Chapter 173: The Relay

Woken up by the ringing of the phone in the morning, Simon opened his eyes to find Catherine staring at him, her gaze filled with a mix of confusion and panic that comes from being abruptly awoken.

Simon drew the woman into his arms and kissed her on the lips before reaching for the handset on the bedside table.

The call was from Patrice Kingsley, due to the recording of "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson," Patrice Kingsley, Simon's PR manager, had also been in New York these past few days. Kingsley's call was about a piece of gossip published in today's "Daily News" newspaper in New York.

"The Golden Palm Jury Member Stays in Westerlo's Cannes Mansion."

The fact that Natasha Kinsky had borrowed Simon's place to stay had still been dug up, and the "Daily News" had turned this incident into a piece of gossip news. However, a closer look at the headline revealed that the real intention was to question the fairness of Simon winning the Golden Palm.

Simon was not at all surprised to hear this news.

The competition for the summer box office had entered its most intense stage, with more than ten blockbuster films set to release in the coming weeks. Due to the zero-sum nature of the box office market, suppressing the momentum of competitors at this time would allow one to gain more market space.

Catherine, lying close to Simon, naturally heard his conversation with Kingsley. After Simon hung up, the emotion in Catherine's eyes had changed, yet she still looked steadily at him. Clearly, the woman's focus was not on the deeper implications of the "Daily News" report.

Feeling Catherine's gaze, Simon took the initiative to explain: "I have nothing to do with that woman, and besides, she's already married."

Catherine hummed in response, pulled away from Simon's embrace, and said indifferently, "That's Jenny's business, it has nothing to do with me."

Simon smiled, attempting to move closer, but Catherine pushed him away, so he asked, "What would you like for breakfast?"

Catherine didn't answer his question but instead said, "You need to fix the buttons on my shirt."

"We don't seem to have a sewing kit at home. You can wear my clothes," Simon suggested as he got up to find his shirt and gestured it towards her, adding, "You'd look even better in a men's shirt."

Catherine pushed him slightly, expressing her dissatisfaction, "People will notice."

Simon knew Catherine was more cautious about their relationship than he was, so he nodded, "Alright, I'll have Neil send some sewing supplies over."

After breakfast, Catherine stayed in the apartment, planning to leave quietly later, while Simon rushed to the Westerlo Company headquarters to discuss with James Rebelde about acquiring New World Entertainment through a debt-to-equity swap.

On the other side, the "Daily News" report was just the beginning, as similar news soon came from the West Coast. The PR teams from Daenerys Film and Orion got involved to guide public opinion.

In this covert battle, the next day, "Pulp Fiction" officially premiered in North American cinemas, alongside Fox's "Flying Over the Future" starring Tom Hanks and Warner Brothers' "Comedy Farm" starring Chevy Chase.

Moreover, the North American box office data from the past week had also been released.

With 2837 screens, "Crocodile Dundee II" took in $30.17 million in its first full week, easily winning the weekly box office. Including the previous week's two-day total, the film's overall box office had reached $34.92 million.

However, "Crocodile Dundee II" received overwhelmingly negative reviews from North American media, in stark contrast to its massive pre-release promotion and wide release.

"Variety" magazine criticized "Crocodile Dundee II" for being too bland as an adventure film and lacking humor as a comedy.

"The New York Times" critic was even more harsh: "Most sequels follow the default strategy of taking the best aspects of the first film and giving the audience more of what they love. 'Crocodile Dundee II,' however, idiotically does the opposite, abandoning nearly all the elements that made the first film shine, resulting in mediocrity and boredom."

Sylvester Stallone's "Rambo III" received slightly better media reception than "Crocodile Dundee II," but only relatively speaking.

With a similarly large release of 2562 screens, "Rambo III," which had a massive budget of $63 million, had an opening two-day box office comparable to "Crocodile Dundee II," but was quickly outpaced in the first full week, earning only $20.17 million over seven days, for a total of $24.63 million.

The third-place film, "Changing Fortunes," saw a mere 16% drop in its second-week box office, taking in an additional $9.26 million. However, due to a weak start, its two-week total was only $20.32 million.

"When Harry Met Sally" remained in fourth place, earning $3.32 million in its 12th week for a total of $97.55 million, just shy of the $100 million mark.

Compared to "Crocodile Dundee II" and other new releases, the three films released on June 3 received excellent reviews.

Tom Hanks' "Flying Over the Future" is considered the Hollywood superstar's breakout role, even earning him his first Academy Award nomination for Best Actor in the original timeline. Chevy Chase's "Comedy Farm" also received much praise.

However, these two new releases stood no chance against the Cannes Film Festival's Palme d'Or winner, "Pulp Fiction."

The aura of the Cannes Palme d'Or, the star power of Robert De Niro, John Travolta, Robert Redford, Madonna, Sean Penn, and others, Simon's large fan base starting from "Run Lola Run," and the high controversy and praise for "Pulp Fiction" made it the summer's most anticipated film.

To curb the momentum of "Pulp Fiction," some media openly stirred up controversy over Simon's Palme d'Or win, unabashedly questioning the integrity of the recent Cannes Film Festival.

Faced with these doubts, Cannes officials had to respond publicly again.

However, the media did not give up easily, and Natasha Kinsky's stay at Simon's mansion soon became one of the most important pieces of inside information, with many newspapers aggressively pursuing the story.

As the incident was linked to gossip, Natasha Kinsky's Egyptian businessman husband also got involved, personally rushing to Cannes' La Californie district to bring his wife home. The stubborn Natasha Kinsky, already in a separation, refused.

After being rejected, the Egyptian businessman felt humiliated and publicly announced his intention to divorce Natasha Kinsky.

