Made In Hollywood

North America is the most mature commercial film market in the world. Since the 1990s, the population of the North American continent has not significantly increased, meaning the audience base for films hasn't grown substantially either. If one film attracts a large number of viewers over the weekend, it will inevitably cause a decrease in viewership for other films.

"Godzilla" ramped up its promotional efforts, and Warner Bros. certainly couldn't just sit idly by.

However, compared to the various promotional strategies employed by Sony-Columbia Pictures, Warner Bros., following Duke's advice, responded with the simplest and most direct approach:

"'Godzilla' receives rave reviews, audiences call it thrilling and exciting, fueling the monster craze."

This was the media hype created by Sony-Columbia Pictures, while Warner Bros. countered with — Godzilla is a native Japanese monster!

"'Godzilla' earns nearly $10 million on its opening day, leading the summer box office!"

"Godzilla is a native Japanese monster!"

"The lead actors were so scared by Godzilla during filming that their legs went weak."

"Godzilla is a native Japanese monster!"

"Monsters invade Manhattan; iconic landmarks reduced to rubble by Godzilla."

"Godzilla is a native Japanese monster!"

Cultural differences are an objective reality, especially in North America, where isolationism still holds significant sway. Additionally, although the internet is emerging, it has not yet reached the point of connecting the world. Foreign cultures are inevitably rejected on North American big screens. It's not just Godzilla, the Japanese monster; even "Taxi," a Western-style commercial film produced by Luc Besson, a director hailed as France's Hollywood export, only lasted three days in North American theaters.

As for the actual trends of "Godzilla" and "The Matrix," the box office report published on Monday in the Los Angeles Times entertainment section made everything clear.

"The third weekend of May continued to see a vibrant North American box office market. Although it didn't achieve the feat of all top three weekend films surpassing $20 million, the overall market remained robust, thanks to 'The Matrix' and 'Godzilla,' nearly matching the same period last year when 'The Lost World: Jurassic Park' opened. As of this weekend, the annual North American box office is up 7% compared to the same period last year, painting an optimistic picture."

"Last weekend, Sony-Columbia Pictures' $140 million monster film 'Godzilla' made a strong debut, challenging the previously successful 'The Matrix.' Over Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, it grossed $8.42 million, $10.12 million, and $8.25 million respectively, earning an impressive $26.79 million in its opening weekend!"

"However, this achievement wasn't enough to crown 'Godzilla' as the weekend box office champion. That title once again belongs to 'The Matrix!'"

"Warner Bros. and Duke Studios' joint production, directed by the renowned Duke Rosenberg, showed strong momentum with their sci-fi action film 'The Matrix.' Despite the formidable challenge posed by 'Godzilla,' the film's second weekend pulled in $39.89 million, effortlessly securing the weekend crown and breaking through the $150 million mark in North America, reaching a staggering $150.86 million!"

"Buena Vista's low-budget film 'The Horse Whisperer' proved to be this weekend's biggest surprise, surpassing the third-weekend performance of 'Deep Impact' with a $13.68 million box office haul, securing third place. Meanwhile, DreamWorks' 'Deep Impact' continued its disappointing run, earning only $5.61 million in its third weekend. Its North American box office total stands at $56.22 million, far from recovering its costs."

"Another surprise came from the long-running 'Titanic.' The big ship seems to have no end in sight, earning another $3.56 million over the weekend from 521 theaters, pushing its North American box office to $632.55 million and continuing to break new cinematic records with every step it takes!"

"From the box office data, it's clear that over the past weekend, 'Godzilla' and 'The Matrix' jointly dominated the market. However, the two films have elicited drastically different responses from audiences."

"Since its release, 'The Matrix' has sparked a cyberpunk culture wave across North America. It has been widely acclaimed since its test screenings. Director Duke Rosenberg has masterfully combined philosophical reflections with sci-fi elements, heralding a new era for sci-fi films. Even George Lucas believes that 'The Matrix' will become a milestone in the history of sci-fi cinema, with a status no less significant than 'Star Wars.'"

"Moreover, this fan-favorite film continues to garner astonishing reviews two weeks after its release. The audience approval rating has remained above 90%, and the renowned film website IMDb rates it at a staggering 9.5. With such strong word-of-mouth support, $200 million is definitely not the endpoint for this sci-fi blockbuster's North American box office!"

"In contrast, while 'Godzilla' achieved a decent opening weekend box office, it can't ignore its declining reputation. On its opening day of wide release, the audience approval rating was only 63%, which dropped further to 58% by the end of the weekend. On IMDb, the audience score is a mere 5.6. Based on this, breaking $100 million at the North American box office would be considered a victory for 'Godzilla!'"

