I was Mistaken as a Monstrous Genius Actor [EN]: Chapter 462

Sold out? All showtimes? Seriously? Kang Woo-jin, with his phone pressed to his ear, wore an indifferent expression, but inwardly, he was quite astonished.

‘What the heck? The first day is completely sold out??’

Woo-jin, not replying immediately, checked the time. It was a little past noon, around 12:10 PM. As far as Kang Woo-jin knew, ticket sales for ‘Pierrot’ opened at 12 PM today. Not in a staggered manner, but all showtimes at all 33 theaters opened at once. Which meant…

‘No, the first day’s tickets are gone in 10 minutes? Wow, that’s insane.’

Ten minutes. It was ten minutes. Even though it was a pre-release and only showing in 33 theaters in LA and New York, the fact that the first day’s tickets were sold out in just 10 minutes was something Woo-jin couldn’t quite grasp. It was a first for him.

‘One showtime would be understandable, but the entire day being sold out—’

If ‘Pierrot’ was showing at one theater, each screen would have 5 to 8 showtimes from morning to night. The seating capacity would vary per screen, but roughly around 300 to 400 seats. At maximum, that’s 3200 audience members. If that’s across 33 theaters, it’s over 100,000, and if the number of screens showing it increases, it’s easily hundreds of thousands per day.

Those hundreds of thousands of tickets sold out in just 10 minutes?

‘Is that even possible??’

Of course, this wasn’t Korea, but the United States, and the difference was like night and day. Anyway, as Kang Woo-jin remained silent, Chris Hartnett spoke from the other end of the phone.

“Did you hear me? The opening day is sold out.”

“…Yeah, I heard you.”

“Oh my god. It was over in 10 minutes, you know? I’ve rarely seen anything like this.”

It was rare. Almost unheard of.

“And get this! I heard the second day is almost sold out too?!”

The second day too? What’s going on right now? Woo-jin had expected some popularity, but he hadn’t even imagined this level of hype. Perhaps because it felt so unreal, Kang Woo-jin’s reaction was lukewarm, while Chris on the phone was practically jumping up and down.

“It feels like the whole world, not just Korea, is flocking here??”

Chris went on to speculate about the bright future of ‘Pierrot’.

“At this rate, by the time the first screening on the 9th rolls around, all the tickets for the 2-week pre-release might be sold out before it even starts?”

Inside, he was dumbfounded, but outwardly, Kang Woo-jin remained composed. By the time he returned to the photoshoot, foreign news outlets were already quickly reporting on ‘Pierrot’.

First, that the entire pre-release schedule was open for booking.

『LA TIME/’Pierrot: Birth of a Villain’ Challenges for the ‘Academy Award’ [The Oscars], Pre-Release Tickets for 2 Weeks Open!』

Second, that the first day’s tickets sold out in just 10 minutes after the booking opened.

『BBX/Unbelievable! ‘Pierrot: Birth of a Villain’ Sells Out First Day Pre-Release Tickets in 10 Minutes!』

『CNM/Sold Out in 10 Minutes, ‘Pierrot: Birth of a Villain’ Explodes with Interest as Soon as Tickets Open』

Moreover, while Woo-jin was busy with the photoshoot, the second day also sold out.

Currently, tickets for the third day were rapidly selling out. Of course, the same was true for the other days. Either way, the rapid spread of news about ‘Pierrot’ was partly due to the quick action of overseas media, but also because of ‘Columbia Studios’ rapid speed in focusing on promotion.

As night fell, Kang Woo-jin, having finished his day’s schedule including the photoshoot, didn’t go straight home.

“Hello, Mr. Woo-jin.”

“Yes, hello.”

He had to meet with the general producer, Nora Foster. The location was, of course, ‘Columbia Studios’.

The meeting with Nora, along with some production staff, had a simple agenda: checking the promotional schedule for the soon-to-be-pre-released ‘Pierrot’, and the next movie in line, ‘Bat: Birth of a Hero’, which was still in the future. Why was she involved in the next movie of the ‘Cinematic Universe’? Because Nora was the producer once again.

Anyway, the striking Nora brought up something else to Kang Woo-jin before the main topic.

“The situation is—it’s turning out strangely. I had expectations, but I didn’t think the pre-release of ‘Pierrot: Birth of a Villain’ would start this hot.”

“Yes, I was surprised too.”

