Chapter 233: The Release of Rush Hour

Who knows what Oprah was thinking? She should have realized that The Matrix doesn't align with the theme of her show.

Was she planning to dig into Gilbert's past, bringing up his late mother and stirring up painful memories?

Honestly, given the show's usual approach, that was entirely possible.

The show's research team was more thorough than the FBI, uncovering all kinds of hidden details to make guests emotional. Then, Oprah would offer one of her warm, heartfelt hugs.

So, don't mistake Oprah for some kind of kindhearted big sister. She might play that role, but in the end, everything was for ratings.

That said, from a career perspective, Gilbert still respected her.

This wasn't the politically correct future decades down the line. Right now, in an era where liberal ideologies weren't dominant, a Black woman breaking through in the talk show industry was no small feat. The effort she put in was unimaginable to most people.

Respect was one thing, but Gilbert wasn't about to appear on her show.

Meanwhile, The Matrix was in full swing with its promotional campaign, and Titanic wasn't idle either.

Since December last year, Titanic had secured the number-one spot at the North American box office for eight consecutive weeks, setting a new record.

Even after that, the film occasionally reclaimed the top spot, remaining in the weekly box office top ten until now.

At this rate, Titanic could stay in theaters all the way into the summer.

As of the first weekend in April, Titanic had grossed $589 million in North America. Breaking the $600 million mark was just a matter of time.

Its international performance was equally impressive, raking in $1.02 billion overseas. Combined with its domestic earnings, the total global box office had reached $1.609 billion.

These staggering numbers silenced all the skeptics who had doubted Titanic.

At this point, even those who disliked James Cameron had to admit one thing—he was a great director.

When Cameron held up his Oscar and declared, "I'm the king of the world," some media outlets criticized him for being arrogant. Others thought he was full of himself.

But no one questioned whether he deserved it.

From the perspective of Hollywood insiders, you might not like the truck driver-turned-director or even Titanic itself.

But one thing was undeniable: Titanic had shattered barriers in numerous previously closed-off film markets, accelerating Hollywood's global expansion.

Ever since a certain colossal entity collapsed, Hollywood had been pushing forward with globalization. Jurassic Park had been a milestone in this revolution, and Titanic had brought it to completion.

From this point on, no matter how prestigious the three major European film festivals remained, they had to face the truth—European cinema had fallen far behind Hollywood.

Their only option was to protect their own markets rather than compete with Hollywood.

And Europe wasn't even a unified force.

If Europe was struggling, other regions were in even worse shape.

Hong Kong cinema, once hailed as the "Hollywood of the East," had it especially rough.

The Lost World: Jurassic Park had already dealt it a critical blow, leaving it gasping for breath.

Then Titanic came along and crushed it completely, leaving no chance for revival.

Gilbert actually envied James Cameron.

The man was a true filmmaking genius, unlike Gilbert, who had to rely on his "cheat."

Even with that advantage, he still wasn't on Cameron's level. He wasn't even on Spielberg's.

In terms of cumulative box office earnings, Spielberg was leagues ahead. And when it came to the highest-grossing individual films, Cameron was in a league of his own.

Following Titanic's overwhelming success, the media frequently grouped Gilbert with Spielberg and Cameron as the three defining directors of the 1990s.

The public embraced this notion, though Gilbert himself felt a little guilty about it.

But he had thick skin, so he accepted his status as one of the "Big Three" of the '90s without hesitation.

He had no reason to sell himself short.

Gilbert personally believed he was far behind Spielberg and Cameron, but in the eyes of the industry, he was the most terrifying of the three.

Why? His achievements spoke for themselves.

Hollywood had never seen a director achieve massive success at just twenty-one. Even more remarkable was that he remained level-headed despite all the hype.

He churned out a film every year—earning him the nickname "Hollywood's fastest gun"—and each one was a massive hit.

He was the ultimate representative of mainstream Hollywood filmmaking.

International audiences might still see Spielberg and Cameron as the face of Hollywood.

But in North America, neither of them could match Gilbert in representing the industry.

Of course, he didn't care about such empty titles. What mattered to him was the real gains.

He had played a role in Titanic's success as both a producer and a screenwriter.

As the box office revenue rolled in, Gilbert's earnings from the film began accumulating.

North America had already gone through two rounds of profit-sharing.

Thanks to his foresight, the domestic distribution contract had been negotiated on highly favorable terms.

So far, he had received over $60 million in revenue from the North American box office.

