"I swear," Mitchell said, "if I looked half that good in a leather jacket, I'd sue someone for defamation."
Bruce laughed. "You just need better lighting."
Cindy shot him a look. "And maybe a better job. What happened to joining my firm? I can really have your help with all the trouble your nephew is causing me."
Neil sat still while a makeup artist dabbed powder across his forehead.
Neil (inner): 'If I don't get over the red tapes and bureaucracy now, and put systems and people in the right place. Someone, sooner or later, will have us by the balls. As LetterBox becomes bigger, people will have their eyes set on destroying or acquiring us. I need foolproof systems. Even if that means, lobbying the right candidates and getting them into power.'
He looked oddly calm, gave silent glares whenever Cindy mentioned something preposterous. A small figure surrounded by adults pretending not to be nervous; acting as if they were really not worried about the box-office results from today.
Mitchell leaned down to him. "So, tiny boss, any comments before you step into capitalism's loudest stage? Although, it is not your first time."
Neil blinked. "Just don't invest in bad jokes; and writing."
Mitchell laughed even Bruce cracked a smile. "He's ready," he said to Cindy. "Send him in."
Shyamalan: "I don't know how he has such confidence at six. At his age, I was afraid of being bullied so deliberately kept away from limelight. But this little monster, carries the room with him."
Then the floor manager waved from the door.
"Two minutes, people."
---
Backstage, Conan's band pounded out a funky transition riff. The audience clapped along. Mitchell fanned himself with the cue card he had stolen.
"Try not to blink too much," Cindy whispered. "It makes you look like you're having a stroke. Or predicting the future."
"I am predicting the stock prices," Neil said perfunctorily.
"Exactly. Don't let them find out."
Bruce leaned toward Shyamalan. "You think he's nervous?"
The director smiled. "He's the only one who isn't."
---
The Conan Show, The curtain rose.
Bright light, applause, a desk and two chairs. Conan O'Brien towered behind his mic, grin wide enough to cut glass.
"Ladies and gentlemen," he boomed, "our next guests made a movie that's already haunting theaters across America. Please welcome Bruce Willis, M. Night Shyamalan, and the kid who apparently terrifies adults and IRS for a living—Neil Dunphy!"
The trio walked onstage. Bruce waved lazily; Shyamalan tried not to trip on the cable; Neil just nodded, expression composed. The cheers rose higher than the band.
Conan gestured them to their seats. "Bruce, Night, Neil—good to have you. Congratulations on the release. I saw the premiere was a madhouse; couldn't even congratulate face-to-face."
"Pretty full house," Bruce said. "We had ghosts pulling us through the hallways. I don't think I remember a single face that I saw that night. It was like being in NASCAR."
Laughter rolled.
Conan grinned. "So, opening day! How are we feeling? Terrified? Exhausted?"
Shyamalan chuckled. "Both. You never know how people will react. You send the movie out and hope they don't burn you alive."
"Or worse," Conan said. "Ignore your existence."
"Exactly."
Bruce nodded. "I've had both happened to me. So it's fine."
Laughter echoed.
"Your record's fine," Conan teased. "You could sneeze and make twenty million." The audience roared. Clearly Bruce's fans in the audience.
Conan turned to Neil. "You, young man, are the calmest person here. What's your secret? Meditation? Not-missing invoices?"
Neil shrugged. "Ignoring the loud mouths."
The audience laughed even harder.
Then, suddenly, somewhere offstage, a faint *buzz*.
One phone.
Then another.
Then another.
The guests froze. Even the stage manager frowned, confused by the sudden chorus of vibration.
Conan blinked. "Uh-oh. Either earth's Ley lines opened up, or we just got breaking news."
Cindy appeared behind the camera, waving a folded note. The producer ran it to Shyamalan, whispering something urgent. Shyamalan's eyebrows shot up.
Conan leaned forward, milking the tension. "Tell me that's good news. It looks like good news."
Shyamalan hesitated, clearly fighting between humility and shock. "Um… the early producer figures just came in."
"And?"
He swallowed. Unsure and delighted at the same time.
"They're estimating fifteen million for opening day."
The audience gasped, then applauded. Conan slapped the desk. "Fifteen million? That's—what—half a Star War?"
Laughter. Bruce smiled modestly. "Hey, my movies always open high. I've got fans. Loyal ones. They show up even if I'm invisible." He turned to the camera and gave a die hard smirk.
Conan pointed. "So this is *your* fault."
Bruce nodded. "Guilty as charged."
"fifteen million!" Conan repeated, pacing like a preacher. "Folks, this movie just opened bigger than anything not featuring a light saber or per-historic dinosaurs. I heard from a certain network gossip that most 10 p.m. and 11 p.m. shows tonight are already sold out. So by tomorrow night, after this episode airs, we might be looking at what—thirty million domestic?"
