Huayu Entertainment 1995 started with hijacking.

Chapter 190 The Troublemaker and the Opponent
"Bruce, there's no doubt you're one of the hottest people in Hollywood, but I think many people are wondering why you took on the role in 'The Sixth Sense'?"

The host posed a question, then quickly added:
"What I mean is, your past movies and your image have always portrayed you as a tough guy, but in this movie, 'The Sixth Sense,' Wu just said there isn't a single action scene. All the actors rely on their acting skills. This seems to be different from your previous roles. Or are you trying to challenge yourself and make a change?"

Bruce Willis shrugged and laughed, "If Stallone can change his image, why can't I?"

This remark immediately drew laughter from the audience. The host then followed up with a question:
"Oh, can I understand it this way? Is it because Wu successfully helped Stallone transform his image in 'Frequency' that you took on this role in 'The Sixth Sense'?"

The camera gave Wu Yuchen a close-up, and he maintained a faint smile.

Bruce Willis chuckled and shook his head. "Okay, enough joking. Seriously though, before I got this script, I had dozens of project offers waiting for me, but I turned them all down and took on 'The Sixth Sense' because the story is really great!"

He then looked at Wu Yuchen and said, "Of course, it's also because this is Director Wu's project. Wu's films 'Frequency' and 'Phone Booth' have both grossed over 300 million worldwide. I don't think I need to say anything more to prove that he is truly a fantastic director!"

The host picked up the conversation and looked at Wu Yuchen: "Wu, why did you consider choosing Bruce Willis? I've noticed that you really like transforming action stars into acting talents, like Sylvester Stallone before. Is this a quirk of yours?"

Wu Yuchen quickly shook his finger and said:
"Oh no, I need to correct one of your points first. Both Bruce Willis and Sylvester Stallone are excellent actors, but their past action scenes have overshadowed them. I'm just bringing out that hidden side of them!"

That's how these kinds of shows are; everyone flatters each other, and then they throw out some behind-the-scenes anecdotes from the filming process.

"I can guarantee that our cast is full of talented actors, not just Bruce, but also Jennifer and our young actress Haley!"

When Jennifer Connelly saw Wu Yuchen pass the buck to her, she immediately gave an elegant smile, thinking to herself that it hadn't been in vain that she had served him with her body and exchanged so much knowledge with him.

……

The promotion for The Sixth Sense naturally revolves around Bruce Willis, and one of the selling points is that it's a transformative work for him.

Looking at Hollywood's top tough guys and action stars, such as Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Bruce Willis, they are all labeled with one thing: stiff expressions and terrible acting skills. They have all been awarded the Golden Raspberry Award.

In reality, while their acting skills aren't top-notch, they're not as bad as some claim. It's just that this label has created a fixed impression in the public: tough-guy action stars have no acting skills. Therefore, using this as a selling point can attract many people to the cinema.

The film's second promotional point focuses on Wu Yuchen. While his Berlin Golden Bear win is worth mentioning, most discerning American audiences don't care about awards outside North America; therefore, the emphasis is on his two previous Hollywood films.

First up is *Frequency*, released at the end of 1997. This film ultimately grossed $1.67 million in North America, ranking sixth on the 1997 North American box office chart. Thanks to Sylvester Stallone's global fame, its overseas box office exceeded $200 million, bringing its global total to $3.72 million. This surpassed *Tomorrow Never Dies*'s $330 million, ranking fourth globally in 1997. As for the top three, the first was the long-awaited *Titanic* with over $22 billion, the second was *Jurassic Park II* with $6.18 million, and the third was Will Smith's *Men in Black* with $590 million.

Then came "Phone Booth" in early 98. With Leonardo DiCaprio as the male lead and riding the wave of the global success of "Titanic," it grossed $1.83 million in North America, ranking third in North America in 98, and $3.81 million worldwide, ranking third in the global box office in 98.

Judging from the achievements of these two films, they are top-tier even in Hollywood these past two years, and few directors can achieve that. Therefore, there is no doubt that Wu Yuchen is someone worth praising.

