Domination in America, Starting from being a Boxing Champion-Chapter 818 - 591: Praise Like a Tidal Wave_2
His acting improved rapidly, but time also flew by; in the blink of an eye seven years had passed.
"There are many in the media now saying you have a chance to be nominated for next year's Oscar for Best Actor. If there's a chance to win, will you strive for it?"
Leonardo asked, staring at him.
"Why even ask that question? Link has always said that his goal as an actor is to win the Oscar for Best Actor. Now that he has the opportunity, he surely won't let it slip away, right, Link?"
Casey Affleck said with a smile.
Link glanced at Little Leo, who was serious, and smiled: "Yes, but you all know my situation. In the past few years, I've played several good roles, been nominated for the Golden Globes three times, but have never been shortlisted for the Oscar for Best Actor. It's clear the jury is all against me. It's still uncertain this time if I can even be nominated, let alone win the Oscar."
"Link, you're thinking correctly."
Leonardo relaxed his expression and chuckled, "You're only 26 years old, too young. There's no need to rush for awards. You can do like I did, start with commercial films, and then when you're in your forties or fifties, contend for the Oscars again. It will definitely be easier then."
Link gave a light smile but did not retort.
Since last year, Leonardo had been making many preparations to win the Oscar for Best Actor, including aging and uglying himself, having someone leak his on-set experiences, making a lot of sacrifices, even finding a black girlfriend, and last month he donated to several environmental groups.
He had more positive news than in the past few years combined.
All to curry favor with the Oscar jury.
Now seeing that Link's movie is a big hit with excellent critical acclaim, and Link's performance in it is also fantastic, there's a good chance he'll be shortlisted for next year's Oscars.
If Link gets shortlisted smoothly, together with Lionsgate Films' PR tactics, maybe next year's Oscar Best Actor could very well go to Link.
It was like in 2012 when everyone was favoring Meryl Streep, Harvey Weinstein went all out with public relations, creating a very favorable situation, yet Lionsgate Films helped 21-year-old Jennifer Lawrence win the Oscar for Best Actress, causing a huge upset.
Now it's Link's turn to push for the Oscars, and those PR folks under Lionsgate Films will probably try even harder and spend more money.
Plus, Link is a global idol, a super athlete, a great philanthropist, and there's also recent rumors of him planning to retire from the industry.
Combining these factors, the likelihood of Link winning increases exponentially.
Thinking of this, Leonardo's just calmed heart became anxious again. He glanced at Link and asked, "Why are you silent? Do you have other plans for the Oscars?"
"Not at all! The Oscars are a goal. I act earnestly and strive to play my roles well; the rest is up to the audience to decide. I don't really care whether I win or not. To see winning an Oscar as the ultimate purpose of acting, and to consider it a failure if not obtained, that's a too narrow-minded thought, and such a goal is meaningless."
Link spoke calmly.
"That's right, Link, I'm also a jury member. This year when choosing the Best Actor for the Oscars, I'll definitely cast a vote for you."
Tobey Maguire said with a smile.
"Link, I'll give you my vote too."
Woody Harrelson and a few others said jokingly with cards in their hands.
Link expressed his thanks to them all, promising drinks if he got nominated.
Leonardo curled the corner of his mouth, looking at his buddies and said, "My new movie is not bad either. Don't forget to support me."
The Oscar voting system borrows from the party leadership candidate election rules. When nominating for best actor and actress, there are five spots on each ballot, and each jury member can fill in 3-5 names, so during the nomination phase, there wasn't much competition between the two.
"Your movie hasn't been released yet, who knows if it's good or not, let's talk about voting after the movie comes out."
Paul Walker glanced at him and said.
"Right, we're talking about Link now. Link's performance in this movie is brilliant and he has a great chance, that's why we're supporting him."
Tobey Maguire smiled.
"My movie is better, and once you've seen it, you'll know what the best movie of the year looks like."
Leonardo said seriously.
"Is it really that good? Link, if I remember correctly, this movie is distributed by Lionsgate. If it's really good and Leonardo's acting is superb, I suggest using your power to postpone the release of the film, so Leonardo won't compete with you for the Best Actor award."
Joaquin Phoenix laughed.
"I protest, Link, you absolutely cannot do that."
Leonardo said anxiously.
Link shook his head, "Stop kidding around with this guy, he's willing to do anything for the Oscars now. If we keep talking about it, he probably won't be able to sleep."
"Hahaha, Leonardo looks so funny when he's anxious."
"I didn't expect him to care so much about the Oscars, almost seems neurotic."
Everyone joked and laughed.
Leonardo's face darkened as he realized he had appeared too eager and had been teased by everyone. He slaps the table in annoyance.
"Let's play cards, stop talking about all that nonsense. Link, if you're not playing, don't disturb us."
Leonardo said.
"OK!"
Link smiled lightly, watched for a while, and then took his leave early. After leaving the café, his car detoured to Lionsgate Films to pick up Ivanka from work.
"American Sniper" has grossed over $320 million in the North American Region in less than a month since its release, and due to its strong box office and critical reception, major theaters have decided to extend the movie's screening time.
In the North American movie market, movies that are both critically and commercially successful often have a screening period of more than 80 days, while the lesser ones have less than 45 days.
His movie has excellent reviews and fits the mainstream narrative; it is expected to screen for no less than half a year.
While "American Sniper" was selling well, the box office for the first film of the autumn season, "Wickedness by Nature," came out with a North American cumulative box office of $9.23 million and an overseas box office of $6.75 million US Dollars. Compared to the $20 million cost, the loss exceeded $12 million US Dollars.
However, the film has a good reputation and may achieve success at the Golden Globes and the Oscars.
The second film of the autumn season, "Lucy," accumulated a North American box office of $128 million US Dollars and a global box office of $469 million US Dollars, with more than a tenfold profit margin, belonging to the dark horse category.
Also, "The Martian," released at the tail end of the summer season, has been out for over a month with a current North American box office of $226 million US Dollars and $402 million US Dollars in overseas regions, totaling over six hundred million globally. Compared to its $108 million cost, this movie is also part of the big sellers.
From "The Martian" to "Lucy" and then to "Sniper," Lionsgate Films had continuous hits, successfully surpassing Disney, Universal Pictures, and Paramount in total box office.
Considering that Lionsgate still has "The Hunger Games 4" coming, colleagues who had been relieved are once again tense, feeling the pressure mount.
"Hollywood Reporter" claims that Lionsgate Films has triumphed in both the summer and autumn seasons in the North American Region, reaching a total box office of $1.94 billion US Dollars, not far off from last year's total for Lionsgate. Plus, with several films from Lionsgate Films yet to be released this year, the annual box office revenue is poised to exceed last year's.
If the Big Six Studios do not produce any dark horses in their upcoming movies, Lionsgate might once again take the crown for the year's highest total box office revenue.
"Hollywood Reporter" humorously suggested that Lionsgate Films has become the nightmare of the Big Six Studios' top executives, as Link conquers Hollywood with one high-quality, high-box-office film after another, with competitors seemingly powerless to respond.
But Link isn't so optimistic. To his knowledge, Disney still has "Star Wars 7" and three other films with production costs over a hundred million, while Universal Pictures and Warner Bros. Pictures also have several unreleased films.
For Lionsgate Films to maintain its leading edge is not easy, and there are also revenues in this year's box office earnings that belong to Disney and Paramount; the $1.94 billion figure has a lot of fluff.
So now is not the time to celebrate. The remaining films need more effort and promotion to maintain their advantage, preparing for Lionsgate Films' future stock market listing.
