What glory

The movie was released, but it didn't mean the promotion could stop.

So, besides EuropaCorp and Paramount Pictures continuing to insert the showtimes of "Fury" into various platforms and magazines, Luc Besson personally made phone calls, asking Lyman and the main cast to tour various cities in France to boost the momentum.

The next morning after receiving the call, Nicolas Cage, Heath Ledger, and Eva Green were ready to depart.

Once the group had gathered and boarded the plane, they started to relax.

"Do you know how much the box office was yesterday?"

Facing the curious gazes of Heath and Eva, René smiled contentedly, "$15.63M."

Lyman, George, Thomas, and Nicolas were a bit speechless; they had known this information for a while. Only Eva and Heath were still in the dark.

"Eva is here because I thought of it. She is studying abroad alone, so I asked her if she wanted to come back to France."

Eva agreed, and this trip could be considered a free ride for her.

"$15.63M?"

Eva widened her eyes in surprise.

She wasn't completely clueless; she knew that such a box office performance was excellent for a commercial film. It was even above the normal market feedback levels.

After all, the production cost of "Fury" was only $50M, and it had already recovered one-fifth of that amount in just one day, which was remarkable.

Moreover, yesterday was Saturday, and today was Sunday, both rest days, so the box office performance wouldn't significantly decline. It might even have the potential to increase.

If the trend continued, "Fury" wouldn't have to worry about making a loss; instead, they should be considering how much profit it would make.

"Ah... I'm going to sleep. If you need anything, just call me," Lyman said as he put on an eye mask and drifted off to sleep.

What could be more comforting than knowing that your film was performing well?

"Did he stay up late yesterday?" Eva asked in a soft voice.

"I'm not quite sure. I went to bed early, but when I was falling asleep, he was still waiting for Paramount Pictures' call," René replied in the same hushed tone.

Upon hearing this, Eva couldn't help but feel a bit sorry for Lyman.

Her feelings for him were complex. At first, she had some prejudice towards him since he was the director, someone who could influence her acting career. In short, Eva approached him with impure intentions, but Lyman took it all in stride.

Perhaps on that night, she regarded it as a transaction, a sacrifice, and didn't have any genuine attraction to Lyman.

However, during the filming of "Fury", when they acted together, she witnessed Lyman's serious and responsible attitude towards work, as well as his genuine passion for filmmaking. The direct evidence was his complete indifference to her presence on set.

Then, at the party, he was somewhat drunk but chose to accompany her, and she was truly pleased at that moment.

As for why, she couldn't quite grasp the reason, but those emotions emerged spontaneously from the depths of her heart.

Since then, her attitude towards him had shifted. She no longer saw their relationship as a mere transaction but rather believed that Lyman had feelings for her.

This time, he even thought of inviting her for the national promotion.

The more time they spent together, the more Eva found Lyman to be a charming man.

Of course, if he would accept her, it would be even better...

Carrying their suitcases, the group walked out of the airport and immediately got into the car sent by EuropaCorp

Throughout the journey, they could see "Fury" movie promotion ads, with Lyman's name prominently displayed, attracting everyone's attention.

As an aside, the focus of promotion in North America is centered around actors like Nicolas Cage. However, in France, it's different. The emphasis is on the director himself, Lyman.

Thanks to the media's support, the number of audiences in France who know him is rapidly increasing. This is why Luc Besson invited him to do the promotion there.

Perhaps even Luc Besson didn't expect it, but he subconsciously wanted to promote the reputation of a domestic director like Lyman. Unexpectedly, the promotional effect turned out to be remarkably good, though the real reasons behind it bothered him a bit.

According to feedback from the marketing department, it seems that the French people generally have a favorable view of a local director who achieves success in Hollywood. It's like saying that Hollywood's influence is so significant that even obtaining some achievements is praiseworthy.

Wasn't his initial intention in establishing EuropaCorp to unite resources from the domestic film industry to resist Hollywood's invasion? But somehow, the influence of Hollywood seemed to grow larger and larger. It was truly baffling.

However, whether they understood it or not, the fact remained that their marketing efforts for "Fury" had paid off. It outperformed other films and secured the top spot on the weekend box office chart.

