After the Independence Day holiday, Matthew left North America and went to the Far East with the crew to continue the promotion of "Inception".

On the other side of the Pacific Ocean, for example, due to some new regulations, the screening of "Inception" will not be until August.

Neither was or still is the official rule on the other side of the Pacific that there is such an express regulation as a protection month, but those who know a little know it well know that this thing is real.

Such measures of market protection are normal, and they are available in many countries and regions around the world, and they are not exclusive to them.

With the rapid growth of the market on the other side of the Pacific and the gradual initial consensus on the introduction of films between the two sides, all those involved in the investment of big-budget commercial films cannot ignore the huge market of 1.3 billion dollars.

"You pay attention to the market over there. Helen Herman turned her head to look at the clouds outside the window and said to Matthew opposite, "I also value the market over there, so I'm going to open a branch there." ”

Not surprised to know that Helen Herman had business over there, Matthew asked, "Is there anyone I need help with?"

Helen Herman shook her head slowly, "I'll greet you in advance if I need to." ”

"Do you have a way to open up the market?" Matthew reminded, "and any outsider who enters a new market will be subject to a certain degree of exclusion." ”

The entertainment brokerage business on both sides of the Pacific Ocean is completely different types, like Hollywood, the agency is essentially a service provider, due to the existence of the "Talent Act", in the face of star-level actors, even if it is a large company like CAA, sometimes it is relatively powerless.

After all, no agency can sign a long-term contract with an actor, and it is all too common for an actor to change agents and agencies.

Even, the likes of Tom Cruise, Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio have moved away from the services of agents and have replaced them with more trusting and flexible managers.

On the other side of the Pacific Ocean, celebrities are often absolutely weak in front of brokerage companies, and some celebrities often sign contracts similar to deeds of sale before they become famous, and the result after becoming famous is endless trouble.

The Hollywood one is very difficult to implement on the other side of the Pacific.

Helen Herman said lightly, "Don't forget, I represent Nini's business in Hollywood. She was always sober, "I will not let the angel agency become a disruptor, but take the initiative to integrate into the market over there." Representing Nini's business also made me understand one thing, the appeal of Hollywood is huge. ”

Matthew understood what Helen Herman meant.

Sure enough, Helen Herman said, "I've heard you say that 'export to domestic sales' is very reasonable, as long as I can cram the actors there into the Hollywood crew, there will definitely be no shortage of customers in the branch I opened." ”

"You're a fast learner. Matthew was quite emotional.

There are too many people on the other side of the Pacific who want to break into Hollywood, even if they can't stay in Hollywood to develop, and when they go back, they want to be the export to domestic sales.

The reality is that many export-to-domestic celebrities are particularly popular.

The private business plane rented by the crew suddenly jolted, and the sound of the flight attendant reminding him to fasten his seat belt sounded, Matthew and Helen Herman hurriedly fastened their seat belts, and after the plane returned to stability, they continued to chat.

"Good news for you. Helen Herman took the initiative to change the subject, "Brad Pitt's Los Angeles home was forcibly repossessed by the bank. ”

Matthew raised an eyebrow, "Good news indeed. ”

Helen Herman added, "His bank accounts were all frozen by the lender's application for law, and it was said that he could not even pay for a room in a star-rated hotel." ”

"What about Plan B Film Studios?" asked Matthew.

"Banks and several lenders are going through the legal process. Helen Herman said calmly, "It is estimated that it will be completed in two to three months, and unless Brad Pitt can repay the share-backed loan in the meantime, Plan B will have to change owners." ”

Matthew asked curiously, "Do you think he can pay it back?"

Helen Herman said of a consensus in the circle, "In a place like Hollywood, when a person falls into the water, almost no one will rescue him, but will throw stones at him." ”

Matthew nodded slightly, this kind of thing is not only in Hollywood, but also in the world, there are more icing on the cake and less charcoal in the snow.

"Poor Pete. Matthew sighed.

Helen Herman glanced at Matthew and didn't say anything, after all, she had already seen the cheekiness of the guy opposite.

