The Best Movie Actor In Hollywood!

Chapter 819

The first stop on their Far East tour was Tokyo, and with Ken Watanabe as the team's primary promotional figurehead, Matthew had to settle for second billing.

Every country has a sense of national pride, especially when it comes to their own stars making it big in Hollywood. This was particularly true in Japan and other parts of the Far East, but even European nations known for their art-house films showed special preference for their homegrown talent.

Ken Watanabe's popularity in Japan far exceeded Matthew's expectations.

It was precisely for this reason that the studio had agreed to let Michael Fassbender and James McAvoy split off to film "X-Men: First Class," and for Christopher Nolan to remain in Los Angeles to prepare for "The Dark Knight Rises." Bringing Ken Watanabe along was non-negotiable.

The Japanese media headlines for "Inception" read:

"Renowned Film Star Ken Watanabe Co-Stars with Hollywood Superstar Matthew Horner for the First Time in the Blockbuster 'Inception,' Premiering in Japan!"

"Ken Watanabe Returns to Japan to Promote His New Film, 'Inception'..."

Nearly every Japanese media outlet that mentioned the film placed Ken Watanabe's name before Matthew's.

Matthew, of course, didn't mind. When it came time to promote "Fast Five" on the other side of the Pacific, he would be putting NiNi front and center.

It was a small price to pay for the film's success and profitability.Within just a few days, the promotional campaign in Japan blanketed the country. "Inception" trailers played simultaneously on 136 massive outdoor screens across 35 prefectures, on the display televisions in 50 major electronics stores, and throughout the country's key subway and bus systems. An advertising blitz of this scale was almost unprecedented in the history of Japanese cinema.

This was especially evident in the bustling square in front of Tokyo Station. When the film's trailer lit up the massive screen on the station's facade, the noisy crowds of pedestrians froze in their tracks, their eyes glued to the display. For a moment, it was as if all of Japan had become a placid pool, with the only sound being the audio from the giant screen.

After several days in Japan, Matthew accompanied the film crew to Seoul, South Korea. Since there were no Korean actors in the cast, the promotional spotlight fell squarely on him.

During a press event, a Korean reporter once again asked for an analysis of the film, particularly its ambiguous ending.

With Christopher Nolan absent, it fell to Matthew to answer.

"By the end, you should see that Cobb's real life has become almost indistinguishable from the dream world, which means Cobb himself is an unreliable focal point," Matthew explained, echoing a point he had discussed with Christopher Nolan. He continued, just as Nolan had intended, "And whether the top falls or not, Cobb no longer needs to know the truth. He's already reunited with his children."

It highlighted another central theme of the film: family.

The promotional tour in Korea proceeded normally for the first two days. Then, an unexpected wave of stories began to surface in the local media.

"Matthew Horner is actually Korean by ancestry!"

This shocking claim appeared suddenly in several Korean news outlets, startling even Matthew himself.

The Korean media reports went on to analyze his success, suggesting that his supposed Korean blood was the very reason he had risen to such heights in Hollywood.

They even claimed that his impressive fighting skills were entirely due to his training in Taekwondo.

The question was even posed directly to Matthew during a press conference.

"I don't have any Korean ancestry, of that I'm certain," Matthew stated, shutting down the line of questioning while remaining polite. "And I've never studied Taekwondo. My agility comes from a combination of natural talent and years of training in boxing, fencing, and freestyle wrestling."

Matthew couldn't comprehend the fanatical conviction of the Korean reporters.

So, after their final promotional event in Korea, Matthew and the team were more than eager to leave Seoul behind and head for Hong Kong.

Meanwhile, "Inception" was heading into its second weekend in North American theaters, where it faced a new competitor: the animated feature "Despicable Me," produced by Illumination Entertainment and distributed by Universal Pictures.

No one expected that an animated film produced for a modest $70 million would deliver such a stunning box office performance.

On its opening day Friday, it knocked "Inception" from the top spot, earning $21.3 million compared to "Inception's" $19.2 million for the day.

Meanwhile, BlueSky Pictures seemed unable to produce a major hit outside of its "Ice Age" franchise.

With "Despicable Me," Illumination Entertainment seemed to be making a bold statement to the world: they were a new contender, ready to compete with the giants of animation, Pixar Studios and DreamWorks Animation Studios.

One thing was undeniable: Illumination Entertainment had the powerful backing of Universal Pictures.

It was that support that helped turn the animated film into a massive hit.

But the newcomer's reign was short-lived, as it soon fell to "Inception."

On Saturday, "Inception" pulled in $24.6 million, overtaking "Despicable Me's" $20.83 million and reclaiming its crown as the daily box office champion.

The following Sunday, "Inception" once again led the box office, with "Despicable Me" close behind.

For the weekend, "Despicable Me" finished in a strong second place with $56.3 million, but "Inception" secured its second consecutive weekend victory at the North American box office, earning $58.3 million.

"Inception" had barely held on against "Despicable Me," a film with broad, all-ages appeal for the entire family.

Combined with its weekday earnings, "Inception" had grossed a total of $195.6 million in North America after two weeks in theaters.

Crossing the $200 million mark in North America was now just a small hurdle; $300 million was clearly within reach.

In stark contrast to the success of "Inception" and "Despicable Me," "John Carter" was proving to be a spectacular failure. After four weeks, its weekend gross was just over $1 million, and its total North American box office had yet to break $40 million.

Many market research firms had downgraded their projections for the film's total North American run to a mere $45 million, and they predicted it would struggle to even cross the $100 million mark worldwide.

The Walt Disney Company was reportedly furious with the results of their collaboration with Brad Pitt, as the box office returns wouldn't even cover the costs of marketing and distribution.

According to the intel Helen had gathered, several Hollywood production companies had already blacklisted both Brad Pitt and Natalie Portman from any mid-to-high-budget projects.

Looking at the latest box office numbers, Matthew figured "John Carter" would limp along in North American theaters until mid-August at best before the major chains pulled it from their screens for good.

***

As the new week began, Matthew found himself once again on the other side of the Pacific.

He kept a much lower profile compared to his previous, more exhaustive campaigns. There was a clear difference in intensity when promoting a film for another company versus one he had personally invested in.

Besides, "Inception" was still a full month away from its local release, so the immediate impact of the promotion wouldn't be as potent.

It couldn't be helped. While Hollywood films were often released in July, the local censorship board had been slow to approve the film. By the time it was cleared, "Inception" had already been playing in North America for weeks.

In recent years, a growing number of Hollywood stars had been traveling to the region for premieres and promotional events, so they were no longer the rarity they once were for local movie fans.

The real draw, of course, was the increasingly lucrative film market.

Thanks to a new World Trade Agreement and a pending Memorandum of Understanding on film imports, the quota of Hollywood films allowed for distribution had not only grown, but the share of box office receipts had jumped to 25%.

As a result, Hollywood blockbusters stood to make more money than ever before in this market.

Spurred by this incentive, Hollywood was pouring more effort into the market and adopting more sophisticated marketing strategies. The old methods—simply getting articles published, distributing trailers and posters, buying ad space at bus stops, and holding a basic premiere—were no longer enough to meet the demands of the growing market.

Taking the unique market and social climate into account, Warner Bros. adopted one of "Inception's" lesser-known taglines from North America and made it the central slogan for the local campaign: "A film that only intelligent people can understand!"

A slogan like that wouldn't work well in a mature film market, but in an emerging one, it was remarkably effective.