America achieves both fame and fortune

Chapter 457 Out of Control

In the morning, Martin finally managed to escape the entanglement between Julie and Aniston, picked up his phone and turned it on. A series of notification text messages came in, indicating that someone had called him repeatedly.

Thankfully it wasn't Nicholson, otherwise he would have gone to Sunset Boulevard, set fire to Nicholson's fireworks storage house, and given everyone in Los Angeles a daytime fireworks show.

Martin went to wash up first, carefully avoiding the things scattered on the ground.

In addition to the three people's clothes, there are also several clown statues with different designs.

All of these were things Julie and Aniston found at his place last night.

When he came out of the bathroom, he picked up his phone and returned the call.

The missed calls were from his investment manager, Flynn, who had arranged to meet him this morning, and Flynn was on his way.

Martin hung up the phone. Julie and Aniston were already awake. They glanced at each other, then turned away, neither wanting to talk to the other.

"You guys keep catching up on your beauty sleep." Martin went back to the master bedroom to find his formal attire, reminding them at the same time, "Please tidy up the room when you wake up."

Aniston retorted angrily, "You're so mean! You toyed with us, and now you want us to clean your room?"

Martin said, "I mainly have other things to do."

Julie stuck one leg out: "Is there anything more important than this?"

"Don't mess around at the hair salon in broad daylight. I have important business to attend to." Martin was unusually firm this time, pointing to the clown statues scattered on the ground and saying, "You two can use these as you like."

Before leaving, he took out a DV camera: "Remember to film it, I'll enjoy it later."

Aniston grabbed the pink kettle from the bedside table and threw it at her.

Martin hurried out the door, only to hear a loud bang from behind it.

After changing into formal attire and going downstairs, he waited a short while before a BMW drove into the estate and parked beside the fountain.

Flynn quickly entered the villa with his briefcase.

Bruce welcomed the man in.

Flynn greeted Martin and sat down on the single sofa next to him: "The $500 million from last time has been gradually converted into Apple stock over this period of time."

Martin has recently been cramming on this knowledge, so he at least has a basic ability to distinguish right from wrong. After carefully reviewing the documents, he said, "I will transfer another $500 million soon, just like before, to buy Apple stock."

Flynn asked, "Shouldn't we consider something else? The Apple stock you first bought in 2006 has more than quadrupled in value. In the current climate, Apple..."

Martin thought for a moment and said, "Let's buy Apple for now."

This is what he remembers most clearly.

Martin wasn't a god; his memories were only vivid because of things he frequently encountered in his previous life. After thinking for a while, he asked, "I remember a company called Netflix."

Flynn said, "A company in Silicon Valley."

"Could you help me gather some relevant information?" Martin had seen many Netflix productions. In the early days, they were considered a guarantee of quality, but as the number of series and films produced increased, a large number of bad shows and movies inevitably emerged.

Flynn readily agreed: "I'll have someone do it right away."

The sound of high heels hitting the floor came from the stairwell, and Martin and Flynn stopped talking about stock investments.

Julie and Aniston came down from upstairs.

Flynn was somewhat stunned to see these two A-list Hollywood actresses appear, and secretly glanced at Martin with envy.

He was quite knowledgeable and could tell at a glance that Julie and Aniston had just woken up and put on light makeup.

Gossip media outlets have been reporting that Martin, Julie, and Aniston often hang out together, but no concrete evidence has ever been found.

Flynn, who also grew up watching Friends, thought to himself that Martin was just too damn awesome.

Julie tilted her head to look at Flynn, and seeing that he was a stranger, she didn't say anything.

Aniston took her to the restaurant.

Flynn didn't stay long. He said a few more words about Netflix and then quickly took his leave.

Martin's specially hired chef had already prepared breakfast.

He went over and had breakfast with them.

Aniston, holding her knife and fork, looked out the window: "This house feels a little different to me."

Julie asked, "How long are you staying?"

Aniston said softly, "Less than a year, and then you..."

As she said this, she gripped her knife and fork tightly, staring at Julie's protruding chest, ready to stab her and see if what came out was air or blood.

Julie held up the knife in her hand: "Jane, you seem to have forgotten, I often shoot action movies, and I've specifically trained in knife throwing."

Martin said, "Alright, stop fooling around. Remember what we talked about yesterday?"

Aniston, certain that she wouldn't need to take any risks and would actually benefit, said, "I'll help you since you've invested hundreds of millions."

"You pushed really hard yesterday," Julie said, her tone odd. "Jane pushed really hard too, and I agreed."

The matter was settled, and Martin said, "You can wait for the news in the media."

Julie and Aniston left one after the other.

Martin went to Warner Bros. Studios, to the Dark Knight studio, and met Nolan.

Nolan is now in high spirits, a far cry from the man under immense pressure he once was.

