This year, the Chinese market still saw a few decent films, such as the work of Master Zhang, House of Flying Daggers.
Influenced by the success of Hero, Master Zhang fully shifted to producing historical blockbusters, which also sparked a wave of historical films in mainland China.
It was expected that many imitators would follow. Even Xiao Gang Feng mentioned that he had plans for a historical blockbuster of his own.
Speaking of which, last year, due to the fake trainee incident, the directors who truly got unlucky weren't Master Zhang or Pigeon Chen. Their foundations were solid, and they weren't completely crushed from above.
The ones who were really unlucky were Xiao Gang Feng. He had been trying to get close to the Beijing circle, but the circle vanished into smoke and clouds. Later, Xiao Gang Feng recalled that he had almost gone to sing Tears Behind Bars.
Fortunately, the success of A World Without Thieves revived him. He immediately became active again, carrying himself with the smugness of someone who had finally gained recognition.
Seeing that big-name directors had begun making historical blockbusters, Xiao Gang Feng, of course, had to follow suit.
Following trends is common, whether in Hollywood or the Chinese film industry.
In North America's third weekend of the summer box office, the trend of epic films inspired by The Lord of the Rings led to the release of the imitation work Troy.
This movie was produced by Warner Bros., directed by Wolfgang Petersen, and starred Brad Pitt, Eric Bana, Orlando Bloom, and Diane Kruger.
It was now evident that it seemed every epic film could not do without Orlando Bloom.
The film Alexander was also scheduled for release in December by Universal Pictures, and they had invited Orlando Bloom to play Alexander.
However, Orlando Bloom's schedule was too full, and it was also said that the film had been vetoed by Gilbert, so he turned it down.
In recent years, there have been quite a few trend-following epic films. Warner Bros.' Troy had a production budget of 175 million USD—a solid major project.
Gilbert actually doubted whether this film could recoup its cost at the box office, but he did not oppose the investment and release of the film at the Warner board meeting.
He was a board member, a shareholder, not the CEO.
For films that were clearly going to fail, Gilbert would certainly oppose them firmly. But for Troy, at least it could break even.
Even long-term, it could make a profit, so Gilbert did not object.
Troys' market performance indeed matched Gilbert's expectations, with a first-weekend box office of 46.865 million USD.
The film surpassed The False, which made 30.312 million USD that weekend, becoming the second weekly box office champion of the summer.
According to normal box office trends, Troy would experience a significant drop in its second weekend, and its audience reception was generally average.
Even though Brad Pitt and Orlando Bloom were both handsome, and Diane Kruger was very attractive, the film's weak story foundation could not carry the box office.
Moreover, when it came to cold weapon warfare scenes, no movie could compare to The Lord of the Rings series.
Gilbert attended Troy's premiere; after all, he was a Warner board member, and he needed to show face.
After the premiere, Brad Pitt was very eager to express his desire to collaborate with Gilbert.
"In Hollywood, no one can refuse your projects," Brad Pitt said. "Even if you just let me play an extra, I'm willing."
Gilbert smiled, "Brad, you should know your status. You're a top-tier Hollywood star. For someone like you to play an extra in my film, isn't that underutilizing your talent?"
"Not at all," Brad Pitt smiled sincerely, giving it his all.
Since he was working so hard to flatter him, Gilbert also couldn't refuse: "If needed, Brad, I will reach out to you."
Brad Pitt quickly nodded, afraid that Gilbert might change his mind.
With Gilbert's words, Brad Pitt could now rightfully compete for roles in Gilbert's films and participate in auditions.
Previously, for certain reasons, he had been somewhat hesitant to participate in Gilbert's projects, but now he felt at ease.
By the third week, The False relied mainly on overseas markets. The creators were scattered around the world promoting the film, while Gilbert entered his usual work routine.
With nothing pressing, he might stop by the Melon Studio, or check on the Orange Studio.
He had also recently toured Silicon Valley, had a long conversation with Jeff Bezos, and had a meal with Bill Gates, living quite leisurely.
The old man was living just as leisurely, indulging in sweets and spoiling his grandchildren, enjoying his twilight years.
One day, Gilbert went fishing with him, chatting along the way.
Little Ilian, just over a year old, was noisy and fussy.
Gilbert teased his son while talking with the old man.
