The screening was about to begin. Before the lights on the ceiling dimmed, Ronan took a careful look around the theater. Although the promotional campaign for "Kingsman" wasn't extensive, it was quite targeted. Some viewers had entered the theater, though the number wasn't large.
He roughly counted about twenty people, a mix of men and women, with men making up more than two-thirds of the audience.
The lighting was still bright enough for Ronan to distinguish between genders. From the back, he couldn't discern their ethnicities, but he could vaguely make out that there were quite a few Black people.
Indeed, it seemed that movies with minority protagonists still relied heavily on Black audiences.
The current reality was that the proportion of white audiences in theaters was gradually decreasing, while the proportion of minority audiences was steadily increasing. This trend was also reflected in the broader social context. Ronan had seen related reports indicating that the proportion of white people in the U.S. was declining year by year, with the number of Black people, who tended to have higher birth rates, increasing rapidly.
If, in the future, the roles were to be reversed, it would be a case of the liberals digging their own graves.
Ronan considered himself a pseudo-liberal and pseudo-progressive, and there were many like him in North America.
Even with the insight from his previous life, he couldn't quite understand what the "true liberals" were thinking.
Maybe they had all studied at Arkham Asylum?
As the saying goes, Blackgate Prison trains the body, while Arkham provides comprehensive mental guidance.
What Blackgate taught was child's play; Arkham was the place for true transformation.
The movie began with the logo of the distributor, Embassy Pictures, followed by a desert scene representing the production company, Sandsea Entertainment. The film started with a flurry of action scenes.
Compared to the high-tech grandeur and large-scale action scenes of the previous "Kingsman," this version felt much more modest. There was virtually no high-tech gadgetry, and the action scenes relied heavily on shaky camera work.
The action sequences directed by Paul Greengrass already showed traces of the style he would later perfect in "The Bourne Supremacy."
The sharp editing created a bullet-like pace, and the simple plot was easy to follow. Combined with the espionage and action elements, the movie still had a certain appeal.
The plot was straightforward, similar to the original "Kingsman." The story revolved around the protagonist whose father died during the training of a global secret organization. The protagonist grows up happily under the diligent care of Abu Dhabi officials until one day, a group of white terrorists suddenly appears in Abu Dhabi, critically injuring the official who sponsored him. Learning about his father's heroic deeds from the dying official and witnessing the devastation around him, the protagonist decides to find and join the organization.
Using his father's belongings, he successfully joins the organization, where his mentor is Black, and his classmates are mostly minorities, with the only white character being a villain and a coward.
The organization faces a traitor who collaborates with the terrorists, killing the Black mentor and attempting to use phone cards to drive everyone in the world insane to "heal" the Earth.
Then, the protagonist and his companions storm the terrorists' lair amidst the global chaos, killing all the white terrorists, saving the world, and winning the heart of a beautiful woman.
The plot is quite conventional, but the style is unique.
Fortunately, the shaky camera work in this film is a technical shake, unlike the nausea-inducing shake in "The Blair Witch Project," so watching it in 2D doesn't cause dizziness.
Ronan had seen this version of "Kingsman" multiple times during post-production, but watching it on the big screen was very different from viewing it in the editing room.
Probably because he naturally enjoyed such purely entertaining films, watching it on the big screen was even more thrilling.
Of course, the film lacked big scenes—there was no parachute training, no mass battles, and no headshot fireworks.
As for the Swedish Princess Madeleine, she's still a young girl, and Ronan wasn't shameless enough to hint at anything involving minors, so the beautiful woman was casually made the heir of a so-called multinational corporation.
When the film ended, there was no applause nor boos. Like most movies, the audience finished their entertainment, gathered their belongings, and left, resuming their daily lives.
As the lights came on, Ronan quickly observed the audience. As expected, most of the twenty or so viewers were from minority groups, with over fifteen of them fitting that description.
Outside the theater, someone was conducting a survey, asking a Black audience member.
"I'd give it a B. The action scenes were great!" the Black man said. "It would've been better with more Black characters."
As Ronan passed by, the surveyor tried to stop him, but he waved them off and walked away.
Ronan then visited another theater near a minority community, where the attendance was noticeably higher.
After visiting three theaters, Ronan had a clear impression that "Kingsman" wasn't going to be a box office hit, but it wouldn't be a major flop either.
Early Saturday morning, related statistics were sent to Embassy Pictures and passed on to Ronan. On its opening day, the film grossed $1.45 million from 1,500 theaters.
With an average of nearly $1,000 per theater, it did slightly better than Ronan had anticipated.
