America achieves both fame and fortune

Chapter 80 Going to Hollywood

In mid-November, trailers for "Zombie Gigolo" were broadcast on local television stations in Los Angeles and Atlanta during late-night hours.

Lionsgate professionals edited out highlights such as trapeze artists and machine gun dances.

GG also aired a late-night show by Grey's Company, which had consistently high ratings.

Then there are the trailers and posters in the preview theaters.

For preview screenings, the distribution company invests very limited resources and targets only the intended audience.

After a brief week of low-key promotion, "Zombie Gigolo" began its limited release in eight independent theaters in Los Angeles and Atlanta.

Elena was off work that day, and Martin had arranged to go to the movies with her that afternoon.

Lily shamelessly followed him out.

With two adults by her side, and given Lily's height, it was easy for her to slip into the theater, since it was only R-rated, not 17+.

The slightly old theater had many empty seats, so the three of them chose a row at the back. When they sat down, Lily slipped past Elena and sat to Martin's left.

Elena, sitting to Martin's right, glanced at him and said, "Watch your mouth while watching the movie."

Lily nodded and said, "There aren't many people. Martin, nobody watches your movies?"

Martin shoved the popcorn in his hand into her mouth: "Eat your food and talk less."

Elena handed Martin a Coke and asked in a low voice, "Aren't there a few spectators?"

In the old cinema that can accommodate nearly 200 people, fewer than forty people were sparsely seated.

With "Zombie Male Dancer" playing in theaters, Martin has already achieved his goal and is in a good mood: "It's a low-budget B-movie, only three months from filming to production, so I can't expect many viewers."

Lily was about to speak again when Martin shoved a can of cola into her hand: "Drink some water."

When the opening scene of the game started playing, Lily quickly counted and said, "Not counting us, there are 37 people."

She muttered to herself, "Let me do the math. If the movie tickets are rounded up to $6 each, this showing will bring in $240 in box office revenue."

Elena asked curiously, "What are you calculating?"

Martin said, "She's calculating the box office."

"His movie is about to be released." Lily poked Martin with her finger. "I've looked into how box office numbers are calculated in film magazines."

She glanced at Elena's slightly protruding chest, thinking to herself that her older sister's chest size was inversely proportional to her brain capacity, and continued, "This film is short, only 92 minutes long, and can be shown 9 times a day. Taking this afternoon's screening as the average, it's $2160 per day per theater."

Elena said, "You've got it wrong, it should be $1860."

Martin wasn't foolish enough to argue with Elena, saying, "Starting from Friday's preview screenings, this film should gross around $6000 per theater over the weekend."

Because the number of audience members varies from show to show, it may be more or less.

Elena was still counting on her fingers, but finally gave up. She asked in surprise, "Martin, you dropped out of school earlier than me, so why can you figure it out while I can't?"

Lily's mouth moved faster than her brain: "Because you're really stupid, even stupider than Martin..."

Elena held the bottle of Coke upside down and smashed it over Lily's head, even through Martin.

With a thud, Lily became depressed.

Martin quickly pulled Elena back: "Don't disturb the movie."

The main plot and basic content of the film remain unchanged, but some redundant scenes have been cut, and the content has been slightly less explicit to meet the MPAA rating requirements.

Elena was completely mesmerized from the very beginning of the film.

She thought Martin's late-night scenes, like Ma Zhen's, were exaggerated enough, but she didn't expect this film to be even more exaggerated.

Elena gripped Martin's hand tightly, pressing her body against him. Given her impulsive nature, she would have dared to sit directly on Martin's lap if no one was around.

Martin quietly scratched her palm and gave her a look.

Elena patiently decided to wait until after the movie to go back and discuss it.

The atmosphere in the theater was good, with constant laughter from the audience in front, and occasional gasps of surprise.

The audience who came to see this movie were undoubtedly B-movie enthusiasts. This bad movie, which gave the old zombie blood and gore theme a slightly fresh twist, made them somewhat entertained.

When the movie ended, many people criticized the terrible plot, but praised the male lead for his ingenious and exceptionally brilliant performance in several scenes.

As Lily stepped out of the theater, she angrily exclaimed, "What idiot came up with such a stupid idea?"

Elena regretted bringing her along: "Don't force me to take action."

Lily's words stuck in her throat, her cheeks bulging, made her look like an oversized frog.

Back at her home in the community, Lily wanted to talk to Elena about the movie she had just watched, only to find that Martin and Elena, those two idiots, were nowhere to be found.

She secretly went out, set up a wooden ladder, climbed onto the roof, and looked around in the still relatively bright moonlight.

Chaos ensued as Elena, carrying a shotgun, chased after Lily.

Martin, Harris, and Hall watch Sister Kill together.

…………

"Zombie Gigolo" had a limited run in three theaters in Atlanta, averaging $6423 per theater over the weekend.