"Your body still looks pretty strong! Want to exercise more?"
"What? Are you trying to set me up with a woman?"
Gilbert rolled his eyes dramatically. "Forget it, the girls won't let you ruin anything."
"How do you know I'd ruin them? Maybe they'd enjoy it!" The old man looked as confident as ever.
Gilbert was speechless. Over the years he had gotten used to it; even at eighty-plus, the old man still retained his old roguish ways.
But the old man was still in good spirits and health, so Gilbert didn't intervene further.
He said to the old man, "Here's the thing: in my next project, there's a butler role. I think you'd be perfect.
How about it? Interested in acting?"
"Don't move, don't move! The fish is biting!" The old man's rod twitched, and after some effort, he reeled in the fish, only then answering, "No interest. My greatest interest now is teaching my grandson."
Gilbert quickly held Ilian tight. "We can't let you teach him. What if you corrupt my child?"
The old man frowned, glaring. "What? Didn't I teach you well? Look at you—you've become a Hollywood big-time director."
Gilbert wasn't convinced. "That was all self-taught, self-grown."
So father and son bickered back and forth, while little Ilian's tiny head was filled with great confusion—why were grandpa and dad arguing?
The old man didn't want to act, and Gilbert didn't push. He had originally intended to have him cameo in Batman.
After the The False project concluded, Warner Bros. eagerly announced the reboot of the Batman film.
In recent years, following Gilbert's advice, Warner had canceled the Superman reboot and the Catwoman project, starting anew.
Watching the neighboring Marvel superhero films thrive, even if not produced directly by Marvel, Warner became anxious.
After obtaining Gilbert's approval, Warner couldn't wait to announce the Batman reboot to the public.
This was the first reboot since 1997's Batman & Robin, seven years later, and the next DC film after a seven-year hiatus.
Disney, of course, was somewhat displeased, as they couldn't interfere with DC.
But fortunately, Gilbert had promised to grant Disney the distribution rights for Marvel films, which reassured them considerably.
After calming Disney, Gilbert needed to discuss with Warner how to resurrect the Batman film.
This project was a focus for Warner and the entire Time Warner Group—extremely important. If the reboot failed, DC's value would take a hit.
Thus, Warner could not take risks. Gilbert would direct, and Warner held several meetings regarding this.
At the latest meeting, Gilbert addressed Warner executives passionately.
"The poor impression left by Batman & Robin still lingers in people's minds. We need to change that impression.
Time magazine listed it as the worst of the fifty ugliest movies. I agree with that assessment."
The executives were silent. Most present had experienced the disastrous failure of Batman & Robin. Former CEO Jeff Robinov had to shelve the series, waiting for the right moment to reboot.
Now, that moment had arrived.
Gilbert continued, "Therefore, to change the public's poor impression of Batman, we cannot make him a figure in the sky. We need a grounded adaptation."
"Is this what you meant in the script? Using realism to portray Batman as a man rather than a superhero?" Doug Walter asked.
"Exactly," Gilbert explained his theory. "We all know that society faces real crime: robberies, drug trafficking, extortion.
The wealthy exploit without conscience; the government is corrupt. These are real-life events.
We won't focus on what Bruce Wayne does after becoming Batman. Instead, we start from scratch, analyzing society's structure and telling why Bruce Wayne transformed from a wealthy heir into Batman."
An executive questioned, "Gilbert, wouldn't that be too artistic? I don't think many people want to watch an art-house crime film."
Gilbert smiled confidently. "This is exactly why Doug insisted I direct. He knows I can handle that balance.
Trust me, I can produce a film with depth and breadth, while also providing rich, vivid big-screen entertainment."
Of course, if they didn't trust him, they wouldn't have hurriedly invited Gilbert.
In the end, the meeting concluded with no executive objections. The first Batman installment, Batman Begins, was officially approved.
After the meeting, Doug Walter asked Gilbert, "When do you plan to start this project?"
Gilbert thought for a moment. "July or August. I need some time for rest and vacation."
Doug nodded. "Alright, then enjoy your vacation."
"Thank you…"
Gilbert was full of confidence. The public, following Warner's announcement, was already in an uproar.
Gilbert, directing a Batman film?
Could it be that the media's claims of Gilbert's decline and impending defeat were about to come true?
...
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