"Old friend, have you got the latest box office statistics?"
In the early hours of Sunday, Michael Ovitz called Martin Bob.
Both of them were highly concerned about the box office performance of The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, as Michael Bay's war epic Pearl Harbor was set to release in May next year.
Moreover, in May next year, Gilbert's The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers was likely to be released at the beginning of the summer season instead of July, as was the case this year.
Thus, the performance of The Fellowship of the Ring this year would directly determine their strategy for the following year.
Although Michael Ovitz had already been humbled by Gilbert, whenever he felt he had a strong enough project that could compete with him, he couldn't resist trying.
However, the news from Martin Bob on the other end of the line immediately crushed his momentary courage.
"The Fellowship of the Ring earned $34.58 million on Saturday alone, Ovitz. That's just for one day."
Michael Ovitz's heart tightened. "So, the film's first-week box office is very likely to surpass $80 million?"
"It's not likely. It's certain," Martin Bob said in a serious tone. "Right now, The Fellowship of the Ring is experiencing an explosion of positive word-of-mouth.
The reviews are overwhelmingly favorable, and X-Men, which was released last week, is being squeezed hard. The other films released at the same time are practically trembling."
Michael Ovitz was taken aback. A film with both exceptional critical acclaim and an outstanding box office? This was another major success.
"Do you know? Ovitz, in many theaters, audiences stood up on their own after the movie ended, staring at the title of the sequel.
This has never happened before in film history.
Do you realize what this means?" Martin Bob's tone became even more serious.
"I do," Michael Ovitz said, looking out the window. A flicker of admiration flashed in his eyes, along with a hint of unwillingness.
However, his rationality quickly returned, and he made an immediate decision. "We need to convince the distributors to change Pearl Harbor's release date. Stay away from that summer season lunatic."
Although it wasn't impossible for a well-performing first installment to be followed by weaker sequels, Michael Ovitz didn't want to take that gamble.
After all, The Lord of the Rings was a trilogy shot back-to-back, and Gilbert wasn't an amateur director. How likely was it that he would make a rookie mistake?
"What about Michael Bay? He's been counting on this film to go up against Gilbert again," Martin Bob asked.
"You handle him. We still have another opportunity. Remember the Transformers project? That's our chance," Michael Ovitz said.
"Okay," Martin Bob agreed immediately and went to persuade Michael Bay.
It turned out that the Transformers rights, which Gilbert had been eyeing for a long time, had been acquired by a studio called Sky Studios.
The owner of this studio was someone Gilbert actually knew.
Back when Gilbert invested in Oracle, he had gotten to know Larry Ellison, the famous Silicon Valley maverick.
Later, Larry Ellison wanted to invest in Gilbert's social networking company but was blocked by Wall Street capital, preventing him from securing an investment stake.
At the time, Gilbert even attended a party hosted by Larry Ellison, where he met Ellison's son and daughter.
Larry Ellison had hoped that Gilbert would mentor his son, David Ellison, and help him break into Hollywood's mainstream film industry. However, Gilbert politely declined.
As a representative of Hollywood's traditional power structure, Gilbert's camp certainly didn't want new players entering the scene—especially someone from the Ellison family, one of America's most famous billionaires.
With his father's connections, resources, and financial backing, David Ellison had the potential to disrupt Hollywood's established order, something the industry's traditional forces were unwilling to accept.
Yet, despite everything, David Ellison still managed to enter Hollywood, founding Sky Studios and outmaneuvering both Melon Studios and DreamWorks to secure the Transformers rights.
Hollywood's old guard rejected David Ellison, but Michael Ovitz didn't.
Ever since founding the International Creative Management agency, he had been constantly suppressed by other Hollywood talent agencies. At this point, he was in desperate need of a new partner.
Thus, the well-funded Sky Studios caught Michael Ovitz's attention. He personally visited David Ellison, and after an afternoon-long conversation, they reached a cooperative agreement.
Like David Ellison, Michael Ovitz saw great potential in Transformers.
