Hollywood Director 1992

In the ninth week since the release of "The Firm," Guess Entertainment's third film of the year, a comedy titled "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective," was released to the public, having just finished production in June.

This film was a joint production between Guess Entertainment and Columbia Pictures, with Guess Entertainment responsible for production and Columbia responsible for promotion and distribution.

The production cost was $12 million, and the marketing budget was $8 million.

After the film's release, Guess Entertainment would receive 38% of North American box office revenue, 30% of overseas box office revenue, and 25% of video sales revenue, accounting for 70% of the producer's box office share, but the film's merchandise rights belonged to Columbia Pictures.

Because the film was distributed by Columbia Pictures, it didn't attract much attention during the initial promotion, as it was assumed to be just another low-budget comedy released by Columbia.

The film starred Jim Carrey, an unknown actor, and was directed by Tom Shadyac, also relatively unknown. Only Monica Bellucci, as the second female lead, had gained some recognition from "Man Bites Dog."

The film's cast didn't have much to offer in terms of star power.

The media and industry peers also didn't pay much attention to the film.

However, after the release of "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective," many media outlets had to shift their attention and coverage to this film.

The reason was simple.

The film unexpectedly became the box office champion of the week.

It grossed $14.26 million in its opening weekend.

It successfully dethroned the five-week reigning action blockbuster "In the Line of Fire," claiming the top spot.

What was even more surprising was that the film was produced by Guess Entertainment, from the producer to the director, lead actor, cinematographer, editor, and post-production team, all handled by Guess Entertainment.

Link was also the film's screenwriter and producer.

Seeing the Guess Entertainment logo and Link's name in the opening credits, many people realized that this film was likely related to Link.

The fact that the film recouped its costs in its opening weekend also made many industry peers envious. After "The Blair Witch Project" and "The Wedding Banquet," another Guess Entertainment film was poised to be a major hit.

It seemed that every film associated with Link was destined for success.

After the release of "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective," films released in the same period were significantly affected.

The previous week's box office champion, "In the Line of Fire," saw its earnings drop below $10 million, while the action blockbuster "Striking Distance," released this week, only grossed $8.72 million.

"The Firm" saw its box office revenue drop below $1 million this week, with only $892,000, a decrease of 60%.

Media outlets predicted that "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective" would gross no less than $80 million in North America.

This news made Michael Ovitz, Richard Gere, Tom Cruise, and others, who were starting to relax, tense again.

Guess Entertainment's "Man Bites Dog" was a hit, "The Blair Witch Project" was a hit, "The Wedding Banquet" was a hit, and "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective" was a hit. Would Link's next film also be a hit?

Based on the current situation, the probability of success was extremely high, and the probability of failure was extremely low.

Robert Downey Jr. and the others panicked, calling Richard Gere to discuss countermeasures.

Richard Gere then called Michael Ovitz to ask for his opinion.

Ultimately, Michael Ovitz decided to continue finding ways to boost the box office of "The Firm," raising the film's revenue to a safe level, so that everyone could wait for Link's film to be released with peace of mind. Otherwise, in five weeks, when the 15-week period was over, there would be no chance to increase "The Firm's" box office takings.

Ovitz's decision was supported by everyone.

Starting in the second week after the release of "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective," the promotion of "The Firm" in the media suddenly increased dramatically, almost as much as the newly released "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective."

At the same time, many comments appeared in the media criticizing "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective," claiming that the film was still terrible and that the entire film relied on Jim Carrey alone, with the rest of the plot being meaningless. They said that Jim Carrey's facial contortions, mania, and stiff, comical movements to please the audience seemed very low-level.

It was argued that it was unfair for such a film to be a hit while classic films like "The Firm" suffered.

Many stars under CAA announced that they would rent out theaters to invite fans to watch Tom Cruise's "The Firm" in order to support this excellent film.

Robert Downey Jr. announced that he would rent out 24 screenings in several cities in Southern California, with free admission for all viewers.

Kiefer Sutherland, David Duchovny, Dustin Hoffman, Richard Gere, and others also announced that they would rent out 24 screenings, while Nicole Kidman announced that she would rent out 40 screenings to support her husband, Tom Cruise. In addition, many other stars under CAA announced that they would rent out theaters to support "The Firm."

Their slogan was 'Support good movies, let bad movies go back to the trash!'.

Under Link's urging, Columbia Pictures also increased the film's promotion, placing "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective" trailers on various television stations, and the film crew also increased the number of roadshows, promoting the film in major cities across North America.

In its second week of release, "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective" earned $27.05 million, with a cumulative box office of $41.31 million.

It remained the box office champion of the week.

"The Firm" also took in $8.37 million this week, with a cumulative North American box office of $176 million.

In its third week of release, "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective" earned $17.62 million, with a cumulative box office of $68.94 million.

CAA also continued its efforts, with its stars continuing to rent out theaters, but the intensity was significantly reduced. "The Firm" earned $6.16 million this week, with a cumulative box office of $182 million.

No mistake, one first, one content, one at a glance!

In its sixth week of release, "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective" earned $5.47 million, with a cumulative North American box office of $86.21 million.

After 15 weeks of release, with the efforts of CAA and Paramount Pictures, as well as many stars, "The Firm" pushed its North American box office to $202 million, successfully breaking the $200 million mark.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, CAA and Paramount Pictures spent more than $30 million on "The Firm"'s box office.

Now, "The Firm" has a North American box office of $202 million in its first 15 weeks.

How much will Link's new film gross?

Who will ultimately win the bet between Link and Tom Cruise and others?

Many people were eagerly awaiting.

Amidst everyone's expectations, Link's third film, "Final Destination," announced its release plan, scheduled for October 22, just before Halloween.

Seemingly in order to target Link's new film, the CAA agency used various means to have several potentially successful films moved earlier or later to be released around October 22.

These included Sylvester Stallone's action blockbuster "Demolition Man," Paramount Pictures' sequel to the hit film "The Addams Family," titled "Addams Family Values," Meg Ryan and Dennis Quaid's "Flesh and Bone," and the science fiction action blockbuster "RoboCop 3."

Some were Paramount Pictures films, and some were films from the other six major film companies.

Michael Ovitz's ability to mobilize so many resources to block Link's new film through his connections shows, on the one hand, that Michael Ovitz has deep connections and powerful energy, and on the other hand, that the seven major film companies are also hostile to Link and Guess Entertainment, not wanting to see Guess Entertainment rise.

Originally, the onlookers were confident in Link's next film after seeing Guess Entertainment's "The Wedding Banquet" and "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective" become major hits, believing that Link had a chance to win the bet.

However, with the scheduling changes of several blockbusters, everyone's confidence in Link began to decline, believing that it would be difficult for "Final Destination" to break through the siege of several blockbusters and achieve a good box office result, and the probability of reaching $202 million in North America was extremely small.

"Haha, with so many films blocking 'Final Destination,' it will be difficult for 'Final Destination' to even earn $60 million. Link is sure to lose this time."

"Link is quite stupid. I originally thought he would release his new film around the winter break, but he released it at the end of October. October is a slow season for movies, and it's difficult for any film to sell over $100 million."

"Regardless, the most tense moment has passed. Now, let us raise our glasses and welcome the final victory."

"Cheers!"

In a bar, Richard Gere, Robert Downey Jr., and others raised their glasses in celebration.