Domination in America, Starting from being a Boxing Champion-Chapter 812 - 588 Filming and The Expendables 3_2
"I am not that kind of actress; my goal is to become an actress like Catherine Hepburn or Ingrid Bergman. As long as I am an actress, I will take every role seriously and ensure I don't deteriorate like some others."
Emma Stone said firmly while squeezing Link's shoulder.
Link shrugged his shoulders and was just about to say "I hope you can live up to it," when the set suddenly echoed with rhythmic music, and director Damien beckoned them over—the filming was about to start.
"Come on, time to work."
Link stretched lazily and entered the set with a relaxed face, showing no sign of the fatigue from before.
Emma Stone, looking at her trembling hands, glared at his retreating figure and then followed him.
This scene was the third time the characters meet: their first encounter is on a jammed overpass, where they misunderstand each other; the second time is in a bar, where the heroine Mia wants to greet the hero Sebastian who had just been fired and was in a bad mood, ignoring her and passing her by.
The third time is at a party of a friend, where Sebastian's band is performing, and Mia purposefully requests a pop song that Sebastian dislikes for him to perform.
"All parts, get ready!"
"Scene 32, Take 1, action!"
The shooting continued, with Link in a red jacket and yellow casual trousers, playing the synthesizer, while the band sang. To perfect this piece of music, he had practiced it over a hundred times recently and his coordination with the band was not bad.
"Thank you! Anyone else want to request a song? The girl up front."
The band's lead singer shouted into the boom mic.
"Cut!"
"Mia's entrance!"
The cinematographer pointed the camera at Emma Stone in a yellow dress.
When Emma Stone saw the male lead, she raised her arm high, "I Run! I'm requesting I Run!"
"Run? What a great suggestion."
The singer exclaimed.
Link glanced at Emma Stone, at first not recognizing her, then suddenly turning his head towards her with a very displeased expression.
Emma Stone blinked, looking smugly at him.
As the band started playing, Link reluctantly and begrudgingly followed along with the electric guitar.
Emma Stone stood on the sidelines, twisting her body wildly to the rhythm of the music, performing both amusingly and spiritedly.
"Cut!"
"Let's do it again. Emma, you can be wilder and more flamboyant; Link, you can look more sullen," director Damien instructed.
"OK!"
Link and Emma Stone continued to search for the right emotions to bring to their performance and, after four takes, they finally got the scene right, and the crew continued with the interactive scenes between the male and female leads.
"Alright, I remember you."
Link, with his electric guitar slung over his shoulder, found Emma Stone drinking beer in the hallway and took off his sunglasses, admitting, "I admit I was a bit brusque with you that night." That evening, the heroine Mia tried to greet the male lead, but he had didn't even glance at her and just walked past without a word.
"Brusque?"
Emma Stone was not quite satisfied with that word.
"Well, I admit I'm a jerk,"
Link said, pointing to the band next door, "but playing Running is just too much for a serious musician."
"Oh my God! Did you just call yourself a serious musician?"
Emma Stone asked, looking at him critically.
Link shrugged, "Did I?"
"Can I borrow the jacket you're wearing?"
Emma Stone asked, pointing at his coat.
"Why?"
"Because I have an audition next week and I'm playing a serious firefighter,"
Emma Stone said with a smile.
——
By July, "Sleeping Spell" was released, co-produced and invested in by Lionsgate Films, Disney, and Angelina Jolie's studio, with Lionsgate Films handling distribution in the North American Region.
The movie premiered on the third weekend of July, earning $69.43 million at 3,948 theaters in North America over its first three days, winning the weekend box office and breaking the $100 million US box office mark in 8 days. It was the fifth film distributed by Lionsgate Films this year to break the $100 million mark at the US box office.
The film did even better overseas, with international ticket sales surpassing $200 million US Dollars ten days after release.
Given the current box office trends, total box office is estimated to exceed $700 million US Dollars.
The film had a production cost of $180 million; if the total box office surpasses $700 million, the producers will profit over $200 million US Dollars from box office returns alone, with profits exceeding $300 million after including streaming and other revenue streams.
This is why movie studios love investing in big productions, as sometimes one profitable blockbuster can be worth ten profitable smaller projects, with the exception of dark horse box office hits.
"Sleeping Spell" crossed the $200 million US box office threshold in North America after 28 days of release, with a cumulative global box office of $640 million US Dollars.
The film also received good reviews, with a media composite score of 83. It's considered to be Jolie's best-received film in recent years, and also featured Cynthia's cameo as a little princess, which garnered her many fans. Audiences praised her for being beautiful and cute, calling her "Little Taylor."
By August, "Terminator: Genesis" reached $120 million at the North American box office and a cumulative global box office of $482 million US Dollars.
Meanwhile, "Avengers: Age of Ultron's" North American tally stood at $540 million, accumulating a global box office of $1.52 billion, ranking second for the summer season.
The first place went to "Jurassic World," which earned $640 million in North America and $1.65 billion worldwide.
When reporting, the media pitted Captain America, Iron Man, Black Widow, and other superheroes against the dinosaurs of "Jurassic World" in a hypothetical battle. The dinosaurs came out on top, demonstrating their enormous global appeal – even a group of top stars could not compete.
In August, Lionsgate Films released their tenth movie, "The Expendables 3," worldwide, forcing Link to adjust his schedule to join the movie promotion team. However, "La La Land" was filmed in four seasons, Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter. The team started filming at the beginning of the year and would continue until the following summer. Given the long filming period, Link's adjusted shooting schedule had little effect.
After over a month of promotional build-up, "The Expendables 3" premiered globally in 67 countries and regions on the first weekend of August, with Link attending premieres in New York, Capital City, Tokyo, London, and other places.
The movie earned $66.85 million at the North American box office in its first week, exceeding the expected $55 million to $60 million. In the Huaxia region, it grossed 320 million yuan, which is also more than $50 million US Dollars when converted, not much less than the North American box office.
The total box office for other regions reached $140 million US Dollars.
The global box office hit $255 million in the first week, nearly recouping its production cost of $150 million US Dollars.
The film also received favorable reviews, with a Rotten Tomatoes freshness rating of 73%, supported by 54 people and opposed by 13, a good score for a commercial movie. On Huaxia's Douban website, the film scored 8.1 based on 135,000 ratings, and many media outlets regarded it as the most exciting action movie of the summer.
Link's action scenes in the film were praised by fans and media alike and were considered to rival Tom Cruise's performance in the "Mission: Impossible" series.
The romantic and passionate rivalry between Link and Scarlett Johansson in the film also ignited fan enthusiasm. With large fan bases in both the United States and Huaxia region, the couple, one frequently named by "People" magazine as the world's sexiest male actor and the other considered the world's sexiest female actor, were seen as a perfect match.
