Chapter 192: A Horror Film That Breaks Perceptions

"Bruce, well done. I knew you could do it. Just like this, turn the tables and pin Julia underneath you!"

Seeing *The Sixth Sense* complete the box office overtake, although it was a slim lead of only 300,000, the *The Sixth Sense* side was still filled with joy.

Wu Yuchen naturally kept pumping Bruce Willis up; after all, he was the main force in promotion, directly affecting the effectiveness of the film's roadshow promotion.

Bruce was also shocked by the Saturday box office. At first, he didn't think he could really beat *Runaway Bride*, and he didn't expect it to rise so much all at once, even completing an overtake. Now, seeing this situation, combined with such good word-of-mouth and the forecasts from professional organizations, his confidence in the film's box office had greatly increased. He laughed happily at Wu Yuchen:

"Aha! Wu, don't worry. I am Bruce Willis, after all. Staying power is an essential quality for a tough guy!"

Facts proved that not only was Bruce Willis resilient, but the box office of *The Sixth Sense* was also resilient.

Because Sunday is adjacent to a workday, box office usually drops significantly compared to Saturday. For example, *Runaway Bride* still had 13.11 million on Saturday, but only 945 million remained on Sunday, a drop of nearly 30%.

And the Sunday box office for *The Sixth Sense* left the Big Mouth, who was looking at the document, speechless: 15.31 million!

The Sunday box office for *The Sixth Sense* not only didn't drop compared to Saturday, but it actually achieved a magical counter-trend increase!

This rise and fall on Sunday directly created a gap between the box office of *The Sixth Sense* and *Runaway Bride*.

The opening weekend box office of 35.09 million for *Runaway Bride* was, in all fairness, not bad. Logically, it was enough to support the film in crossing 100 million in North America and earning quite a bit of profit, and it could also prove that she, as Hollywood's Big Sister, could support a 20 million salary. But looking at the 41.29 million—which had broken 40 million—for *The Sixth Sense* ranked ahead of it, Julia Roberts couldn't be happy.

Failing to get the opening weekend championship undoubtedly meant falling behind by one position, and since the film's word-of-mouth was also inferior to the opponent's, many wavering audience members would be won over by the other side. Although the film market isn't a winner-takes-all, it does have a snowball effect.

And on the *The Sixth Sense* crew side, seeing this 41.29 million opening weekend box office, the most excited was undoubtedly Jennifer Connelly. After all, Wu Yuchen had already taken an opening weekend box office of over 50 million with *Phone Booth*, and Bruce Willis had experienced many big scenes.

Wu Yuchen was also quite satisfied looking at the 41.29 million opening weekend box office; it wasn't in vain that he had insisted on Disney fighting for a larger number of opening cinemas. Afterward, he glanced at *The Blair Witch Project* in third place with 19 million. He felt that if it weren't for that film, the box office data for *The Sixth Sense* could have been even higher; after all, both films contained horror and thriller elements, and the overlapping themes would more or less siphon off a portion of the audience.

However, there was no need to worry too much. *The Sixth Sense* had been able to set an astonishing box office record in its past life mainly due to the box office endurance brought by its word-of-mouth. He believed that this portion of regular moviegoers would eventually walk into cinemas because of the good word-of-mouth for *The Sixth Sense*.

Bruce Willis toasted Wu Yuchen with a glass of red wine and said with a smile, "No matter how many times you've won the box office championship, when you occupy this position again, it will always make you feel wonderful~"

"Bruce, I thought you were already used to it!"

Bruce Willis chuckled and said, "Hollywood competition is very fierce. Even big stars can easily crash and burn, not to mention this time I ran into Julia Roberts and Richard Gere. Winning against *Runaway Bride* makes even me feel surprised! Wu, *The Sixth Sense* is truly a good film. Thank you for inviting me~"

What made him even happier this time was that while his acting was recognized, he could also reap a high box office. Moreover, *The Sixth Sense* directly helped him achieve a transformation, which was equivalent to helping him broaden his acting path, removing the label that he could only play tough guys, and making his chances of competing for some dramatic roles much higher in the future.

Wu Yuchen smiled: "Bruce, your performance is also great. This role was meant for you!"

Then he changed the subject and joked: "However, I think it's a bit too early for you to say thank you~"

"Hmm?" Bruce Willis was curious.

"When the film leaves theaters and the total box office is released, it won't be too late then!"

"Uh, Wu, you mean... this film's box office will bring me a surprise?" Bruce Willis asked uncertainly.

"Maybe it could even set a new record for your career box office, who knows~" Wu Yuchen said with a smile, gently swirling his wine glass.