“Hmm? For someone who’s surprised, your expression is very calm right now?”

“It’s because time has passed.”

Nora, unaware of Kang Woo-jin’s act, handed him a tablet. The screen displayed information related to ‘Pierrot’s’ pre-release, and Nora began her briefing while looking at the same tablet.

“Out of the total 2-week pre-release schedule, two days are sold out, and it’s highly likely that the third day will be sold out by tomorrow. The fourth day is also about half sold.”

Woo-jin internally marveled at the organized charts, but outwardly remained indifferent.

“I see.”

Soon, Nora Foster brushed her slightly longer-than-bobbed hair back a couple of times. She was trying hard to hide her excitement.

“Honestly, this pre-release of ‘Pierrot’ is more for the ‘Academy Awards’ than for box office success. That’s why we limited the theaters to 33. But if I had known it would be like this, we should have increased it as much as possible.”

“If we had, there wouldn’t have been this impact.”

Nora nodded as if agreeing and tapped the tablet with her index finger.

“At this rate, it’s possible that the first week will be sold out—no, the entire 2-week pre-release schedule will be sold out. It’s a bit absurd but also a happy situation, and I think it’s a mix of several things.”

She began to fold her fingers.

“First of all, ‘Pierrot’ has been on a unique path from pre-production to now, including the ‘Academy Awards’, and it’s also the first movie of ‘Columbia Studios’ ‘Cinematic Universe’, which they’ve staked everything on. The director of such a movie is Director Ahn Ga-bok, and the lead is you. Your skills and abilities are great, but it might seem questionable to the public.”

“I understand.”

“And the ‘Academy Awards’. The path ‘Pierrot’ is taking to the ‘Academy Awards’ is very unique, so it’s bound to catch the public’s attention. In addition, there are the various issues that have surfaced so far. ‘Pierrot: Birth of a Villain’ already has an abnormally high level of awareness before its release, and that ‘Pierrot’ is doing a 2-week pre-release before going to the ‘Academy Awards’. From the public’s perspective, it’s a chance to see ‘Pierrot’ before the prestigious ‘Academy Awards’.”

Kang Woo-jin, who had been listening quietly, replied in a low voice.

“Limited sale, with a set time limit.”

“That’s right. It’s similar to thinking about limited edition luxury goods; it seems that the uniqueness has stimulated people.”

For a moment, Woo-jin thought of the cases where people would pay a premium to buy products with limited quantities.

‘I’ve seen it. The open run as soon as the doors of a luxury shop open.’

Luxury goods with high value sell out quickly even if they are expensive. In other words, ‘Pierrot: Birth of a Villain’ was also considered valuable to the public. It had taken such a rare path, and it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the public.

Nora continued, pointing at Kang Woo-jin.

“With the addition of your influence, Kang Woo-jin, the hype has multiplied several times.”

“……”

“Kang Woo-jin and the ‘Academy Awards’ are an inseparable issue, as it has been stimulating the media and public opinion from the past until now. Whether it’s positive or negative. Maybe more negative, since they were already waiting for it, and now there’s a pre-release, so they’re flocking in. In addition, the recent dating rumors and many other topics have also added to the hype.”

Kang Woo-jin, having listened, understood the situation of the sell-out to some extent, and Nora Foster’s face became slightly serious.

“This pre-release, it’s good that it’s starting with all 2 weeks sold out, but—Mr. Woo-jin, among those hundreds of thousands of audience members, there will be many who bought tickets to criticize you.”

Woo-jin, without changing his expression, calmly replied.

“It doesn’t matter; criticism has no meaning to me.”

Later.

Kang Woo-jin managed his schedule while also grasping the changes related to the pre-release of ‘Pierrot: Birth of a Villain’. Well, all he did was hear about it or look it up on his phone, but he still managed to enjoy the joy in between.

‘Oh! Even the fourth day is sold out!’

This was also immediately announced to the world by ‘Columbia Studios’.

It was about creating a trend. Since everyone was so desperately trying to get tickets, anyone who saw this article would be urged to move quickly. Meanwhile, the dating rumor between Kang Woo-jin and Kara continued to grow in size, even after several days.

『LA TIME/Kang Woo-jin and Miley Kara in Love, Not Clarifying Their Stance is Proof』

The global public was sharply divided on whether the two were dating or not on communities and social media. No, actually, there were more opponents. It was possible because Miley Kara’s fans were spread all over the world.

