Although Flipped managed to claim the number one box office spot for two consecutive weeks in this lukewarm release window, its good days came to an end by the third weekend.
That was because this weekend, the much-anticipated sequel Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets was hitting theaters.
The impact of the previous films in the series was still fresh in everyone's minds not only did they gross high box office numbers, but the critical reception was also strong. More importantly, the Harry Potter series appealed to all age groups and was perfect for family viewing.
Meanwhile, starting this week,Flipped was gradually being released in major overseas markets, achieving rather decent results.
Unexpectedly, the film's reputation in East Asia far exceeded that in North America. Perhaps these emotionally-driven films resonated more with audiences there?
However, due to the common characteristics of low-budget productions, the film's overseas box office was not particularly high.
Across more than a dozen countries where the film premiered in its first week, it only made $22.51 million not a big number.
Still, neither Warner Bros. nor Disney expressed any dissatisfaction with Gilbert over the film's performance in North America or abroad.
The reason was simple:Flipped performed as expected for a low-budget production, even surpassing expectations.
Based on the current trend, the global box office for Flipped was projected to exceed $150 million.
And the total production budget for the film was only $12 million. With its current earnings alone, Flipped had already become profitable.
Of course, one reason the budget was so low was that Gilbert only took a symbolic $1 salary.
Otherwise, given Gilbert's current market value, his fee alone could finance two Flipped films.
That said, the most crucial profits from box office shares, licensing, and merchandising remained unchanged and followed the same structure as Gilbert's previous directing contracts.
This subtly revealed that Gilbert's main purpose for making this film was to promote Scarlett Johansson.
As a result, many powerful figures in Hollywood began reevaluating the relationship between Gilbert and Johansson. They knew to tread carefully now offending them could invite Gilbert's retaliation.
For a film that had already turned a profit, what more could Warner Bros. and Disney ask for? Naturally, they were all smiles.
Robert Iger even told his subordinates:
"At first, I didn't think this movie would earn much at the box office. I was even prepared for a loss.
But to my surprise, it made a profit. A pleasant surprise."
Doug Walter added: "Even if the movie had lost money, it wouldn't have been a big deal just over $10 million. Gilbert is someone who understands boundaries. He's never made a major blunder on big projects.
Besides, the film didn't lose money it profited. What more can we ask for?"
By this stage in Gilbert's career, his position could only be shaken if he released three or four consecutive flops, each with budgets exceeding $100 million.
For low-budget films like Flipped, even if Gilbert made ten of them and all flopped, it wouldn't matter.
The profits from the Lord of the Rings franchise alone could fund dozens of Flipped-level films.
So, both Disney and Warner Bros. still had full confidence in Gilbert especially since he was now in Mexico filming a $130 million fantasy adventure, which was the real focus.
However, the companies' internal satisfaction wasn't public knowledge. To the public, any Gilbert film that failed to meet his usual North American box office standards was big news.
Sure enough, by the third week, voices began to emerge claiming that Gilbert was on the decline. The "evidence"? Flipped had only earned $68.065 million in North America by the end of its third workweek.
This was the lowest North American box office performance of Gilbert's career since Final Destination.
Although the film was still in theaters, compared to his other works, Flipped now firmly ranked third from the bottom.
That is, the third lowest-grossing film among all of Gilbert's movies.
The media had a field day. As the leading anti-Gilbert outlet, The Washington Post ran the story as the headline in their entertainment section.
They first listed Gilbert's past achievements, then compared his performance to other directors' career arcs, and ultimately concluded:
"In conclusion, every director declines after reaching their peak the only difference is how fast. Spielberg, George Lucas they all went through it.
The Return of the King was Gilbert's peak. A decline was inevitable. Flipped is just the beginning."
As everyone knows, the media is like a dog: they cheer in fair weather and kick you when you're down.
So now, even media outlets that once praised Gilbert turned their backs on him, joining the chorus of doom and gloom.
To someone unaware, it might seem like Gilbert was in serious trouble and headed for a career collapse!
Only a few outlets like The Los Angeles Business Daily pointed out that Flipped, while not a blockbuster like Gilbert's earlier works, was still profitable.
