Huayu Entertainment 1995 started with hijacking.

Chapter 235 A Movie Showdown That Risks the Future

"I don't mean to criticize Johnny Depp, but it's well known that he's always played 'maverick' roles. Okay, to put it bluntly, weird roles. He's a recognized oddball actor in Hollywood. He's good for certain kinds of movies, but he definitely can't carry a $1.4 million blockbuster!"
Casting such an eccentric actor as a pirate captain will turn a pirate movie into a disaster! Director Wu Yuchen is either blind or has lost his mind; he'll have to bear full responsibility for the failure of *The Pirate King*!

The reporters were overjoyed to hear this revelation that reignited the conflict. They took notes and, while publishing the news, rushed to interview the Pearl Harbor film crew.

When these words reached Johnny Depp's ears, he was instantly furious. Depp isn't Josh Hartnett; he wouldn't hesitate to retaliate if someone criticized him, concerned about his public image. Would the previously rebellious and unconventional Depp really care about this?
He publicly declared to the media: "I don't know what's gotten into this old guy, but I will prove with my performance that what he said is bullshit! He must apologize for his rudeness! Pirate King will be a success!"

Wu Yuchen was actually quite pleased, as the war of words between the two sides had now captured the interest of the entire United States. According to feedback from DreamWorks and Universal's marketing teams, the attention and buzz surrounding "Pirates of the Caribbean" had noticeably increased recently. Of course, the same was true for "Pearl Harbor."

However, Wu Yuchen also knew that although the two sides had not said it outright, they had reached a tacit understanding: to use this war of words to attract attention to their two movies. As for who would live and who would die, both sides were obviously confident in themselves.

Therefore, Wu Yuchen responded again to the comments from Pearl Harbor:

"If 'The Pirate King' fails, I will take full responsibility! I am willing to bet my directing career and not pick up the director's microphone for 5 years."

But if *Pearl Harbor* fails, will Peter Schreidt and Michael Eisner again shirk responsibility? Are they willing to take responsibility?

When these words came out, the reporters were extremely excited! Wu Yuchen is now a hot A-list director in Hollywood, and he actually publicly said that he would risk five years of his directing career!
It's worth noting that in the past, even if a director was very confident in their work and boasted that the box office would reach hundreds of millions, they never said they would gamble their future as a director!

These celebrities and directors would rather say something like, "If I fail, I'll kiss a donkey's ass or run naked," than gamble with their careers. Because if that actually happened, their reputations would be ruined if they backed out!
"The Pirate King: A film that stakes Wu Yu-chen's directorial career!"

"One film can decide life or death; Pirate King is sure to captivate audiences!"

"Pirate King: Confidence or Arrogance?"

Wu Yuchen's audacity in making such a statement has naturally boosted the topic's popularity even further. The report immediately attracted considerable attention and sparked significant discussion.

Reporters even conducted street interviews on this topic.

"Hey? Have you heard about director Wu Yuchen's statement about risking his career?"

"Oh yes, I've seen the related reports."

"Will you go see 'Pirate King'?"

“I think I will go see it, not for any other reason than Wu’s confidence. I have a good impression of his past films, and I think he wouldn’t make a statement without reason.”

……

"To be honest, I think his words were a bit too radical. In fact, given Wu's resume and achievements, it wouldn't matter if he failed once. There's no need to gamble with his future five-year career. In my opinion, that's a bit reckless."

Of course, I'll go see it. I'll take my kids with me. I'm also very curious to see how he'll make this "Pirate King" movie.

……

"I don't know, did he really make such a bet? If he did, that would be amazing!"
Which movie should we see? I was originally thinking of seeing Pearl Harbor, you know, since it's Memorial Day, but now I'm a little hesitant..."

After Wu Yuchen made his statement, reporters naturally went to the Pearl Harbor film crew for interviews, hoping to get a response. However, the Pearl Harbor crew did not immediately respond.

"Michael, did you ask Spielberg what happened? How could Wu say something like that to the public? Has he gone mad?" Bruckheimer asked Michael Bay.

Clearly, Wu Yuchen's words, risking his future career, made them wonder if he had gone a bit overboard. Why go to such lengths?
Michael Bay shrugged: "I asked Steven, and he said Wu wasn't after us; he has a grudge against Eisner."

“Okay, then let’s not say anything and let Disney respond,” Bruckheimer said.

