Chapter 211

On the third day of the release of "District 9," the box office slipped a little, but it was still more than the first day of release, reaching a box office of 27.85 million.

When it was released on the 24th, it was a Friday, and it reached a box office of 83 million in the first three days of the weekend.

Because "A World Without Thieves" was released on Thursday, it reached a box office of just over 30 million in the first four days of the weekend, and it took two weeks for the box office to exceed 90 million.

This is already the film with the highest box office for Xiao Xiao Gangpao so far. His previous films rarely exceeded 60 million in box office.

However, even so, Xiao Xiao Gangpao was the king of commercial film box office in the past, and other directors were even worse.

On the third day, under the explosion and siphon effect of "District 9," the box office of "A World Without Thieves" was only 780,000 left.

Following this trend, just as Xiao Xiao Gangpao worried before, let alone breaking 150 million, whether "A World Without Thieves" can break 100 million has become a problem.

Boss Wang was furious. He was counting on "A World Without Thieves" to be the company's first film to break 100 million. Now it looks a bit reluctant.

Therefore, Boss Wang secretly made up his mind to find the media to smear "District 9." Otherwise, if it continues like this, is there any room for other films to survive?

Of course, the life and death of other films don't matter, mainly "A World Without Thieves." No matter what, it must exceed 100 million in box office.

However, before doing this, he decided to greet his older brother. In case he accidentally poked a hornet's nest, his brother could respond in time to avoid being passive.

As soon as Boss Wang pushed open the door of Boss Wang's office, Boss Wang waved his hand and threw a stack of newspapers on the desk.

"You look at these first."

Boss Wang knew his younger brother too well, so he was too lazy to say anything and just let him look at what these newspapers said. Thinking about his brother's brain, he could understand the meaning.

Boss Wang picked up the newspaper with some doubt and flipped through it.

China Youth Daily: The reason why Cao Yang is Cao Yang is that he can always cut into social problems from a unique perspective, allowing you to be thoughtful while watching the film.

"District 9" is a very unique sci-fi film. The aliens that appeared in previous sci-fi films were either aggressive and wanted to occupy the Earth, or they brought wisdom and inspiration to humans like gods.

In short, advanced technology always made them appear high and mighty in front of humans.

In this film, more than a million aliens driving advanced spaceships became refugees after landing on Earth, and their social status was even lower than that of black people in slums. They were controlled, discriminated against, and at the bottom of the food chain...

Cao Yang's humanistic concern and compassion are different from other directors. He doesn't preach, nor is he high and mighty. He can always calmly tell the story as a bystander...

As an orthodox director cultivated in the country, Cao Yang is different from traditional directors. He is no longer limited to films with local flavor, but contrasts the realism of details with the romance of themes, showing a strong and romantic, primitive and exquisite style...

"Nonsense!"

Boss Wang was furious and threw the China Youth Daily on the table, pulling out the second newspaper.

People's Daily:... Domestic directors who want to go international don't necessarily have to take shortcuts and find some pain points brought about by social reform; they can be more clever and more social...

Director Cao Yang's "District 9" very cleverly combines popular sci-fi elements to reflect racial discrimination that is prevalent abroad...

This is the thinking of an international director. It is hoped that more "Cao Yangs" will appear in the country and look at problems from a global perspective.

Boss Wang's face was uncertain, and he flipped through the newspaper again. That's right, it's a commentator article from the People's Daily!

"Damn it!"

Boss Wang kicked the door open and left, not knowing who he was scolding.

Boss Wang shook his head and picked up the newspaper to organize it. In fact, Boss Wang only looked at two newspapers and left in anger. He hadn't seen the southern newspapers yet.

This time, even the southern newspapers that like to sing the opposite are praising Cao Yang. For southern newspapers, directors who can go international, especially those who can develop well in the United States, fit their philosophy very well.

The general trend is set!

These words suddenly popped into Boss Wang's mind.

The general trend of "District 9" is set, and it's hard to smear it.

Look at the reports of these official media. At this juncture, as long as a slightly smarter person, no one dares to go down to smear.