Brad Pitt is said to have gone to Angelina Jolie again. Helen Herman continued, "But Angelina Jolie refused to help him. ”

Matthew said clearly, "This is the rhythm of old and dead. ”

Helen Herman leaned back in her chair, "It was Jennifer Aniston who helped him." Aniston is said to have given Pitt a few thousand dollars for living expenses and temporarily lent him an apartment in North Hollywood. ”

Matthew sighed and said, "I wonder if Brad Pitt will regret it." ”

"Regret?" Helen Herman shook her head directly, "I heard from Aniston's agent that Brad Pitt asked Jennifer Aniston to help him pay off his debts, at least to help him keep the Plan B film studio." ”

"I remember Jennifer Aniston getting married again. Matthew rubbed his fingers, "She's not stupid enough to help with this, is she?"

Helen Herman still said in that bland tone, "That's close to a hundred million dollars, who can come up with that much cash?"

Changing to Matthew, it is very difficult to get such funds all at once, assets and cash flow are completely different things.

Jennifer Aniston refused. Helen Herman apparently specifically understood, "She didn't want to be involved with Brad Pitt other than providing temporary housing and a small amount of basic living expenses." ”

Matthew knows very well that Brad Pitt's miserable life has just begun, after all, now he only needs to deal with the loan of "Cloud Atlas", and after "Alien Battlefield" is down, the people and institutions who urge the loan for this film will inevitably flock to it.

In his mind, the name that belonged to Brad Pitt had been drawn with a big red "X".

After chatting with Brad Pitt, Matthew and Helen Herman, the conversation quickly shifted to the box office of Inception, with a $88.9 million opening weekend in North America, which was enough to satisfy everyone.

Although the box office in North America failed to exceed 100 million in the first weekend, it is very rare for an original movie, and the box office of $88.9 million is a cut higher than the box office of the super hit "Avatar" in the first weekend.

Of course, whether it's Matthew, or Helen Herman, or the crew and Warner Bros., no one thinks that "Inception" will be able to surpass the perverts like "Avatar" at the box office.

The goal of the crew and Warner Bros. is more realistic, to snatch the North American box office championship this summer file.

It's not easy either, as the previous releases, "Toy Story 3" and "Iron Man 2" both grossed more than $300 million at the North American box office.

But with Matthew here, no one thinks that "Inception" won't even reach $300 million at the North American box office.

What's more, many big productions in North America this year have put squibs.

This summer, there are no big-name sequels to join in the fun, except for "Iron Man 2", there are no other comic books that run out of the "heroes" flying all over the sky, plus ambitious blockbusters such as "Prince of Persia: The Edge of Time" and "Alien Battlefield" The box office is dumb, making the summer of 2010 really seem a little cold.

In this desertion, things like "Iron Man 2", "Toy Story 3" and "Inception" stand out, especially "Inception" because of the superstar effect brought by Matthew and Christopher Nolan's team-up, which has attracted the attention of fans since the start of filming, and even followed by a wave of promotional videos, The ubiquitous viral marketing campaign, Warner's bloody promotion of this original work, is quite expensive for a movie that is not intended for a home audience and is not eye-catching with big scenes.

In fact, compared to others, this film is more of a icing on the cake for Matthew personally, allowing him to further consolidate his status as a top superstar in Hollywood.

The biggest influence is Christopher Nolan himself.

After all, this is Christopher Nolan's first original A-grade production, and its success at the box office will directly affect Nolan's future shooting plans.

Nolan also wants to shoot a big production of the original genre later, and "Inception" cannot afford to lose, which is also the main factor for him to find a superstar with real appeal to work with.

Once he was looking for Leonardo DiCaprio, now he is looking for Matthew, who has more commercial value.

In this respect alone, Christopher Nolan is a very business-minded director.

Warner Bros. has long drawn a minimum line for "Inception", with the North American box office not less than $250 million, and the global box office must be at least more than $500 million.

If the film does not sell well, it may incur a loss.

Fortunately, "Inception" has a successful start, and the next main task is to maintain the stable trend of the North American market and expand overseas markets.

At a time when the cost of a top Hollywood production is often more than $150 million, and the cost of publicity and distribution easily exceeds 100 million, it is simply unrealistic to rely on the North American box office to recover the cost.

Theoretically, a film with a production cost plus publicity cost of $250 million will need at least $500 million at the North American box office to recoup its cost, but there are several films that can reach this figure at the North American box office.

Overseas markets are becoming more and more important to Hollywood.