v2 Chapter 633： Dog

"Will Smith played really well."

On Times Square, a few people walked out of the amg theater, talking about the movie they just watched while walking, "The two films at the beginning of this summer program are good, "The Dark Knight" is very good, "I am a legend" "Although it's a bit short, it's also wonderful."

"Uh, uh, uh..."

A young girl echoed, "I love Will Smith's movies so much."

"The movie is really good."

Suddenly, a person in the middle said with a slight dissatisfaction, "But there is a very annoying plot. The actor played by Will actually killed a dog!"

After being reminded by him, several other people remembered and said, "It is true, the director is so inhumane that he killed the dog!"

"Even if this is a movie, it is an unforgivable act!"

"Yeah, it's too cruel, a dog died like that."

In the discussion of these people, the death of a dog in the film is simply a heinous sin.

Walking to the square directly opposite the theater, the girl who spoke first suddenly pointed to a group of people and said, "Look, someone is protesting "I am a legend."

There were at least dozens of people gathered there. Some people were holding banners and others were holding signs, and they looked a little excited, as if "I Am Legend" deeply hurt them and their families.

"It is despicable and shameless to rely on torturing and killing dogs to sensationalize!"

"Please be kind to mankind's best friend-the dog on any occasion!"

"Call on all dog lovers to boycott this dog-killing movie!"

These people quickly attracted the attention of the media and shouted slogans in front of reporters and cameras. The few people saw that the scene was a bit chaotic, and left Times Square without waiting.

This is just one of the protests that "I Am A Legend" suffered on Saturday, in some popular theaters and locations across the United States. There are organizations of animal protectors and dog lovers who have protested against "I Am Legend" through various situations.

Sky Studios in Los Angeles and the Hilton Hotel where David Ellison stayed were blocked by hundreds of protesters who asked the producer and director of the film to give an explanation.

Some people even protested to local governments and the North American Theater Alliance, demanding that "I am a Legend" be forced to be downgraded.

of course. This kind of request is obviously impossible. "I Am a Legend" has shown enough market enthusiasm, and it is impossible for the theaters to give up.

But it is inevitable that it will bring a lot of trouble, especially it will affect the viewing choices of those who love dogs.

"Isn't a dog dead?"

In the hotel suite, David Ellison tried his best to control the anger in his heart. "There are no positive shots yet, and it is to highlight the theme of the film. As for running to the hotel to protest to the crew?"

The others didn't speak much, just looked at David Ellison.

"Do they have nothing else to do?"

Go to the French window. David Ellison looked down, and he just happened to see the protesting crowd in front of the hotel. He couldn't help but froze. "Why didn't they protest when so many people died in the film? Instead, they protested for a dog?"

Including director Francis Lawrence, the people in the room remained silent.

After a while, Michael Ovitz, who had been sitting on the sofa, stood up and walked over. He stood side by side in front of the French window with David Ellison and persuaded him. "These people are very troublesome. We still have to try our best to quell their protests."

David Ellison is getting angry. He put his arms around his chest, but did not speak.

Although "I Am a Legend" is not a package project of the artist management company, it is also involved. For profit considerations, Michael Ovitz continued, "David. If the protest spreads completely, it will definitely affect "I Am a Legend". At the box office."

He also turned his eyes to the protesting crowd below, "I know you don't care about box office revenue, but this will affect your competition with Duke Rosenberg!"

Hearing the name Duke Rosenberg, David Ellison couldn't help taking a few deep breaths. He suppressed the anger in his heart and considered the current situation from a more realistic perspective.

The box office of the first weekend of "I Am Legend" does not compete with the box office of the first weekend of "The Dark Knight". This does not mean that the next weekend of "The Dark Knight" cannot be suppressed. If the protest causes a loss at the box office, it will definitely Affect his plan.

David Ellison thought for a few minutes, then slowly said, "Hold a press conference."

This weekend, North American commercial chain theaters were basically occupied by "The Dark Knight" and "I Am Legend". The former is still operating at a high level of 4460 theaters, and the film placement rate is even closer to 55 percent; the latter also has 3,600 theaters, and the film placement rate has reached 30%.

The rest of the films can only survive between these two super masterpieces.

The appeal of "The Dark Knight", which was screened the following weekend, declined, but it still attracted the attention of the audience. Many people who had no plan to watch the movie, attracted by the audience's word of mouth, also went into the theater.

