Despite facing significant negative press from traditional media, "Seven Deadly Sins" achieved a remarkable $33.76 million at the box office during its first seven days, far surpassing the initial $20 million expectation set by the New World Pictures distribution team.
While the film's inherent quality contributed to its success, the crucial role of internet platforms in its marketing campaign cannot be overlooked.
Unlike the diverse and open internet environment of the original timeline, the current internet platforms are almost entirely under the control of the Westeros system. Over 60 million ordinary internet users in North America can only surf the web through Egret Company's IE browser.
In an open internet environment, a film company would need to invest substantial funds and resources to generate buzz for a movie, with no guaranteed success.
Now, whatever the Westeros system wants netizens to see, they will inevitably see it.
This time, netizens saw "Seven Deadly Sins."
In its first week, "Seven Deadly Sins" earned $33.76 million. According to Danarys Entertainment's survey data, 33% of the audience were influenced by information about the film on internet platforms to some degree.
If we subtract the 33% from the first-week box office, the result is $22.61 million, which coincides with the initial $20 million box office expectation of the film distribution team.
Simon had already seen the survey report before Danarys Entertainment's Monday senior management meeting.
The gag order issued by Amy during the meeting was personally authorized by Simon.
The comprehensive promotional effort by the Egret portal brought over a 30% increase in box office revenue for a single film. If this news got out, it would undoubtedly make many people envious and eager to emulate, and the Westeros system controlling Egret Company would inevitably face more pressure.
Keeping a low profile while making money is the way to go.
In fact, Simon had long anticipated the powerful public opinion guiding capabilities of the Egret portal. A daily visit volume of 20 million users was already equivalent to ten times the circulation of top federal newspapers like The New York Times and The Los Angeles Times.
To ensure the neutrality of the Egret portal as a communication platform and to avoid deviating from the intended direction, Simon had never fully utilized the company's strength to promote a single film in the past.
Even for previous DC Universe film projects, the cooperation was natural, with the film distribution team placing ads and the Egret portal providing publicity. There was no deliberate attempt by the Egret team to steer discussions related to these films.
This time with "Seven Deadly Sins," it was the first time Egret and Danarys went all out in their cooperation.
With the strategy of aggressive growth confirmed, the cooperation between various subsidiaries of the Westeros system would significantly increase, including between Egret and Danarys. However, Simon did not plan to use such large-scale promotions easily in the future.
Simon never underestimated the intelligence of the users.
If the Egret portal turned into a platform for soft advertising of products from various Westeros subsidiaries, with users seeing only information about Danarys Entertainment's movies, financial news about Cersei Capital, and fashion channels promoting Melisandre's brands, then even if the Egret portal wasn't abandoned by users, it would certainly not see substantial growth.
The internet must eventually move towards openness.
For Egret Company to maintain its position as a behemoth in the internet industry, it must also have enough openness and inclusivity.
Aside from "Seven Deadly Sins," starting from late October, Simon paid even less attention to work, as both women had moved into the hospital awaiting childbirth.
This continued until November 3rd, when the female assistant quietly gave birth to the second child of the Westeros family at a private hospital in the Bay Area. Both mother and child were healthy. The baby girl, named Seattle Westeros, had beautiful blue eyes and a curious gaze at the world.
Simon stayed in San Francisco with Jennifer and the baby for three days before hastily returning to Los Angeles.
On the evening of November 6th, Janet also successfully gave birth to the third child of the Westeros family.
Nicholas Westeros, who cried loudly at birth, weighed 9 pounds, even heavier than his older brother, causing Janet to bite Simon's arm and declare she would never have another baby, all while enduring six hours of labor.
As per their agreement, the two children, born just three days apart, were registered as twins under Janet's name.
When she first got pregnant, Jennifer had mentioned that she would completely hand over the child to Janet for upbringing. However, as her pregnancy progressed, the assistant began to regret it. After her daughter was born and seeing the beautiful blue eyes, she fully changed her mind and decided to raise the child herself.
Simon had no objections to this.
Janet, who had endured the pains of childbirth, even joked that if the assistant liked, she could also take care of her little rascal.
Although Janet would dutifully be a good mother when the child was around, she fundamentally preferred a more carefree lifestyle and was not very keen on personally raising the children.
Simon felt the same way.
While he had many ideas for the children's future, personally implementing them was somewhat challenging.
Ultimately, Simon and Janet were not the most qualified parents.
With two children born one after another, Simon, though unable to be everywhere at once, ensured that neither place felt neglected.
The assistant had her own family and the supportive Norman family around her.
In Los Angeles, the Johnston family, just as when Melbourne was born, gathered around.
However, unlike the grand affair of Melbourne's birth, this time Simon did not disclose any information to the public media, and any media outlets that learned of the new arrivals and wished to report were suppressed by the Westeros system's public relations team.
Apart from the Johnston family, Simon also declined visits from various Westeros system executives, suggesting that gifts alone would suffice.
Raymond Johnston and his wife did not stay long in Los Angeles; after seeing their new grandson, the old man even took Melbourne back to Australia, citing concerns about the cold weather in Los Angeles. Simon and Janet had no objections, and although Veronica was reluctant, she could not argue with her big brother.
Finally free from parents who wouldn't spoil him, the little one left without any hesitation.
After the Johnstons returned to Australia, Anthony and others also gradually left.
Simon continued to stay with the two women on maternity leave, and time quietly approached Thanksgiving.
