By mid-September, as new overseas markets continued to contribute additional revenue, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring officially surpassed $1 billion at the global box office.
It became the first film of the 21st century to break the $1 billion mark, with a total box office revenue of $1.006 billion.
In North America, the film's initial wave of popularity had passed, but it was still earning several million dollars daily.
Its total domestic box office stood at $439 million, inching towards the coveted $500 million mark.
Given the film's extended release schedule, another $80 to $90 million in revenue over the next few months was entirely feasible.
Disney, responsible for the film's North American distribution, had instructed its marketing team—led by Robert Iger—to keep the movie in theaters until after the Oscars.
This strategy would ensure a seamless transition into next summer's release of The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.
Though post-production for The Two Towers had yet to begin, early promotional efforts were already underway.
Starting in October, the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra would begin a Lord of the Rings concert tour across North America and Europe.
Simultaneously, the China Philharmonic Orchestra had incorporated The Lord of the Rings into its autumn and winter tour schedule.
To maintain audience engagement, The Fellowship of the Ring would continue screening in at least 100 theaters until The Two Towers arrived.
North America's major media outlets, including The Los Angeles Times and The New York Times, lavished praise on the film.
The Los Angeles Times even declared, "From now on, the world will be divided into two kinds of people: those who have seen The Lord of the Rings, and those who haven't."
Meanwhile, some Washington politicians also expressed admiration for the film.
One congressman stated in an interview, "I've heard that this film has performed exceptionally well in China. Gilbert has made an indelible contribution to the promotion of Western culture.
I will persuade my colleagues to award him a medal in recognition of his efforts."
With the British royal family planning to knight him and Washington offering him a medal, Gilbert found himself in high demand.
Had The Lord of the Rings been tied to France, Germany, or Italy, those nations might have joined the celebration as well.
Warner Bros. handled the film's international distribution.
The studio's head of distribution, Solomon, boldly declared, "We want The Lord of the Rings to reach every corner of the world. If there's a movie theater, there should be The Lord of the Rings."
Solomon's words proved prophetic—except in India, where the local film board initially refused to approve the movie's release.
The reason? The Fellowship of the Ring featured no Indian characters.
Warner Bros. executives handling the Indian market were baffled. When did India start acting like South Korea?
When The Lord of the Rings was written, India was still a British colony!
Nevertheless, Warner Bros. had no choice but to resolve the issue diplomatically.
After a bit of "negotiation"—which essentially meant paying a bribe to the head of the Indian Film Board—The Fellowship of the Ring was approved for release in India.
Despite not performing as strongly as in Western markets, the film still achieved respectable results, earning 5.5 billion rupees at the Indian box office.
While the number sounded impressive, it translated to roughly $60 million in U.S. dollars.
For India, where moviegoing was considered a luxury pastime, this was a decent box office haul—primarily fueled by the country's wealthier population.
Elsewhere, The Fellowship of the Ring faced no significant obstacles, dominating the global box office with ease.
By mid-September, another film produced by Gilbert's Melon Studios hit the big screen—Memento, a low-budget psychological thriller with a $5 million production cost.
Even Warner Bros., which handled the film's distribution, didn't pay much attention to it.
The only reason they agreed to distribute it was out of respect for Gilbert.
To many, it seemed like a passion project Gilbert had funded on a whim, with little effort invested.
However, the truth was that Gilbert had deliberately refrained from intervening in Memento's production—unlike his involvement in The Fast and the Furious.
He believed that even if he had taken charge, he might not have done a better job.
Moreover, as long as Christopher Nolan had his brother Jonathan Nolan working with him—and didn't stray too far from his strengths—he was a reliable director.
Memento was adapted from a short story by Jonathan Nolan, who also wrote the screenplay. The Nolan brothers, working together, could maximize Christopher Nolan's potential.
Though Memento received little pre-release attention, Gilbert's name as a producer still attracted a segment of moviegoers.
Sara, editor-in-chief of The Los Angeles Business Journal, praised the film, saying, "The movie's twists and fragmented editing are well-executed. The director has a unique vision."
Film critic Todd McCarthy wrote, "This is not a big-budget production, but the director skillfully weaves its intricate plot with sharp and restrained cinematography.
The film integrates elements of violence and mystery while offering philosophical and psychological reflections, making it a remarkable piece of exploratory filmmaking."
