The Best Movie Actor In Hollywood!

Chapter 750

A first-day North American box office of $33.8 million wasn't as strong as "Fast & Furious 4," but Matthew felt a wave of relief when he saw the number. At the very least, it wasn't a flop. Compared to the disaster that was "Cloud Atlas," he was definitely the winner.

The day after the premiere, he had his team check the numbers from the theaters. "Cloud Atlas" had long since dwindled to less than 5% of the box office share. The top three films were now "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra," "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen," and "Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs."

The newly released animated film, "Ice Age 3," lagged significantly behind the two live-action movies.

Despite opening on the same weekend, Paramount Pictures didn't consider "Ice Age 3" to be a competitor for Matthew's film.

Besides, the movie was quite unique. For audiences familiar with Hollywood films, secret special forces units were hardly a novelty, and terrorists had become commonplace.

While the "Transformers" series could still thrive on its action-packed transformations, the light sci-fi elements of "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra" were clearly not enough. That was why they had brought in the right actors.

The three main stars—Matthew, Sienna Miller, and Karolina—were all visually stunning.

Meanwhile, Hasbro, one of the world's leading toy manufacturers, was no longer content with just releasing licensed toys from other properties. It aimed to become a multimedia entertainment powerhouse by leveraging its own brands for on-screen promotion.

The partnership with Paramount Pictures could only be described as a powerful combination. The summer's first blockbuster, "Transformers 2," had been a box office smash. With the metal warriors still stoking the fire, the G.I. Joe soldiers, led by Matthew, were already beginning to storm the market.

As one of Hasbro's flagship properties, "G.I. Joe" had become popular in Europe and the United States when it first appeared 27 years ago. Not only did it quickly become a model for many other toy manufacturers, but it also rapidly expanded into various fields, such as comics and cartoons, amassing a large and dedicated fanbase.That fanbase laid the foundation for the success of "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra" on its opening day.

On Saturday afternoon, while in the middle of a promotional event, Matthew received the latest statistics for the film.

Since its release, over 14,000 viewers had rated the film on IMDb, giving it an average score of 7.8. Five media outlets on Yahoo Entertainment had given it grades ranging from "B+" to "A."

However, its reputation on Rotten Tomatoes was as poor as ever. On the site, which specialized in aggregating film critic scores, "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra" was once again marked as "rotten" with a freshness rating of only 56%. But the audience score, voted on by the general public, reached an impressive 95%.

After the brief "fresh" rating for "Fast & Furious 4" on Rotten Tomatoes, Matthew's latest film was continuing the trend: panned by critics but loved by audiences, and it was quickly picking up steam.

According to CinemaScore, which polled audiences directly at theaters, "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra" had received excellent feedback. The service had surveyed 3,560 viewers on-site, giving the film an average grade of "A" and an overall rating of 85 points.

Furthermore, CinemaScore also predicted that while the North American opening weekend was unlikely to exceed $100 million, the final domestic box office was expected to reach the $300 million mark.

This was all undoubtedly good news.

Paramount Pictures was also doing everything it could to rally the media and generate the best possible word-of-mouth, especially on social media, where positive reviews of the film were cropping up everywhere.

"The film opens with a ten-minute assault that stuns the audience, followed by a parade of cool armor and fighter jets. Of the film's 120-minute runtime, two-thirds of the scenes are dedicated to combat."

"The action is thrilling right to the very end! This film is a showcase of every action and combat trick in the Hollywood playbook."

"I thought this would be just another low-quality explosion-fest with boring stunts and an overly bloody plot. But thanks to director Stephen Sommers's meticulous crafting, 'G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra'—with its sharp pacing, lively characters, clever suspense, and perfect setup for a sequel, not to mention the dazzling visual effects—has become a quintessential blockbuster masterpiece."

The film's success was not only important to Matthew but also to Karolina, one of its lead actresses. She too was deeply concerned. She had paid a high price to get the role, and whether her already fading career could be revived depended entirely on the reaction to "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra."

On Sunday night, Karolina stayed up past midnight, refreshing a web page over and over as she waited for the latest box office report to be published.

Finally, around one in the morning, she saw the updated statistics on the box office website.

In the statistics column on the right side of the homepage were the names and preliminary box office takings for the top three films from the past weekend.

In first place was "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra"!

Over its opening weekend, the film had grossed $86.7 million in over 4,200 theaters across North America, undoubtedly topping the domestic box office chart!

In second place was "Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs." The animated film had earned just $40 million in its first week.

However, Karolina recalled Matthew mentioning that animated films often had long runs in theaters, so its final box office could still be strong.

Third on the box office list was "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen," which earned $28.41 million in its third weekend and had already surpassed the $200 million mark in North America.

Seeing these statistics, Karolina felt a wave of relief wash over her. She was about to take a shower when her agent from New York called unexpectedly.

"I have good news for you." The agent's voice buzzed with excitement. "I just got a call from Victoria's Secret, directly from the Chief Operating Officer's office."

Hearing this, Karolina's eyes widened. "What did they say?" she asked.

The agent replied immediately, "They wanted me to ask if you'd be interested in participating in this year's Victoria's Secret show."

Karolina drew a sharp breath, still in disbelief. "Is this for real?"

"Absolutely," her agent's voice was firm. "Victoria's Secret wants to invite you to this year's fashion show."

Karolina calmed her racing heart and asked, "Should I do it?"

A sharp voice came from the receiver. "Of course! Why wouldn't you?" It seemed she was afraid Karolina would refuse, so she pressed on, "KK, now is not the time to hold a grudge. Once you've regained your fame, you can renegotiate with them. Going back now is the best choice."

Karolina hesitated. "I just don't want to give in."

"The movie is a huge hit, and it's raised your profile," her agent continued. "You need two things right now: first, to get back on good terms with Victoria's Secret, and second, to build your film career. Matthew Horner is the key to that!"

Karolina said nothing. She had only managed this comeback because of Matthew's influence.

"I've heard that Hasbro and Paramount Pictures are already planning a sequel. Stay on good terms with Matthew Horner and try to secure a role in the next one. It will be incredibly beneficial for your modeling career."

"I..." Karolina was at a loss for words.

Make a deal with Matthew Horner? She had just parted ways with him...

The main problem was that she had already used him. Would Matthew still be interested? Did he even need her?