America achieves both fame and fortune

Chapter 279 The DVD Craze

As the 2006 New Year approached, nearly two months after its release, "Wanted" finally surpassed the $2 million mark at the North American box office thanks to the passage of time.

After a new weekend, the North American box office totaled $2.04 million, and the global box office exceeded $4.5 million.

It also set a new box office record for Martin Scorsese.

With the number of theaters showing the film in North America dropping to less than 200 and attendance nearly negligible, Warner Bros. is preparing to release the DVD in its entirety after the New Year.

Martin's main job lately has been promoting the film's DVD release.

He invested $500 million in this project, and he will get a share of both the box office revenue and the subsequent profits.

The official website of the Cola Cult was launched before the New Year.

The website's homepage features a large poster of the pope Martin Luther King Jr., who is holding a Coca-Cola scepter, wearing a red robe and a red crown, looking even more imposing than the Pope of the Vatican.

The online headquarters of the Cola Cult has also moved from Martin's personal blog to the official website of the Cola Cult.

In just one week, the number of users who registered as members of the Cola Church through the official website exceeded 300 million, and the number is increasing by hundreds of thousands every day.

In addition to promoting the activities of the Cola God Cult, the website also has a special section for the cult leader, which is used for church members to worship online.

It's no exaggeration to say that Martin Scorsese already has a considerable number of die-hard fans among both moviegoers and the Coca-Cola cult.

As the number of registered members of the Coca-Cola Cult surged, even Coca-Cola's stock experienced a continuous rise around the New Year.

In a New Year interview with the Wall Street Journal, Warren Buffett, Coca-Cola's largest shareholder, specifically mentioned Martin Davis: "I know Martin Davis, a magical Hollywood star who stars in great movies and whose Coca-Cola cult is a stroke of genius. Coca-Cola's management has done a good job by hiring him as their spokesperson. If I have the opportunity, I will have a chat with him in person."

These words, once exposed, incidentally elevated Martin's prestige.

Not all members of the Cola Cult will watch Martin Scorsese's movies, but if just a third of them are willing to buy tickets, it could boost the film's opening weekend box office by tens of millions of dollars.

Once the New Year holiday was over, after seeing off Blake who had returned for vacation, Martin transformed into an enthusiastic autograph machine, traveling to major cities across the United States to sign autographs for the DVD release of "Wanted".

On the first day of the signing event, long lines formed at Beverly Center, with hundreds of fans eager to be among the first to receive a DVD set personally signed by Martin Scorsese.

Coca-Cola, as a sponsor, also partnered with Warner Bros. to launch a campaign where anyone who purchased the $39.9 commemorative DVD set would receive a Coca-Cola cult commemorative Coca-Cola can.

Martin knew very well that, at this stage, the fans who lined up early in the morning to buy DVDs were the foundation of his status and income.

Therefore, even with his significantly increased status, he still faces his supporters with the utmost enthusiasm.

"Thank you for your support." Martin would say this after signing each book.

Furthermore, there will be no difference in treatment between fans who purchase the regular edition and the commemorative edition.

After signing all the documents in the morning, Martin's face was numb from smiling, and his hands were sore from fatigue.

He left the shop, declined interviews, got into a van, went to the nearby Four Seasons Hotel to rest, and then rushed to his book signing event in the afternoon.

Bruce and Thomas accompanied him throughout.

Upon arriving at the hotel, the three of them went to the restaurant for a meal. Bruce asked for ice to help Martin apply it to his skin.

Thomas asked with concern, "Won't you feel too much pressure? Should we shorten the time in the afternoon?"

"No need," Martin shook his head and said with a smile, "This little bit of pressure is nothing compared to my life at the bottom of society in Atlanta. How much pressure do celebrities face?"

Bruce chimed in, "Gangs roam the land, incomes are incredibly low, they don't even own a house, and their families often don't even have enough money for tomorrow's living expenses. What are these pressures for celebrities compared to that?"

Thomas had never experienced such a life: "Perhaps it was your experience in Atlanta that gave you such a high level of resilience."

"Compared to my previous life, this is like living in paradise." With no one else around, Martin spoke more casually: "Luxury cars, mansions, beautiful women, money—if these count as pressure, I'd rather have pressure greater than Mount Everest!"

Thomas thought of Julie and Aniston, and he wanted that kind of pressure too.

After lunch, Martin and Bruce went upstairs.

Bruce glanced at his phone at a message from his bodyguard in the shadows. He whispered, "Aniston is here. She's gone to your suite."

Martin let out a deep sigh.

Bruce patted him on the shoulder and steered the conversation back to what they were talking about: "You seem to be under a lot of pressure?"

Martin replied, "It's not so much pressure as it is academically challenging. For example, why do butterflies on land smell of sea? What are the best methods for tunnel exploration? Under what conditions can water form threads?"

Bruce couldn't help but ponder these purely academic questions.

