"Guess who?" A pair of small hands covered Gilbert's eyes from behind.
Gilbert instantly knew who it was. He gently pushed the hands away, saying, "Scarlett, stop being so playful."
"Hmph!" Scarlett Johansson gave a cute hmph, then walked around to face Gilbert, expressing her displeasure. "Gilbert, you've changed. You've become mean."
Gilbert looked innocent. "What did I do?"
"You didn't even invite me to be in your movie! Did you forget our agreement?" The little girl looked incredibly resentful.
Gilbert was even more confused. "Hey, Scarlett, when did we make that agreement?"
Scarlett Johansson's eyes widened in disbelief. "You actually forgot our agreement..." The little girl's eyes started to well up, looking like she was about to cry.
Gilbert couldn't stand seeing women cry, and little girls were no exception. He rubbed his head, quickly comforting her, "Alright, alright, I remember now, there was indeed such an agreement, Scarlett. It's just that this movie really doesn't have a suitable role for you, so I couldn't cast you."
"Then what do I do?" The little girl was still teary-eyed. "I told all my friends that I'd be in your movie again. Now that I'm not, they'll make fun of me when I go back."
"Uh," Gilbert sighed helplessly, then appeased her, "How about next time? I'll let you be in the next movie, okay?"
"Really?" Scarlett Johansson's tears turned into a smile. "Then I want to play the lead role."
"Scarlett, do you want me to make a children's movie?" Gilbert asked with a laugh.
"Why not? Is it impossible?" Scarlett retorted.
"If you want to play the lead, you'll have to put in a lot of effort. Have you been behaving and going to school lately?" Gilbert began to inquire about the little girl's academic performance.
Scarlett's face tightened, and she changed the subject. "Well, actually, I'm doing pretty well. Ms. Kate even praised me."
Ms. Kate was Scarlett's teacher, who once informed Ms. Sloan about the troubles Scarlett caused at school, and Gilbert happened to be present. Scarlett was quite mischievous, even getting into fights with boys at school, acting like a little leader. However, in front of Gilbert, she always pretended to be a little lady. She truly is worthy of being one of the future "Four Darlings of Hollywood." Compared to the "Four Darlings" of the entertainment industry, Scarlett Johansson's professional skills are still stronger, at least in terms of acting.
Gilbert chuckled at Scarlett's evasiveness, then patted the little girl's head. "Study hard, okay? I'll check your grades when I get back. As long as your grades meet the standard, I'll give you an audition."
"Why can't you just make me the lead?" Scarlett pouted. But seeing Gilbert's face turn serious, Scarlett realized her request was too much and immediately made a zipping motion over her mouth. "Okay, it's a deal then! You can't go back on your word."
"Don't worry, Scarlett, I won't forget. And you shouldn't forget our agreement to study hard."
---
Typically, only Asians emphasize studying hard, viewing academic achievement as the greatest path to changing one's destiny. Gilbert was unknowingly aligning with the way of thinking. Since he didn't have children, he couldn't push them to achieve greatness. So, he indulged in the pleasure of monitoring Scarlett's studies, enjoying the authority his parents had over him in his past life.
After comforting Scarlett and seeing her off for the Christmas holiday, Gilbert dealt with some accumulated work at Cantaloupe Studio. This primarily involved the settlement of profits from several films that had been gradually coming in. The global success of "The Rock" once again brought substantial profits to Cantaloupe Studio.
In early December, the film was released on VHS and VCD, selling 800,000 units in its first week, breaking "Jurassic Park"'s record for home video releases. Of course, this had little to do with Cantaloupe Studio. The distribution of VHS and VCDs primarily relied on Warner Bros.' parent company, Time Warner, whose home video distribution arm acquired the North American distribution rights for seven million dollars over five years. After that period, "The Rock" could continue to sell distribution rights, providing long-term income.
Disney didn't have similar channels or subsidiaries; their animated film VHS releases largely depended on Time Warner's channels. Disney's strong point, however, was in merchandise, like Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck plush toys. Notably, this year, Winnie the Pooh's sales surpassed Mickey Mouse for the first time, becoming Disney's best-selling merchandise.
"The Rock" merchandise wasn't as popular as "Real Steel." It mostly included cross-promotions with Humvees, Ferraris, sunglasses, and the characters' clothing from the film. Additionally, protagonist action figures and collectible models were sold in merchandise stores. This is where the advantage of a handsome leading actor shone.
---
Although the box office performance of "Interview with the Vampire" wasn't stellar—I heard Tom Cruise even spent five million dollars out of his own pocket to boost its North American box office to over a hundred million—this is a common practice among many Hollywood stars. To make the opening weekend numbers look good, they often shell out money to buy tickets. So, if you're lucky, you might spot empty "ghost screenings" at the cinema, which are usually the extra showtimes created when a film's star buys a large block of tickets. Of course, film companies and theaters wouldn't stop them; after all, money is money, no matter who it comes from!
Even with the purchased tickets, the film barely scraped past a hundred million dollars at the North American box office, but "Interview with the Vampire" still saw decent merchandise sales. Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt's costumes from the film, along with their action figures, generated impressive sales. While the film wasn't a smashing success, it at least made a profit, and didn't tarnish Tom Cruise's reputation as a box office golden boy.
