Domination in America, Starting from being a Boxing Champion-Chapter 555 - 427: Movie Premiere

According to his wishes, Lionsgate Films' production department re-edited and produced "Isolated Island Fright," and then released it in four theaters located near Chinatown in San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles, and Seattle.

On the first day of release, it earned $14,700 at the box office, with an average daily income of $3,675 per theater, far below the average level.

In the first week, it earned $210,000 from twelve theaters, and the general consensus was that the reception was pretty mediocre.

Rotten Tomatoes freshness rating was 3%, with 12 in favor and 3 against.

Critics mainly criticized its plot for lacking blood plasma, severed limbs, psychopathic zombies, and terrifying music. The plot was not at all exciting, and watching the movie only made viewers drowsy.

For Huaxia audiences, the main selling point of the movie was the scantily clad female leads.

In America, where the culture is more liberal, those who want to see bikini-clad women can go to the beach or a naturist park to see people streaking; there's no need to buy a movie ticket for that.

The movie lacked appeal, so naturally, the audience didn't buy into it.

Lionsgate Films could only terminate the screenings earlier and released the movie on the online platform CinemaNow.

CinemaNow is a streaming video website originally founded with investments from Trimark.

After Lionsgate Films acquired Trimark in 2006 for 60 million US dollars, the website also became one of the assets of Lionsgate Films.

"Isolated Island Fright" incurred a loss of about 450,000 US dollars, including copyright fees, post-production, dubbing, marketing, labor wages, and other expenses.

There was also the box office.

The box office split for Hollywood movie previews is determined based on the occupancy rate of each venue.

The higher the occupancy rate during the preview period, the more the distribution company earns; if the occupancy rate is too low, the box office revenue goes entirely to the theater as compensation for their loss.

The movie "Isolated Island Fright" hardly brought any box office revenue to Lionsgate Films.

It was unknown who leaked the news to the media that Link had bought the movie from Cannes.

After the movie was pulled from theaters, many media outlets published articles claiming that he had made a misstep, saying that his investments in movies weren't as infallible as the rumors suggested.

When Harvey saw this news, he laughed heartily, sweeping away the gloom that "Bridesmaids'" success had cast over him recently.

With cigar in hand, Harvey told Matt Damon and Ben Affleck that such a movie was obviously not going to have a market in the United States, yet Link insisted on buying it.

After the movie was brought back to Lionsgate Films, the distribution department told Link that the ratings for the movie were very low, and it was unnecessary to distribute it, but Link still insisted on its release.

"Haha, when I heard this news, I thought I had misjudged. I also thought Link had a unique vision, seeing something we couldn't, and that this movie might exceed everyone's expectations. Haha, but there was no surprise; indeed, it was a terrible movie," Harvey laughed.

Matt Damon and Ben Affleck hadn't seen "Isolated Island Fright," so they couldn't really comment on it, but they didn't understand why Link insisted on releasing a movie that was known to incur losses.

"Link is too arrogant. He thinks he understands movies well. He thinks 'Scandal Plan' and 'Bridesmaids'' success was due to him, that he is omnipotent and can achieve whatever he wants to do. In reality, he is nothing special."

Harvey gestured vehemently, venting the frustration inside him, even his saliva spraying as he spoke.

"This movie's distribution failure has indeed cooled some people's enthusiasm towards Link in the industry," Matt Damon said.

After the success of "Bridesmaids," many film companies wanted to collaborate with Palm Beach Films and Lionsgate Films.

With the release failure of "Isolated Island Fright," rumors that Link personally decided to acquire it started circulating, and people began to doubt his judgment, becoming much more cautious about cooperating with him.

Hearing Matt's words, Harvey suddenly recalled Bob approaching Link a few days ago, requesting to invest in "The Master," and he couldn't help feeling some regret.

"The Master" was also a movie that Link decided to invest in personally.

Would it have the same fate as "Isolated Island Fright"?

If only he hadn't agreed to Bob in the first place. Unfortunately, the contract had already been signed, and the ten million dollars for production had been transferred to the film crew's account; it was too late for regrets.

"Damn Link! Damn Bob!" Harvey cursed in his mind. That was ten million dollars gone. How could he have been so foolish to believe Link was a maestro of movie investments?

"Harvey! Hey, Matt, Ben!"

Bob came in and greeted everyone.

Harvey glared at him unhappily, "What's up?"

"About Lionsgate Films—after the distribution failure of 'Isolated Island Fright,' Link went against everyone's advice and requested the continued distribution of another movie he bought, 'Mr. Tree.' Did you know about this?" Bob said, holding a document.

"Mr. Tree?"

Harvey was stunned for a moment, then broke out laughing, "Is that true? 'Isolated Island Fright' has already failed, and he still insists on distributing that incomprehensible art film? Has Link gone mad?"