David Ellison had mentioned that Gilbert had specifically sought to acquire these rights.
Given Gilbert's renowned acumen in selecting film projects, Michael Ovitz trusted his judgment.
Using a project Gilbert wanted to defeat him? That thought was particularly satisfying.
During the most intense battle for the Transformers rights, Gilbert had been in China and hadn't participated directly. This might have contributed to Melon Studios ultimately failing to secure the rights.
When Gilbert later learned that the rights had gone to Sky Studios, he was momentarily surprised.
This was different from his previous life, where Transformers had been owned by DreamWorks. Now, an unknown studio had snatched it up.
However, Gilbert remained calm and wasn't too upset about it.
After spending so many years in Hollywood, he had long understood a simple truth: there were many great opportunities in the world, but not all of them could belong to him.
He would fight for what he could, but if he couldn't get it, there was no point in dwelling on it.
Besides, he already held the rights to enough films to last him for a long time.
Just to name a few: Harry Potter, The Lord of the Rings, and the massive catalog of Marvel properties—all of which were far bigger than Transformers.
So, for Gilbert, losing Transformers wasn't something to regret.
Unbeknownst to him, Michael Ovitz was already planning to use Transformers as a key weapon to compete against him.
Michael Ovitz's decision to steer Pearl Harbor away from The Two Towers was a wise one.
However, if Pearl Harbor was still the same film it had been in the previous timeline—with the same quality and execution—its chances of failure were still very, very high.
It was uncertain whether Michael Bay, after going head-to-head with Gilbert, had learned a thing or two that might make Pearl Harbor a better film.
But according to Ben Affleck, Michael Bay had still included a love triangle in the story—so it was hard to say how it would turn out.
On Sunday, Gilbert, along with the film's cast and crew, departed from Santa Monica for a nationwide promotional tour.
Frodo, Gandalf, Aragorn, Legolas, Arwen, and Elrond all made appearances, igniting excitement among fans.
A particularly amusing moment occurred when Orlando Bloom and Anne Hathaway took the stage.
The fans who had seen the film went wild at the sight of them.
In an instant, they rushed forward and completely surrounded the two.
Orlando Bloom, ever the gentleman, shielded Anne Hathaway. But Gilbert, with his quick reflexes, pulled Hathaway away just as the crowd was closing in on her.
That left Orlando Bloom in trouble—completely surrounded by fans.
By the time security rescued him, his meticulously styled hair had turned into a bird's nest, and his jacket was nowhere to be found.
His shirt was missing half a sleeve and several buttons, and the zipper on his pants had been pulled down. His face was covered in lipstick marks.
Anne Hathaway covered her mouth in relief. "Thank goodness Orlando protected me, or I would've ended up like that too."
She had just experienced the overwhelming effects of fame. Even though the feeling was a little frightening, she now understood just how passionate the fans were.
"Oh, poor Legolas," Gilbert covered his forehead, though a smile played on his lips.
Inside the commercial plaza's lounge, Orlando Bloom freshened up his look. Elijah Wood joked, "Orlando, you're a superstar now—everyone's watching you."
"Oh my God, this feels surreal. It's only been three days since the film premiered, and I feel like we've already become the most famous people in America."
Anne Hathaway still couldn't believe it.
All eyes turned to Gilbert. He smiled reassuringly, saying, "Enjoy the journey, guys. This might be one of the most unforgettable moments of your lives."
"Yeah, we're making history. Enjoy it, boys!" Ian McKellen, ever composed, was among the calmer ones.
Perhaps it was his age and experience that allowed him to handle the situation so smoothly.
Still, he couldn't help but marvel, "Gilbert, I've been in the industry for decades, and I've never been part of a movie like this. It's an honor."
And indeed, it was an honor.
After raking in $34.58 million on Saturday, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring continued its momentum on Sunday, earning another $28.13 million.
The drop in ticket sales was minimal, with a hold that even exceeded expectations.
Adding up Friday's opening day and midnight screenings, The Fellowship of the Ring grossed $89.27 million in its first weekend.
