[Chapter 405: Women Yearning for Children and the Summer Box Office Summary]
"Victoire is so adorable. I wish I had a daughter like her," Monica said with a smile, her long eyelashes fluttering, looking at the little actress on stage receiving the Best Actress award. Her pretty oval face was full of fondness.
"Yes, that little one is really cute," Sophie Marceau smiled kindly.
"If you like kids so much, why don't you have one yourselves? You're both beautiful; surely your kids would be adorable," Juliette Binoche said, crossing her arms.
Monica and Sophie didn't respond but glanced subtly at Link.
"You don't approve, Link? Sorry, that's not what I meant!" Juliette quickly covered her mouth, recalling that after Link's debut, rumors swirled about hundreds of girlfriends, but never any scandal about an illegitimate child. She didn't know whether Link just didn't want kids or if there was some medical issue.
If he were infertile, saying he wasn't good enough might upset him.
Link looked at Monica and Sophie, "Why are you all staring at me? If you want kids, just have them. I never said I don't want any."
"Really? You're ready to have children?" Monica and Sophie excitedly grabbed his arm.
"Why not? Having a few kids around the house isn't bad," Link shrugged. In the past, he hadn't planned on children because work kept him too busy, and he didn't want family matters affecting his films.
After the shooting incident, his perspective shifted. Now worth nearly a 10 billion dollars, and with more coming, if anything happened to him, the huge family business would have no heir and would likely end up with the government - that would be a big loss.
Since Monica and Sophie wanted kids, he didn't mind fulfilling their wishes and having them bear several children. After all, there were plenty of women and household staff, so he wouldn't need to spend time raising them.
"That's great!" Monica and Sophie happily kissed his cheeks.
Nearby, Julianne Moore, and Emmanuelle Beart, also Link's girlfriends, heard this and excitedly clutched their skirts. They knew marriage with Link was impossible but didn't want to leave him. Having his children was undoubtedly the most effective way to establish a lasting relationship with him.
Over the past few years, Monica and Lily had mentioned kids a few times, but Link had always dodged, saying he was too young and not in a rush.
No one dared pressure or sneakily get pregnant for fear of alienating him.
Now that Link had finally opened up about having kids, everyone felt secure. This news was worth ten thousand times more than winning Best Actress at the Venice Film Festival.
...
After kissing Link, Monica and Sophie happily thanked Juliette Binoche. If she hadn't brought up children, they wouldn't have known Link's stance.
"No need. I didn't say much. You don't need to thank me," Juliette shook her head, puzzled by their excitement. As celebrities, having a child out of wedlock wasn't exactly honorable and could harm their careers.
Besides, after having kids, they might be tied down by Link for life, making it hard to leave and remarry.
Juliette suspected they were all so smitten by Link they'd lost their minds, feeling thrilled about having children.
She decided to privately advise Sophie and Emmanuelle to stay calm and not risk everything lightly.
...
Applause filled the room, marking the end of the film festival awards ceremony.
Afterward, Link didn't return to Los Angeles immediately. Having agreed to children, Monica and Sophie pestered him daily, eager to conceive.
Julianne Moore, and Emmanuelle shared the same desire, all competing to be the first to get pregnant.
To keep things lively, Link took his girlfriends on a romantic tour across Italy, leaving countless loving memories in Sicily, Tuscany, Rome, and Milan.
---
After the Venice Film Festival, news of The English Patient winning the top award, the Golden Lion, reached the US.
American media hailed Link for winning both the Golden Lion and the Silver Lion for Best Director, making him the youngest filmmaker in history to sweep the three major European festivals at only 24 years old.
Total Film magazine remarked that Link was a cinematic miracle.
The New York Times reviewed his films since debut, noting that although some had low budgets resulting in lower image quality, every film was innovative, significantly impacting global cinema and setting over sixty box office records. The paper predicted Link would become the greatest director of the late 20th century.
Riding the wave of hype surrounding The English Patient and Link, Guess Pictures' marketing team announced the film's November release and released the first trailer and behind-the-scenes stories to keep the buzz alive.
---
By early September, the summer box office season ended, and Hollywood media began reviewing the numbers.