That alone wasn't enough to recoup his $50 million investment, especially after taxes.

Even with smart tax strategies, some deductions were unavoidable.

And Gilbert wasn't about to draw the attention of the IRS—that agency was even scarier than the FBI.

Meanwhile, the international box office revenue had also started coming in, netting him another $85 million.

At this point, he had made a substantial profit from his investment in Titanic through box office earnings alone.

And this wasn't even the end. The film was still playing, and while future earnings would be smaller, they would still trickle in.

More surprisingly, the merchandise revenue was turning out to be a goldmine.

Since last year, the film's original soundtrack had dominated the Billboard charts for six consecutive weeks, overshadowing albums from pop icons and legendary rock bands alike.

In North America alone, Titanic's soundtrack had sold 11 million copies.

Overseas sales weren't as strong in non-English-speaking markets, but worldwide, the album had still moved 18 million copies.

Despite the need to split profits with various distributors in North America and overseas, the first revenue distribution from the soundtrack album arrived in early April, bringing in $24.5 million.

This was just the first payment. While it might seem a bit low, more revenue would continue to flow in over time.

Calculating international sales was incredibly complex, with an unimaginable number of processes involved. No one worked for free—every party that handled the album took their share of the profits.

And let's not forget the taxes in each country, which also had to be paid.

Without a team of professionals overseeing the process, Gilbert wouldn't have been able to manage such a complicated operation.

Fortunately, he had his own team of accountants. Though they took a share of the profits, they at least relieved him of a significant amount of trouble.

Beyond the soundtrack album, other merchandise sales continued to generate revenue. In North America alone, the merchandise market—including T-shirts, action figures, and models—brought in $220 million.

Although a portion had to be shared with partners, Gilbert still earned more than $20 million from this segment.

While the exact financial details remained unknown to the public, the media could roughly estimate the revenue Titanic had generated based on its ever-rising box office numbers.

Previously, when Titanic kept increasing its budget, nearly everyone mocked 20th Century Fox, ridiculed Paramount, and laughed at Gilbert.

After all, following the box office disaster of Waterworld, people had realized that simply throwing more money into a movie's production didn't guarantee success.

However, as Titanic continued to break records, these same critics quickly changed their stance.

The two studios were receiving some praise, but the biggest wave of admiration was directed at Gilbert. He was hailed for his sharp investment instincts, his exceptional filmmaking vision, and even called a genius.

This sudden surge of praise had an unexpected effect—it boosted The Matrix. Many new moviegoers, who had stepped into theaters because of Titanic, had fallen in love with cinema as an art form.

When they wanted to watch another movie, they would ask their friends, "Which director's films should I check out?"

Their friends would often reply, "I recommend Gilbert's movies. He's around our age but has already directed seven feature films, each one better than the last."

"Does he have any new movies out?"

"Of course. The Matrix is coming out on May 8th. If you can't wait, you can check out Rush Hour, a movie he produced—it's supposed to be great too."

This new moviegoer would nod in agreement and soon become a loyal fan of Gilbert's films.

As for Rush Hour, it had hit North American theaters in April, slightly ahead of the summer blockbuster season.

Gilbert had already seen the movie and knew it was solid.

At the time, he had told Jackie Chan that it was a fantastic action film that audiences would love, but it wasn't suitable for a summer release.

The summer season was too competitive, and a movie starring an Asian actor would likely get crushed.

Rush Hour opened in North America on April 3rd, earning $6.753 million on its first Friday—an impressive start.

Action movie fans loved it, and its unique blend of comedy and action made it a refreshing highlight in the relatively slow month of April.

Gilbert actively promoted the film since it was produced by his own studio. His fans' support also played a key role in the movie's success.

After watching it, most audiences felt it lived up to expectations. The production quality was outstanding, and Jackie Chan, despite not fitting conventional Hollywood standards of handsomeness, had an undeniable charm.

On Saturday, Rush Hour brought in an incredible $9.246 million, followed by $8.085 million on Sunday, resulting in a $24.084 million opening weekend.

Much of the credit went to Gilbert, whose enthusiastic promotion and influence helped the film secure such a strong debut.

However, no amount of promotion would have helped if the movie itself wasn't good.

The real heroes were the Rush Hour team—especially Jackie Chan, who personally choreographed many of the movie's best action scenes.

Critics were equally impressed.