In fact, in terms of return on investment, Flipped had a better ratio than many other films including some of Gilbert's own.
Unfortunately, The Los Angeles Business Daily didn't have the same circulation as the big players, and the public preferred spectacle over facts.
So, the narrative that "Gilbert is declining" swept across North America.
The talk of him going downhill also went viral on North American internet forums, sparking heated discussions. Unsurprisingly, Gilbert's fans refused to believe it and pushed back fiercely.
Their pushback was as passionate as that of hardcore fans defending their idols in Gilbert's previous life.
Of course, some fans, lacking conviction, began to waver under the media's influence.
That didn't mean they stopped watching Gilbert's films, but they genuinely worried what if the media was right and Gilbert's career really was on a downward slope?
"Lewis, do you really believe what the media says? That Gilbert's going downhill?" Sarati Merton looked at her friend with dissatisfaction.
Lewis frowned and said, "I don't think the media is entirely wrong. Gilbert's performance this time isn't great.
What if the next one flops too? Maybe he's hit a creative bottleneck?"
Sarati Merton was clearly disappointed in her friend: "I don't understand how you can even think that, Lewis. Flipped was a good movie!
The reviews were solid, the audience response was great, and the box office was ideal.
What, you think a $12 million film should be compared to hundred-million-dollar blockbusters? That it has to earn $700–800 million, or even a billion dollars, to be considered successful?"
Another companion chimed in,
"Honestly, even $100-million-budget blockbusters fail at the box office sometimes. It happens."
"Exactly," Sarati continued, "and Flipped didn't lose money it made money.
How can you call a profitable, well-received film Gilbert's 'Waterloo'? That makes no sense."
Lewis apologized, "I'm sorry. I was weak-willed and got swayed by the media."
"It's okay. Just be more resolute from now on. We have to believe in Gilbert. He's a genius," Sarati said, full of faith.
Although Gilbert was already thirty-two years old and calling him a "genius director" was starting to sound outdated, fans who had grown up watching his films still habitually referred to him that way. After so many years, old habits die hard.
Sarati told their little fan group again:
"Gilbert is human, not a god. He needs rest and time to regroup too.
If you don't like this movie, just skip it. That's fine."
"I didn't say I didn't like it! I gave it a ten on IMDb," Lewis defended.
"Liar, I saw you gave it a five…"
"No, I didn't. You must've misread."
As the two started bickering again, Sarati stepped in:
"Alright, alright, alright whether it was a ten or a five, it's already in the past."
"There are many people out there who are jealous of Gilbert, and now many people are taking advantage of his misfortune, thinking that he is finished"
"This is the moment when we, his fans, must take action. I propose that you all go back, prepare individually, mobilize other fans, and engage in this battle to defend Gilbert's reputation online.
We need to show those dark schemers just how united Gilbert's fan base truly is."
Everyone responded in agreement and went back to prepare, committing to this online campaign to protect Gilbert's reputation.
But in truth, none of that was necessary or as satisfying as real action would be.
As long as Gilbert's next film maintains his usual summer hit status, those mocking media outlets and some online audiences will quickly change their tune.
Of course, given the current trend, many believe his next film is sure to flop and perform poorly.
Even Disney and Warner didn't expect the outside world to stir up such drama over something they didn't care much about.
Had they not known Flipped turned a profit, Disney and Warner might have believed Gilbert was facing a career collapse.
So their affiliated media continued to support Gilbert. However, this media frenzy was no longer driven by one or two outlets—it had become a national phenomenon across all U.S. media.
Even NBC and TNT aired special programs to debate whether Gilbert's directing career was past its peak.
The consensus from their panel of experts was that Gilbert wasn't in a rapid decline after all, he was still young for a director.
But they warned that Gilbert was entering a period of stagnation.
Only Gilbert's top fan, Roger Ebert, had a sharply different view: he argued the experts overlooked the basic fact that Flipped was profitable.
How could they label a profitable film Gilbert's Waterloo? That defied the truth.
One expert retorted that while Flipped did make money, it didn't achieve the kind of massive profits like The Lord of the Rings, so it qualified as a Waterloo.
