Hollywood What If

Chapter 484

The Bourne Ultimatum was released in the first week of April, which was April 6, at midnight.

The premiere was extravagant, as Grey Pictures was no longer a simple studio. Despite being only a decade old, Grey Pictures had already solidified its position in the industry. The company had a constant source of profit and made hundreds of millions every year.

Furthermore, the huge success of Taken 3 last year gave the studio confidence. Fans started cheering as the cast showed up one by one.

Kazir also attended the premiere despite his busy schedule. He had spent most of his time in the editing room, polishing the movie.

He was also part of the cast since he had a cameo. This time in the movie, he was just a passerby that Jason Bourne bumped into while walking. He yelled at Jason, saying:

"Hey, that's not nice! Don't you know that people are busy? Man, I can't even sleep because I spent most of my time editing a movie!"

Some might have found that interaction funny, while others felt it was forced. But it didn't matter, people were allowed to have their own opinions.

Paul Greengrass was still the director of The Bourne Ultimatum. Paul had taken over the franchise after Kazir directed the first movie.

While looking at the excited fans who attended the premiere, Kazir had a premonition. Every hair on his skin stood up. He got chills. For some reason, Kazir felt that The Bourne Ultimatum would deliver a powerful performance.

Captain Marvel was an MCU movie released in 2019. It came out between Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame.

Because of this phenomenon, Captain Marvel experienced strong hype that helped the movie perform impressively at the box office, earning more than $1.1 billion.

"Honestly, in my opinion, Captain Marvel is average at best. It's just a normal popcorn flick from the MCU. But because of its schedule, it was lifted by the massive hype of Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame."

That was how Kazir saw it. At best, Captain Marvel could have earned around $800 million at the box office if it had been released in a different window.

This was the sensation Kazir felt while looking through the hectic crowd of fans excited to watch The Bourne Ultimatum. They just wanted to see how it would connect to the tragedy that happened in Taken 3. It was all about curiosity.

Kazir didn't change much of the plot of The Bourne Ultimatum, although he connected it to the terrorist attack. This simple connection made fans satisfied.

When the movie ended, the post-credit scene was about a new movie franchise called The Kingsman: The Secret Service.

The first 24 hours (technically April 7) of box office sales for the movie were calculated. Accounting was faster now that technology had improved.

Kazir, Stella, and the other people from Grey Pictures were on the top floor of the building. They were already celebrating. Some were popping champagne and drinking wine.

They were confident that the movie wouldn't fail. The question was how much it would earn.

When the stats arrived, Stella Willow smiled and announced that they would have a dinner party. She had heard of a Korean restaurant that offered samgyeopsal. The expenses were covered by the company. This was just a small celebration.

On the second day, April 8, Saturday, The Bourne Ultimatum made another $35 million.

On Sunday, the movie made another $29 million.

In just three days, The Bourne Ultimatum grossed $103 million at the box office, probably the fastest $100 million of 2006.

When that news spread, Hollywood became lively again. They were excited and scared about the development. Excited because this kind of performance was extraordinary. Scared because they didn't know how this movie would affect the industry.

The Cinematic Universe had proven to be a profitable way of making money. And so far, only one company had succeeded in doing so.

Rumors were going around that Warner Brothers was preparing its own Cinematic Universe, but no one could confirm whether it was real or fake news.

...

...

...

Kazir yawned. He had just come out of the editing room to talk to his assistant director. He lacked sleep, he had only slept three hours that day. Well, one of the reasons he failed to sleep was because Scarlett had visited the company last night, and the couple decided to spend their time in Kazir's office, wink wink. Kazir's office had a bed, a bathroom, a toilet, a bathtub, and even a kitchen in case he wanted to eat. Kazir spent most of his time on the filming set or in his office.

"Everest, you did a great job," Kazir praised the young guy. He knew how hard it was to manage a group of people.

Everest smiled, pleased that his work was appreciated.

It had been a month since Kazir announced that he wanted to film a small project. Everest and his team had immediately implemented the plan.

Now, they had completed the cast after a month of auditions. This was probably the shortest preparation they had ever done.

"Here's the cast. First on the list is this new actor, Henry Cavill."

"... Um, who?" Kazir paused for a second there.

"Never mind, continue." Kazir realized his awkward expression.

"Second is Megan Fox. She's a model."

"... Ah?" Kazir paused for two seconds.

"Nothing. Maybe I just lack too much sleep, so my mind can't process things right. Go on, continue."

"The third is Chris Hemsworth. Also a newbie actor."

"... What the hell?" He paused for three seconds.

"The fourth is Gal Gadot. She's a beauty pageant contestant and participated in Miss Universe. She's trying to find a career in Hollywood."

"Wow. Sometimes I have no idea how life plays around."

Everest gave documents to Kazir. Everest was confused by Kazir's reaction, but he believed it was because Kazir lacked sleep.

"Thanks, Everest. I'll read this later. While I'm gone, take care of the production. Set up a script reading and make sure they attend. Make them practice rehearsals."

"Yes, sir."

Kazir was shocked when he realized that these four upcoming celebrities would be working with him on this small-budget horror movie.