"Harvey, what are you talking about?" Matt Damon asked curiously.

Harvey first laughed heartily, then started talking about Link buying two Huaxia films at the Cannes Film Festival.

The first film had already been declared a loss, but Link refused to accept reality and insisted on releasing a second Chinese-language film, an arthouse film that was incomprehensible to most viewers.

The second film was rooted in Huaxia's rural themes and, due to a different background and cultural environment, had no market in America.

Harvey said if it were up to him to choose a film to distribute, he would rather choose the one with bikini-clad girls in a horror movie than the second "Mr. Tree."

This film was bound to lose money, and no one could make it a success, no matter who distributed it.

Knowing the film would lose money but still insisting on distributing it was to disrespect market rules, which would inevitably lead to punishment. That's why he said Link had gone mad.

"Why would Link do this?"

Matt Damon asked, puzzled.

"Because 'Bridesmaids' was a huge hit, the media overhyped Link, and he thought he was invincible. He got carried away, and that's why he did something so incredibly foolish,"

Harvey said, waving his arms with great satisfaction as he cursed.

"Ahem! Harvey, things might not be as you think,"

R𝑒ad latest chapt𝒆rs at freewebnovёl.ƈom Only.

Bob interjected.

"Not the same? What's not the same?"

Harvey asked with a frown.

"The box office for this film isn't as bad as you say; it could even be considered a big hit."

"How is that possible?! Have you gone mad as well? How could that kind of film be a hit in the United States?"

Harvey said with a stern face.

"Five days ago, 'Mr. Tree' had a limited release in four theaters in North America, with a first-day box office of $13,200, an average revenue per screen of $3,301, and an occupancy rate of about 28%,"

Bob opened his folder and said.

"An average revenue of three thousand and an occupancy rate of 28%, and you tell me this is a hit?!"

If rolling his eyes hadn't damaged his own dignity, he would have wanted to give Bob a big eye roll.

"On the second day, 'Mr. Tree' had a cumulative box office of $42,000 US dollars, an average revenue per screen of $7,200, and an occupancy rate of 76%."

"Hm?"

Harvey suddenly straightened up and asked with a frown, "That's not right, how could the occupancy rate suddenly increase so much?"

"Could it be that the film is good, and word of mouth is driving the box office?"

Ben Affleck asked.

"Impossible. Even someone like me who has some understanding of Huaxia cinema can't understand that film. How could ordinary viewers understand it? Bob, how could the occupancy rate for 'Mr. Tree' suddenly increase so much? Could it be that Lionsgate Films is faking the box office?"

Harvey asked in a heavy voice.

"On the night 'Mr. Tree' was released, Link posted a new single on YouTube called 'Blinding Lights,' with the video exceeding 2 million views in 24 hours, and the current play count has surpassed 30 million. Fans think very highly of this song.

And the 'Blinding Lights' music video uses footage from this film. It is said that many fans, after seeing the music video, loved the song and went to the theaters to support it.

This caused a surge in the occupancy rate the next day, and by the third day, the occupancy rate in the four theaters reached 98%, full house! The highest occupancy rate of any film at the same time,"

Bob said slowly.

Harvey opened and closed his mouth, feeling the urge to curse.

When releasing 'Bridesmaids,' Link used a new song to promote the film, and now he was doing it again. Couldn't this bastard find a different method?

Link was not only the boss of Lionsgate Films but also a music king and youth idol, with albums selling over 10 million copies in the United States and tens of millions of fans, having great influence.

If he was willing to promote a film, even if it were a pile of dog shit, many people would be willing to spend money to support it.

Harvey clamped his mouth shut and bit down hard.

"Using this method to promote a film is only useful for the first few days. Once the heat passes, the occupancy rate will definitely drop. What was yesterday's occupancy rate?"

"86%! Currently, the film has made a cumulative box office of $180,000 US dollars in four theaters, and it's said that Lionsgate bought the rights to the film for $150,000 US dollars. It is expected to break even within this week,"

Bob said.

"So what, Link is a superstar. To get him to promote a film, it costs millions each time. Including the cost of the song, Lionsgate has invested several million in promotion but only got a little over a hundred thousand at the box office. That certainly can't be considered a big hit,"

Harvey said coldly.

Matt Damon and Ben Affleck nodded, agreeing with Harvey's words.

Link was a big star. If he wanted, he could earn hundreds of thousands just for attending a film event, and if he were to write a song specifically for promoting a film, it would cost even more.

So, 'Mr. Tree' making $180,000 at the box office in five days wasn't that much.

"Hmph, Link just doesn't want to concede. Let's just wait and see how much box office this marketless film can get,"

Harvey said as he pressed his cigar into the ashtray with force.