America Tycoon: The Wolf of Showbiz

The best time slot in May for the summer blockbuster season is undoubtedly the first and the last weekends of the month.

The former marks the beginning of the summer season when moviegoers' enthusiasm for commercial blockbusters suddenly explodes; the latter includes Memorial Day on the last Monday of May, creating a strong three-day weekend.

"John Wick: Chapter 3" premiered in North America on the day before the holiday weekend, that is, Friday, with an overwhelming release in 4,105 theaters.

This was also the most widespread R-rated movie premiere since "The Dark Knight Rises."

Movie fans were eagerly anticipating it, flocking to theaters from Thursday evening to catch the midnight screenings.

Out of 3,800 midnight showings across North America, the film raked in $18.2 million at the box office.

This marked the strongest midnight premiere since the beginning of 2014, far surpassing the early summer release of "Captain America 2."

The latter's North American opening weekend grossed a staggering $96.2 million.

Inside the offices of Disney Studios, Ellen Horn was perusing the latest data, not just from "John Wick: Chapter 3" in terms of box office figures, but also market reactions and reviews from all quarters.

All numbers were trending explosively.

Cody Horn, who had come to Disney today, put down the "Hollywood Reporter" she was reading and said, "Did Martin's new movie hit the jackpot?"

She shook her head, "That's not quite right to say. Martin's films always have a strong opening, but this one can be described as a super-hit."

"Considering the buildup from the last two films, the massive buzz, and being the third installment of a trilogy, 'John Wick: Chapter 3' will see a colossal market explosion." Ellen Horn smiled, "Of course, that's a good thing. Considering the current situation, 'John Wick: Chapter 3''s opening weekend will far surpass that of 'Captain America 2.'"

Cody Horn couldn't help but praise, "Martin's vision and influence are truly unbeatable; no one in Hollywood stars can compare."

Hearing this, Ellen Horn suddenly had a different thought and said, "Perhaps, we should let Marvel's Avengers series ride on Martin and 'John Wick's' popularity."

Cody Horn was very curious about how a Marvel superhero movie could do such a thing?

But since this involved the business operations of a major company, she didn't ask.

Ellen Horn picked up the phone, called her assistant's number, and said, "Get a few directors from the promotional marketing department to meet in the small conference room immediately."

She glanced at Cody Horn, "Feel free to look around yourself, I have more work to deal with."

Cody Horn nodded gently and left the office for the building's entertainment department.

Ellen Horn quickly went to the small conference room to hold an emergency meeting.

There was only one topic of the meeting: how to get Marvel's superhero movie series to hitch a ride on the popularity of Martin and the "John Wick" series to attract more attention.

Everyone shared their views, and in less than half an hour, a plan was settled.

Under the leadership of Ellen Horn, Disney Studios had extremely high efficiency, and the plan was put into operation that very morning.

Martin, who was busy doing publicity for the film, received a call from Ellen Horn, who detailed a brand new promotional strategy involving Marvel's superhero movie series with "John Wick" and his own image rights.

It was very beneficial for film promotion on both sides; Martin agreed without hesitation, instructing Thomas and Jessica to negotiate the details.

The two parties reached an agreement swiftly, and by Friday noon, a set of hastily produced digital Marvel comics appeared online.

The comics immediately drew the attention of netizens and were frequently shared on Twitter and Instagram.

The name of the comic was "When Thanos Met Jonathan"!

By now, multiple Marvel superhero films had been released, and all movie fans were well aware that the ultimate super-villain the Avengers would face was none other than Thanos, the Director of the Intergalactic Population Control.

Though he only briefly appeared in the movies, he featured countless times in the comics, a formidable character indeed.

In this short comic, Thanos comes to Earth, accidentally kills Jonathan's dog, and then Jonathan comes seeking revenge.

Logically, Jonathan's fighting ability is far lesser than Thanos's, but the issue is Thanos killed Jonathan's dog!

Therefore, Jonathan goes berserk, trading blows with Thanos!

If any other action character were in this situation, whether it be Rambo, Ethan Hunt, or Jason Bourne, the comic would be ridiculed, but Jonathan was different; he was a meme favorite among countless netizens.

"Don't mess with Jonathan's dog" was already a deeply ingrained concept; killing his dog qualified as a cosmic-level super disaster!

Outlandish and ridiculous as it may sound, netizens enjoyed it nonetheless and discussed it feverishly.

"Nevermind Thanos, even if Darkseid and Superman teamed up, as long as they touched Jonathan's dog, they would get pummeled by Jonathan!"

"Kill Jonathan's dog, and the universe would be devastated by Jonathan!"

"Once the dog dies, Jonathan goes into a rage. Marvel's grade-school level fights can't possibly be a match for him."

"Marvel and DC, are you watching? To save the universe, only Jonathan's dog can do the job!"

That same afternoon, under the joint promotion of Davis Studio and Disney Studios, "When Thanos Met Jonathan" quickly climbed the hot search charts on multiple websites, becoming one of the hottest topics of the week.