With that, it successfully overtook X-Men, which was in its second week, and claimed the number-one spot at the box office.
20th Century Fox had expected The Fellowship of the Ring to perform exceptionally well—but not this well.
X-Men was crushed, earning only $32.59 million this week. Still, it managed to maintain a relatively healthy box office trajectory.
At this point, nobody was surprised that Gilbert had secured yet another weekend box office victory. It had become routine over the years.
Gilbert's new film premiered.
Gilbert's new film topped the weekend box office.
Gilbert's new film won the summer box office crown.
But this opening weekend figure was particularly significant—it surpassed the record set by George Lucas' Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace and Steven Spielberg's The Lost World: Jurassic Park.
With $89.27 million, The Fellowship of the Ring had set a new opening weekend record.
"The real game-changer is the merchandise," Robert Iger reported to his former boss, Michael Eisner, while sharing the latest figures.
"In just its first week, The Lord of the Rings has generated $35 million in merchandise sales across the U.S. We're expecting total merchandise sales to surpass $300 million.
And that doesn't even include DVD sales, the soundtrack, or licensing deals.
According to Gilbert's plans, once the trilogy is completed, he'll release an extended director's cut—giving us yet another revenue stream."
Seeing the delight on Robert Iger's face, Michael Eisner felt reassured.
Despite the illness plaguing his body, the legendary Disney emperor still carried his authority.
For once, he smiled at Iger. "Congratulations, Bob. Thanks to The Lord of the Rings, you've finally solidified your position as Disney's CEO."
Robert Iger expressed his gratitude. "It's all thanks to your support. If you hadn't promoted me from ABC to Touchstone Pictures, I wouldn't be where I am today. I'll always be grateful."
Eisner knew his time as Disney's leader was coming to an end. His main goal now was to ensure a smooth transition and retire with dignity.
Placing his former protégé in power was the best way to preserve his legacy.
And so, without hesitation, Eisner told Iger, "Get ready. The Disney board will be making a new announcement soon."
Robert Iger nodded firmly. After this week, he would officially become the master of the Disney empire. Though he had been in control for some time, he would finally be recognized as its rightful leader.
Disney's internal power transfer proceeded smoothly, with no unexpected disruptions.
A few days later, at Disney's latest shareholder meeting, Robert Iger's appointment was confirmed. He was now Vice President and CEO of Disney.
Once Michael Eisner retired in September, the "Vice" in his title would be removed.
At the same board meeting, Iger made a commitment—he would do everything in his power to secure Gilbert and his Melon Studios under the Disney banner.
But that wouldn't be easy, because Warner Bros. had the same goal.
Over in the CEO's office at Warner Bros., Doug Walter was discussing the situation with Solomon, the head of distribution.
"At this point, neither we nor Disney can win this acquisition battle outright," Solomon said. "Melon Studios is too valuable—it's no ordinary film studio.
If we want to acquire it, Warner Bros. will have to pay a steep price."
Doug Walter had been mulling over the same issue. "What concerns me more is that Robert Iger might use his personal relationship with Gilbert to convince him."
Compared to the still-powerful but aging Michael Eisner, it was the ever-smiling "Mickey Mouse" Robert Iger that Doug Walter truly feared.
But Solomon wasn't worried. "Personal connections aside, I don't think Gilbert will make an emotional decision. He'll look at things from a business perspective and maximize his benefits.
Honestly, Doug, I think we should consider splitting it fifty-fifty with Disney."
"What do you mean?" Doug Walter's interest was piqued.
"Think about it. As the Lord of the Rings films continue to release,Melon Studios will only become more valuable—especially with all the high-quality IPs under its belt.
Rush Hour and Fast & Furious are both major money-makers for them.
I worry that if we wait too long, other companies will see the opportunity and jump in. Instead of hoping Disney backs off, why not join forces and take half each?"
Solomon's suggestion was undeniably tempting—and it was something Doug Walter had already been considering.
If that was the case, Doug Walter decided he would reach out to Gilbert himself and hear his thoughts firsthand.
....
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