Nolan trusted Martin a lot when it came to publicity and hype, and asked, "There's something I'd like to ask for your opinion on."

Martin nodded: "Go ahead and say it."

"As the Dark Knight's run lengthens and more people see it, its critical reception inevitably declines." Nolan wants to push the box office higher: "The Rotten Tomatoes score has dropped to 93%. I have an idea: many critics with Rotten Tomatoes influence are privately setting prices. Should we make a move?"

Martin asked, "How much does a positive film review cost?"

"50 dollars," Nolan said, not a large sum.

"So low?" Martin scratched his head. "I thought it would be at least $100."

Nolan said, "There are countless critics in Los Angeles and New York. Rotten Tomatoes has been paying for votes for years and it has now become a sizable business. In fact, paying for ratings is also very common on IMDb."

Martin thought for a moment: "Other films might need it, but I don't think the Dark Knight needs it. The film has already brought in a huge number of crazy fans, and with proper guidance, they will create an even bigger stir on the internet."

Nolan, knowing Martin was full of ideas, asked, "You've come up with another plan?"

"On IMDb, there's a Top 250 list of great films. Right now, The Godfather and The Dark Knight are in the top two spots, but their positions often switch..." Martin briefly recounted what had happened before, saying, "Currently, fans of both films are voting like crazy on IMDb, and there's a trend of antagonism emerging."

Nolan immediately picked up the phone next to him, dialed the number, and waited a few minutes before someone called back.

He said, "You're right, the trend is very clear. Fans of both films are on IMDb, frantically giving their films high ratings and reviews. The momentum is getting stronger and stronger. Even if we don't participate, it will still cause a big stir."

Martin frankly stated, "I can't be sure whether this is good or bad for the film."

Nolan said, "It will definitely attract more attention, but it will also lose some viewers."

He is one of the true leaders of The Dark Knight and now wields considerable influence. After only a moment's thought, he said, "No film, not even The Godfather, Star Wars, or Titanic, can please all audiences. There are always gains and losses."

Martin did not interrupt.

Nolan continued, "The North American box office is performing steadily and will definitely exceed $5.5 million. The overseas response is a little weaker, but if we make a lot of noise here, we can also increase overseas attention. Whether the film can gross more than $10 billion worldwide depends heavily on the overseas market."

Compared to Spider-Man 3, The Dark Knight had a lower percentage of overseas box office revenue.

The former has 3.36 million in North America and 5.58 million overseas.

Martin asked, "I heard the production team is preparing to go overseas for a publicity campaign?"

Nolan nodded: "Mainly Europe and Latin America, which are also the markets with the greatest potential for the Dark Knight overseas. Emma will take Bell and Michael Kane and others to Europe, and the two of us will go to Latin America together."

This was the work stipulated in the contract, and Martin didn't hesitate at all: "I have no problem with it."

On the afternoon of the same day Martin and Nolan met, many enthusiastic Dark Knight "fans" posted on many movie websites, including IMDb, suggesting that they go to IMDb and give their favorite Dark Knight a high score so that Dark Knight could oust The Godfather and take the top spot on the TOP250 list.

When people like something to a certain extent, they often become very impulsive and emotional.

A large number of movie fans flocked to IMDb, frantically giving The Dark Knight high scores, allowing The Dark Knight to surpass The Godfather once again and reach the top of the TOP250.

The Godfather's fans followed suit, not wanting to be left behind, and launched a similar initiative, preparing to reclaim the number one position.

Public opinion on the internet can easily get out of control due to the large number of participants.

Inevitably, the newly formed Dark Knight fan club and the Godfather fan club clashed, with both sides not only giving high scores to their respective films but also low scores and negative reviews to the other.

This wave quickly spread from IMDB to other websites and even attracted the attention of traditional media.

The Dark Knight is once again in the eye of the storm.

When Martin was about to leave Los Angeles to embark on an overseas promotional tour, the two sides not only attacked each other, but also dragged the third-ranked "The Shawshank Redemption" into the fray.

Before leaving, Martin sought out Nicholson again.

"Jennifer has been staying at Franco's acting school and has been able to keep up with the progress." Nicholson has been having a great time lately: "After Ben Affleck's conversation with James Franco that night, there was an unexpected initial collaboration, and Casey's situation accelerated the process."

He roughly stated, "Cassie's lawyer had his first formal meeting with the victim's lawyer. All the evidence was extremely unfavorable to Cassie, and if he couldn't reach a settlement, he would most likely go to jail. But Cassie, as you said, has no money."

Martin nodded. "So, Ben Affleck is going to team up with James Franco?"

Nicholson chuckled, just like the Shining of yesteryear: "You're useless staying in Los Angeles. Go settle down in Latin America; I've got everything under control!"

(End of this chapter)