That provoked an astonished and furious Roger Ebert:
"I really don't get it. Seriously, guys—Flipped was just a $12 million investment.
Do you expect it to perform like those $100 million blockbusters?
Have you abandoned all understanding of film market mechanics and fundamentals?
Or do you think Gilbert is divine? That even a low-budget film can earn at the scale of LOTR or The Matrix?"
Roger's barrage of questions left the experts speechless.
He was absolutely right: if you actually cared, you'd know Flipped was a clear success it turned a profit, earned good reviews, and wasn't a flop.
You can't call a small-budget, profitable, well-received film a failure or use it to attack Gilbert as if it were his Waterloo.
But if everyone focused on the real facts, the world wouldn't be full of so many pointless disputes and spectacles.
Roger Ebert defended Gilbert with reason, but as other media stoked the hype, Gilbert's "Waterloo" became accepted as fact by many.
Behind the scenes, several major Hollywood corporations were involved these giants genuinely hoped Gilbert would hit a career low.
So even if Gilbert hadn't fallen, those corporations manipulated the media to fabricate one for him.
And thus, Gilbert gained a new nickname: the Napoleon of cinema invincible at first, then Waterloo, then career downfall.
Indeed, over the past decade, countless people have wished for Gilbert's failure perhaps out of jealousy, perhaps for business reasons. Since they couldn't get him to join their companies, they decided to destroy him.
Those media giants, or their parent conglomerates, control many outlets. Disney and Warner barely hold their own influence.
The immediate question was whether Gilbert himself would respond to the Waterloo rumors that was the key.
Robert Iger and Doug Walter both called him, explained the situation, and advised him to focus on filmmaking, not engage with the media frenzy.
But you can't dodge all the noise. Though the Mexico set was closed, the premiere of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets for which Gilbert is the producer would bring him back.
Many journalists were already there, waiting, hoping to extract a sensational headline by twisting his words.
Before Gilbert spoke, journalists had already interviewed his inner circle his friends and current women.
Scarlett Johansson was first in line: since this film was apparently made to boost her, and it had been branded his Waterloo, she'd have to respond except Gilbert specifically told Sheena not to let Scarlett speak, to avoid unnecessary trouble.
Additionally, Charlize Theron had resumed public appearances and was also asked about it.
Theron, channeling Gilbert's evasive style, replied, "Huh? Waterloo? Sorry, I didn't do well in school, so I don't know history."
After being pressurized to explain Napoleon's Waterloo, she finally responded seriously:
"You say Waterloo means the film failed? But as far as I know, it turned a profit. If making money is failure, then what counts as success? Landing on the moon?"
It's well-known that conspiracy theories, especially about moon landing, are popular in North America. Many around the world firmly believe it happened; ironically, North Americans are among the most skeptical.
Theron's point: your accusations are as baseless as doubting the moon landing unless you present evidence.
But fair media presenting real facts wouldn't need sensationalism.
When the same question was asked of Leonardo DiCaprio, he was far less patient than Theron. He listed Gilbert's achievements pointedly, leaving the reporter stumped.
Tom Cruise also publicly supported Gilbert:
"If we use that standard, a lot of my films would be considered flops. Waterloo. But look at me now I'm still a Hollywood star. I haven't declined."
Cruise had several films that made $70–80 million in North America and over $100 million worldwide yet no one called them Waterloo.
So this controversy was caused by multiple factors: first, the film's box office was below Gilbert's usual levels; second, the media maliciously stirred things up; and third, many people jumped on the bandwagon.
But fundamentally, none of these remarks are affecting Gilbert only foolish people believe he's truly past his prime.
This back-and-forth lasted several days until Gilbert finally returned from Mexico to attend the Chamber of Secrets premiere.
....
Hi For access to additional chapters of
Director in Hollywood (40 chpaters)
Made In Hollywood (60 Chapters)
Pokemon:Bounty Hunter(30 Chapters)
Douluo Dalu: Reincarnated as Yan(40 Chapters)
Hollywood:From Razzie to Legend(40 Chapters)
The Great Ruler (30 Chapters)
Join pateron.com/Translaterappu