Moreover, Saturday's single-day gross increased to $1.55 million.
By the end of the first weekend, "Kingsman" had grossed $4.1 million in North America.
"With an average of less than $3,000 per theater, increasing the number of theaters is impossible."
In the Los Angeles office of Imperial Entertainment, Miller looked at Thomas across from him and said, "We've provided significant support for Embassy Pictures this time, but the box office performance of this film is mediocre. If it weren't for the success of 'The Blair Witch Project,' we would definitely be reducing the number of theaters and showtimes next week."
Thomas replied, "Embassy Pictures is grateful to maintain the current number of theaters."
With the film's underwhelming performance, Thomas lacked confidence. Embassy Pictures wasn't a big company; everything depended on market results.
Miller, always diplomatic, continued, "We've had a successful collaboration on 'The Blair Witch Project,' so I'm personally willing to help relieve some pressure on your company and maintain the current screening scale for 'Kingsman.'"
"Thank you." Thomas knew these were just empty words but quickly said, "Thank you, Mr. Miller, for your support."
Miller continued to offer his costless goodwill, "Due to the poor box office performance of 'Kingsman,' the head office wanted to reduce the number of theaters for your other film, 'Final Destination.' I fought hard for it, ensuring the situation remained unchanged."
Thomas smiled and said, "Embassy Pictures will remember Mr. Miller's kindness." He took out an invitation and handed it over. "Embassy Pictures would like to invite Mr. Miller to the premiere of 'Final Destination.'"
Miller accepted the invitation and said, "If my schedule permits, I'll be there."
"I won't keep you any longer," Thomas said as he took his leave.
Miller opened the invitation and looked at it, his gaze finally landing on the name of the issuer: Ronan Anderson, a name he had heard many times but had never met in person.
Since the success of 'The Blair Witch Project,' news about Ronan Anderson had started circulating within North American theater companies. The content was mostly about how incredible Ronan Anderson was, achieving great success with two low-budget films in a row, especially 'The Blair Witch Project.'
In media reports and many people's perceptions, the key to 'The Blair Witch Project's' success was its director and producer, Daniel Myrick. But those directly dealing with the distribution company knew that the one who orchestrated the series of seemingly miraculous marketing maneuvers was Ronan Anderson.
For a time, many people referred to Ronan Anderson as a genius.
Having worked in the film industry for many years, Miller never believed in the idea of geniuses. There were no geniuses in the movie business. Even the most successful producers faced failures.
After only two successful films, Ronan Anderson had encountered failure.
Miller began to worry about 'Final Destination.' Successful producers often hit a losing streak once they started to decline. If Ronan Anderson's horror film ended up like 'Kingsman,' was Imperial Entertainment's investment of so many resources worth it?
If the opening weekend box office for 'Final Destination' was poor, they would have to quickly reduce its screening space.
With a first-weekend gross of $4.1 million, 'Kingsman' didn't even break into the top five on the North American box office chart.
"I told you, he wouldn't be so lucky without us."
In an office at DreamWorks headquarters, Daniel Myrick put down the newspaper and said to Eduardo Sánchez, who was working on a script, "The reported budget for 'Kingsman' is $25 million. Even if Ronan Anderson inflated the numbers, it would still be $20 million. With the money spent on marketing and distribution, the $4.1 million opening weekend is a total disaster!"
Eduardo Sánchez, although the co-director of 'The Blair Witch Project,' didn't know much about Hollywood. He asked, "Won't the box office go up later?"
Daniel Myrick, adopting an expert tone, replied, "No! Absolutely not! For commercial films with a wide release like this, the box office only goes down!"
He pointed at the newspaper. "See? CinemaScore predicts this film's North American box office will only reach about $10 million!"
"That means a big loss, right?" Eduardo Sánchez asked.
Daniel Myrick flaunted his newly acquired knowledge, "With a failure in North America, it will do even worse overseas. If Ronan Anderson can recoup $10 million, he'll be lucky."
Eduardo Sánchez couldn't help but laugh, "He'll lose everything!"
Daniel Myrick laughed as well, "This film losing over $10 million, and with 'Final Destination' coming out in two weeks, if that one loses another $10 million, Ronan Anderson will be close to bankruptcy!"
Eduardo Sánchez nodded repeatedly, "Will that bastard Ronan Anderson cry?"
Daniel Myrick, in a great mood, said, "I'd love to see his face right now!"
Meanwhile, in the conference room of Embassy Pictures, Ronan met with Paul Greengrass and his agent Dean.