From Flower Vase to Film Emperor in Hollywood

Indeed, "The New York Times" is just a newspaper, and Nicholas's interview is just an interview. In the ocean of information, it seems insignificant.

But imagine, even someone of Anna Wintour's stature immediately noticed the "New York Times" interview and took action. The impact on society after the newspaper's release can be foreseen—a single spark can start a prairie fire.

A bombshell!

A sensation!

Aftershocks!

Accurately speaking, the real bombshell stemmed from Nicholas's writing style. It was a shock to the current media landscape. He broke the fourth wall with a first-person perspective, leading readers into the world created by the interview, subtly guiding them behind carefully arranged words, creating a tidal wave of shock.

The second wave of impact came from the content of the text, from the Anson sketched out by the words. Although he is a new actor, he has already made three consecutive impacts in the fashion world, from being besieged at the "Friends" studio to "GQ" magazine to the Emmy Awards red carpet. The "Princess Diaries" premiere red carpet once again sparked heated discussion, and then the interview appeared.

Everything, at just the right time.

Not just ordinary readers, look at Anna's reaction to imagine the heated discussions among Hollywood insiders:

Perhaps not everyone is interested in Anson, perhaps not everyone agrees with Anson's lifestyle—some may even sneer and dismiss it. Perhaps not everyone can grasp the pulse of the times like Anna, but undeniably, the discussion is heating up.

So-called heat is controversy.

If it's one-sided praise or one-sided criticism, it seems mediocre and uninteresting, unable to stir up waves, and disappears after a wave. But controversy can ignite viewpoints from different aspects and perspectives, truly involving everyone in the discussion, and then—

The topic explodes.

Unlike the wave Jennifer Aniston caused, with women rushing to imitate her, the bustling discussions surrounding Anson have a wider reach, from the stereotype of a pretty face to the actor's self-identity, from a fashionable lifestyle to a labeled personal image, and so on.

Most importantly, Anson? Are you sure, Anson Wood? A new pretty-boy actor who has appeared in two works is actually talking so big. Isn't he afraid of his tongue slipping?

In Hollywood today, mysticism is still the mainstream. Almost all practitioners advocate maintaining mystery, with publicists and agents creating an image for actors, keeping them at a distance from the general public. But now, Anson is breaking this mysterious aura, revealing the actor's true face.

Hollywood: ???

There's sneering, sarcasm, cursing, excitement, and curiosity, as bustling controversy unfolds.

So, what is the source of this Anson's confidence?

Naturally, attention falls on "The Princess Diaries."

In fact, behind these heated discussions and debates, everything is about timing—

In early August, in theory, the summer season is coming to an end. From the audience to the media to industry insiders, everyone is slowly entering a state of decline. Even the scale and popularity of the released works are incomparable.

Unexpectedly, "Rush Hour 2" wrote a small miracle; "The Princess Diaries" also exploded a little, instantly pulling everyone's attention back, and the summer season battle was reignited.

It was against this background that a "new, unremarkable" handsome pretty-boy actor stirred up two waves in just one week, one at the premiere red carpet and the other in "The New York Times." This level of treatment easily ignited heated discussions in the industry.

What does he rely on?

If Hollywood insiders have this idea, it's not surprising that ordinary viewers think so too. The difference is that the general public lacks some aggression and criticism, and is more curious, curious with a fault-finding mentality—

What kind of actor is it that can spark such a discussion?

Is this for real?

So, when people walk into the cinema out of curiosity, what can "The Princess Diaries" bring?

I don't know.

Because "The New York Times" said nothing. The interview presented the true image of an actor, but the discussion of the film was almost invisible, so people don't know what they should expect.

Naturally, the image of Anson presented on the big screen will deviate from expectations—no matter what the expectations are, the film is different from their imagination, and a new round of discussion will be ushered in.

Like? Dislike? Indifferent?

More importantly, can a movie like "The Princess Diaries" stand scrutiny and discussion?

Everything falls into the unknown.

But this unknown is exciting and exhilarating.

"The New York Times" ignited a faint spark, but with the collision of opportunity, location, and people, it fueled the momentum, and in a blink of an eye, it spread mightily, showing a prairie fire and igniting the remaining energy of the summer season.

The cinemas became lively again, and no one expected that this year's summer season would still see such a scene in August.

In the second week of August, "American Pie 2" premiered.

Two years ago, Universal Pictures, which has always been keen on making big profits with small investments, launched a teen sex comedy "American Pie" during the summer season. This work, with a production cost of only 11 million US dollars, seemed weak and helpless among a number of heavyweight projects in the summer season, but unexpectedly, the film ushered in a box office harvest, not only was it very popular in North America, but also went global.

A box office of 102 million US dollars in North America and 235 million US dollars worldwide.

"American Pie" not only became one of the works with the highest profit-to-revenue ratio that year, and Universal Pictures made a lot of money; but it also became a cultural phenomenon, triggering heated discussions in all directions, and putting the sequel on the agenda was a natural result.

This week, "American Pie 2" is finally here.

To some extent, "American Pie 2" and "Rush Hour 2" are very similar. The previous works had mediocre reputations and were not liked by professional film critics, but they exploded the market and achieved box office success, and the sequels were released.

Now, the sequel's mass base also makes the film's box office prospects look promising.

"American Pie 2" and "The Princess Diaries" are both campus comedies. From the genre, they are indeed head-on collisions, but in specific segments, the former is a teen sex comedy, while the latter is a romantic love fairy tale. The target markets do not overlap, and may even be completely opposite.

When the schedule was set, people generally believed that the two works should be independent of each other, but to some extent, "American Pie 2" may become a potential interference factor; but now, the situation has changed subtly, and the target audience of "American Pie 2" may also be interested in "The Princess Diaries."

This is also something that people did not expect.

However, predictions are just predictions, all just talk on paper, and in the end, we still have to fight with real swords and guns to see the actual situation.