"Good morning, Russell."
"Morning? It's almost noon already. The sun's nice in New York today."
"Yeah, rare indeed. Just got back from swimming?"
"Yep, swam for about 30 minutes. I've got a magazine cover shoot this afternoon. Oh, by the way, is there a newspaper around? The Times or Wall Street Journal?"
"Sorry, they're all gone—none left in the restaurant right now."
"No worries; I'll have my assistant buy one later."
Morning, Four Seasons Hotel, New York City—Restaurant
Russell Crowe looked relaxed, his mood as bright as the rare sunny autumn day in New York. Maintaining such a good vibe amid a hectic promotional schedule was no small feat, yet he seemed to be in peak form—
Riding High
After an intense week of promotion, Master and Commander was receiving enthusiastic praise from the media, surpassing even Gladiator and A Beautiful Mind. All signs pointed toward a career-defining success for Russell, one that would shatter previous limits.
Next step?
The $20 Million Club!
Russell was already eyeing this milestone.
Two years ago, he won his first Oscar for Best Actor, which sparked talk of the so-called "Oscar Curse"—a notion that winning the Academy Award made it harder for actors to navigate their careers, especially balancing art and box office success. But now?
Russell had effectively broken the "Oscar Curse." Not only that, but Master and Commander seemed poised to reach new heights in his career.
Much like Tom Hanks in his heyday.
With Forrest Gump and Philadelphia, Hanks won back-to-back Oscars, but then struggled a bit until Saving Private Ryan brought him roaring back. From then on, nothing could stop his ascent.
Russell believed he could follow a similar path, and Master and Commander was his final push to break free.
Everything was set.
Media reviews were glowing.
Promotion was in full swing.
Talk shows, premieres, magazine interviews, and post-screening Q&As in various cities were all going smoothly.
Next up? Box office numbers.
The benchmark? Gladiator.
$187 million domestically, $460 million worldwide.
Russell knew those were stellar numbers, boosted by the Oscar for Best Picture. But Master and Commander still had a shot.
After all, Master and Commander was a true blockbuster, with a $150 million budget—$50 million more than Gladiator.
So, there was reason to be hopeful.
What was Gladiator's opening weekend box office again?
Russell couldn't remember exactly. It had been three years—back in 2000. He thought it was around $30 or $40 million. But he distinctly remembered that by the end of the third week, it had crossed the $100 million mark thanks to word-of-mouth.
Now, three years later, the market had changed.
And Master and Commander's media reception was way better than Gladiator's.
So, surely Master and Commander should pull at least $40 million in its opening weekend?
As he mulled it over, Russell noticed his assistant and called out.
"Harry, get me a Times or any other newspaper."
His assistant had been trying to stay out of sight, but now he was caught, awkwardly trying to cover his discomfort.
"Russell, the hotel's out of newspapers."
Russell nodded. "Yeah, I know. Just go buy one outside. Not sure what's going on today—they're all gone."
Assistant: … He couldn't exactly say that his agent had ordered all the newspapers in the hotel hidden, could he?
So now what? Should he really go down to a newsstand?
If they were sold out there too, that'd be suspicious.
In a burst of quick thinking, the assistant said, "We need to head to the studio now. Traffic's bad in Manhattan today—we can't be late."
"I'll grab a paper once we get to the studio."
The studio had been cleared out too—no chance of slip-ups.
When he'd tell Russell there were no newsstands nearby, problem solved.
At the very least, they needed to delay him seeing the weekend box office rankings until after the magazine shoot was over. If they could push it until evening, when Russell had a glass of whiskey in hand, that'd be perfect.
Sure enough, Russell didn't suspect a thing.
"Heading out now? Alright, go grab the luggage."
The assistant breathed a sigh of relief, dodging a bullet. He quickly ran off, making sure not to get caught again.
Finally!
They reached the hotel's vehicle, and the assistant saw Russell safely into the car.
Russell glanced over and noticed the driver reading a newspaper.
"Is that today's?"
Silence.
The assistant froze, luggage in hand, and nearly choked as he moved toward the driver.
"Yes," the driver replied. "Would you like it?"
Russell: "Is that the Times?"
Answering, the driver handed over the newspaper.
The assistant rushed to the car door, frozen in horror, unable to stop a disaster from unfolding before his eyes.
But there was no stopping it now; they'd missed their chance.
Inside the car, silence reigned.
The assistant cautiously opened his eyes, only to see Russell sitting frozen, expression dark, eyes fixed on the newspaper.
No anger, no outburst.
But this quiet was all the more unnerving. Today was going to be a long day.
Weekend Box Office, Third Week of November 2003
1st: The Butterfly Effect — $45 million
2nd: Elf — $27 million
3rd: Master and Commander — $22 million
Everyone was stunned.
Nobody expected The Butterfly Effect to overtake and claim the weekend's top spot.
Nobody expected Master and Commander to lose to The Butterfly Effect and even Elf, in its second week.
Nobody expected Master and Commander's opening to be less than half of The Butterfly Effect's.
Not even the boldest predictions anticipated Ashton Kutcher's film would pull off such a miracle or so drastically upend expectations.
Shock after shock, one more outrageous than the next. Even Hollywood insiders were left dumbfounded, staring at the weekend box office rankings, unsure what to make of it.
How could this have happened?
This was exactly why Russell's agent and assistant had been doing everything possible to keep him from seeing the paper today. And yet, in the end, they were too late.
(End of Chapter)