Bruce couldn't help but laugh upon hearing this. He thought Wu Yuchen must be joking. After all, his career box office record was quite high. Just last year, he starred in a disaster film directed by Michael Bay, *Armageddon*, which swept a total global box office of 553 million USD, ranking first in the global box office for 1998.

Although the opening weekend box office for *The Sixth Sense* was very eye-catching and the word-of-mouth was off the charts, in his view, wanting to exceed the 553 million of *Armageddon* was simply impossible.

Think about what films have been able to break 500 million USD over the years? They are blockbusters like *Titanic*, *Jurassic Park*, and *Independence Day*. They need big scenes and big productions to conquer more audience eyes. Although *The Sixth Sense* is also very good, small-budget genre films are still not as visually stimulating or shocking as big productions.

In his view, if *The Sixth Sense* could reach the 350 million predicted by Cinemascore, that would be very good!

Looking at Wu Yuchen's young face, Bruce Willis could also understand the mindset of a young person floating after achieving proud results. He hadn't been without that experience back in the day, feeling like he was the center of the world.

However, Bruce Willis wasn't a fool. Naturally, he wouldn't say anything to dampen Wu Yuchen's spirits when everyone was happy. He clinked his glass with Wu Yuchen's, making a crisp sound:

"Wow, Wu, I have to say your idea scared me. But I sincerely hope *The Sixth Sense* can push my box office record to a new peak. If that happens, I'll be able to wake up laughing in my sleep!"

"Hahaha, you will!"

"*The Sixth Sense* opening weekend box office breaks 40 million, courageously taking the box office championship!"

"Bruce Willis's transformation piece crushes Julia Roberts to take the championship!"

"Bruce Willis's brilliant acting recognized by the audience, *The Sixth Sense* box office championship is well-deserved!"

The newspapers not only reported on the box office battle and film reviews but also included some comments and statements from stars about the film, such as Leonardo DiCaprio, who had now undoubtedly become an A-list star.

"Yes, I went to watch *The Sixth Sense* the first chance I got. The ending really stunned me, it's too great! Both Bruce and Haley delivered brilliant performances. Of course, Director Wu is crucial. I've worked with him and understand what a talented director he is. I look forward to having another chance to work with Wu in the future~"

There was also Shi Tailong, who was at home taking care of his daughter. The old guy's second daughter was born just last year, so he had turned down quite a few invitations to be a full-time dad.

"Without a doubt, Wu is a very capable director; his talent is beyond question. If it weren't for my daughter just being born, I would definitely have gone to compete for *The Sixth Sense*. I could have played that role well too!"

Seeing these two male leads he had worked with stand up one after another to speak for *The Sixth Sense*, Wu Yuchen curled his lips. Of course, he understood better that this was because his film was successful; otherwise, even if Leonardo and Shi Tailong had a friendship with him, they wouldn't speak against the wind.

It wasn't just mass media tools like newspapers; the good word-of-mouth for *The Sixth Sense* also made audience members who had seen it spontaneously recommend it to relatives and friends around them, or engage in "self-water" (grassroots promotion) behavior on the internet.

"Trust me, you must go watch *The Sixth Sense*. Its ending is too great! You can't even imagine it!"

"Tom, you definitely can't guess what the ending of *The Sixth Sense* is!"

"The ending of *The Sixth Sense* has a shocking reversal that will definitely stun you!"

"Don't go watch *The Blair Witch Project*, that's garbage! Go watch *The Sixth Sense*, that's the real masterpiece!"

Once the work week arrived, whether it was *The Sixth Sense* or *Runaway Bride*, the box office inevitably faced a significant decline.

Like *Runaway Bride*, it faced a direct halving, with a daily box office of only 4 million-plus. In contrast, *The Sixth Sense* was much better, with Zhou Yi's box office holding at 9 million.

Once the cinema chains saw this, good heavens, *The Sixth Sense*'s performance was going to lead the pack! They had to increase the screenings!

And so, unknowingly, the number of cinema chains and screenings for *The Sixth Sense* gradually increased. As *The Sixth Sense* increased, naturally, others had to decrease.

The target for this reduction wasn't *Runaway Bride*. Although its daily box office was only half of *The Sixth Sense*'s, the Big Mouth and Richard Gere still had prestige and drawing power, so the number of screenings wasn't cut much.

The one that got cut was naturally *The Blair Witch Project*, the film that also contained horror and thriller elements. You, a mere third-place film, are of the same genre as the leader, and every time the audience leaves before the film is half over, with many cursing loudly—if I don't cut you, who do I cut?

