Huayu Entertainment 1995 started with hijacking.

Chapter 319 Premiere Breaks Records

"Fake pirates meet real pirates, the Bahamas is robbed in Pirate King 2!"

"The sequel to 'Pirate King' is already generating buzz before its release, with Captain Octopus becoming a new selling point!"

"2004 Box Office Predictions: Can 'The Pirate King 2' Threaten 'Spider-Man 2'?"

On television, Wu Yuchen is speaking eloquently:

"Yes, in the second movie, Jack will encounter an even more powerful enemy, a pirate captain far more terrifying than Barbossa from the first film. Will Jack be in mortal danger? I think you should go to the cinema to find out!"
We did encounter pirates in the Bahamas. I don't know if they came because of the pirates' reputation, but fortunately, the crew only lost $2 in the end...

Script outlines circulating online? Oh, please, I guarantee none of them are real!

A third installment? It won't be this year; it will arrive as scheduled next summer.

Comparing it to the box office of Spider-Man 2? Oh, this question is really toughing me out~
Sorry, I might not be a very good producer. What's the current box office figure for Spider-Man 2? $3.89 million in North America and $8.06 million worldwide. Hmm, that's really a great result. I think the final box office will definitely surpass the first film.

Okay, if I had to say, then *Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales* will be no less successful at the box office than *Spider-Man 2*. Yes, I'm confident of that!

Bruckheimer frowned slightly as he watched Wu Yuchen exuding confidence on television.

To be honest, he felt he and Wu Yuchen were somewhat incompatible. A few years ago, as the producer of "Pearl Harbor," he clashed with Wu Yuchen's "The Pirate King," resulting in a box office disaster. Fortunately, he had a solid foundation, deep experience, and the reputation of "Hollywood's top producer," so it didn't have much of an impact on him.

Now, his production of "King Arthur" is going to clash with the other party's "Pirates of the Caribbean 2" again, which makes him feel like it's a twisted fate.

Bruckheimer wasn't entirely foolish; he didn't directly clash with *Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales*. *King Arthur* was released a week earlier than *Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales*. When choosing a release date, there were actually big productions every week, leaving *King Arthur* with limited options.

Then he thought about the performance of his films in the previous weeks and sighed. If he had known that "Catwoman" and "Around the World in 2 Days" would be so bad, he would have definitely chosen to release them last week. That way, there would have been a two-week gap between them and "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides," and he wouldn't have been greatly affected.

Now he can only pray that *King Arthur* will make a strong opening weekend, achieving high box office returns and positive reviews, so that it won't be too much of a hit by *Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales*. Of course, if *Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales* turns out to be a bad movie, he'll be even happier!
As for whether Pirate King 2 can achieve the same success as Spider-Man 2, Bruckheimer shook his head. There are plenty of bad sequels out there. It's not that easy to produce two blockbuster sequels like Spider-Man 2 in a year.
This summer's box office has seen many big productions released so far, but the strongest one is still "Spider-Man 2," which is currently unmatched. Earning 8 million in global box office is no easy feat.

……

Meanwhile, Wu Yuchen was chatting with the publicity manager for "Pirate King 2":

"4323 theaters is already the highest level of treatment in North America. That's 200 more than Spider-Man 2!"

Wu Yuchen then asked, "What's the current market research like? How effective is the advertising?"

“Excellent! According to our survey, Pirate King 2 is currently the most anticipated movie by audiences, with a whopping 78% of viewers wanting to see it!”

Upon hearing the figure of 78%, Wu Yuchen nodded in satisfaction. This percentage was already very high. After all, the North American market is huge and the competition is fierce. If 78% of the audience really went to the cinema to see "Pirates of the Caribbean 2," it would definitely break a new box office record.

Actually, the promotion for *Pirates of the Caribbean 2* started quite some time ago. During filming, various rumors were constantly being released. These included things like the film being attacked by Bahamian pirates, the stolen script outline circulating online, and Keira Knightley allegedly developing feelings for Hugh Jackman during filming…

These are all common Hollywood tricks, but audiences just love them.

Wu Yuchen then asked, "What about our opponents? What's the situation now?"

"King Arthur will be released on July 2nd, a week earlier than us. However, due to the poor box office performance of Troy in North America, there are signs of pessimism in the market regarding this type of epic film."

