Hollywood Director 1992

[Chapter 187: Box Office Struggles]

"Scene 106, take 2, action!"

The main plot of the scene revolved around Detective Mills' wife, Tracy, who, upon hearing that Mills and his partner, William, were having difficulties in their relationship, took the initiative to invite William over to their home to ease the tension.

Jennifer Connelly played the role of Tracy.

"It smells good," Morgan Freeman, portraying William, remarked as he entered the living room.

" What?" Tracy called from the kitchen, where she was busy cooking.

William gestured toward the kitchen.

"Oh, yes. I mean, thank you," Tracy responded, wearing a white casual shirt with a brown apron, her long, golden-brown hair cascading over her shoulders. The light caught her face, highlighting her exquisite features, and she emanated a gentle, nurturing vibe -- every man's dream wife.

"Please, sit down. Would you like something to drink?" Jennifer Connelly smiled at the camera.

"Thanks, but I'll pass for now. I'll have something later," William replied, taking off his coat.

"That's fine. You can put that over on the couch. You'll have to excuse all the mess. We're still unpacking," Tracy explained from the kitchen.

William noticed something on Mills' desk. It's a medal, in a small, clear case amongst the papers and pens. He asked, "I hear you and Mills were high school sweethearts."

"Uh-huh!" Tracy shrugged and smiled. "High school and college, yes. Pretty hokey, huh? I knew on our first date this was the man I was going to marry."

"Really?" Old William said, surprised.

"God... he was the funniest man I'd ever met." Tracy emerged from the kitchen, carrying some wine glasses to set on the dining table.

William looked over at Detective Mills, who was playing with their two dogs in another room, and said with a straight face, "Really?"

"Well, it's rare these days... that kind of commitment," William commented.

...

"Cut!"

"That's good! Next scene."

...

The following scene depicted the three having dinner together. Detective Mills and Tracy had moved from their hometown to New York City, only to be swindled by their real estate agent into buying a basement apartment located directly under the subway tracks. Every five minutes, the subway rushed overhead, causing the apartment and their furniture to shake.

Yet, Tracy never complained about Detective Mills; they continued to live happily in that noisy place.

This segment was one of the few in the film that showcased personal lives.

The inclusion of this scene was intended to highlight Tracy's beauty and nurturing nature, demonstrating the deep love she shared with Detective Mills. It also set the stage for the tragic moment when the killer would murder pregnant Tracy, enraging Mills.

---

During filming, Link occasionally checked on the box office performance and media coverage of Final Destination.

In its fourth week of release, the North American box office stood at $17.54 million, with a total gross reaching $116 million.

However, the box office saw a near 40% drop that week, greater than the distribution department had anticipated.

According to the public relations team, there were three main reasons for Final Destination's decline.

First, the film's buzz had decreased after four weeks, resulting in diminished audience attraction and slower box office growth.

Second, several other films released around the same time were of decent quality and heavily promoted, including the newly released RoboCop 3, and previously released blockbusters such as Demolition Man, The Addams Family Values, and Flesh and Bone.

These films significantly impacted Final Destination's box office performance.

Lastly, negative news surrounding Link and Final Destination was proliferating in the media; it seemed that not only CAA was stoking the flames of Link's controversies, but there were other factions attempting to undermine him and Guess Pictures.

These damaging reports also had a significant effect on the film's earnings.

...

To counteract these issues, the publicity team led by Jon Gordon and the public relations team led by Lily implemented some recovery measures.

For instance, they increased promotional efforts, sending several extras in groups across major cities in the U.S. for publicity stunts. The PR and legal departments aggressively countered media rumors defaming Link, filing lawsuits against more than thirty media outlets, among other strategies.

However, the results were average at best.

...

In the fifth week post-release, Final Destination's box office plummeted to $10.38 million, accumulating a total of $126 million.

Total Film magazine predicted that the film's North American box office would reach around $180 million, with an approximate margin of error of about $10 million, making it hard to surpass the $200 million mark.

It appeared increasingly unlikely that Final Destination would best the $202 million earnings of The Firm.

Most media outlets believed that CAA actors represented by Tom Cruise had a high probability of winning the outcome of the bet laid down over this situation.

As a result, various casinos and bookmakers in the U.S. raised the odds of Link winning the bet to attract gamblers.

According to reports, the casino with the highest odds was Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas, which offered 5.2 to 1 odds on Link coming out on top. If a gambler bet $1 on Link winning, they would receive $5.20 if he won the wager.

Meanwhile, the odds for The Firm outperforming dropped to 1.19 to 1.

...

"Tsk, tsk, Link, if you bet $10 million at the casino and won the bet, you'd clear over $100 million from," Chris Barnes said while flipping through a newspaper and munching on pizza during lunch. "Why don't we get some stars to host a screening? Imagine investing $40 million to book a private showing and push the box office over $200 million to win the bet -- you'd pocket millions, and this could really pay off."

"Doing it that way isn't worth it; the profit is too small," Link replied.

"Do you have a better idea?"

"I have an idea, but I can't say how good it is."

Link continued eating pizza while scrolling through Rolling Stone magazine, where an article covered a new boy band called Backstreet Boys that had just formed, featuring four members who had launched two singles earlier that year, gaining influence among young Americans.

Apart from Backstreet Boys, other music groups were also rising to fame, like Destiny's Child, whose lead singer would soon be the iconic Beyonce, and the British pop group, Take That.

With changes in the music market, pop singers frequently debuted as 'groups,' gaining significant popularity.

Upon learning this, Link got a brilliant idea.

...

Link called UTA president Marty Bauer to see if he was interested in creating a pop band.

With Final Destination garnering plenty of attention, the film's leading actors had transformed into teen idols, their star power rivaling that of top singers.

In light of this, Link suggested that Ryan Phillippe, Edward Norton, Liv Tyler, Joaquin Phoenix, and Angelina Jolie form a teen band, and he planned to enlist songwriters to create a few tailored singles for them.

Of the group, Liv Tyler had been influenced by her father Steven Tyler and had some musical training as a child.

Joaquin Phoenix had street performance experience alongside his brother, River Phoenix, while Angelina Jolie had dabbled in music as a teenager.

Though Ryan Phillippe and Edward Norton lacked a musical background, they were both good-looking and could become visual frontmen for the group after some training.

UTA president Marty Bauer expressed great interest in the idea.

His agency not only managed acting careers but also had over twenty clients who were star musicians and had helped train and promote singers in the past.

Creating a band to quickly cash in on Final Destination's success was a fantastic proposal.

Marty Bauer immediately agreed, stating he would fully support Link and could arrange a professional management team to assist in music training and publicity for the new group.

...

Link then called Jon Gordon and Lily to discuss using the band as a promotional tool for the film.

Both Jon Gordon and Lily were impressed by his idea and expressed their full support.

However, when Link communicated with the main actors, Edward Norton said he wasn't interested in singing, and Guess Pictures respected his decision.

Ultimately, the band consisted of Ryan Phillippe, Liv Tyler, Angelina Jolie, and Joaquin Phoenix.

Thus, the Grim Reapers Band was born.

*****

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