The situation is better in Los Angeles, where the average box office per theater across the five theaters exceeds $8000.

Not too good, but not bad either.

Previews are specifically targeted at a specific audience, and it's quite normal for some films with excellent preview results to draw over 2 viewers per theater.

The less desirable ones are, of course, limited to a three-day or one-day preview screening at a movie theater.

This performance is enough to allow Lionsgate to further expand its distribution and increase its advertising budget.

The film's trailers and short promotional videos began appearing on some websites, especially forums frequented by B-movie enthusiasts.

Both television and print media have invested heavily.

Over the weekend before Thanksgiving, "Zombie Gigolo" expanded to 54 theaters in North America, with weekend box office revenue surging to $42.5.

Including the previous weekend and weekday box office, this B-movie has grossed over $50 in North America.

As for word-of-mouth, it's all irrelevant to B-movies.

On the contrary, the male lead's three brilliant performances were widely discussed by B-movie enthusiasts on several movie websites.

Two days before Thanksgiving, Zombie Dancer Studios received a business letter from Lionsgate and immediately notified Martin, Catherine, and Benjamin to attend a meeting.

Because the studio's office space was too small to accommodate only two operators, the meeting place was located at Gray Company.

Benjamin was in high spirits and gave Martin a big hug as soon as they met: "Buddy, we're going to be famous!"

Martin laughed and said, "Is it really that exaggerated?"

Benjamin arrived first and said softly, "We're going to Los Angeles."

Catherine was thrilled: "To Hollywood?"

Benjamin did not answer.

Kelly Gray led Ella into the conference room, nodded slightly to the three of them, and said, "Lionsgate just informed us that 'Zombie Dancer' will be expanded to 650 theaters this weekend, covering all states in the US. We succeeded."

Martin leaned back in his seat, looked up at the ceiling, raised his hands and clenched them into fists. His gaze seemed to pierce through the obstruction, as if he could see the sky, which was incredibly blue, the sunlight incredibly bright, bald Benjamin incredibly handsome, Ella's freckles incredibly beautiful, and Kelly and Catherine incredibly gorgeous.

When you're happy, everything seems pleasing to the eye.

Even if an older black man comes over, Martin can still call him handsome.

The impact of a preview screening is vastly different from that of a large-scale release.

Martin has been jumping around and causing trouble like a monkey for almost half a year, isn't this what he's been working on?

Benjamin slammed his fist on the conference table in delight, then bumped it with Martin's outstretched fist.

He was too excited and used too much force, causing him to cry out in pain.

Catherine was slow to react, or perhaps hadn't yet grasped the implications of screening in 650 theaters. She pinched her cheek and asked, "Ms. Grey, can we go to Hollywood?"

Kelly glanced at Martin and said, "Lionsgate is planning a fan and media meet-and-greet in Los Angeles to further promote the film. Please come to Los Angeles; they've booked your tickets. You'll spend Thanksgiving in Atlanta and leave early Friday morning."

"I can go to Hollywood?" Catherine's first question was a question, but her second turned into a statement: "I can go to Hollywood!"

She suddenly screamed, hugged her full head of blonde hair, and stood up to spin around.

The allure of fame for an ordinary actor is just as strong as the excitement Catherine felt at that moment.

Even Martin kept staring at Kelly Gray and smiling.

Why hide your happiness?

Actors are naturally expressive of their emotions.

After screaming, Catherine calmed down a bit, plopped down in a chair, and smiled sheepishly, "Sorry, I lost my temper. This is...this is so important to me."

She extended her hand and gave Martin and Benjamin a high-five: "Thank you! Thank you! It's a great honor to work with you."

Martin smiled and nodded: "Me too."

Kelly then added, "Dave secured $5000 for each of you in his negotiations with Lionsgate, but once you're in Los Angeles, you'll have to cooperate with Lionsgate throughout the entire process."

In his emotional outburst, Benjamin even swore: "As long as they don't mess with my ass, I'll cooperate completely." Then he added fiercely, "Even if they do mess with my ass, I'll put up with it!"

Kelly said to her assistant, "Ella, go get the drinks, we're going to celebrate."

Ella quickly brought over champagne and wine glasses, and the group shared a drink in the conference room.

Benjamin and Catherine left hand in hand.

Martin and Kelly had lunch together and then went to her luxury apartment.

Kelly said, "Your wish has come true."

Martin said, "Our wish has come true."

Kelly did not deny that Martin landed the lead role in a theatrical film, gaining an important qualification, and that her company profited from the project, having more funds to invest in the new film and the renovation of the car industrial park's soundstage.

Martin thought for a moment and said sincerely, "Carrie, I wish you a speedy rise to become a senator."

Kelly Gray laughed: "Martin, I wish you a speedy rise to superstardom."

(End of this chapter)