This uproar made the situation even more sensational.

Simon Westerlo was accused of not only manipulating awards by seducing a jury member but also of ruining someone's family, which was unbearable to witness.

However, just as the media was preparing more "explosive" material, the situation took a dramatic 180-degree turn.

On June 7, Natasha Kinsky, fed up with being hounded by tabloid reporters from around the world, suddenly announced during a shopping trip that she had not supported "Pulp Fiction" in the judging process and had voted for "Isolated World."

This statement left all pursuing media stunned.

Can it really be like this?!

Cannes' judging process is not as strict as the Oscars, and sometimes, if the jury can reach a verbal agreement, no voting is necessary to determine the awards. However, this year's festival had to initiate a voting process due to disagreements among the judges.

Upon Natasha Kinsky's public statement, the Cannes organizers quickly retrieved the voting cards from the recently sealed festival archives. Since the votes were cast by writing names on cards, Natasha Kinsky's handwriting was easily recognizable, and indeed, she had voted for "Isolated World."

With this confirmation, the relieved Cannes organizers immediately published a photocopy of Natasha Kinsky's voting card in the newspapers.

Famous Italian director Ettore Scola, who served as a jury member, also publicly stated that Natasha Kinsky had indeed favored "Isolated World" during the discussions, and the competition for the Palme d'Or between "Pulp Fiction" and "Isolated World" was six to four in favor of the former.

Upon hearing this news, even Simon, who had just returned to Los Angeles, was stunned.

Sister, I lent you a place to stay, hired a bunch of staff for you, and even paid the bills, and this is how you repay me?

Janet found the situation hilarious and took the opportunity to scorn Simon as a "big sucker."

Although the truth was somewhat laughable, the media's speculative doubts about insider information instantly vanished.

In this tumult, "Pulp Fiction" gained even more attention. The overwhelming positive reviews from most North American media and word-of-mouth among audiences led to a complete turnaround.

As the summer season progressed, from June 3 to June 9, the release of new and old films pushed the total North American box office to $92.67 million, compared to $73.87 million from May 27 to June 2.

"Pulp Fiction" effortlessly claimed the top spot in the new week's North American box office rankings. With 1569 screens, its first-week box office reached $27.53 million.

Although it didn't match "Crocodile Dundee II's" previous week's $30.17 million, no one doubted "Pulp Fiction's" strong performance.

After all, "Crocodile Dundee II" had 2837 screens, while "Pulp Fiction" only had 1569. On a per-screen basis, "Crocodile Dundee II" barely reached $10,636 last week, while "Pulp Fiction" soared to $17,546.

Moreover, "Crocodile Dundee II" faced only "Rambo III" as a competitor last week, possibly adding the low-performing "Changing Fortunes." However, "Pulp Fiction" battled against "Flying Over the Future," "Comedy Farm," "Crocodile Dundee II," and "Rambo III."

Following "Pulp Fiction," due to poor reviews and over-exploitation of the market, "Crocodile Dundee II" saw a 41% drop in box office, earning only $17.87 million.

Still, its wide release of over 2800 screens allowed the film's North American box office to easily surpass the $50 million mark.

"Flying Over the Future," in third place, earned $12.59 million in its opening week. Fox had arranged 1132 screens for this new release, making its over $10,000 per-screen average quite impressive.

Simon remembered "Flying Over the Future" breaking $100 million in North America. If history hadn't changed, the film would have had an excellent box office trajectory.

"Rambo III," starring Sylvester Stallone, ranked fourth, with a more severe drop of 47%, earning only $10.62 million this week for a total of $35.26 million. With this decline, "Rambo III" was unlikely to recover its $63 million production cost in North America.

"Comedy Farm," starring Chevy Chase, ranked fifth with an opening of $8.11 million.

With 1557 screens, "Comedy Farm" had a per-screen average of just over $5,000, less than a third of "Pulp Fiction." Warner Brothers' first summer release was undoubtedly a dud.

An $8.11 million opening, even with a favorable drop rate, would hardly result in a high total box office.

Beyond the top five, "Changing Fortunes," in its third week, continued to earn $7.08 million for a total of $27.40 million.

Then, "When Harry Met Sally" ranked seventh, earning $2.66 million. This 13-week-old film finally crossed the $100 million mark in many people's anticipation, reaching a total of $100.21 million, becoming the first film of 1988 to break the North American box office $100 million barrier.

The discussion around "When Harry Met Sally's" $100 million box office led some media to realize Daenerys Film had successfully completed a box office relay.

"Pulp Fiction," with a first-week box office of $27.53 million, had impeccable reputation, cast, and hype, making it unquestionably set to break the $100 million North American box office threshold.

Remember, "When Harry Met Sally" had only earned $17.81 million in its wide release opening week after screenings, whereas "Pulp Fiction's" first-week performance nearly exceeded that by $10 million.

With two films breaking $100 million at the North American box office, Simon Westerlo had already matched his previous year's achievement.

In 1987, Simon's "Run Lola Run" and "The Butterfly Effect" both achieved over $100 million in North America, while "Final Destination" fell short with over $70 million.

However, it's only halfway through 1988, and Simon Westerlo has already matched last year's box office feat. What's next?

As "Pulp Fiction" continues the sprint to break $100 million in North America following "When Harry Met Sally," will "Basic Instinct," also written by Simon and set for release in mid-next month, achieve the same?

After "Basic Instinct," Daenerys Film's announced production slate includes "Scream," "Rain Man," "Dead Poets Society," "Steel Magnolias," and more.

While many see these films as lacking appeal, Simon Westerlo has already created too many miracles.

Imagine if these films continue the relay...

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