Chapter 86: Leaving North American Theaters

While Duke relaxed on vacation, Nancy Josephson frequently met with executives at Warner Brothers, Twentieth Century Fox, and various other companies, pushing hard to advance the new film project. The success of The Rock and her imminent cut of the backend profits gave her boundless motivation.

Even from as far away as New Zealand, Duke checked in with Nancy every few days. He also officially titled the sci-fi script centered on the Fourth of July: Independence Day!

"The project is tentatively titled Independence Day, so the Independence Day holiday will be the most fitting premiere date for the film."

Facing the Warner Brothers executives, Nancy Josephson was far more confident and aggressive than before. Resting both hands on the conference table, she spoke in a commanding tone: "Time is already tight. If Warner Brothers can't expedite the review process and greenlight the project, Director Rosenberg will choose another partner. You all know that Twentieth Century Fox..."

Nancy's voice filled the conference room. To hear her describe it, Independence Day was simply the most sought-after project in Hollywood right now.

The Warner Brothers executives weren't stupid, and their intelligence network was sound. They knew Twentieth Century Fox had indeed met with Nancy and Duke, though that studio was only in the preliminary review stage with no clear plans to greenlight the project. Walt Disney had also reached out to Nancy a while ago, though the details of that conversation remained unknown.

However, Jeff Robinov and the others were certain of one thing: for a project where the production budget could reach 100 million dollars, any company would proceed cautiously, whether considering a co-investment or public financing.

"Nancy, this is a 100-million-dollar investment."

Once the agent paused to take a breath, Jeff Robinov spoke up for Warner. "If we include marketing and distribution costs, the total investment will likely exceed 130 million dollars. Warner needs ample time to research and review a commitment like this!"

"Jeff, let's set aside merchandising," Nancy Josephson shot back, her tone still forceful. "On box office alone, Speed had a production budget of just 15 million dollars, yet Duke turned that into a total box office of 350.74 million dollars! The budget for The Rock rose to 50 million dollars, but don't forget, its North American box office is currently sitting at 144.88 million dollars! The overseas box office has also surpassed 130 million dollars, and the final tally could easily push toward 400 million dollars!"

"Now let's look at Independence Day!" Her words fired off like a string of cannonballs. "I admit, the script quality is only average. It's an absolute collection of every tacky summer season trope, but you can't deny that mainstream audiences love to watch exactly that! Besides, Duke has already proven his ability to turn a mediocre script into a blockbuster movie. Aren't the overwhelming explosion scenes in Independence Day exactly what he excels at?"

If it were a newcomer director, Jeff Robinov would absolutely toss the script into the vault and never give it a second glance. But the problem was that Duke Rosenberg had already succeeded twice with roughly similar films in this genre. Who would dare say he couldn't do it a third time?

He didn't want to be like those fools at Twentieth Century Fox, pushing away potentially massive profits.

In truth, Warner Brothers was still hesitating and hadn't yet initiated the formal review process primarily because of the high risk inevitably attached to such a high production cost.

As a veteran agent, Nancy Josephson naturally understood Warner Brothers' concerns.

"I have a suggestion!" she pivoted suddenly. "Since Warner thinks the investment and risk are too high, why not seek outside partners? I understand that even after the preliminary review, financing and presales take time. But what if Twentieth Century Fox joined in? We could even pull in other studios to co-invest!"

Cooperation between major studios was the norm, serving as one of the most standard ways to hedge against investment risks.

After the meeting concluded, Nancy left Burbank and headed to the Fox Building in Century City. Although Warner Brothers hadn't given a clear answer, she believed that as the box office numbers for The Rock continued to climb, the new project's progress would only get smoother!

Throughout the entire June release window, the North American film market was practically dominated by Jurassic Park alone. Even films with highly gratifying box office performances, such as Cliffhanger, Interview with the Vampire, and The Rock, all had to take a back seat.

After eight weeks in theaters, the North American box office for The Rock finally broke through the 150-million-dollar barrier, slowly creeping up to 152.24 million dollars. Its theater count had dropped to 500, and the per-theater weekly average had fallen below 1,500 dollars. Although it hadn't yet crossed the threshold for mandatory theatrical removal, its potential was essentially exhausted.

The fate of Interview with the Vampire, released in the same period, was much more miserable. The film's cumulative North American box office had reached 97.78 million dollars, putting it on the verge of breaking the 100-million-dollar barrier, yet its per-theater weekly average had plummeted below 500 dollars. That was far below the theater chains' psychological bottom line of 1,000 dollars. If not for the PR efforts of CAA, the film would have been forcefully pulled from theaters days ago.