Wu Yuchen smiled upon hearing this. *Troy* was the last epic film they made that would be profitable; each subsequent one flopped, and *King Arthur* was no exception. Therefore, he added:
"Very good, continue to spread the idea that epic movies are boring, so that the audience loses interest in them. When the time comes, be prepared to crush it with public opinion as soon as it goes downhill."

A dead King Arthur is a good King Arthur. If there aren't many good movies in the previous week, it's easy to imagine how beneficial it will be for Pirates of the Caribbean 2, which will be released the following week, as more viewers who didn't see a movie the previous week will come to contribute to the box office of Pirates of the Caribbean 2.

The person in charge then told Wu Yuchen about the next film: "On July 16th, which is one week from now, Will Smith's 'I, Robot' will be released. He has a high box office appeal right now, and the science fiction theme has also attracted a lot of viewers."

Will Smith! Currently, he is the most bankable Black star in Hollywood. The "Bad Boys," "Independence Day," and "Men in Black" series have propelled him to superstar status. He has almost no movies that lose money, and this film, "I, Robot," is no exception.

In its previous life, "I, Robot" was made on a budget of $1.2 million and grossed $3.5 million worldwide. It made a profit from the box office alone, not to mention the DVD and other copyrights.

However, that's without Pirate King 2.

Wu Yuchen smiled and said, "Although Will Smith is quite strong, he's up against 'Pirates of the Caribbean 2.' This time, I'll let you experience what it's like to be defeated!"

Both King Arthur and I, Robot were released a week apart from Pirate King 2, so they didn't dare to go head-to-head with each other, and there were no rivals at the same time.

Wu Yuchen thinks it's smarter for "The Bourne Identity 2" to be released a month after "The Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales". But thinking about it, it makes sense. Universal, as the distributor, has seen the finished film of "The Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales", so naturally they wouldn't schedule "The Bourne Identity 2" to compete with "The Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales".

After Wu Yuchen finished his conversation, he saw Keira Knightley and Hugh Jackman chatting together not far away, so he walked over with a smile and said, "Hey, are you two really taking this too far?"

Keira Knightley rolled her eyes: "Director, this isn't funny at all."

She then said, "We were talking about recent movies, and Hugh was complaining to me that his 'Van Helsing' is likely to be a flop."

Wu Yuchen thought about how he had just comforted Kate, the female lead of "Van Helsing," in bed, and now he had to comfort her male lead. This shouldn't be his job, right?

However, he still smiled and patted Hugh Jackman on the shoulder: "Hugh, don't look so gloomy, 'Pirates of the Caribbean 2' will make up for all the money lost on 'Van Helsing'! You won't be affected at all~"

Hugh Jackman gave a wry smile upon hearing this. Could it really be calculated like that?

If "The Pirate King 2" is successful, it will indeed help him regain some of his popularity, but he is not the main male lead in it. "Van Helsing" was a big production in which he carried the box office alone, so it has a different significance.

However, Wu Yuchen is not wrong. Because he has the Pirate King and X-Men series to carry him, even if Van Helsing is a failure, it will not have much impact on him.

Wu Yuchen then said to him, "You're not a monster hunter anymore, you're Will Turner. Cheer up, you have to save your princess!" Hugh Jackman could only raise his hands to indicate his mistake: "Okay, okay, I'm Will Turner. I'll forget about Van Helsing and devote myself entirely to Pirate King!"

Upon hearing this, Keira Knightley gave a light snort and said, "I am the one who belongs entirely to 'Pirate King'!"

Upon hearing this, Wu Yuchen knew that Keira Knightley's words had a hidden meaning, and that she still harbored some resentment about what had happened before.

Last year, Hugh Jackman joined the cast of "Van Helsing" in January, and after arriving at the set of "The Pirate King" at the end of April, he returned to "Van Helsing" in May for reshoots, which is equivalent to filming two projects at once in a short period of time.

In fact, Keira Knightley also received other offers, namely the role of Guinevere in "King Arthur," but unfortunately, Wu Yuchen did not allow her to take on multiple projects at the same time, so she had to turn down "King Arthur."

What she just said was an emphasis, implying a slight dissatisfaction.

Wu Yuchen didn't blame her for it, and laughed, "Kayla, you'll definitely thank me in a few days!"