……

Peter Schreid isn't stupid. You can ask him to argue with *The Pirate King* or Wu Yuchen—that's nothing unusual; Hollywood has done this before to attract viewers. But asking him to publicly take responsibility for *Pearl Harbor*? He can't do that! What if *Pearl Harbor* really fails? How will he take responsibility? Resign? Don't be ridiculous!
However, things don't always go as planned. He received a call from Michael Eisner: "Peter, why aren't you fighting back?"

“Um, Mr. Eisner, I don’t think it’s necessary to talk nonsense with him…”

"What? Don't you have any confidence in our 'Pearl Harbor'?"

"No, Mr. Eisner, I have great confidence in Pearl Harbor!"

"Then you should respond. Everyone's attention is now focused on our two movies. If you don't respond, people will think that Pearl Harbor is afraid of them!"

I'm inviting many political and military figures to the premiere of Pearl Harbor, including former President George H.W. Bush. You must respond strongly to demonstrate our confidence!

Disney is going all out with this event; the premiere of "Pearl Harbor" will be held on a military aircraft carrier in Pearl Harbor. In addition to film industry celebrities, many prominent figures from the American political and military circles, as well as representatives of World War II veterans, will be in attendance, which is why Eisner is placing such importance on it.

Peter Schreid opened his mouth helplessly, but could only say, "Okay, Mr. Eisner."

The following day, Peter Schreid gave an interview: "The Pirate King has no chance of winning against Pearl Harbor, not even a sliver of a chance!"

But the reporter wasn't going to let that go; she started stirring things up: "But Wu is willing to gamble his future directing career as a guarantee..."

"In my opinion, he's just being cunning. If he messes up a big-budget production of 140 million, he won't be able to get any big-budget production offers for the next five years. That's why he dared to say that!"

However, the reporter wasn't buying it and pressed for an answer:
“We see Wu’s confidence in the film. Mr. Schreid, what about you? How do you demonstrate Disney’s confidence?”

Wu Yuchen can say he won't direct for five years, but he can't say Disney won't make movies for five years, right? Therefore, he can only take the blame upon himself, leaving him with no choice but to resign. Clearly, these reporters wanted to force him to say this, to even out the stakes and reignite the controversy.

Thinking of Eisner's call, Peter Schreid could only sigh inwardly, but confidently said aloud:

"Although it's impossible for it to happen, if Pearl Harbor fails, I will take responsibility and resign!"

The cameras clicked and flashed, and the reporters happily captured the moment.

Having already made those remarks, Peter Schreid went on to make another bold statement:

"Pearl Harbor will surpass Jurassic Park 2's box office record in its opening weekend and break $5 million in five days!"

As of now, the record holder for the highest-grossing opening weekend in North America is "Jurassic Park 2" with $7213 million, while its five-day box office is $9838 million, which has not yet reached $5 million.

Therefore, Disney is essentially making a bold statement that Pearl Harbor will break the opening weekend box office record and the record for the fastest film to reach $100 million.

This time, the reporters finally received a satisfactory response from Disney, which had been silent for several days, and they left in high spirits.

"Directing Career VS Resignation!"

"The chairman of Disney Studios personally took the bet!"

"The epic battle between Pearl Harbor and Pirate King!"

When a high-ranking Disney executive actually accepted Wu Yuchen's bet and staked his career with him, the bet ignited public sentiment and made people even more eager for the two movies, "Pearl Harbor" and "The Pirate King"!
Throughout May and even June, no other film could possibly steal the spotlight from these two, making this a highly anticipated battle.

Of course, the reporters who had just finished interviewing Disney rushed off to find Wu Yuchen:

"Wu, Disney says Pearl Harbor is confident of breaking a series of box office records, so what about you?"

Wu Yuchen smiled and shook his head: "I can only say that I am confident that the opening weekend box office will be higher than 'Pearl Harbor'!" Immediately, a reporter asked: "Do you mean that you don't think 'The Pirate King' and 'Pearl Harbor' will break the opening weekend box office record of 'Jurassic Park 2'? Weren't you always very confident in 'The Pirate King'?"

"Haha, of course, I have confidence in 'The Pirate King,' but my confidence is based on reason. As we all know, original films generally don't have as high an opening weekend box office as sequels. Even the opening weekend record for 'Jurassic Park 2' was set by a sequel."

If it were *Pirates of the Caribbean 2*, I could confidently tell you right now that it would gross over 100 million in its opening weekend!

Unable to dig up any more bombshells from Wu Yuchen that could escalate the conflict between the two sides, the reporter could only leave with his words in mind.