Even so, with its dwindling screening times and theater count, earning the final two-plus million dollars needed to break the 100-million mark was an impossible task under normal circumstances.

However, someone would inevitably step in to push the North American box office of Interview with the Vampire over 100 million dollars. This wasn't just a matter of a few million dollars. In Hollywood, whether a film you starred in or produced was measured in the tens of millions or crossed the hundred-million threshold was an entirely different concept. The treatment you received on your next project could vary drastically depending on that milestone.

"2.3 million dollars isn't enough, Pat!"

Inside a Beverly Hills mansion, Tom Cruise was giving his agent a blistering dressing down. "If the film finishes just barely over 100 million dollars, everyone will know we faked it. I want this number bumped to 4 million dollars!"

"Tom, your salary for this film was only 15 million dollars." Pat Kingsley remained very calm. "After deducting taxes and necessary expenses, plus the 3 million dollars invested in the opening week, you plan to pour 7 million dollars into the box office of Interview with the Vampire? That means your net earnings on this film might be negative. You've essentially been working for nothing for the past year!"

"I can always earn more money, but I want my movie's North American box office to cross 100 million!" Tom Cruise roared hoarsely.

Nicole Kidman, who never had a voice in these matters, sat quietly in the corner of the reception room. Only she knew just how exasperated and frantic the arrogant Tom Cruise truly was. The two of them had erupted into several arguments recently and were currently sleeping in separate rooms. Whenever she saw her haughty husband, who never knew when to restrain himself, she felt that marrying him might have been a mistake.

He was shortsighted and narrow-minded. Without someone around to advise him, he would always do something brainless. It was simply...

And what about Cruise's public rival, Duke Rosenberg? Even though she hadn't interacted with him deeply, based on her observations and a few things Naomi Watts had said, she vaguely felt he was a deeply calculating man with independent viewpoints. From the mutual smear campaign between him and Cruise, it was evident that whenever he seized an opportunity, he absolutely wouldn't let it slip by. But once the opportunity passed, he would proactively retreat, lying low like a seemingly harmless venomous snake.

Psychologically mature, knowing when to advance and when to retreat...

Thinking up to this point, Nicole Kidman suddenly felt that aside from being wealthier and more famous, Tom Cruise seemed to fall short of that young director in every other aspect.

Wealth and fame could be accumulated over time, and the one thing the young Duke Rosenberg didn't lack was time, right?

Time could change so much. In its ninth week of release, the box office for Interview with the Vampire suddenly surged. The daily accumulation, which had originally been less than 100,000 dollars, unexpectedly shot up to around 600,000 dollars. Although the data could deceive the public and leave Mr. Cruise's supporters rejoicing, it couldn't fool the theater chains. Once the weekend passed, Interview with the Vampire was forcefully pulled by the North American Theater Alliance, its North American box office halting at 103.26 million dollars.

Duke had also concluded his vacation and returned to Los Angeles. Under Nancy's coordination, he separately met with executives from Warner Brothers and Twentieth Century Fox, making preliminary progress on the Independence Day project.

At the same time, the North American run of The Rock also reached its final stretch. Managing to hold on for just ten days longer than Interview with the Vampire, it was forcefully booted from theaters after the Independence Day holiday due to several consecutive days of poor per-theater box office performance, its potential completely exhausted.

In the end, the North American box office for The Rock froze at 157.52 million dollars. Duke had successfully broken his own North American box office record set by Speed. Moreover, the film's overseas box office performed equally well. The global gross was now steadily marching toward the 300-million-dollar mark. According to forecasts from several professional organizations, its final global box office was bound to surpass Speed.

With two consecutive blockbuster hits, Duke caught the attention of numerous media outlets and production companies. Even MGM, which had swallowed United Artists, probed Nancy, wanting to invite Duke to direct the latest installment in the 007 franchise.

If this had been before Speed, Duke definitely would have taken it, but now he turned it down without hesitation. Few directors who had already made a name for themselves in Hollywood would go on to direct a 007 film. Even if the movie received explosive acclaim and massive box office success, for a director like Duke, it would only be icing on the cake. After all, few people would attribute the success to the director; they would just chalk it up to the power of the franchise.

If it failed... if a film with such a broad fan base still failed, it would be tantamount to destroying his career.

Besides, Duke had long since made his own plans!

After The Rock left theaters, the film's run in North America entered its final stage. Once the theater chains wired the revenue shares into the accounts of the distributor, Warner Brothers, a new round of dividing the spoils would officially begin.