In fact, you can tell from the salaries. This time, for "The Sixth Sense," the salary was 6000 million, with Bruce Willis taking 2000 million and Wu Yuchen taking 500 million plus 10% of the revenue. The two of them accounted for almost half of the total.

After the show's recording ended and they returned to the hotel, Wu Yuchen saw Disney's Mels walking towards him with a big smile and couldn't help but ask, "Mels, what good news has happened?"

"Oh, it's nothing. 'Tarzan' has surpassed $1.5 million at the box office, so I can finally report back to Mr. Eisner."

Michael Eisner, the current CEO of Disney, is known as the emperor of Disney, and privately as a tyrant. No one in the entire Disney organization is afraid of him, and they all tremble in his presence.

"Tarzan" is the famous animated film about Tarzan, with a production cost of $1.3 million, and it's a key project for Disney this year. "Tarzan" has received a very positive response since its release last month, and its North American box office alone has already exceeded $1.5 million. Its global box office is expected to be similarly high, not to mention the astonishing profits from the merchandise derived from the animation. Therefore, everyone breathed a sigh of relief, no longer fearing His Majesty the Emperor's wrath.

Wu Yuchen just smiled when he heard his words. This movie had nothing to do with him, and he wouldn't run into it. Then he asked, "Mers, how's the Blair Witch Project that I asked you to keep an eye on?"

“I went to see it, and to be honest, it’s a really bad movie, but their marketing is brilliant. They made people believe that those young people really encountered a witch and were killed! It’s been playing on a small scale for 10 days now, and it’s already grossed 50 yuan in just 30 theaters. You’re right, their large-scale release date will likely clash with ours.”

After listening to Mels's words, Wu Yuchen asked, "Can we expose their tricks? Or can we find some moviegoers who have already seen the film to denounce their false advertising?"

Myers shook his head and said, "I'll try, but don't get your hopes up too high. The only way to expose them is to find those young people and bring them out into the open, but I guarantee they're already hidden and probably won't show up for at least six months."

Upon hearing this, Wu Yuchen sighed. "The Blair Witch Project" was a movie that relied entirely on marketing. It was nothing special, but it still achieved a super high box office of $1.4 million in North America and $2.48 million worldwide.

He knew about this movie in his past life; it was a classic case of viral marketing. However, he couldn't replicate it because it relied on large companies for promotion and distribution, and it was extremely damaging to one's reputation. Therefore, he never considered making money from it.

However, upon arriving in North America, Wu Yuchen discovered that it was going to clash with his "Sixth Sense," which was really disgusting!

But as Myers said, there's nothing you can do about it. It's all about marketing anyway; if you try to fan the flames and increase its popularity, it'll only be worse. They've been planning this for six months already. Those who have already been fooled by the lies won't believe you exposing the truth; they'll just accuse you of having no compassion. Wu Yuchen can only put it aside. He's confident in *The Sixth Sense*; he'll find out once the movie is released.

At this moment, Mels smiled at Wu Yuchen and said, "Wu, congratulations! I heard your movie is a huge hit in Asia. Actually, you could consider establishing a closer partnership with Disney. That would make the distribution of your next movie much easier."

“Oh, Merles, it’s not like I didn’t approach Disney, but unfortunately you wouldn’t even offer $1000 million back then,” Wu Yuchen joked.

A few months ago, when "My Sassy Girl" was considering its Asian distribution, Wu Yuchen naturally prioritized major distributors like Sony and Disney because he wanted a simultaneous release. At the time, Sony offered $900 million, Fox offered $850 million, and Disney was only willing to offer $800 million. Now that "My Sassy Girl" has become a hit, they're starting to court it again.

Wu Yuchen wasn't entirely sure about the exact box office figures for "My Sassy Girl" in Asia, as the film is still showing. He had only heard a rough estimate from Cai Yinong. In South Korea, it has attracted over 3 million viewers; in Japan, it has grossed over 15 billion yen; in Hong Kong, it has surpassed 30 million viewers in two weeks; and in Taiwan, it has grossed 150 million NT dollars.

