"Same as before."
In the speeding car, Murphy withdrew his gaze from the highway leading to San Diego and turned to Kara Faith, who was sitting beside him. "I think it's very inappropriate to animate 'City of Chaos.'"
Back in Los Angeles, Murphy had immediately met with representatives from 20th Century Fox and Dark Horse Comics. The latter was keen on purchasing the animation rights to the "City of Chaos" series at a high price and publishing it in comic form. 20th Century Fox was also interested in generating a significant income and using the comic to release part of the second movie's content to preheat the market.
But Murphy had declined all these proposals.
The agreement they had signed earlier stipulated that if Murphy objected, 20th Century Fox couldn't sell the comic rights.
So, they sent Kara Faith to probe Murphy's real attitude and persuade him to change his mind.
"Why not?" Kara Faith didn't understand Murphy's thoughts. "You could get half of the rights income as a commission. Chris Dan is somewhat similar to a superhero, which would make the comic adaptation easier."
Murphy shook his head. "It's not about the money."
He had bigger ambitions and expectations for this series. Animating it could jeopardize those.
Kara Faith wanted to say more, but Murphy raised his hand to stop her and explained, "I mean for now. We shouldn't animate this series temporarily. Once the entire series is complete, we can sell the animation rights and related derivative rights as a package. I'm sure it will fetch a higher price then."
After considering it for a moment, Kara Faith nodded slightly. Murphy was right. Given "City of Chaos'" current box office performance, it wouldn't sell for much. If the sequels were big hits, the situation would be entirely different.
Murphy added, "Animating it now, especially releasing content that hasn't been filmed yet, would affect the tone of the film."
His goal wasn't just the commercial box office.
Frankly, the San Diego Comic-Con wasn't very suitable for this series either. However, given the huge investment, commercial promotion was necessary, so he hadn't opposed 20th Century Fox's plan to use Comic-Con for promotion.
Realizing Murphy's intentions, Kara Faith didn't press further.
The car exited the highway and entered San Diego. Soon, they arrived at the San Diego Convention Center, where Comic-Con was being held.
"Murphy! Murphy! Murphy..."
Murphy's attendance had been widely publicized by 20th Century Fox. Coupled with CAA's coordination with the Murphy Stanton Los Angeles Fan Club, when Murphy's team arrived at the Convention Center entrance, they were immediately surrounded by a large crowd of fans, blocking the small plaza entrance.
Despite some preparations by the organizers, the scene was chaotic. Murphy, having seen such situations before, knew that he mustn't get out of the car or open the window, as it would make things uncontrollable.
He looked back and saw that the cars carrying Margot Robbie and Henry Cavill were also surrounded and couldn't break through.
Fortunately, the police were maintaining order on site, preventing the situation from deteriorating further. However, the rest of the crew's cars were also surrounded.
"We won't be getting out anytime soon."
Looking through the windshield, the road was completely blocked by fans.
The only consolation was that the organizers' efforts were gradually improving the situation.
Half an hour later, Murphy, escorted by bodyguards, got out of the car. Due to the overwhelming number of fans present, he didn't stay long, only waving to the surrounding crowd before quickly entering the Convention Center.
Inside the Convention Center, with the chaos left outside, Murphy looked back and noticed many fans dressed as Chris Dan. The black hood and black clothes seemed ordinary but were the most popular attire at the scene.
Unlike the frowning bodyguards, Murphy was in good spirits. Instead of rushing away, he looked around. Many fans were holding "City of Chaos" merchandise.
Clearly, after more than ten weeks of release, "City of Chaos" had made its mark.
Murphy had received the latest box office data upon returning. "City of Chaos" had achieved impressive box office numbers over time, proving the significant impact of strong marketing on a film's market prospects. It also confirmed that all the hype created by Murphy and 20th Century Fox had paid off.
For the future box office and revenue of the film, they would continue their efforts with 20th Century Fox.
