From Flower Vase to Film Emperor in Hollywood

A special year, a special landscape. The autumn and holiday seasons presented a thriving scene, with Hollywood's major film companies busier than ever. Beneath the bustling and lively surface, however, lay a power struggle for market realignment, with competition fiercer than imagined.

Warner Bros. once again demonstrated its courage and ambition.

However.

The box office of "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" ultimately failed to turn the tide. Granted, the film still performed well, once again proving the drawing power of the series, and was far from a failure; but compared to Warner Bros.' earnest expectations, the box office performance was still disappointing.

Especially against the backdrop of "Spider-Man" rewriting history.

However, Warner Bros. need not panic, because "Harry Potter" was not the only major work to feel the market's energy being drained.

"Die Another Day", the James Bond film, had grossed $138 million after four weeks, but weekend box office numbers had already fallen to $7.8 million.

"Star Trek: Nemesis" grossed $18 million in its opening weekend, even losing to the chick flick "Maid in Manhattan."

"Gangs of New York"'s opening box office was $9 million. The fundamental reason it was only released in 1,500 theaters was that word-of-mouth had not exploded—

Although this film directed by Martin Scorsese was aimed more at the awards season, the cast of Daniel Day-Lewis, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Cameron Diaz cost a full $100 million to produce, and Miramax Films' expectations were clearly more than that.

Disappointment. Dud. Sluggish.

Quietly, this was becoming the main theme of the autumn and holiday seasons.

Of course, it wasn't all bad news—

"8 Mile", the semi-autobiographical film of rap superstar Eminem, became a dark horse. With a production cost of only $40 million, it carved out a bloody path amidst a group of top-tier heavyweights, igniting the spotlight. After six weeks of release, the cumulative box office had easily reached $110 million, with Universal Pictures, known for turning small investments into big wins, writing another success story.

But that wasn't enough, not nearly enough.

Under the spotlight and earnest expectations, the result—

Was that it?

The entire Hollywood seemed listless. Although many secretly mocked Warner Bros.' wishful thinking, the true tycoons at the top of the pyramid regretted that Warner Bros.' bold attempt had not succeeded.

They were not worried about Warner Bros.' success, because once Warner Bros. succeeded in opening up the autumn and holiday seasons, other film companies would not hesitate to join the battlefield. Sharing the fun is better than enjoying it alone.

Amidst a bleak and regrettable atmosphere, 2002 was drawing to a close, with the last wave of the holiday season remaining—

The annual Christmas season.

"The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers" debuted.

$60 million over the weekend, $102 million in the first five days.

First of all, this was an achievement worth celebrating, because director Peter Jackson had only spent $94 million on production costs, and the film's box office numbers foreshadowed that Warner Bros. and New Line Cinema could easily achieve profitability, possibly earning more than "Harry Potter."

Secondly, such results still did not meet expectations. Not to mention completely igniting the holiday season, the cumulative box office numbers for the first five days were still not as good as "Spider-Man"'s opening weekend. Sure enough, there was no harm without comparison, and even a sigh of regret could be clearly heard.

"...I told you Peter Parker's miracle wasn't so easy to replicate."

"I didn't expect to miss it."

"So where exactly is it lacking? Warner Bros. was determined to win, but fell short."

"No way, is it still because the ambition is too great?"

"The holiday season can't compare to the summer season after all."

"In this situation, should they obediently admit defeat, or are they still unwilling to fail?"

Rustling, chattering.

The atmosphere in the entire Hollywood was slightly strange, but without a doubt, the topic and focus were all concentrated on Warner Bros. and the holiday season—

And discussions unfolded.

Even the two top-tier series, "Harry Potter" and "The Lord of the Rings," had not been able to replicate the energy that "Spider-Man" ignited this summer, so what did this mean?

One possibility was that the holiday season ultimately could not compete with the tradition of the summer season, and perhaps Warner Bros. should abandon its plan to open up a new battlefield in the holiday season.

One possibility was that the success of "Spider-Man" was unique and could not be replicated. Just as it took five full years after "Titanic" ignited the box office bomb at the end of the century for a second film to reach $600 million in North America, the market had not yet reached such a high level, and film companies should slow down.

So, the former, or the latter? Or are there other possibilities?

It was against this backdrop that "Catch Me If You Can" debuted at Christmas.

Here it comes, here comes the opportunity to answer people's questions and open up the market.

Although "Catch Me If You Can" was not "Spider-Man", and to be precise, these were two completely different works with no relationship or comparability; but in this context, it aroused countless imaginations and speculations.

First, did the success of "Spider-Man" mean Anson's rise to the top?

Second, could Anson, who had just rewritten the landscape of the North American film market not long ago, stir up waves in the holiday season?

Third, if other works ultimately failed to subvert the situation and reverse the tide, could "Catch Me If You Can" turn the tide and rewrite the story?

Various. Various.

Perhaps "Catch Me If You Can" was not "Spider-Man", but such a crime film full of infinite reverie, encompassing the top-tier collaboration lineup of Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks, and Anson Wood, Hollywood had sufficient reason to pay attention to the film's final box office trend.

Not only DreamWorks, and not only Warner Bros., the entire Hollywood's vision collectively focused.

Thus.

The bustling and surging heat gradually brewed, and reached its peak after the release of the five-day box office statistics for "The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers"—

"Ah, what a pity! In the end, 'Catch Me If You Can' needs to provide the answer."

"Not long ago, Anson Wood answered the difficult question of the summer season. Now, the difficult question of the holiday season is once again in front of us. Do we still need to rely on Anson Wood?"

"Anson Wood: Can he become the first superstar since the new century?"

In 2002, Hollywood had not yet entered the era of copyright. This city that never sleeps, a field of fame and fortune, still believed in the superstar effect.

From Tom Cruise to Brad Pitt to Will Smith and finally to Leonardo DiCaprio, the entire 1990s was always shrouded in the light of superstars. A top actor could call on millions of viewers across the market to enter theaters and pay for works.

This was a dazzling era of stars.

Until the death of superstars and the shining of copyright, Leonardo DiCaprio became the last superstar of the end of the century, and now Hollywood has put forward a brand new point of view:

Can Anson Wood become the first superstar of the beginning of the century?