"Thank you for what?" Kayla asked, puzzled.

"Thank me for saving you! 'King Arthur' is sure to be a box office flop, much worse than 'Van Helsing,' and then you'll miss my kindness!"

Kayla smiled. "I really hope it's as you say. Anyway, the more 'King Arthur' fails, the happier I'll be!"

Wu Yu laughed and said, "Not bad, not bad, this is our leading lady!"

A few days later, Kayla's eyes widened: "I didn't see that wrong, did I? 482 million!"

"If you doubt your eyes, why not get a magnifying glass and take a good look?" Depp said from the side.

"But how could it be so low! This is Bruckheimer, Hollywood's top producer! A $1.2 million production, and only $482 million on its opening day?!"

Even though she had heard Wu Yuchen say that "King Arthur" would fail, Keira didn't expect it to be this bad!

Wu Yuchen laughed and said, "How many big productions have failed this summer? With 'Around the World in Eighty Days' and 'Catwoman' already set, adding 'King Arthur' one more won't make a difference. This isn't the first time Hollywood's top producer has faltered."

Kayla was truly relieved at that moment. Fortunately, Wu Yuchen firmly stopped her, otherwise she would have been in a much worse situation than Hugh Jackman if she had taken on the role in "King Arthur"!

At least "Van Helsing" was able to recoup its costs through DVDs, but "King Arthur" was a complete flop that could never break even!
At that moment, Kayla blurted out what was on her mind: "Director, I think Bruckheimer will avoid you from now on. His two crushing defeats were all because of you!"

Wu Yuchen said irritably, "What does this have to do with me? This time, 'Pirate King 2' hasn't even been released yet!"

"Because it's too close to you!"

Wu Yuchen shook his head speechlessly. There are plenty of people in Hollywood who believe in unscientific theories and superstitions.

Wu Yuchen then said, "Alright, guys, one less obstacle is blocking our path. How well 'Pirate King 2' achieves depends on us!"

On the evening of July 9th, the Hollywood Chinese Grand Theatre was filled with stars.

Johnny Depp appeared in a gentlemanly attire, looking mature and handsome; Keira Knightley, wearing a white backless dress, walked the red carpet arm in arm with Hugh Jackman, looking elegant and captivating, and stealing the spotlight. Wu Yuchen simply walked the red carpet in a casual suit, not intending to steal the limelight.

Besides the creative team, celebrities from all walks of life were present tonight. Spielberg was there, and Schwarzenegger, Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hanks, and singers invited by Depp were also in attendance.

Of course, for the vast majority of viewers who go to the cinema at this time, what they look forward to even more is the film itself.

Tom was in a great mood. What could be better than eating popcorn with his best friend Jerry and watching a movie he'd been looking forward to for three years? Of course, it would be even more perfect if the little kid in the back row who kept asking when Captain Jack Sparrow would appear could be quiet!

Two and a half hours later...

"It's over? Is it really over?!"

"Oh! It's over already? I wanted to see how it would go next, what would happen after Captain Jack was swallowed by the giant octopus!"

"Yeah, why did Barbossa come back to life? Why does it have to end here!"

Many viewers expressed their dissatisfaction, complaining that the author abruptly ended the chapter at the climax.

"I'm definitely going to yell at Wu Yuchen online when I get home. He actually left the suspense here!"

"Oh, Tom, get on Wu's good side, he wants us to go back to the theaters for the third one. I think 'Pirates of the Caribbean 2' has really met, and even exceeded, my expectations!"

"I'm not saying his filming was bad; it's precisely because it's so captivating that I want to keep watching! The thought of having to wait another year makes me feel awful."

After a few brief complaints, Tom exclaimed excitedly, "It's absolutely fantastic! The Flying Dutchman, the Kraken—the pirate world is truly mysterious and thrilling!"

"And Captain Jack Sparrow is still as charming as ever! His interactions with the natives on the island were hilarious!"

"The magical plot and special effects deserve a 95 out of 100!"

The two chatted back and forth, and countless others in the 4323 cinemas were also chattering away like them.

The following day, the box office performance of "Pirates of the Caribbean 2," which had been the focus of attention and anticipation throughout Hollywood, also made headlines in the entertainment section.
"Pirates of the Caribbean 2's premiere was a record-breaking success: $6080 million!"

(End of this chapter)