Chapter 310: Super Money-Making Machine

During the summer season, especially in May and June, almost every weekend saw the release of a big-budget commercial film. Some competition was simply inevitable. May's bloodbath had temporarily subsided after Memorial Day, but a market driven to ever-higher heights of enthusiasm wasn't about to stop competing. There was no shortage of blockbusters slated for every weekend in June.

Before the first weekend of June arrived, Duke set aside his screenwriting and other tasks to step onto a premiere's red carpet once again. Mission: Impossible—in which he and Tom Cruise held the lion's share of the investment—was officially opening.

"Congratulations, Duke."

The moment Duke stepped into the theater's VIP lounge, Tom Cruise came right up to greet him, his face brimming with enthusiasm.

"Another three-week run at the top of the summer season box office!" Cruise said. "I'm already regretting it. I really regret not playing Neo."

Faced with Cruise's beaming face, Duke didn't hold back his own smile.

"I think Ethan Hunt will become just as much of an on-screen classic," he said.

"Thank you."

Tom Cruise let go of Nicole Kidman's hand and actually stepped forward to give Duke a fierce hug.

"Thank you for fully supporting me," Cruise said.

Given Cruise's personality, it was simply impossible for him not to clash with Paramount Pictures during production. For the most part, Duke had made sure his proxies in the crew stood on Cruise's side.

It all came down to the same point: no one wanted Mission: Impossible to succeed more than Tom Cruise. Furthermore, at the turn of the century, the guy's eye for film wasn't half bad—especially with Pat Kingsley constantly offering him counsel by his side.

"Hello, Mary."

"Hello, Duke."

After embracing Tom Cruise, Duke shook hands with Nicole Kidman. The couple seemed to have finished their socializing, and they stayed by his side to chat.

"I feel like we could absolutely collaborate again," Cruise said.

Standing across from Duke, Tom Cruise's eyes were filled with complex emotions.

"Even now, I still don't have a single film that's crossed $200 million at the North American box office," Cruise continued. "And you..."

He let out a soft sigh. "The Matrix hasn't even been out for a month, and its North American box office is already charging toward $300 million."

"Hey, Tom, you're exaggerating."

Cruise's sheer enthusiasm was a little hard to get used to. Duke could only offer a laugh.

"The numbers tallied yesterday were only at $230-something million," Duke explained. "It's still a considerable distance away from $300 million."

The Matrix couldn't defy the normal laws of commercial cinema the way Titanic had. As its theatrical run lengthened, its momentum had clearly begun to drop. Passing the $300 million mark at the North American box office would still be quite difficult.

This was the fiercely competitive summer season, after all. The moment a film's momentum dipped, its theater count was bound to shrink drastically. With historically strong films like Mission: Impossible, Mulan, and Dr. Dolittle hitting theaters over the weekends in June, the June box office for The Matrix would inevitably take a massive hit.

"I have faith in you!" Tom Cruise seemed even more confident than Duke was.

He turned to look at Nicole Kidman. "I've discussed it with Mary a bunch of times—the annual box office crown might just end up in your pocket again this year."

Nicole Kidman offered a cooperative smile.

"I do believe that," she said.

Duke looked at Tom Cruise, then at Nicole Kidman. He suddenly felt that the two of them were much more harmonious than the last time they'd met.

Still, that had nothing to do with him. Duke tossed the thought aside and continued discussing film with the Cruise couple. However, before they could exchange more than a few words, Paramount Pictures CEO Sherry Lansing walked over.

"Congratulations on another blockbuster hit," she said, extending her hand.

Duke gave it a light shake. "Thank you."

Even though Paramount Pictures had heavily meddled in the MPAA rating and the shooting incident publicity for The Matrix, and Duke had infringed on Paramount's interests with Braveheart and Titanic, the two of them beamed at each other in this kind of setting. It was as if their past rivalries had never existed at all.

In truth, this was the norm in Hollywood. This year's partners could easily turn into next year's rivals due to clashing release dates. If someone glared in anger at every single competitor, they wouldn't survive in this industry.

"It's easy to see that The Matrix is a franchise."

Amid the pleasantries, Sherry Lansing suddenly put out a feeler. "Duke, any interest in handing the sequels over to Paramount Pictures? Our terms..."

It was true; she desperately wanted the sequel rights to The Matrix franchise. And she was far from the only one in Hollywood harboring that exact thought.

Box office hits emerged every year, but films that could generate massive merchandise sales were exceedingly rare.

Over the past few years, as marketing and distribution costs steadily climbed, the actual profits drawn from the box office continued to shrink, even for commercially successful films. Ancillary rights and merchandise sales were taking up a larger and larger share of total revenue.