In its opening weekend, Memento grossed $5.35 million—a pleasant surprise given its small scale.
If the film maintained a steady box office trajectory, it would likely turn a profit.
However, this revenue wasn't enough to secure the top spot at the box office.
Memento ranked fourth for the weekend.
Second place went to The Fellowship of the Ring, which earned $8.795 million—demonstrating its staying power due to a lack of strong competition.
Meanwhile, Cast Away—which had opened six weeks after The Fellowship of the Ring—ranked third with a weekend total of $7.938 million.
Despite trailing behind The Lord of the Rings, Cast Away wasn't designed as a traditional blockbuster but rather as an Oscar-contender indie film.
Fortunately, its box office performance remained stable.
With a cumulative North American gross of $133 million, Cast Away was well on track to surpass $150 million.
Director Robert Zemeckis was satisfied with the results.
After all, The Lord of the Rings was simply too massive and enduring to compete with.
What Zemeckis didn't realize was that if his film had followed its original release trajectory from a previous timeline, it could have earned over $200 million in North American theaters.
Unfortunately, it had encountered The Lord of the Rings, and not just any version of The Lord of the Rings—but an enhanced one. As a result, Cast Away lost at least $50–60 million in potential box office revenue.
It was probably for the best that he remained unaware of this, as it would have been quite frustrating.
The top film on the box office chart this week was neither an English-language movie nor a French, German, or Italian one—it was a Chinese-language film.
That's right. Sony Columbia Pictures had released Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, directed by Ang Lee and starring Chow Yun-fat, Michelle Yeoh, Zhang Ziyi, and Chang Chen.
The film had premiered early on May 18 at the Cannes Film Festival and was originally scheduled for release on July 7.
However, when The Lord of the Rings chose that same release window, Sony Columbia Pictures' executives lost their nerve and decided to push the release to September.
This film, rich in Eastern aesthetics, grossed $18.64 million in its opening weekend in North America, setting a new box office record for Chinese-language films in the region.
More importantly, the film received overwhelmingly positive reviews—not just from critics but from general audiences as well.
As a result, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon managed to maintain its momentum, securing another $24.66 million in its second weekend and bringing its North American box office total to $43.31 million.
This film ignited a wave of enthusiasm for martial arts and wuxia cinema in North America, sparking an increased interest in Chinese period dramas. Where there was hype, there was a market.
The news quickly traveled across the Pacific and sent shockwaves through the Chinese film industry.
Entertainment media headlined their reports with phrases like "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon Breaks 358 Million RMB in North America."
Big numbers always drew attention. When The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring succeeded, people could attribute it to being a Hollywood film—success was expected.
But Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon's triumph was a different story. It thrilled Chinese filmmakers.
In fact, the potential for Chinese period epics to perform well overseas had already been demonstrated. Films like The Emperor and the Assassin had found moderate success internationally.
However, The Emperor and the Assassin took a long time to recoup its costs, whereas Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon was different. Within two weeks, it had already surpassed 358 million RMB in revenue.
If this trend continued, wouldn't it end up grossing over a billion RMB?
With this in mind, Director Zhang (often referred to as the "National Master") became intrigued. If Chen Kaige and Ang Lee could do it, why couldn't he?
So, Zhang started planning his own film about an assassination attempt on the Qin Emperor, though his version wouldn't center on Jing Ke.
He believed that his aesthetic sensibilities surpassed Ang Lee's.
To bring his vision to life, Zhang decided to cast Jet Li, who was already well-known in Hollywood, and assemble a star-studded cast of Chinese film actors for a grand production.
As part of his preparations, Zhang made a special trip to Yangzhou, where Gilbert was vacationing and enjoying tea, to have a chat with him.
"You're making a period epic? What's the story about?" Gilbert asked.
Zhang gave him a broad outline of the story he and his screenwriters had envisioned, and Gilbert immediately realized it was Hero.
"Have you decided on a title?" Gilbert asked.
"Not yet," Zhang said, looking at Gilbert with anticipation. "Would you like to suggest one?"
Gilbert thought for a moment and said, "I once read a wuxia novel that described the ultimate hero as someone who serves the country and the people. I think that fits the theme of your film quite well."
Zhang was surprised. "I didn't expect you to have read Chinese wuxia novels."
"Is that so strange?" Gilbert shot him a glance.