This summer saw 96 films released, 19 more than last year.
Eight films grossed over $100 million in North America, five more than last year, and 20 movies surpassed $50 million, two more than the previous year.
These figures signaled a strong North American box office performance, with fierce competition and multiple blockbusters indicating overall market growth and industry prosperity.
Media predicted a significant increase in total North American movie revenues in 1996, marking a rapid expansion phase for Hollywood.
The summer box office champion was Warner Brothers' Batman Forever, earning $305 million domestically.
Second place went to 20th Century Fox's sci-fi blockbuster Independence Day, with $282 million, showing potential to catch up.
Guess Pictures' thriller The Net drew $185 million, ranking third.
Paramount's Mission: Impossible was fourth with $180 million.
MGM's The Birdcage took fifth at $126 million.
Seventh place was Guess Pictures' Rush Hour at $104 million.
The Mask of Zorro stood eighth with $101 million.
The Fifth Element ranked twelfth with $95.47 million, modest compared to its $85 million cost but balanced by strong overseas earnings of $134 million, making it profitable overall.
The Hollywood Reporter named The Net and Rush Hour as breakout hits and top earners, sparking buzz in the film industry.
Two of Guess Pictures' films made the summer top ten, upsetting Hollywood Big Seven executives who'd hoped to see the studio decline since 1994. Their hopes were dashed as Guess Pictures' box office held strong.
...
"Ron, you said to wait until Guess Pictures declined before making a move. When is that going to happen?" Barry Diller, Fox's president, called.
"No rush. Their summer films ranked third and seventh, a slight drop from last year. They won't top the yearly box office, so next year might be worse -- that's decline. We need patience," Ron Meyer advised.
Barry replied, "I'm not as optimistic. Though they had only two movies in the summer top ten, The Mask of Zorro at eighth and The Fifth Element at twelfth also earned Guess Pictures about 30% of box office revenue. Along with The English Patient, Link's film, which garnered critical acclaim, their total cinematic earnings might beat last year. We have no countermeasures, and revenue is slipping -- soon the company might lack funds even to produce films."
Barry sighed deeply.
Fox's hit Independence Day grossed nearly $300 million with over 4x return, ranking second among summer underdog hits.
As president, Barry deserved credit, but other Fox releases performed poorly. For example, Chain Reaction cost $40 million but only earned $36 million domestically. Copycat's cost $46 million, with just $55 million domestic so far.
One blockbuster couldn't offset the others dragging down total profit.
This troubled Barry.
With the ongoing market rise and other studios profiting, Fox's low earnings reflected poorly on his leadership, threatening his position.
"Barry, what's done is done. We can't change it. Let's work harder next year to improve the box office." Ron wasn't sure how else to console him.
Universal did well last summer with Apollo 13 and Casper but stumbled this year, releasing eight films. Only one, The Nutty Professor, passed $100 million; two others cleared $50 million, including Dragonheart.
Most films underperformed, placing Universal seventh among the eight major studios, just above MGM.
Ron faced more pressure than Barry.
In talks with Barry, he also worried about Link's involvement. Link's work with Warner Bros., and Guess Pictures collaboration with Columbia, and MGM boosted their box office but meant Universal's shares shrank.
This made Ron suspect Link might be deliberately disrupting the Hollywood Big Seven studios to take advantage commercially.
Ron shared his theory with Barry, who agreed it was possible. But all studios recognized the benefits of working with Link and Guess Pictures and raced to partner with them. Even attempts to discourage cooperation wouldn't likely succeed.
Ron began thinking Harvey Weinstein's initial plan was right: dealing with Link and Guess Pictures decisively and harshly would eliminate hidden risks.
Waiting for their decline might be too late.
After finishing calls, Ron contacted Harvey about whether another shooting incident could be arranged, but Harvey evaded the topic, prompting Ron to plan a personal meeting.
---
Link and Monica, Sophie, and others spent over ten days traveling Italy, ending the sweet trip.
Whether Monica and the others were pregnant would be known in a month or two.
...
[T/N: Later, Link flew with Yu Feihong to Hong Kong, where they met Joan Chen, Chen Kaige, Jiang Wen, and several young actresses Joan brought along.]
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