As August arrived, Pirates of the Caribbean had surpassed $310 million at the North American box office, though it had nearly exhausted all its potential.
Now it was lingering in theaters, trying to squeeze out every last bit of revenue.
However, this year's North American box office crown for Pirates of the Caribbean was not secure, because Finding Nemo, which had been released at the end of May, was coming on strong.
Since its May 30 release, Finding Nemo had already raked in $293 million.
The key point was that Finding Nemo's box office curve was very healthy and long-lasting. At this rate, hitting $330 million would not be a problem.
This was why Pixar Animation Studios had become so sought after. It wasn't just their box office that was impressive—their merchandise sales were also outstanding, making every studio envious.
Moreover, Finding Nemo wasn't only performing strongly in North America. With Hollywood's global promotion, the audience base for animated films worldwide was rapidly expanding.
Traditionally, animation was considered something only kids watched.
But one mustn't forget, whenever a child went to the movies, at least two adults usually accompanied them. That meant each child could generate three or more ticket sales.
And besides, who said only children enjoy animated films? Plenty of adults loved watching them too.
The greatness of Pixar lay in its ability to use animation to tell wonderful, inspiring stories.
Thus, Finding Nemo's $867 million global box office had already surpassed Pirates of the Caribbean's $722 million, making it, for now, the worldwide box office champion of the year.
Looking at the remainder of the year's film slate, there were hardly any highly anticipated blockbusters. Unless a miracle occurred, Finding Nemo was certain to end up the winner.
This year Gilbert had lost the global box office crown, and it looked like he might also lose the North American one. But that was normal—no one could succeed forever.
Besides, Pirates of the Caribbean was far from a failure. If a film grossing $722 million worldwide was considered a failure, then what could possibly count as a success?
Turning to another project from Melon Film Studio, 2 Fast 2 Furious was performing solidly. It had already earned $174 million in North America and $486 million globally.
The film still had room to grow and was far from finished.
Based on its box office, 2 Fast 2 Furious had already turned a profit, and plans for sequels could continue.
Vin Diesel, thanks to several box office hits, had successfully broken into Hollywood's top tier of action stars. However, just like his volatile temper, his position was not entirely secure.
As for the film's two female leads, Liv Tyler and Jessica Alba had recently ranked among the top twenty sexiest women worldwide in a leading fashion magazine, and both had amassed countless fans.
Liv Tyler in particular—her long legs had left fans utterly captivated.
Many actresses had long legs, but not necessarily shapely ones.
Liv Tyler was different. When it came to legs, she could surpass most Hollywood actresses, ranking near the top and embodying the very meaning of "long legs conquer all."
Jessica Alba, on the other hand, was the quintessential chocolate beauty. Her bronze skin paired with her sweet smile left people enchanted.
Compared to white actresses, she had more delicate allure, and unlike black actresses, whose appeal was often considered less mainstream, Alba attracted broad interest.
Liv Tyler had once even thought of introducing Jessica Alba to Gilbert. But at the time, Gilbert was buried in work, and soon after, he completely forgot about her.
Because of this, gossip tabloids jokingly referred to Jessica Alba as one of the few "pure" girls Gilbert hadn't been involved with.
Well… to be fair, Liv Tyler had also said that Jessica Alba changed boyfriends faster than outfits, so she wasn't all that "pure."
Meanwhile, Rush Hour 3, which had opened on July 18, had already grossed $112 million domestically, an impressive figure.
Its overseas earnings were also strong, now at $142 million and still steadily climbing.
As the final entry in the series, Rush Hour 3 was showing an excellent box office curve, and notably, many audiences genuinely enjoyed the film.
Through this series, Jackie Chan had managed to establish a strong foundation of fans in North America.
Riding on this momentum, Melon Studio was preparing to launch the sequel to The Adventures of Jackie Chan:Mystery of Talisman, taking advantage of Jackie Chan's current surge in popularity.
In Gilbert's words, it was about squeezing every last bit of value out of Jackie Chan while he was still useful—otherwise, if they waited too long, Jackie Chan would be past his prime.
Every star eventually fades. Let alone someone like Jackie Chan, who was essentially an outsider.
Even homegrown legends like Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone, who had dominated as action icons in the '80s and '90s, had seen their workload drop drastically once the new century began.
So for Jackie Chan to lose steam in Hollywood was no surprise to Gilbert.
For Jackie Chan—or for Shu Chang and Bingbing—the domestic market would always be their true foundation. Expecting to sustain a long-term Hollywood career was unrealistic.
They weren't Tom Cruise. Why should they get to last so long in North America?
Because of the launch of The Adventures of Jackie Chan, after completing the global promotion for Rush Hour 3 and taking a short trip back to Hong Kong, Jackie Chan immediately flew back to Los Angeles to begin preparing for the film.
When it came to action choreography, Jackie Chan was undeniably a master. The fight scenes in the Rush Hour series had largely been designed by Jackie Chan and his stunt team, and this time would be no exception.
But The Adventures of Jackie Chan wasn't just about action—it also featured a wealth of visual wonders, showcasing all sorts of magical natural landscapes and mysterious hidden cities.
In The Adventures of Jackie Chan 2, Jackie Chan and Jade would journey deep into Tibet in search of the legendary utopia of Shambhala. At the same time, Valon and his gang were also pursuing Shambhala.
Legend said Shambhala contained a mystical stone called the Mani Stone, capable of granting people's wishes.
Jackie Chan suspected it was connected to the power of the twelve talismans, so he went to investigate. Along the way, the female thief Little Snake caused them plenty of trouble before ultimately turning from enemy to ally.
Then, in The Adventures of Jackie Chan 3, Jackie Chan and Uncle Jade would head into the desert to search for Atlantis, said to be hidden beneath the sea of sand, sparking yet another series of thrilling adventures.
In this third installment, Jackie Chan would continue his struggle with Valon, of course emerging victorious in the end, and finally becoming romantically involved with Little Snake.
Anyone who had played Uncharted would find the story familiar—yes, this was essentially a modified version of the second and third Uncharted games.
Of course, at this time the Uncharted story didn't even exist yet, so this was entirely an original creation from Gilbert and the studio's screenwriters.
Gilbert would pitch the initial concept, and then the screenwriters would refine and develop it into a full script.
After reading it, Jackie Chan was blown away. His own Armour of God films were in the adventure-treasure-hunting genre, but compared to the Adventures of Jackie Chan series, they seemed tiny in scope.
Only a big-budget Hollywood production could achieve this level of scale and storytelling.
By August, preparations for The Adventures of Jackie Chan had officially begun. Alfonso Cuarón and Tsui Hark took up the directors' reins, with Gilbert serving as producer—the project was launched.
At the same time, twenty-nine individuals selected from the Shanghai International Film Festival—let's call them "trainees"—departed from Shanghai and arrived in Los Angeles.
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