"The Pirate King" and "Pearl Harbor" are now the focus, with the entire Hollywood watching these two upcoming films. However, most people are just watching the show without saying anything. On the one hand, both sides are very powerful, and taking sides will offend the other; on the other hand, what if you're wrong and decide to take sides before the results are in? Wouldn't that be foolish?

Of course, some people don't care, like Harvey Weinstein:
"Without a doubt, Pearl Harbor will win! From the moment it was conceived, The Pirate King was not favored by the industry. Who would be interested in such an outdated pirate theme now? Wu's ability to handle big-budget productions is also a concern. As for his casting, it can be said that none of them are box office draws! Compared to Pearl Harbor, I don't see any chance of The Pirate King winning!"

Clearly, Harvey Weinstein was trying to discredit Wu Yuchen and "The Pirate King." He already harbored a grudge against Wu Yuchen, so naturally he wanted to take this opportunity to kick him while he was down.

In Harvey's vision, this year "The Pirate King" will flop, being crushed by "Pearl Harbor," and then next year at the Oscars, he will personally snatch "A Beautiful Mind" from the no-win zone. At that point, Wu Yuchen will suffer a double blow, both commercially and in terms of awards, and won't be able to recover for years!
Meanwhile, a detailed analysis and comparison of "The Pirate King" and "Pearl Harbor" was published and made it to the front page of the entertainment section.

"The most attention-grabbing event in the entertainment industry recently has undoubtedly been the battle between 'Pearl Harbor' and 'The Pirate King.' Everyone is surely eager to know who will win. This article will provide a comprehensive analysis and comparison of these two highly anticipated films, and offer some predictions."

First, let's compare the film genres.

"The Pirate King" is a fantasy film combining pirates and adventure/treasure hunting. Treasure hunting movies have been a popular genre in Hollywood for the past 20 years, but adding "pirates" directly diminishes its appeal. The pirate theme is currently considered a niche, even toxic, genre in Hollywood!

"Pearl Harbor" combines war, disaster, and romance. Released during the 60th anniversary of Pearl Harbor and Memorial Day, Pearl Harbor is undoubtedly the perfect subject matter. With the disaster and romance, and with "Titanic" as a reference, a well-made film like this would certainly become a popular favorite!
In terms of film genre, Pearl Harbor wins!
Secondly, let's compare the producers of both sides.

James, the producer of "The Pirate King," is best known for "The Sixth Sense" and "Phone Booth." Indeed, both of James's notable works were collaborations with Wu Yu-chen, and prior to that, he had no major box office hits. Some say he was merely Wu Yu-chen's assistant, and without Wu, he was just an ordinary, unremarkable producer.

Bruckheimer, the producer of "Pearl Harbor," is one of Hollywood's top producers. His filmography includes blockbuster hits like "Flashdance," "Top Gun," "Bad Boys," "The Rock," "Con Air," and "Armageddon."

Clearly, Pearl Harbor wins in the producer category!
Let's compare the two directors.

Wu Yuchen, *Frequency*, *Phone Booth*, *The Sixth Sense*.

Michael Bay, Bad Boys, The Rock, Arrest.

From a commercial standpoint, both are Hollywood's most talented directors, making it a tie. However, considering Michael Bay's extensive experience directing big-budget productions and large-scale events, he has a slight edge.

Director, Pearl Harbor wins!
The actors on both sides are two men and one woman.

Leading man: Johnny Depp vs. Ben Affleck. Depp's representative works include *Edward Scissorhands* and *Sleepy Hollow*, while Affleck's are *Good Will Hunting* and *Armageddon*. A tie.

For the second male lead, Hugh Jackman vs. Josh Hartnett. Hugh Jackman has *Frequency* and *X-Men*, while Josh Hartnett has *High School Drama* and *Halloween 7*. Hugh Jackman wins.

In the lead roles, Keira Knightley and Kate Beckinsale, Kate undoubtedly surpasses the 16-year-old Keira in every aspect.

Let's assume the cast is evenly matched.

Overall, *Pearl Harbor* beats *The Pirate King*!

Wu Yuchen clicked his tongue a few times as he read the article. Clearly, this article was commissioned by Disney! It appeared neutral and fair, comparing *Pearl Harbor* and *Pirates of the Caribbean* from several angles, concluding that *Pearl Harbor* was superior to *Pirates of the Caribbean* in every way.

However, the current situation is that the Pearl Harbor production team has money; the hundreds of millions of dollars spent on promotion is no joke.

While "The Pirate King" is trying to piggyback on "Pearl Harbor," "Pearl Harbor" isn't just trying to hype itself up with "The Pirate King." On one hand, they're promoting themselves as if they're going to break the box office record of "Jurassic Park 2," and on the other hand, they're comparing themselves to "Titanic." It's like a multi-pronged approach to attract viewers and maximize their chances of getting them to watch the movie.