The crowd erupted. Conan spun toward the camera, arms wide. "That's nearly *Phantom Menace* territory, people! And we're not even counting Friday's late-night numbers!"
He turned to Bruce and Shyamalan again. "You know what that means, right? If we factor in the weekend—average twenty-five percent spike—that's, let's see, seventeen today, twenty-one Saturday, twenty-one Sunday…"
He mimed mental arithmetic like someone unequipped in the delicate dance of numbers. "That's, uh, sixty million dollars by Monday. Sixty!! Can someone check my math? I went to Harvard."
The audience whistled and clapped. Bruce leaned back, trying to look nonchalant. Shyamalan smiled awkwardly, palms open.
Shyamalan said, almost apologetically, "The first-day numbers are strong, but honestly, that's marketing. Studio's campaign, Neil's website, the TV spots, the online presence—"
"Advertisement?" Conan repeated. "Buddy, if that's what ads can do, I'm putting up a billboard for this show tomorrow. I'm sure Neil would give a favorable price to the person who debuted him in Hollywood. Won't you Neil?"
"My stylist is now the Letter Box's CEO; you'll have to talk to her." Neil shrugged.
More laughter. Conan pointed to Bruce. "What about you? You're the draw? What do you think of this success."
Bruce shrugged. "Look, my fans show up for openings. But after that it's about the film. You can't fake word of mouth. But," he looked at Neil, "... I'm sure they'll come back to watch it again."
"Wise words from a bald philosopher," Conan said. The audience howled.
Finally, Conan turned to Neil. The cameras tightened. "And you, little oracle. Everyone here's being so humble. What's your prediction?"
Neil's blue eyes glinted in the light. "Predictions are just delayed confirmations."
"What?"
"It'll cross five hundred million before two months," Neil said matter-of-factually.
A hush fell over the room.
Even Conan blinked, momentarily speechless. "Five hundred… million?" Doubtful.
Neil nodded, voice calm. "I don't make losing bets."
For a heartbeat the studio went utterly still—no laughter, no movement, just the slow swell of the audience realizing the scale of what he'd said.
Then someone in the back whistled. Applause rose like a wave. Conan threw up his hands. "Ladies and gentlemen, I've been doing this show for years and I've never been out-predicted by a kindergartner! So it is your time to prove me wrong, go buy your tickets right now and watch the phenomenal experience of The Sixth Sense. I'm sure you'll see dead people afterwards."
The band kicked in, the lights flashed, the crowd cheered until the rafters shook.
Bruce grinned, clapping Neil on the shoulder. Shyamalan was still staring at the note in his hand as if it were a holy relic.
Offstage, Cindy whispered to Mitchell, "After my years of experience dealing with child actors. I still don't understand how your parents gave birth to this charm magnet. He just takes over the stage every time."
Mitchell smiled. "Hmm. Whose nephew do you think he is. Style and charms runs in my blood." He flicked his overly orange scarf aside; clearly perturbed by the New York Chills.
---
The applause roared on until the cast slowly went off stage and people also started to move.
Under the stage lights, the boy sat perfectly still, small hands folded, expression steady. Thinking something deeply.
The red recording light blinked once, twice, like a heartbeat.
And above the noise—away from the cables, cameras, and neon—the unseen servers of LetterBox pulsed higher and higher in heat, counting interest, counting clicks, registering the flood of comments, and counting the start of something that would outlive this all.
---
Monday, Aug 09, 1999
Headline: "The Sixth Sense Shocks Hollywood: $60 Million Opening Weekend Defies All Forecasts — Sets New August Record"
By Monday morning, industry trackers confirmed what Conan's Friday night had only hinted at:
The Sixth Sense earned $60 million in its first weekend, the highest August debut in history, and trailing only Star Wars: Episode I — The Phantom Menace's $64 million and The Lost World: Jurassic Park's $72 million easily surpassing every other release to date outside the sci-fi juggernauts.
The June-July movies with highest openings and weekends were nothing compared to the behemoth that Sixth Sense was on the way to become.
Tarzan (Disney) — $25.6 M opening
Runaway Bride (Paramount) — $35 M opening
After the Conan episode aired; a different conversation ran in online media.
"Child prodigy, plagued by the arrogance of Hollywood."
"Can a no-name director, pull off a $500 million box-office in two months."
However, no matter, what happened. Neil never came back online after the predefined schedule and kept his comments to the minimum.
Neil (inner): 'Time will tell who is right.'
With exceptional weekday holds and packed late-night shows, projections quickly ballooned: production houses and media analysts now expected The Sixth Sense to reach $300 million domestic and $500 million+ worldwide.
However, no one could tell that the movie would cross $600 million in just over two months. Studio also preponed the oversees release to grab on the momentum.
UK and Australia release were preponed to Aug 16 and Aug 17 and the box-office again saw a boost to the collection.