After all, in his previous life, he had been a director of internet wuxia films and had been a fan of wuxia novels since childhood. It was perfectly normal.
Gilbert continued, "But calling it The Great Hero doesn't feel quite right—it's not easily understood, and it doesn't translate well. So, I think simply naming it Hero would be more fitting."
"Hero?" Zhang repeated the word several times, mulling it over. He liked it. "Thank you, Director Gilbert."
"If you have time, you're welcome to visit our set and give us some guidance," Zhang added enthusiastically.
Gilbert chuckled. "Come on, I'm not some official leader—what would I be guiding? Let's just learn from each other."
"Yes, learn from each other, learn from each other…" Zhang laughed along.
After Zhang left, Anne Hathaway leaned in and muttered, "That short director doesn't seem like a good person—he looks so sleazy."
Gilbert burst into laughter.
At barely 1.7 meters tall, Zhang was shorter than Anne Hathaway. He was indeed a "short director."
But if one were to list the best directors in mainland China, Zhang would undoubtedly be among the top few.
"Jacqueline, it's impolite to criticize people behind their backs," Gilbert said, causing Anne Hathaway to pout.
However, he then added, "But you're right—he is pretty sleazy."
Anne Hathaway grinned and took his arm. "Where are we going next?"
Gilbert thought for a moment. "How about visiting the highest peak in the world?"
"What?"
"We're going to climb Mount Everest…"
And just like that, the two set off. Gilbert had maintained a rigorous exercise routine and was in excellent shape. Anne Hathaway, having undergone extensive training on The Lord of the Rings set, was also in peak physical condition.
They first spent about a week acclimatizing to the high-altitude environment before heading toward Mount Everest.
Everest—the name alone evoked a sense of unattainable grandeur. Only a select few in the world ever managed to reach its summit.
However, Gilbert and Anne Hathaway were unable to complete the climb. The local guides and the base camp officials explained that the best season for climbing was in May.
At 8,000 meters above sea level, the monsoon winds were relentless, making climbing hazardous most of the year.
Only during brief seasonal transitions in spring and autumn did the high-altitude winds weaken slightly, creating a narrow window for summit attempts.
From early June to mid-October, Everest was in its monsoon season. After the rains, the skies would clear, making it an excellent time to view the mountain.
But by then, the northwest cold currents would drop temperatures to -60°C, accompanied by ferocious winds—conditions too extreme for safe climbing.
Of course, some climbers and adventurers still attempted the ascent, but Gilbert wasn't reckless enough to risk his life. So instead, they stayed at the base camp, took photos, and admired the breathtaking view of Everest.
After returning, they visited Jiuzhaigou for a few days.
During The Lord of the Rings shoot, they had been here before but never had the chance to fully appreciate it. This time, they enjoyed it to the fullest.
They also indulged in hot pot, but the intense spices proved too much for their stomachs—they both ended up with a week-long bout of food poisoning.
Anne Hathaway was surprisingly adventurous. While many people hesitated to eat offal, she embraced it completely.
Gilbert was stunned. "Jacqueline, that's brain matter! Are you sure you can eat that?"
Anne Hathaway took a bite and smiled. "It's delicious! You should try it—it's so smooth and flavorful."
"I can't—I just can't," Gilbert refused outright, instead tossing some beef tripe into the hot pot.
He had always dreamed of eating as much tripe as he wanted, and now that he could afford it, he indulged in multiple plates.
Of course, after all that, they both suffered the consequences.
There was no way. Although Gilbert's soul was Chinese, his stomach was not, and he could not adapt to the food here for the time being.
So, when entertaining foreign guests, Huaiyang cuisine and Cantonese cuisine are usually the main choices. Primarily because Huaiyang and Cantonese dishes are light in flavor, refined, and more suitable for the palates of foreigners.
If you were to serve hot pot, Sichuan cuisine, or Hunan cuisine at a state banquet and end up giving the foreign guests an upset stomach, that would turn into a diplomatic incident.
Of course, this doesn't mean foreigners can't handle spicy food, but sometimes, the definition of "spicy" differs, making comparisons meaningless.
Gilbert and Anne Hathaway stayed in China until the end of September, after which Anne Hathaway returned to North America.
Meanwhile, commercial delegations from Disney and Warner Bros. set out from North America to China for project evaluations.
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