Wu Yuchen is no longer personally involved in this matter; he's letting the "Pirate King" publicity team handle the media response.

……

"Congratulations, Jeffrey!" Wu Yuchen congratulated Katzenberg, who was beaming with smiles.

Katzenberg's DreamWorks Animation production, Shrek, was recently released and grossed over $100 million in North America in just 10 days. This was achieved despite weak marketing and a budget of only $60 million, making it undoubtedly a very successful project.

Moreover, Shrek has received very good reviews and its popularity continues to grow. Everyone is optimistic that it will accumulate high long-term box office revenue during the next three months of the summer season.

Katzenberg replied, "Thank you, Wu. I think 'The Pirate King,' which opens this weekend, will definitely do very well!"

Yes, the release date of "Pirates of the Caribbean" is just around the corner. As the release date draws closer, the two sides have once again engaged in a war of words, this time even involving the actors. Keira Knightley has expressed his dissatisfaction, saying he is not as good as Kate Winslet.

Furthermore, Eisner recently stated in an interview that he had invited a lavish premiere guest list headed by Brooks, and bluntly said that he didn't take "The Pirate King" seriously at all. In other words, he thought that a weirdo, a stuntwoman, and an Australian kid who had just gained some fame thought they could compete with "Pearl Harbor"? "Pearl Harbor" has always only ever aimed at "Titanic"!
Wu Yuchen knew that "The Pirate King" couldn't compete with "Pearl Harbor" in terms of financial resources; he heard that "Pearl Harbor" spent tens of millions of dollars on its premiere.

Wu Yuchen's response was simple: *The Pirate King* wasn't made for a film exclusively for the political and business elite, but rather for the general public in America, especially children. Therefore, many child viewers will be invited to the premiere of *The Pirate King*!

Wu Yuchen was subtly criticizing the premiere of "Pearl Harbor" for only inviting celebrities, which was clearly a departure from the mass line. "The Pirate King" is different; we are here to serve the public!

His response clearly won over many people, especially the invitation to children to watch the premiere, an attitude that pleased many parents.

The atmosphere surrounding the upcoming showdown between "Pirate King" and "Pearl Harbor" has now reached its climax.

On the evening of May 25th, the premiere of "The Pirate King" was held.

Although "The Pirate King" wasn't as extravagant as "Pearl Harbor," which used an aircraft carrier for its premiere, it was still just as impressive as other big-budget productions.

The red carpet at the premiere was a star-studded affair, with Hollywood A-listers and directors such as Tom Hanks, Sylvester Stallone, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Russell Crowe all in attendance. To be honest, DreamWorks has a very strong network, making it easy for them to attract so many celebrities.

At this moment, Wu Yuchen hugged Cheng Long: "Brother Long, thank you for coming to support us!"

Jackie Chan laughed and said, "Of course! I'll definitely come to Director Wu's movies. We're all supporting each other!"

At today's premiere of "The Pirate King," a small portion of the seats were reserved for guests, while the remaining large portion was given to invited children and their parents.

"Mom? Will Pirate King be as good as The Mummy?" a little boy asked his mother.

"Oh, Chris, I've got this answer in mind. You'll know after you read it~"

"Would there be magical underground tombs and magic there?"

"There are no underground tombs at sea, but there might be small islands with traps and mechanisms, where pirate treasures are hidden. As for whether there's magic, Mom is also very curious to know~"

Mary patiently answered her son's questions, gently patting his head. Her son, Chris, was one of the children invited to the event. Children are at an age where their curiosity and thirst for exploration are at their peak, and adventure and treasure-hunting movies are his favorites. His favorite movies these past two years have been the *Mummy* series; he's deeply fascinated by the mysterious Egypt and the tomb-raiding adventures depicted in the films.

Chris was naturally very excited about "The Pirate King," which is also an adventure and treasure hunt movie, and kept begging his parents to take him to see it. Mary tried to sign up and was surprised to be selected to attend the premiere, which made the whole family very happy.

Her son Chris not only received a free pirate doll, but also managed to get an autograph from Johnny Depp. Mary found that Depp was nothing like the eccentric persona portrayed by the media; he was very patient with fans, especially gentle with children, which made her feel very fond of Depp and the movie "Pirates of the Caribbean."

Holding the pirate doll in his hands, Chris looked at the screen with anticipation as the lights went out.

(End of this chapter)