If we add in the overseas box office from Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, and other regions, Wu Yuchen estimates that the overseas box office has already reached 350 million yuan. This is just the box office after two weeks; by the time the film leaves theaters, reaching 500 million yuan will be no problem. Converted to US dollars, that's over 60 million, which is no small sum for any Hollywood distributor.

Initially, they felt that Chinese-language films had lost much of their appeal in Asia and lacked action sequences, so no one was willing to spend more than $1000 million. Now, looking back, they realize that even spending $1000 million would be a profit, let alone $2000 million, so they regret their decision.

“Oh, Wu, because of this, Eisner has given the head of the Asia region a severe scolding and transferred him from his post. Don’t worry, from now on, I will personally handle all projects related to you, and Mr. Eisner will continue to pay attention,” Mels assured him, patting his chest.

Wu Yuchen just chuckled when he heard this. If he were to find a unified distribution channel in Asia, the best option would still be Sony, as they are the strongest in the region. Your Di Baobao is a bit lacking.

Wu Yuchen gave a perfunctory reply, then asked, "How's it going with 'Runaway Bride'?"

……

"What's going on with 'The Sixth Sense'?" Julia Roberts, who had just returned to her hotel after the show, asked.

Julia Roberts is now a top star in Hollywood and the first female celebrity to enter the $2000 million club.

Her new film, "Runaway Bride," faces its biggest competitor in the same release window as "The Sixth Sense."

"With Bruce Willis and the rising star Wu Yuchen teaming up, although it's not the action movie audiences were expecting, theaters still gave them 3000 opening screenings," the producer said.

The big-mouthed queen frowned. Although the number of opening screenings for this film wasn't as high as her "Runaway Bride," it wasn't far behind. Even though "The Sixth Sense" and "Runaway Bride" aren't the same type of film, they were naturally going to compete with each other since they were released in the same period.

Then she turned to a handsome, refined middle-aged man beside her and asked, "Richard, what's Bruce thinking? Does he really want to change his image?"

This man is none other than Richard Gere, a top Hollywood star and the male lead in the movie "Runaway Bride".

Richard Gere shrugged: "I don't know either..."

Many people don't understand Bruce Willis's transformation this time. Stallone's transformation was because he got older and started to decline, but Bruce Willis has been at the peak of his career in recent years. There's no need for him to rush into a transformation now, right?
Every actor has their own unique qualities. Julia Roberts, for example, won people's hearts with her approachable smile, and audiences love watching her romantic comedies. Her film *Notting Hill* was a huge hit two months ago, and *Runaway Bride* follows the same style.

Playing to their strengths and highlights is key to becoming superstars, but now Bruce Willis has abandoned action scenes and tough-guy roles to star in a purely dramatic film at the height of his popularity? Keep in mind that male stars have much longer careers than female stars, and she hasn't even transitioned to other genres yet.

The producer laughed and said, "This is good for us. Bruce gave up what he's best at, so naturally he'll lose some viewers. With you and Richard teaming up again, we're sure to win this time!"

Julia Roberts smiled broadly. The film that catapulted her to fame, *Pretty Woman*, was a collaboration between her and Richard Gere, and this reunion is sure to draw many to the cinemas.

……

When Wu Yuchen learned that his film had opened in 3050 theaters, which was 200 fewer than "Runaway Bride," he wasn't disappointed. This situation was already much better than in his previous life.

Although the previous film, "The Sixth Sense," featured big star Bruce Willis, the producers were actually not very confident because he was a new director and the film was also a transitional work for Bruce Willis. Without action scenes, it didn't look like a big hit, so it only opened in 2161 theaters. It only started to rise in the second week after the word-of-mouth exploded.

With Wu Yuchen's guarantee, Disney worked hard with theaters and ultimately secured the rights for 3050 theaters to open for business.

Although it will compete with "Runaway Bride" and also be trolled by "The Blair Witch Project," the North American summer movie season has a large capacity and can easily accommodate three big-budget films at the same time. Besides, none of these three films are particularly big-budget or feature any grand scenes.

The most expensive film, "Runaway Bride," cost 7000 million, with the two main characters accounting for 3500 million. So what kind of grand scenes could it possibly have?

In the end, it all comes down to the film's reputation!

(End of this chapter)