In fact, as long as he wasn't acting with Nicole Kidman, Tom Cruise's box office power was quite strong. He just had bad luck, being too handsome and unwilling to sacrifice his image to play roles like psychopaths, perverts, or homosexuals, which is why he couldn't win an Oscar. The Academy's bias against handsome actors is even stronger than its bias against commercial blockbusters.
---
Before returning to the set, Gilbert accepted an invitation to a small party hosted by Tom Cruise, with Naomi Watts accompanying him. Times had changed. In the past, Gilbert met Naomi Watts through parties when she was an unknown in Hollywood, struggling to make ends meet by working in restaurants and nightclubs. But now, Naomi Watts is a rising A-list actress in Hollywood, with several projects in hand, including Warner Bros.' "Twister," in which she plays the female lead. The film is directed by Jan de Bont and written by Michael Crichton, the original author and screenwriter of "Jurassic Park." Naomi Watts is the top-billed star, with a larger role than the male lead, Bill Paxton. Most importantly, the film has a production budget of $110 million, making it a definite A-list blockbuster.
Speaking of which, films with budgets exceeding $100 million have become increasingly common in recent years. The box office failure of "Waterworld" didn't deter film studios; they continued to increase their investments. 20th Century Fox alone produced two blockbusters with over $100 million investments: "Titanic" and "Independence Day." Of course, most of the investment was secured through financing. Hollywood's continuous creation of high box office returns made Wall Street's "vampires" incredibly envious, leading to a large influx of Wall Street capital into Hollywood. So, film studios aren't short on cash these days because they hardly have to put in much of their own money. Of course, the Wall Street "vampires" will soon realize they've been fooled. Because investing in films is completely different from the financial sector, Wall Street was exploited beyond recognition, yet they continued to pour money in tirelessly.
Compared to Naomi Watts' smooth sailing, Nicole Kidman had been treading water for years, stuck in her identity as Mrs. Cruise. It seemed that besides this status, Nicole Kidman couldn't produce any other notable roles. It was almost uncanny how, aside from films she collaborated on with her husband, Tom Cruise, every movie Nicole Kidman starred in flopped. This woman has cunning and tactics; three Naomi Watts combined wouldn't match her. She's also beautiful, highly popular, and at the peak of her looks, yet her films just don't sell. This goes to show that looks and popularity don't necessarily equate to box office success; often, there are some metaphysical elements at play.
---
Therefore, seeing Naomi Watts again, Nicole Kidman felt a touch of envy. Watching Gilbert happily chatting with her husband, Nicole Kidman remarked to Naomi Watts in an envious tone, "Naomi, congratulations, all the films you've been in this year have done quite well."
Naomi Watts' face showed pure happiness. "It's all thanks to Gilbert's guidance; that's why my luck has truly exploded this year."
"Yes, it really shows how important it is to follow the right person," Nicole Kidman said, looking at Tom Cruise, as if expressing dissatisfaction.
On the other side, Tom Cruise was animatedly recounting his filming of "Mission: Impossible." "Gilbert, inspired by you, I did all the scenes and dangerous stunts myself in the movie. We accomplished so many incredible things. There's a scene where I'm suspended from the ceiling, stealing something—I absolutely love that part."
"Tom, congratulations on completing the challenge," Gilbert said, offering rare praise, then probed, "Has the film been scheduled for release yet? We wouldn't want to clash with each other's release dates, would we?"
Tom Cruise shook his head. "I absolutely do not want to run into you, the King of Summer Blockbusters, during the summer. I've already suggested to Paramount that the film be released in late May. What about your new film?"
Gilbert shook his head, indicating, "I'm not sure yet. The film is still in production, and the release date won't be announced until before the Super Bowl."
In reality, Gilbert had already discussed the release date with Charles Roven, Caine Wackerman, and others, and they all agreed that releasing it around Victory in Europe Day or Memorial Day would be good. Victory in Europe Day is May 8th, and with the preceding weekend, the entire window would be included, making it a suitable date.
Tom Cruise clinked glasses with Gilbert. "I hope we don't meet in the summer."
"Don't worry, Tom, I don't want to run into you in the summer either," Gilbert chuckled.
---
After the party ended, Gilbert and Naomi Watts walked back. Naomi Watts said, "Gilbert, I think Nicole is a bit unhappy with Tom."
"Oh? Is that so?" Gilbert's reaction was rather cold; those two would divorce eventually, so it was no surprise.
Naomi Watts continued, "Nicole's career hasn't progressed much in recent years. I think she'll be looking for new opportunities. I think you could help her; she's quite beautiful, too."
Gilbert tilted his head. "Are you asking me to be a 'Cao Thief'?"
Naomi Watts asked, puzzled, "What's a 'Cao Thief'?"
"Uh, a historical figure ."
"Oh!"
Then came silence. Although Naomi Watts had learned a few phrases from Gilbert, understanding historical figures was still a bit too difficult for her. Gilbert was still thinking that even if he wanted to pursue her, he'd have to wait until after their divorce. Otherwise, with Tom Cruise's temper, he'd probably challenge him to an octagon cage fight! In matters of the heart, Tom Cruise and Gilbert were both the same kind of person—very selfish.
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