Sipping coffee brought in by Lisa, James curiously asked Shay about the box office performance of "Two Smoking Guns" in the first weekend of its release in the UK.

CinemaScore does box office forecasting, and they are always keeping an eye on the actual box office figures, but this information is usually in the hands of the studios before it is made public.

Shay was so pleased with the box office prediction that James brought him that he pulled open a drawer and took out a fax and handed it to James to read for himself.

James already knew the box office on the day of the premiere, so he just skipped this line and looked down, and then he couldn't take his eyes off it.

Although it was predicted that the box office on Saturday and Sunday would increase significantly with the increase in the size and number of screenings, the final box office result still made James feel a little unbelievable.

£630,000 on Saturday!

£710,000 on Sunday!

The opening weekend grossed £1.66 million! That's 160,000 more than CinemaScore had previously estimated, which means that the final box office of Two Smoking Guns in the UK is likely to be higher than CinemaScore's prediction.

This was not good news for James, and he even felt the urge to quit immediately and go back to his boss to revise the box office forecast.

"This number should not be much different from what CinemaScore predicted, right?"

Shay's question pulled James back from his stunned state.

He smiled slightly awkwardly, but didn't mean to hide his thoughts.

"What? It's even higher than CinemaScore predicted! ”

This time it was Shay's turn to be shocked, not so much because he believed in CinemaScore's predictions, but because the box office figures he had expected were lower than those given by CinemaScore, and now he suddenly heard that CinemaScore was also predicting low, and it was indeed a little difficult to accept for a while.

Seeing Shay's expression, James immediately stood up and apologized.

"Mr. White, this is a mistake in our work, and we will do a new assessment of the box office trend of "Two Smoking Guns" when we go back."

Shay didn't give him a chance to continue, and directly raised his hand to interrupt.

"Box office predictions can't be 100% accurate, and Mr. James doesn't need to apologize in a hurry, I'd like to hear your thoughts on this matter, CinemaScore's evaluation method shouldn't be so easy to get wrong, right?"

"Maybe it has something to do with the fact that the film was shot in London and all the actors are British, which we didn't take into account when we were forecasting the box office."

Shay accepted this answer, and then he asked: "Since this is the reason why the box office of the film exceeds expectations, is it possible that it is also because of this reason that the evaluation of the film by American audiences has been affected?" ”

"There will definitely be some impact, but judging by the reaction of British films in the North American market in the past, it will not be a big obstacle."

James's answer reassured Shay, and he asked the question that he was most concerned about.

"What does CinemaScore think about the film's North American box office trend?"

"It has the potential to be a big hit, but the specific score and box office estimate will not be given until the film is released in North America. Personally, I think that if the British audience's evaluation of this movie is A-, then the American audience's evaluation will definitely be a notch worse, but this is also at the level of B+, which will not affect the overall box office trend. ”

After listening to James's analysis, Shay finally made a decision that the negotiations with Jude for the next film cooperation could not be delayed any longer, and must start immediately, if the film was released in North America, the new line company would not only have to make more concessions, but also may face competition from other rivals.

――

At Los Angeles International Airport, Jude came back to meet Kate after picking up his luggage, and was about to leave together when his phone suddenly rang.

As soon as he saw that the number displayed on the screen was Leet's, Jude immediately put the phone back in his pocket.

Kate looked over curiously.

"Why don't you answer the phone?"

"Today is a world for two that belongs only to us, no matter who calls it, to hell with it!"

Jodra took Kate's hand and walked out of the airport hall with a relaxed expression.

Leete, who was driving to the airport, angrily threw down his phone and turned around and drove in the direction of the trip.

After waiting for about half an hour at Jude's rented apartment, a taxi slowly stopped on the side of the road.

Jude and Kate got out of the car from both sides, took their luggage and walked into the building holding hands, just as the elevator was on the first floor, and the two were about to press the button to close the door after entering, and someone outside walked in.

Jude blocked the elevator door with his hand to make it easier for the other party to catch the elevator, but he didn't expect that what he saw when the elevator door opened was actually Leete.

Li Tet straightened his collar and walked into the elevator, deliberately looked ahead and said, "Are you still waiting for other people?" If you don't, you can close the door. ”

Jude depressedly pressed the close button, and then asked, "Why are you here?" ”

Litt looked at the number of floors on the elevator door that kept jumping up with a blank face, pouted, and said, "Why can't I be here?" I was going to make a phone call before I came, but unfortunately, one guy's cell phone never got through today. ”

"I told you when I got on the plane, and I'll talk about it tomorrow!"

"You've been on the plane for twelve hours, have you forgotten the time? I thought you were referring to today when you said tomorrow before you got on the plane. ”

"Damn it!" Jude patted his head, and then remembered that he had forgotten about jet lag after getting off the plane.

Kate stood between the two and made a stop-and-go motion.

"You two don't quarrel anymore, what's the problem, go back to the apartment and discuss it, okay?"

Back at the apartment, Kate made a cup of coffee for each of them and went to take a shower herself.

Leeter was still angry at Jude for deliberately not answering his calls, but he didn't forget what he was doing.

"Shea White has called me three times in a row to ask about your next movie during the half day you've been on the plane. Maybe you should look at the missed calls on your phone and maybe find his number. ”

Jude held the coffee cup and replied slowly, "Of course you can start negotiations, but the new line company always has to show a little sincerity, right?" ”

Leeter took a magazine out of his briefcase and handed it to Jude.

"Yesterday, the Saturn Awards officially announced the shortlist, and "This Man from Earth" was shortlisted for two awards: Best Screenplay and Best Science Fiction Film, and the specific shortlist is here...... I think that's the sincerity of the new line company. ”

Jude frowned and asked, "No Best Director?" ”

"The Saturn Award is allowed for PR, but it has not yet degenerated to the point where you can buy the award directly with money!" Litt glanced at Jude, "Unless you are confident that you can snatch the trophy from James Cameron, I would advise you to give up this unrealistic idea." ”

"Just kidding." Jude replied duplicitously.

The real thought in my heart was that this day would come sooner or later.