Take 1993's Jurassic Park. Spielberg alone had walked away with $200 million in earnings from it, and Universal Pictures still made a massive killing—simply because its merchandise was so outrageously popular!

Her eyes were locked onto The Matrix not for its box office, but for its persistently red-hot merchandise.

Specific figures for overseas sales hadn't been tallied yet, but those at the top of Hollywood had already gotten their hands on the North American merchandise numbers for The Matrix. In just four weeks of release—and without even counting the Nokia Phone—the sales of sunglasses, trench coats, pencil cases, and other tie-in products had reached $180 million!

Duke Studio took a 30 percent cut of that. With $60 million from merch plus the $20 million in advertising sponsorships secured early on, The Matrix had already recouped its production budget before a single cent of the North American box office had been split!

How could anyone not be envious?

Not to mention, Warner Brothers and Duke Studio were still negotiating with various distributors. In the future, the North American television broadcasting rights, disc, and Videotape rights for The Matrix were bound to sell for an astronomical price!

And that was just North America. There was still the overseas market, whose revenue potential had long since surpassed the domestic one...

Just thinking about the expected revenue figures made Sherry Lansing a little dizzy. In her eyes, the man standing across from her wasn't a director at all—he was a super money-making machine!

Even though Sherry Lansing threw out a whole host of enticing terms, Duke used "needing time to consider" as an excuse to politely decline. The other party's promises sounded truly wonderful, but how many promises in Hollywood actually materialized?

"Let me introduce you to the crew," Cruise offered.

With their conflicts resolved and two consecutive collaborations under their belts, Duke and Tom Cruise's relationship was normalizing. Faced with the superstar's invitation, Duke had no intention of refusing. After entering the auditorium, he walked down to the front row and shook hands with the main cast and crew members one by one. No matter how you looked at it, he was one of the bosses of the film.

"Hello, Jean."

Looking at the big-nosed Frenchman, Duke greeted him with a perfectly normal expression. "Your performance in Leon was deeply impressive."

Even though Duke Studio had been one of the most active players in the smear campaign against Jean Reno a few weeks ago, both Duke and Reno shook hands with absolute calm.

This kind of situation—where fierce, white-hot competition raged behind the scenes while on the surface everything looked perfectly fine—was all too common in Hollywood.

Under Tom Cruise's guidance, Duke shook hands with a number of actors. Finally, he stopped in front of an actor around his own age. The man had sharp, rocky features and a tall frame that was nearly the same height as Duke's. Beneath his tailored suit, his faintly visible, explosive muscles made him look exceptionally robust.

"This is Gerard Butler," Cruise introduced.

Upon hearing Cruise's introduction, Duke shook the man's hand and looked him over a few extra times with keen interest. He then turned and walked to his seat. After sitting down, he made a point to instruct his female assistant, who had been following close behind him.

"Tina, look up the contact info for Gerard Butler's agent later," he said.

"Got it." Tina Fey nodded. "For the new project?" she asked softly.

"I need actors who are strong enough, have decent acting chops, and look relatively fierce to play those two bank robbers," Duke replied. "His physical traits are a good fit."

At this, Duke tilted his chin toward the big screen. "If his acting in the film holds up, we can send him an audition invite later."

Leonidas, the leader of the red-caped army, was perfectly suited to play this kind of fierce role. Duke's only concern was his acting ability. Once the film started, however, Duke watched a few scenes featuring Gerard Butler and gradually put his worries to rest. The guy's acting was far from brilliant, but it was more than enough to meet his relatively low baseline requirements.

Besides, according to his plans, the two vicious robbers would be wearing masks for a significant portion of the film. It didn't require masterful acting anyway. And since he needed to align with mainstream values, he had no intention of spotlighting the two robbers too heavily.

Having briefly pondered the casting for his new project, Duke turned his full attention back to the big screen. Mission: Impossible had come out two years later than it originally did in his memory, and some of the scenes and plot points had been altered. What remained unchanged was the film's overall style and Ethan Hunt constantly showing off his face and combat skills. Tom Cruise's box office draw in this era was staggering. The continuous gasps of awe from the young men and women in the back rows made the film's popularity abundantly clear.

As an investor, Duke wanted to see this film succeed just as much as Tom Cruise did. Judging by the experience and insights he had accumulated over his years in the industry, the film's critical reception might not be stellar, but the box office wouldn't be an issue. It might not be a super-massive blockbuster, but hitting the $100 million to $150 million mark shouldn't be difficult.

The genre of Mission: Impossible, coupled with Tom Cruise starring as the lead, was more than enough to put pressure on the films releasing in the same window or the following week. It, too, would have to forge ahead amidst the competition.