"'The Matrix' has now achieved two consecutive summer weekend box office championships. As North America approaches the Memorial Day holiday weekend, the $140 million sci-fi blockbuster 'Armageddon,' produced by Touchstone Pictures and distributed by Buena Vista, is about to hit theaters. Whether it can challenge 'The Matrix' remains to be seen."

Not only the North American market, but over the past weekend, "The Matrix" also began its rollout in international markets. Filmed entirely on location in Sydney, it received an especially enthusiastic response in Australia, grossing $7.52 million over the weekend, the second-highest opening weekend box office in Australian film history, only behind "Titanic."

In the UK, the response to "The Matrix" was similarly strong, with an impressive $11.2 million opening weekend box office.

Globally, where the internet is not yet prevalent, some concepts in "The Matrix" might be difficult for those unfamiliar with the internet to understand. However, Duke avoided delving deeply into these two worlds, instead focusing on a strategy that highlighted style and flair, which gave it an advantage. The action scenes and explosions alone are enough to thrill audiences.

Over the same weekend, "The Matrix" grossed $6.84 million in France, $7.85 million in Germany, $6.55 million in Spain, $5.67 million in Italy, $7.44 million in Russia, $7.11 million in Argentina, $7.26 million in Brazil, and $5.66 million in Mexico.

Although "The Matrix" has not yet entered the Asian market, its overseas box office has already accumulated $74.89 million in just one weekend, bringing its global total to over $220 million!

"Actually, box office figures are not the most important thing."

After discussing the next steps regarding Martin Bob, the conversation in the office shifted to "The Matrix." Ino Martin said to Pat Kingsley, "The media and the public are ignoring the merchandising revenue of 'The Matrix.'"

"Warner Bros. hasn't disclosed last weekend's merchandising sales data," Pat Kingsley said, pouring herself a cup of coffee. "Ino, do you have last weekend's merchandising figures?"

"I obtained some rough merchandising statistics for 'The Matrix' through my connections at Warner Bros.," Ino Martin said, handing a document to Pat Kingsley. "Take a look for yourself. Warner Bros. and Duke Studios are set to make a fortune this time."

"Over $25.6 million in merchandise sold in North America last weekend alone?"

Even Pat Kingsley was taken aback. She took a sip of her coffee to calm her breathing and said, "If I'm not mistaken, the total merchandising sales for 'The Matrix' in North America have already surpassed $100 million."

"That's correct; it has indeed surpassed $100 million."

With a touch of amazement, Ino Martin rubbed his temples and said, "I have confirmed information that Duke Studios signed a 30% revenue-sharing agreement with various manufacturers. This means nearly $30 million from the merchandise sales can be considered pure profit."

"The share of profits from merchandise sales for blockbuster films is becoming increasingly significant," Kingsley sighed.

Ino Martin added, "And don't forget, this is just North America! Moreover, the DVD, VHS, and television rights for 'The Matrix' haven't been sold yet. I believe the merchandising revenue for this film might surpass its box office earnings!"

"Within a year," he added.

Pat Kingsley nodded and, after a moment of thought, said, "Not signing an agency contract with Duke Rosenberg back then was the biggest mistake in CAA's history."

"Unfortunately, we didn't have the authority back then."

At this point, Ino Martin's gaze flickered repeatedly. "That's fine. The more successful Duke becomes, the more uneasy the partners will feel and the more they'll believe someone should be held accountable for past mistakes. And the person responsible had a lackluster year with Spielberg's packaged project. Our opportunity is coming!"

Not far from their office, Martin Bob sat alone in his office, his face filled with worry. Even with the most reliable Spielberg as a collaborator, he couldn't escape the string of bad luck that had plagued him for years. Success seemed increasingly out of reach, and he was on the verge of becoming a laughingstock at CAA, practically a synonym for failure.

Facing fierce external competition and surrounded by wolves within, Martin Bob could feel the looming crisis. Even though he was the largest shareholder among CAA's partners, when opposition grew strong enough, he would have no choice but to step down in disgrace.

He didn't want to end up like Michael Ovitz, who left Disney as a failure and was driven out in humiliation.

A small mistake made years ago — abandoning a seemingly insignificant individual — had now become the harbinger of his downfall. Duke Rosenberg: could he really be unbeatable?

Those who ascend to high positions are invariably individuals of firm resolve. Martin Bob had no intention of conceding defeat just yet.

...

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