9.05 million, 9.86 million, 10.05 million, 9.95 million—over four workdays, *The Sixth Sense* reaped another 38.91 million in box office. Although this had attracted the attention of those with an eye for it, it wasn't considered very abnormal.

And what truly surprised the market was the second weekend box office for *The Sixth Sense*: 41.04 million!

A normal second weekend box office is actually similar to *Runaway Bride*, dropping 35% compared to the opening weekend, with only 22 million.

And *The Sixth Sense*? It was only 250,000 lower than the 41.29 million of the opening weekend!

This drop was less than 1%!

This immediately made quite a few people in Hollywood drop their jaws. What is this trying to do? Are you trying to go "demon-mode" and replicate the trajectory of *Titanic*?

At the same time, the North American total box office for *The Sixth Sense* after 10 days of release had reached 121 million. Without a doubt, compared to the 60 million production cost, it was a huge success!

Taking this opportunity, the promoters of *The Sixth Sense* naturally didn't hesitate to promote it extensively, grasping onto the film's good word-of-mouth, the shocking reversal at the end, family affection, Bruce Willis's acting, the child star who could act in America, and Wu Yuchen's third consecutive film to break 100 million in North America.

While newspapers, television, and other public opinion tools were full of praise for *The Sixth Sense*, all parties were also paying attention to the box office of *The Sixth Sense*.

On the new Zhou Yi, when they saw the box office for *The Sixth Sense* finally dive to 6 million, many people breathed a sigh of relief. However, 6 million was actually still very high. Didn't you see that the daily box office for the runner-up *Runaway Bride* was less than 3 million?

6.13 million, 6.25 million, 6.02 million, 5.85 million—24.25 million over the four mid-week days. And by the third weekend, the box office for *The Sixth Sense* only dropped 23%, taking 31.60 million in box office.

Looking at this momentum, the box office potential was still strong!

At this time, the total box office for *The Sixth Sense* had reached 177 million, very close to the 180 million North American box office originally predicted by Cinemascore. Anyone could see that this wouldn't be the end for *The Sixth Sense*!

On the new Zhou Yi, Cinemascore also directly raised the forecast for *The Sixth Sense* in its latest report: 250 million North American box office, 500 million global box office!

For a horror-themed film, this was an unimaginable number. Think about how the North American box office for *The Silence of the Lambs* was only 138 million, and the global total box office was only 273 million—and that was a horror-themed masterpiece that swept the Oscars!

But now, no one would think this forecast from Cinemascore was nonsense. After all, the results for *The Sixth Sense* were right there.

In the fourth week, the daily box office for the four mid-week days dropped to around 4 million, with 25.38 million over the three weekend days, pushing the North American total box office to 220 million!

For a horror-themed film to have broken 220 million in North American box office in less than a month of release—not just Hollywood, but the entire United States knew of such a film. This box office broke many people's perceptions of horror films.

For a time, a large number of reviews and analyses regarding *The Sixth Sense* were released again, just to dissect where exactly this film was so good:

"Director Wu Yuchen is very clever. To tell this story well, he set up the plot step-by-step from the very beginning, laying out the atmosphere, and the rhythm was layered, preparing everything for the explosion of the ending at the very last moment."

"Classic films with twist endings are always endlessly thought-provoking. Just as you are eagerly guessing the ending, a shocking moment suddenly descends: the male lead, the psychologist who has been gently accompanying you for 100 minutes, Bruce Willis, he was actually dead all along!"

"After experiencing the baptism of this storm-like, unexpected climax, various details from before will unconsciously surface in your mind, and then you will find that these details and the ending fit together so cleverly. You will then sigh to the heavens, lamenting that you have encountered such a masterpiece again, savoring the infinite special pleasure during it."

"And the ending of the film also allowed the entire film's theme to be sublimated. Compared to American horror-thriller films that jump-scare, what Wu Yuchen is actually trying to explore is the unfathomable spiritual world of humanity. What the film truly wants to talk about is the reconciliation between people."

"The boy's line in the film, 'They only see what they want to see,' this line isn't just talking about ghosts, but every single person! Ghosts can't see each other, and aren't people the same?"

"We cannot measure *The Sixth Sense* by the standards of horror films, because it not only has horror, thrills, and suspense, but also contains family affection, love, as well as tolerance and understanding."

"Without a doubt, from the father-son affection in *Frequency*, the trust and honesty between lovers in *Phone Booth*, to this *The Sixth Sense*, Director Wu Yuchen, who created it, is masterful in depicting the relationships between people!" ===== CHAPTER 193 =====