Indeed, the situation in France was vastly different from that in North America. "Die Another Day" was crushed by "Fury", both in terms of reputation and box office performance.

Clearly, the French audience was willing to support outstanding local productions, given that the movie had substance and appeal.

Did "Fury" have substance? Absolutely, and that's why it succeeded.

This fact made Luc Besson even more determined to cultivate Lyman and continue to support emerging directors.

If French cinema were to make a significant impact internationally, it wouldn't be the work of one or two individuals.

"Lyman, long time no see. You have become Cannes' proud representative," Luc Besson said as the group arrived at the EuropaCorp headquarters in Paris.

As soon as they met, it was Luc himself who came to greet them, and many familiar faces from the high echelons of EuropaCorp

"Long time no see, Mr. Luc Besson," Lyman politely shook hands.

"Cannes' proud representative."

This was the recent headline the Cannes media was emphasizing, and Lyman had also read relevant reports in the car, understanding the teasing meaning behind Luc Besson's words.

In fact, this was something he hadn't expected. Initially, his promotion as a director had some selfish intentions, but he never anticipated the surprise from Cannes.

It could be understood, though. Cannes was undoubtedly the small town with the most prominent French film atmosphere, but most of the time, it relied on the Cannes Film Festival to sustain its reputation. If they were to discuss actual film production, most of the time, it would be as a location rather than having many actors or well-known directors.

On the other hand, Lyman was an up-and-coming force, a national focus at the moment, and being 27 years old made people look forward to his future. The most crucial factor was that he was born and raised in Cannes.

Identity was especially important, so it was no wonder the Cannes media was so eagerly promoting him.

Apart from the weeks when the film festival was held, Cannes was relatively quiet, which made people anxious. And what could newspapers and magazines do without a hot topic? If there wasn't one, they had to create it. Now that they had a direct opportunity to participate, they naturally wanted to praise him to the skies.

Some newspapers even shouted the slogan "The First Man to Conquer Hollywood", and the honoree was Lyman.

However, for Lyman, the person involved, it made him somewhat apprehensive. He was now a hot topic, a renowned figure in Cannes, but he couldn't help but feel the weight of heavy pressure.

This was... the start of being over-hyped.

"Thank you," Lyman replied somewhat desolately.

Luc Besson frowned slightly, finding it strange that Lyman didn't seem very enthusiastic. However, he didn't dwell on it too much and thought it might be due to exhaustion from the long journey.

After discussing the promotion schedule with the group, Luc suggested that Lyman and the others go back to the hotel to rest. However, Lyman declined, saying he would go to Paris for some promotion and rest later in the evening. When everyone agreed, EuropaCorp had no reason to object.

So, led by a staff member from EuropaCorp, Lyman and the others went to the nearest cinema. There, Lyman finally experienced the love the French audience had for him.

When the movie was screened, the crowd's attention was overwhelmingly focused on him, rather than on Nicolas Cage or Heath Ledger, the main actors in the film.

When did a director become more popular than the actors?

Lyman didn't know; he had never experienced such treatment in North America.

Their eager eyes contained encouragement, but it also made Lyman feel apprehensive.

Nicolas once teased him about it, saying that even though he was behind the scenes, he received more attention than those on stage.

Lyman smiled but didn't say anything.

They visited several cinemas until 9 PM when the majority of the audience dispersed.

They all returned to their hotel rooms to rest, knowing that the following day would be filled with similar promotional activities.

After all, the appearance of the film's creators in a cinema was a great attraction for some fans. EuropaCorp had already spread the news to the media and newspapers, which mutually amplified their influence.

On the other hand, when Lyman returned to his room, he felt physically and mentally exhausted. Lying on the bed, he had no desire to move. But this exhaustion couldn't deter his determination for the upcoming promotion.

Since he had agreed to it, he wanted to follow through and do it well.

After all, he had his part in this; it was the culmination of several months of hard work. Nobody wanted the film to achieve better market success more than he did.

If the method was effective, then he would go on this promotional tour.

The next day, the group immediately set off again, attending several events before heading to other cities for further promotion...