Following the $33.76 million in its first week, the continued buzz and word-of-mouth effect resulted in a second-week drop of only 22%, bringing in another $26.33 million for "Seven Deadly Sins."
In just two weeks, the film accumulated $60.09 million, easily surpassing Danarys Entertainment's initial projection of $60 million for its total North American box office.
From November 12th to November 18th, the week before Thanksgiving, "Seven Deadly Sins" maintained a modest drop of 26%, adding $19.53 million in its third week. By then, the film's total box office reached $79.62 million.
In three weeks, the film had basically recouped all its production and marketing costs, and it would start generating profits in its fourth week.
Even entering the highly competitive Thanksgiving period, with a three-week total nearing $80 million, the film's North American box office was projected to reach between $130 million and $150 million.
The original "Seven Deadly Sins" barely broke $100 million in North America. This time, the film's North American box office alone was set to increase by at least 30%, largely due to the boost from internet platforms.
On November 17th, Simon and Janet attended the premiere of "The Lion King" together.
This was Janet's first public appearance after giving birth.
From the very beginning, this animation was a gift from Simon to Janet.
In the final version of the film, Simon did not shy away from adding a special dedication to "Janet." Though the media were restrained from using Janet's recent childbirth as a headline, they did not hide the little story behind the animation.
As a result, this unintentional sweet gesture drew many young people, who might not usually be interested in animated films, into the theaters.
On November 19th, "The Lion King" was officially released in North America, debuting on 2,691 screens.
Although Simon did not intend to frequently use the Egret portal's promotional resources, "The Lion King" was an exception.
As the second 3D animated film produced by Danarys Entertainment, its success, like that of the first film "Toy Story," was crucial for Danarys Entertainment to establish itself in the animation field and would significantly impact the company's planned IPO next year.
However, after attending "The Lion King's" premiere, Simon once again set aside work to continue spending time with the two women on maternity leave.
After resting for half a month, the assistant finally returned to Los Angeles and quietly moved into the Dume Point Estate.
While Simon and Janet attended the "The Lion King" premiere, the assistant was at the Dume Point Estate, taking care of the two little ones.
Though Janet often expressed disdain for her chubby son, who had caused her pain during childbirth, she instantly adored Seattle with her beautiful eyes, even starting to teach her to call her "mommy" right in front of the assistant. Of course, there was no response, but Janet insisted the little girl was talking to her with her eyes.
Simon had already noticed that Seattle's eyes were typically almond-shaped, a trait often seen as a sign of intelligence in Eastern traditions. The most notable aspect was the constant spark of curiosity in her eyes, like a pair of little blue radars exploring everything in her view. It's no wonder Janet liked her immediately.
Simon was quite certain that their daughter would be very smart in the future
.
"Whether she's smart or not doesn't matter; I just want Syl to grow up happy."
"As long as I'm here, our children will always be happy."
"It's because you're here that I'm worried."
On the afternoon of November 20th, after feeding the two babies and putting them to sleep, Simon and the assistant left the Shell Villa, instructing Zoe and Isabel to take care of the little ones. They walked along the paths of the estate to the western side.
The original fence walls had been removed here, connecting directly to a row of ocean-view villas to the west.
The terrain of Dume Point Estate is very elevated, especially at Shell Villa.
Over the years, to prevent outside prying, Simon had been continually purchasing surrounding properties while building walls and planting tall trees for privacy.
In recent years, coinciding with the lowest period in the US real estate market and a poor economic environment, Simon's aggressive acquisition strategy led to many properties around Dume Point, east and north, becoming Westeros family assets.
To the west, Simon bought a total of 32 cliffside mansions along a one-kilometer stretch, costing him $100 million. To the east, due to some homeowners' exorbitant demands, he extended only 700 meters, acquiring 21 mansions. To the north, he secured 56 various-sized properties within a 15-hectare area.
Altogether, Simon now owns about 50 hectares of land around Dume Point, including a one-kilometer private beach with the 32 cliffside mansions to the west.
It's fair to say that within a 500-meter radius in a fan shape around Dume Point, there are no other households apart from Simon's. Residents of properties bought by Simon have all moved out, and he has been continuously renovating the new Dume Point Estate.
The current plan involves demolishing smaller properties and retaining only large mansions over one acre, scattered around Dume Point. All 53 oceanfront mansions will be preserved.
Additionally, roads are being systematically rebuilt.
Simon and the assistant were heading to one of the cliffside mansions to the west.
Living at Shell Villa these days, Janet had no objections, but the assistant did not plan to stay in the estate indefinitely. However, as a new mother, she couldn't continue living with her uncle.
After discussing it several times, the assistant finally agreed to move into one of the western cliffside mansions in the estate.
While these mansions would still be part of the Dume Point Estate after the re-planning, it meant not crowding into Shell Villa. With this decision made, the assistant no longer insisted on keeping the child with her at all times and planned to raise the children together with Nicholas.
The assistant seemed to realize that despite the children being registered under Janet, she might end up taking care of them more often.
After attending "The Lion King" premiere, Janet flew to New York the next day. Cersei Capital had accumulated a lot of work over the past six months and was planning some major actions next year, requiring Janet's involvement.
The assistant, however, planned to completely step back from her job, believing that A Girl could take over her duties, and intended to focus on raising her daughter, perhaps along with a certain chubby boy disliked by his mother.
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