Although "I Am a Legend" was affected by the protests, it was still a choice for many people to watch. Will Smith has a strong appeal. The original novel also has a broad fan base, and the film's attendance rate is generally considered optimistic.

However, Duke did not focus entirely on North America. Charles Rowan led the crew and has already carried out a week of publicity in Europe. "The Dark Knight" will also be available in overseas markets this weekend.

It's really hard to tell how such a dark and heavy film has responded overseas.

In Duke's view, even if the overseas box office of "The Dark Knight" really exceeds the North American box office, it will not be much more.

The overseas market is too fragmented and it takes time to collect statistics. However, statistics in North America are relatively easy. Basic statistics from the previous day can be obtained the next day.

On the Friday when "I Am Legend" officially opened, the film successfully overtook "The Dark Knight"'s US$25.66 million with a single-day score of US$27.25 million, becoming the box office champion of the day.

But with the disappearance of the freshness, the lead of "I Am Legend" ends here.

On Saturday, "The Dark Knight" ushered in a strong rebound, with more than 400 attendees that day, and a box office of $32.88 million!

"I Am Legend" declined slightly, ending the day's journey with $26.64 million.

Although Scarlett Johansson made a suggestion that he could chat with David Ellison face-to-face when he called, Duke didn’t have time to pay attention. He left New York by plane early on Sunday morning and returned to Los Angeles. The rest of the crew flew. Go to East Asia and Southeast Asia to create momentum for the overseas screening of "The Dark Knight".

David Ellison, who is staying in New York, has a bit of a temper at the moment. The anger caused by the protest the day before yesterday has not yet vented. Seeing the far behind box office data, he almost wants to go crazy.

"Is there any way to bridge the box office gap between the two films in one day?"

He resisted his anger, stood opposite Michael Ovitz, and asked loudly, "Aren't you the best agent in Hollywood? Don't you claim to serve projects that never fail? Tell me, what else can I do now? ?"

"I'm sorry, David," Michael Ovitz was still sober, "At this time, we can't do anything unless..."

"Unless what?" David Ellison asked again.

Michael Ovitz looked up, looked at him and said, "Unless you spend a lot of money to buy the box office."

What does this sentence mean, David Ellison is of course very clear, he stopped ranting, and seemed to want to consider feasibility.

"But..." Michael Ovitz reminded, "If the news spreads, you will become a joke for the entire Hollywood and even the world's film circles."

David Ellison is always arrogant and arrogant. He thought about it for a moment and shook his head slowly, "This is not a choice for a wise man."

After speaking, he walked to the sofa opposite Michael Ovitz and sat down slowly.

"David, you should think like this, "I am a Legend" did not fail!" A self-comforting voice popped out of his mind, "According to the current trend, the film's first weekend box office will inevitably exceed the expected 70 million US dollars. With a relatively stable trend, it’s not difficult for "I Am a Legend" to achieve profit only at the box office.

If the film can be profitable, he can explain to his father and other financing parties, which means there is a chance to come again.

Walking into the Hollywood circle, even with David Ellison's wealth and identity, he also discovered how important opportunity is. If you want to succeed in Hollywood, opportunity is far more important than talent and even money.

As long as there is a chance to come again, he believes that he will win the day.

On this day, a major event that shocked the entire American film circle occurred on the Internet-the famous Internet movie database, namely imdb, officially announced the temporary closure of the ratings of "The Godfather" and "The Dark Knight" and Comment column to quell mutual attacks between fans of the two factions.

The battle between the fans on the imdb ratings is completely fierce, and the attacks and measures are endless. Even the website administrators who can tolerate the navy can't stand it. They have to take action to stop this which may lead to the collapse of the entire imdb rating order. Attack each other.

However, in the eyes of Duke fans, they are the standard winners. Not only did "The Dark Knight" rank first in the top250 list with 9.6 points, but also took advantage of the overwhelming number of people to reduce the score of "The Godfather" to 8.8. In this way, the 9.0-point "Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" surpassed in one fell swoop and took the second place in the ranking.

But the related column of imdb is closed, and the conflict between fans is far from over. The two sides continue to attack each other relying on social networking sites and major forums. A lot of news has also flowed out on the Internet. Some people think that the fans of "The Godfather" first made a point. In this war, some people think that Duke Blow first attacked the "Godfather?" "...

The truth will only be drowned in the war of words on the Internet. (To be continued...)

ps: Ask for monthly and recommended tickets!