Not everyone can afford the official autumn settlement.

Boss Wang also watched "District 9." From a fair point of view, in terms of entertainment, it definitely has an above-average level, not inferior to first-line Hollywood productions.

But in terms of artistry...

Boss Wang was silent.

The artistry of a film by a big art-house director who has a very high reputation all over the world is definitely beyond doubt.

There are not many people in the world who can combine the artistry and entertainment of a film so cleverly.

Boss Wang is now very regretful. He should have spared no cost to recruit Cao Yang to the company back then.

No matter where Han Zong goes these two days, you can see the joy he unconsciously reveals on his face.

Even if his subordinates made small mistakes, in the past, Han Zong would definitely have a dark face and criticize and educate them for a long time.

This time, Han Zong just patted the other party's shoulder with a smile, "It's not terrible for young people to make mistakes. The key is to remember the lesson. Don't make it again next time. Go."

Han Zong is excited.

83 million in three days, what is this concept? This is a number that breaks a series of records.

Neither the big ship back then nor Old Old Mouzi's "Hero" reached this box office in three days.

Han Zong has already decided that he must increase the promotion again, must send inspectors to prevent all forms of piracy leakage, and must catch up with the big ship at the box office in the current best New Year slot in the country and break the record held by the big ship.

What? You say "District 9" is also a Hollywood film?

Simply nonsense!

This is a co-production!

Understand?

Do you know what a co-production is?

Whether it is daily shooting, staff, or post-production, "District 9" is almost completed in the country, and the director is also a pure Chinese. How can this be a Hollywood film?

At most, it's just inviting a lot of Hollywood actors to go international.

Well, actually, not many Hollywood actors were invited. Many extras are South Africans.

"District 9" has China Film Group's investment, and Han Zong is also one of the producers. If it can break the record, this is a solid performance and political achievement. Han Zong wants this political achievement too much.

He has already discussed with Columbia that in a few days, the film's lead actor Depp and the guest star Charlize Theron will come to China for promotion.

At that time, the Oscar-winning Best Actor and Best Actress will appear together, which will still be very hot, and it is estimated that the box office will rise again.

"District 9" not only exploded at the domestic box office but also had a very gratifying box office trend in North America.

The combination of Cao Yang and Depp is still very attractive in North America.

Coupled with Columbia also playing the gimmick of the newly promoted Oscar-winning Best Actor and Best Actress, at least the heat and topic are there.

The 24th is Christmas Eve. In this Christmas slot, there are not many competitive films released this year. The biggest opponent of "District 9" is "Meet the Parents 2," which was released on the 22nd.

This sequel film stars De Niro and Ben Stiller. The latter is a famous comedian in the United States, and his fame is second only to Jim Carrey, and he is still very attractive.

Under normal circumstances, films that can shoot sequels have a certain audience base, and the possibility of exploding again is very high.

"Meet the Parents 2" already has a trend of exploding.

!

The 22nd is Wednesday. On the two working days of Wednesday and Thursday, this film achieved a box office of 20 million USD, which is a very remarkable thing.

Sure enough, Columbia's worry was correct.

In the first three days of the weekend, "Meet the Parents 2" achieved a box office of 44.7 million USD, second only to "District 9." "District 9" got a box office of 64.73 million, and the box office was okay.

However, "Meet the Parents 2" was released two days earlier, and counting the box office of the two working days, it had 68.5 million USD.

In addition, this kind of traditional family comedy film usually has a very stable box office trend, and there will be no explosion in the first few days, nor will there be a sharp drop later, and the long-term line is very stable.

And if the reputation is good, the box office will rebound.

On the weekend box office list that industry insiders value most, "District 9" won the top spot.

Ranked second is "Meet the Parents 2," with a weekend box office of 44.7 million USD and a current total box office of 68.5 million USD.

Ranked third is "Fat Albert," with a weekend box office of 12.7 million USD and a current total box office of 12.7 million USD.

Ranked fourth is "Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events," with a weekend box office of 12.5 million USD and a current total box office of 59.27 million USD.

