As a high-value brand created by the United States to showcase a good image abroad, Hollywood gradually became the center of the world film industry from the 1980s and 1990s.
Today, Hollywood can be said to be at its peak. From the Northern Hemisphere to the Southern Hemisphere, from the Eurasian continent to Africa and South America, wherever there are films, Hollywood has a presence.
This also makes the most important North American summer box office season of the year basically the weather vane of the global film market.
Therefore, Hollywood has long held the notion that winning the North American summer box office means winning the world.
However, this year was slightly disappointing: Gilbert, who had dominated the summer box office for many years, did not participate in the summer season and instead went to produce a TV series.
But that was okay—there were still quite a few films connected to him.
Before the summer box office wars began, the second Marvel film, The Incredible Hulk, produced by Gilbert, was released on April 20th.
This was the second film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, telling the origin story of the Hulk.
The director of the film was a newcomer named Anthony Olubi, a director Gilbert had never heard of in his previous life.
He was actually two years older than Gilbert, but he had only directed two short films before, or worked as an assistant director or executive producer for others.
But in terms of creative attributes, Marvel films do not require the director's personal expression; they only need to carry out their duties step by step.
During the initial casting phase, Gilbert did not choose Edward Norton. Setting aside the fact that Norton was a somewhat difficult actor, the main reason was that he refused to sign a long-term contract.
So Gilbert decisively chose Mark Ruffalo, who would sign a long-term contract and whose salary was relatively low.
And it had to be said, Mark Ruffalo looked very intelligent, matching Bruce Banner's scholarly temperament.
Liv Tyler played the female lead Betty Ross. In addition, Tim Roth and William Hurt were also in the cast.
At the same time, this Incredible Hulk would be the last Hulk film distributed by Universal Pictures, as they previously held the rights to the Hulk character.
From the start, Gilbert emphasized to Marvel executives that The Incredible Hulk's box office might not be very impressive.
But it was necessary for building the Marvel Cinematic Universe, so there was no need to fear losses or worry about external opinions. The project simply needed to be pushed forward firmly.
In fact, that was how it turned out. The Incredible Hulk only earned $31.68 million in its first weekend. Media reviews were average, and audience reception was also average.
The media outlets that had long opposed Gilbert placed all the blame on him, claiming that Gilbert's "magic" had failed.
"In the past, films produced by Gilbert always achieved massive box office success. But the failure of The Incredible Hulk proves that Gilbert-style films are losing market favor…"
"It's time to end the era of Gilbert's dominance. This year, he doesn't even have a film releasing—does this mean he senses he is gradually being abandoned by the audience?"
Liv Tyler, who had just finished her promotional tour, was now in the backyard of Melon Manor, enjoying a leisurely afternoon tea with Gilbert while reading the newspapers to him.
"These papers all say you're outdated and can't keep up with the times."
"Is that so?" Gilbert was unconcerned. "The media are all clickbait. They jump at every rumor; otherwise, how would they get traffic?"
Liv Tyler pouted, then said, "But The Incredible Hulk's box office really was poor. Even I got criticized for being the female lead just because of your connection. My performance hasn't improved."
"That's the truth," Gilbert replied.
Ignoring Liv Tyler's glaring eyes, he continued:
"Fast & Furious 4 is almost entering pre-production. I heard you've been hanging out recently with a bunch of people claiming they're not human?
Stay away from them. These animals aren't normal. The movie still needs you as the female lead to maintain a good image, so don't mess it up."
Liv Tyler pouted slightly and stubbornly said, "No, they just say they're not male or female, they're still human. Calling them animals is a bit too much, isn't it?"
"Hey!" Gilbert grabbed Liv Tyler's small waist, pulled her onto his lap, and gave her a few slaps on the butt.
Liv Tyler cried out loudly, but from her expression, she even seemed to enjoy it a little.
"You don't even acknowledge your gender, how can you be human? When God created humans, He didn't distinguish other genders.
In short, stay away from those non-human animals. Understand?"
Gilbert warned seriously. Liv Tyler indicated she heard him, but she still wiggled her hips.
"Darling, it felt really good. Can you do it a couple more times?"
"???" Gilbert's head sprouted question marks, and his hands unconsciously pressed harder. He hadn't expected this woman to have such a preference.
Although The Incredible Hulk could not be considered a success, Kevin Feige still held a celebration banquet when the film's North American box office exceeded fifty million dollars.
During the media Q&A at the banquet, Kevin Feige was asked about the possibility of The Incredible Hulk even incurring a loss.
He said, "In fact, we treat the Marvel films as a whole. Although this movie did not turn a profit, it is very necessary for the overall world-building.
We believe it is feasible to continue producing solo films for other superheroes."
A reporter asked again, "What if other superhero films face similar failures?"
Kevin Feige smiled: "That's a meaningless hypothetical. Every film has the possibility of failure before it is released. But just because we fear failure, does that mean we shouldn't make them?
Moreover, I have confidence in the Marvel films and in Director Gilbert."
"What films does Marvel plan to release next?"
"Next, we plan to successively release Captain America, Thor, Iron Man 2, and then lead into The Avengers."
Kevin Feige felt increasingly excited as he spoke, but he could not reveal more and had to stop himself.
Although Kevin Feige explained the plan for the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the necessity of producing solo superhero films, the media still did not let Marvel Studios off easy.
To be precise, some media outlets did not let Gilbert off easy.
This was normal. Leading the charge were outlets like The Washington Post, which had been promoting for years that Gilbert was in decline, facing failure, and being abandoned by audiences.
But who knew? The harder they pushed these narratives, the more successful Gilbert became.
So whenever they found any opportunity, these media would vigorously hype their previous claims to prove they were right.
It was just that sometimes, the "slaps in the face" came too quickly, leaving them helpless.
This time, The Incredible Hulk represented their strongest attack yet, and it did have some impact, even affecting the Disney board.
Robert Iger had long proposed integrating all of Marvel into Disney's system, but after The Incredible Hulk's underwhelming performance, opposition on the board was strong.
In response, Robert Iger could only suggest postponing the decision and watching how things developed.
But the truth proved that the film market waits for no one.
On May 4th, Sony Columbia Pictures released Spider-Man 3 nationwide in the U.S., also based on a Marvel superhero.
Marvel had long wanted to reclaim this highly popular Spider-Man from Sony Columbia. Before Gilbert acquired Marvel, the rights had already been sold to Sony Columbia.
But how could Sony Columbia give up this cash cow? After all, in recent years, their performance had almost entirely depended on Spider-Man.
This time was no exception. As soon as Spider-Man premiered, it immediately ignited the North American summer box office.
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