Martin entered the suite and, with a rigorous academic approach, began to study the profound questions with Aniston.

Learning is what makes us progress.

In the afternoon, despite being a little tired, Martin still showed up at the chain store near Caltech in Pasanadi with excellent professionalism and enthusiasm to continue signing DVDs.

In one day, he signed nearly 2000 wanted poster DVDs.

Angelina Jolie was also very popular when she went to the East Coast, and the autograph session was a huge success.

Martin ate dinner outside before returning to the Coty neighborhood.

When he arrived at his doorstep, Gillian Flynn waved to Cadillac from across the street.

Martin rolled down the car window and asked, "Is something the matter?"

Gillian smiled and said, "I'd like to chat with you for a bit and get some exclusive information."

The "Never Ending" project originated from Gillian's introduction of Alan Grylls. Martin, seeing that there were few people around, got out of the car and stood by the roadside: "Feel free to ask me any questions."

Gillian's entertainment weekly is considered a sophisticated media outlet, and instead of asking about gossip, she inquired about film-related matters: "I heard that during the filming of 'The Departed,' you, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Nicholson formed an organization?"

Martin scratched his face and smiled sheepishly: "Just a small group for eating, drinking, and having fun."

Gillian was intrigued: "What should it be called? It's not going to be called the 'Bad Boys Gang,' is it? Hollywood already has one."

"This can be leaked to outsiders," Martin said. "Call it a trio. Nicholson is the leader, then Leo, and I'm at the bottom."

He also shifted the blame: "The things the trio did were basically decided by Nicholson and Leonardo, and I could only follow behind them and cheer them on."

Gillian had no doubt whatsoever, because Martin was indeed the least experienced in terms of seniority, status, and age.

She added, "We just had an interview with director Scorsese, and according to him, the three of you gave each other exceptional acting performances during filming, and your performances were all outstanding, adding a lot of highlights to the film. Is that true?"

Martin is quite confident about this: "That's right! I can say with certainty that audiences will see a completely new Leonardo, Nicholson, and Martin Davis in The Departed! Don't define us by our previous roles, because we've made a new breakthrough."

Gillian wrote down everything Martin said in a pen and notebook.

Being neighbors with a popular celebrity in the industry certainly brought many unique benefits, but Gillian knew when to stop and not want to annoy Martin too much at once.

She would also speak well of Martin in the media: "The DVD of 'Wanted' just came out recently, right? I'll write a column about that for you."

Martin nodded and casually asked, "Have you been working on any new projects lately? Or do you have any good novel recommendations?"

Upon hearing this, Gillian was reminded of "Limitless," even though she knew Martin first, Martin ended up buying the adaptation rights to Alan Grylls' work.

This spurred Gillian on, who said, "I'm planning a novel that might take two years to complete."

Martin said something nice: "It's bound to be a masterpiece."

"If I finish it, could you take a look?" Gillian knew very well that for the novel to become a hit, it needed a film or television adaptation, so she added, "I plan to use Agatha Christie as the model."

Martin asked, "Thriller?"

Gillian didn't say much: "Dark mystery."

Martin said, "I look forward to reading your work soon."

The two shook hands and soon went their separate ways.

Gillian first organized Martin's interview records, then consulted materials, focusing on the famous Agatha Christie disappearance case in the 1920s, planning to change the background to the modern era.

Similarly, as a failed marriage, Gillian scoffs at the family and marriage promoted by mainstream American society, believing that the essence of marriage is mutual torment between men and women.

Across the street, Martin finally gave himself a day off; tonight he wouldn't have to do hard labor or hand over hundreds of millions.

He and Bruce went into the entertainment room, sat in front of two computers, and played a few rounds of Counter-Strike.

In reality, Old Brooks was a better shot than Martin.

In the game, however, he was beaten very badly by Martin.

It was almost ten o'clock, and Martin was planning to get some rest when Leonardo called: "The Face Gang's event tonight, are you coming?"

As a key member of the Face Gang, Martin certainly couldn't be absent from gang activities; besides, washing one's face was also a form of relaxation and entertainment.

The trio of bastards, along with Craven and Aja, appeared together at the Nightclub.

The only pity is that it seems the Foot Gang has changed its activity base. Since that night, the Face Gang and the Foot Gang have not met in any group activities.

The following morning, Martin, full of energy, boarded a plane and left Los Angeles for San Francisco to continue his DVD signing tour.

"Wanted" grossed over $2 million at the North American box office, receiving a stellar market response. With a short theatrical release window, high popularity and fan support for the male and female leads, and vigorous autograph sessions, the DVD sold extremely well upon release.

The various versions of the DVD set sold $3760 million in just one week!

Warner Bros. estimates that in the North American market alone, the DVD sales of the wanted posters could exceed $8000 million in one year!

DVDs alone were enough to sustain Hollywood's era of extravagant investment.

(The Real-Life Arrested DVDs apparently sold around $7000 million in a year.)

(End of this chapter)