Ranked fifth is "The Aviator," a biographical film directed by Martin Scorsese and starring Leonardo DiCaprio. It was thought that it could explode a little, but the box office was not satisfactory, only 9.41 million USD.

Miramax participated in the investment and operation of this film, probably wanting to make a difference in awards.

However, Leonardo DiCaprio has a very magical point: the films he stars in, even if the domestic box office is not too good, can achieve very good results globally.

This is probably his audience affinity globally.

The addition of the big ship to him is really too big, and plus he hasn't become a sloppy "uncle" yet, his appearance is very good, and his fan base globally is very large.

Currently, the first weekend performance of "District 9" is the best among all Cao Yang's films.

"Milk," with the addition of the Oscars, only got 47 million USD in the first three days of the weekend, far inferior to "District 9's" 64.73 million.

For this result, Columbia must be very satisfied. If the box office doesn't collapse, this is aimed at 200 million.

200 million, how many films can have a box office exceeding 200 million in a year in North America?

Consequently, Columbia naturally increased its promotional efforts and expanded the screening cinema chains again. Before a very competitive film appeared, they definitely wanted to sell more box office.

"District 9" exploded in North America, not only with gratifying box office, but the media's evaluation was also almost all praise.

Chicago Tribune: The brilliance of this film lies in its exposure of human nature, which is also the biggest reason why it will become a classic.

New York Times: A film with advanced thinking, a film that reveals racial discrimination and racial segregation policies, has a very allegorical meaning.

USA Today: Facts have proven that sci-fi films don't need aliens to be omnipotent, don't need super budgets, don't need visual attraction, and don't need to be completely entertaining.

Hollywood Reporter: A true, authentic sci-fi film that attracts you from the beginning, making the audience unable to stop until the moment the film ends.

Roger Ebert, known as America's "number one film critic," also gave a thumbs up in his column. This is his trademark, indicating that the film is incomparably wonderful.

And he also commented:

A big gift presented in the form of a mockumentary, a sci-fi film that is exciting, addictive, and impossible to avoid thinking about, full of drama and tension, every minute in the cinema is worth the money.

Cao Yang, as a world-renowned art-house director, is said to be experimentally wanting to use the rhythm of commercial films to shoot art-house films. I think at the very least, this film is successful.

By the second week, "Meet the Parents 2" was awesome, and the box office performance was as stable as an old dog. The box office for the three days of the weekend was 42.8 million USD, almost no drop compared to the 44.7 million USD for the first three days of the weekend.

Sure enough, family comedy films are the most suitable for the Christmas slot.

Because of the good reputation of "District 9," racial discrimination will never be outdated in the United States, and it is considered a hot topic.

The second weekend of three days got 48.54 million USD, a drop of less than 30%, which is already considered a very small drop.

Of course, it still can't compare to "Meet the Parents 2." The drop of this film is simply against the sky.

On the weekend box office list for the second week, "District 9" still topped the list, and the total box office also exceeded "Meet the Parents 2," reaching 172.34 million USD.

Ranked second is still "Meet the Parents 2," and the total box office also reached 163.4 million USD.

Other films, including "The Aviator," which rose one place on the list this week, do not constitute competitiveness and need not be paid much attention to.

The domestic box office is also trending well. In Hollywood, there is still "Meet the Parents 2" to split the box office, but in the country, it is the only one, and even Xiao Xiao Gangpao's "A World Without Thieves" can be ignored.

"A World Without Thieves" fell to less than 500,000 per day this week. If it wants to break 100 million, it can only rely on luck and operation.

On the basis of 83 million in the first three days of the weekend, "District 9" broke the total box office to 200 million in the second week, reaching 204 million.

This achievement made Han Zong so happy that he couldn't find north.

After conveying Boss Wang's meaning, he smiled and instigated:

"Sigh, it's really a pity. If my *A World Without Thieves* had the chance, I would definitely do a global simultaneous one. If I had your global influence, I would definitely release it however I wanted."

Cao Yang could hear that Feng Feng Xiaogang wasn't just gloating; this should be an opinion about *Kung Fu Hustle*'s release time, right?