As of the day before yesterday, "City of Chaos" had grossed $251.08 million in North America, surpassing the $250 million mark. Although it would certainly not reach $300 million, it was still an excellent performance for a non-sequel, non-adapted film.
Internationally, the film had been gradually released in smaller markets, adding limited box office revenue. Currently, the global box office totaled $562.47 million.
At this point, Kara Faith joined Murphy and invited him to the exhibition area. Murphy noticed more fans dressed as Chris Dan as they walked. He asked, "Do we have the latest sales data on merchandise?"
"Yes," Kara Faith recalled. "Overall, it's doing well. I have a briefing in my bag. I'll give it to you in the exhibition hall."
The Convention Center hadn't opened yet, so it was very quiet. "City of Chaos" was right at the entrance. Ignoring the fans surrounding Margot Robbie and Henry Cavill outside, Murphy and Kara Faith, led by a staff member, entered the private resting area of the exhibition hall.
"This is just a rough report from 20th Century Fox." Kara Faith retrieved her briefcase and started looking for the document. Murphy shook his head. "Just tell me."
"Alright then." Kara Faith accepted the coffee brought by a staff member and handed a cup to Murphy. "Over the past two and a half months, excluding our licensing royalties from companies like McDonald's and Pepsi, 'City of Chaos' merchandise has grossed around $81 million in North America."
Murphy asked, "Which products are the best-sellers?"
"The Chris Dan motorcycle model sold about $8.4 million, making it the most popular item. The second best-seller is his outfit, generating around $6.8 million. Next are Jay Rachel's figures and dolls, which brought in about $3.5 million. Then there's Chris Dan's action figures and dolls, totaling around $3.6 million..."
She glanced at Murphy. "The posters you shot on set are also best-sellers, ranking in the top ten."
"Looks like I'm pretty popular too." Murphy shrugged.
In this era, major directors had almost completely come to the forefront. Previously, it was rare to see a Hollywood film directly labeled as "a film by so-and-so." But now, works by top directors, including Murphy's own, carried such labels to attract fans' attention.
Similarly, top directors shared in box office and merchandise royalties and became part of the commercial operation themselves.
Kara Faith mentioned only a small part of the extensive range of "City of Chaos" merchandise. There were many related products, even excluding the negotiations for character licensing with major manufacturers. There were over two hundred directly film-related products alone.
"In fact, 20th Century Fox was somewhat unprepared." Kara Faith added, "The most popular products are in short supply. 20th Century Fox is fully ramping up production and distribution."
Like box office success, no one could guarantee a film's popularity or predict which merchandise would sell best. As a result, any film's merchandising was actually limited upon release.
With Margot Robbie and Henry Cavill entering the exhibition hall, the day's events kicked off. The main goal was to use the San Diego Comic-Con platform to further promote the "City of Chaos" brand.
The San Diego International Comic-Con, founded in 1970, had long surpassed the comic industry in influence. The number and level of films and TV shows promoted here were unmatched by other conventions. This event was a treasure trove of fresh, explosive content and attracted numerous enthusiasts. In the related circles in Europe and America, there was a saying: "When SDCC starts, everyone heads to the rooftop."
Hollywood studios pulled out all the stops to grab attention at this comic industry's Oscars, while fans from around the world would have an unforgettable experience.
From the start of Comic-Con, various major, juicy, and exciting news stories competed for attention. Cosplayers, die-hard fans, and geeks donned their most dazzling outfits to enthusiastically cheer.
As one of the most anticipated events at this year's San Diego International Comic-Con, 20th Century Fox had secured a central hall location for "City of Chaos."
There were many interactive activities between the crew and fans, but Murphy didn't participate. This wasn't because he didn't value his fans but was part of a personal promotional strategy devised by CAA.
While top directors had stepped into the limelight, they were still different from stars and actors. They didn't need to deliberately show a friendly face to fans. This was a conclusion CAA reached after extensive field research.
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