Tony McKenzie from The New Yorker wrote, "A martial arts master from the East has shown us what a truly entertaining action movie looks like. Jackie Chan has revolutionized Hollywood's approach to action films, and I'm certain many future movies will try to replicate Rush Hour's style."

The Hollywood Reporter commented, "The film is lively and fresh, avoiding clichés while delivering fun for all ages. It's packed with action but remains free of excessive violence, often making the audience burst into laughter. High-quality and far from ordinary, Rush Hour is an outstanding action movie."

Audience reactions were just as enthusiastic.

One excited moviegoer was stopped by a reporter outside a theater and said, "That was amazing! I want to learn that move!"

He then tried to imitate a stunt from the film, almost knocking over another passerby.

With its stellar debut, Rush Hour claimed the top spot at the North American box office that week. Jackie Chan had reached a career peak in Hollywood.

The film's success crossed the Pacific and made waves in Hong Kong.

Since 1996, Hong Kong's film industry had been in decline, and when Titanic entered the Hong Kong market, the downturn accelerated.

Desperate for solutions, Hong Kong filmmakers saw hope in Rush Hour. Though it was a Hollywood production, it still retained a distinctly Hong Kong-style action-comedy feel.

Adding to this optimism was the fact that renowned action choreographer Yuen Woo-ping had just finished working with Gilbert on a major project, and Hong Kong director John Woo had wrapped up Mission: Impossible 2 with Tom Cruise.

Meanwhile, Jet Li was making his Hollywood debut, and Ang Lee was gaining prominence. The presence of Chinese filmmakers in Hollywood had never been stronger.

Seeing their peers succeed, more Hong Kong filmmakers began considering opportunities in Hollywood.

Hollywood, in turn, absorbed these talents, incorporating the best aspects of Hong Kong cinema while refining and innovating upon them.

Gilbert had once discussed the future of Hong Kong cinema with Jackie Chan, as well as the current Hollywood craze for martial arts and Asian actors.

He told Jackie, "This is temporary. Hollywood will never let Asians, especially Chinese actors, dominate the industry."

Jackie asked, "Then what should we do?"

Gilbert had one piece of advice: "If you want to save Hong Kong cinema, you have to put aside your pride and collaborate with the mainland."

"Collaborate with the mainland?" Jackie frowned. He was open to it, but he knew many Hong Kong filmmakers weren't.

What Jackie didn't realize was that Gilbert made this suggestion precisely because he understood Hong Kong filmmakers well. Without such cooperation, Hong Kong cinema was doomed.

No industry in the world could resist Hollywood's dominance—certainly not Hong Kong cinema.

The only way to withstand Hollywood's overwhelming influence was to have a large enough domestic market that could sustain frequent local productions.

Without partnering with the mainland, where would Hong Kong find such a market? Southeast Asia? That region had already fallen under Hollywood's control.

Japan? Hong Kong films were popular there, but Japan itself struggled against Hollywood's dominance.

Other markets? Hong Kong cinema had no chance against Hollywood on the global stage—it was already on life support.

Gilbert had simply given his suggestion. Whether Hong Kong filmmakers would listen was beyond his control. After all, he was an outsider.

One last thing worth mentioning: while Rush Hour took the No.1 spot at the box office, Titanic was No.2 that same week, earning another $7.42 million.

The film had been in the Top 10 for so long that it had become normal to see it bouncing back up to No.1 or No.2.

At first, the media eagerly reported on it, but after a while, they got used to it, almost with a sense of resignation—"We get it. Titanic is unstoppable."

By its second weekend, Rush Hour continued to perform strongly, grossing $45.268 million, bringing its North American total to $69.352 million in just ten days.

At this rate, it was guaranteed to surpass $100 million.

With a Hollywood film starring him crossing the $100 million mark, Jackie Chan's value skyrocketed, making him the most recognized Chinese actor in Hollywood.

Given its $35 million budget, Rush Hour would easily turn a profit from North American box office alone.

More importantly, if it performed well, sequels were already planned.

Touchstone Pictures, which handled Rush Hour's North American distribution, had initially doubted whether a film starring an Asian actor could succeed.

But now that it had, Robert Iger deeply regretted not investing in it.

Sure, distributing the film had earned Touchstone a substantial sum, but who wouldn't want a piece of the box office and merchandise revenue?

Iger had missed that opportunity—and it stung.

This only strengthened his resolve to acquire Gilbert's studio and lock him into Disney's future.

With so many promising projects, Gilbert's studio had become the most sought-after prize in Hollywood.

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