we can't be here. Otherwise, we could really dance a segment live."
"But don't be disappointed, because Jenny and Jay-Z will perform for all of us."
"Thank you to the Academy for this award. 'The Voice' was in preparation for a long time, and thousands of people put in countless hours of hard work for it."
"Thanks to every supporting friend: Cyndi Lauper, Bob Dylan, Dionne Warwick, Avril, Britney, Beyonce."
"Also, I have some good news to announce: the personal albums of Bruno Mars, Katy Perry, Taylor Swift, and Cyril Trudeau will be released soon, including singles from the Champion's Night. We will continue to bring good works to the audience. Thank you all."
Taking the opportunity to give a small shout-out, Donald Trump happily walked off the stage, holding the trophy.
Looking at his genuine smile, Eric couldn't help but sigh.
You could criticize him for countless things, but you could never criticize his friendship with Michael.
Even during his presidential campaign, although Michael had passed away, his influence was still immense, yet Donald Trump never used him to gain an advantage.
Didn't he know he could use this to garner millions of votes for himself?
They say businessmen seek profit and avoid harm, especially a shrewd businessman like Donald Trump.
There was only one reason: he didn't want to do it. Perhaps Michael was that pure, untainted moonlight in his heart.
Next was the halftime performance, and the appearance of Jenny and Jay-Z instantly brought the atmosphere to a climax.
The various awards for miniseries and comedy categories that followed were overshadowed by the performance.
It wasn't until Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series that Robin Wright, with her exquisite performance in 'house of cards,' swept the major award, once again thanking Eric.
For Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, Kevin Spacey defeated another big favorite, James Gandolfini of 'the sopranos.' The mention of thanking Eric was said for what felt like the umpteenth time.
At this point, the awards ceremony entered its final stage, with only a few major awards left, including Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series, Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series, and Outstanding Drama Series, all of which had nominations for Eric.
If he won, he would be the undisputed biggest winner of the night, symbolizing the suppression of the strongest competitor, HBO.
Keep in mind that Lionheart Network was only in its first year, with countless more seasons waiting. How could you possibly compete with them?
The mystery was about to be revealed.