The extreme fans were.

-How can Kang Woo-jin be dating Miley?

-Go back to Korea, Kang Woo-jin!

-Kang Woo-jin is just clinging to Miley and ruining her image!

The level of criticism against Kang Woo-jin was beyond screaming. But Woo-jin was not shaken at all. Meanwhile, other things related to him were also progressing smoothly without any confusion.

The movie ‘Guest’, which had Miley Kara and Chris Hartnett.

“This scene, you see.”

“Yes, Director.”

“Originally, it was supposed to be an outdoor location shoot, but it’s better to change it to a set.”

“I’ll check it out.”

The pre-production that had started was gaining speed. All the employees of ‘A8 Media’ and the CEO, Jennifer Thurman, were extremely busy, and Jennifer was in charge of the production and overall production of the work.

In addition, ‘A8 Media’ also announced in Hollywood that Kang Woo-jin would make a special appearance in ‘Guest’.

Around the 7th.

『ABY/People are flocking to LA and New York from all over the world! 1 Week of ‘Pierrot: Birth of a Villain’ Pre-Release Tickets Sold Out!』

While the news that one week of tickets for ‘Pierrot’s’ 2-week pre-release period had sold out was spreading in Hollywood.

“I look forward to working with you on this project as well, Mr. Kang Woo-jin.”

“Likewise.”

The contract between Kang Woo-jin and ‘Bat: Birth of a Hero’ was finalized. It took about a week of negotiations, but thankfully it ended without any problems.

And Kang Woo-jin’s value.

‘Wow—damn!! My value is seriously insane!! How many houses could I buy with this??!’

Of course, it had more than doubled from before.

The baton was passed to Director Ahn Ga-bok, and his contract was also finalized without any issues. With this, the blueprint for ‘Bat: Birth of a Hero’ was complete.

On the morning of the 8th, Kang Woo-jin received news of his return to filming. It was from Choi Sung-gun.

“Woo-jin, the first day of filming for ‘John Persona’ has been set. February 27th.”

It was a few days after the end of the ‘Pierrot’ pre-release schedule.

Morning of February 9th, downtown LA.

It was a little past 9 AM. Because of the time, downtown LA was filled with people and cars. People hurried along the sidewalks, and the congested roads were filled with loud honking from all directions.

In the center of such a downtown area was a multiplex movie theater.

It was the largest movie theater brand in the United States, and it was famous for being the biggest in LA. Soon, a black van stopped in front of the movie theater building.

-Thump!

Several familiar figures got out of the car. Korean was immediately heard.

“Wow—the movie theater is huge? Do they use this whole building?”

“It’s big, yeah, I heard they use the whole thing.”

“Hmm, it’s more than I expected.”

“Director, please be careful getting out.”

Hong Hye-yeon, with her long hair tied up, Ryu Jung-min, who had grown his hair long as if he was on break, and Director Kwon Ki-taek, who had become even more plump, were there. People who should have been in Korea had appeared at a movie theater in downtown LA. Following them were about half a dozen people, including staff, and everyone moved towards the movie theater, led by Ryu Jung-min. Ryu Jung-min and Hong Hye-yeon were top stars in Korea, but in LA, few people recognized them.

Some glanced at them, but their reactions weren’t big.

Just as they reached the entrance of the movie theater building.

“Wow—Woo-jin looks cool.”

“Whoa!”

Ryu Jung-min and Hong Hye-yeon exclaimed in surprise almost simultaneously. Director Kwon Ki-taek also joined in.

“Haha, yes. Seeing that, I realize how amazing Mr. Woo-jin is.”

What they had discovered was a large billboard placed right in front of the movie theater entrance. It was more than 5 times the height of a person, and on the billboard was a grotesque man with red hair and a pale face. It was the ‘Joker’.

In other words, Kang Woo-jin.

The movie theater located in the center of downtown LA, the entrance billboard that was the face of the movie theater. Only Kang Woo-jin’s ‘Joker’ was on that huge billboard. Moreover, many foreigners were busy taking pictures in front of that ‘Pierrot’ billboard. Of course, Hong Hye-yeon and Ryu Jung-min also joined in the photo-taking frenzy.

After about 10 minutes of photo time, they crossed the entrance of the movie theater and entered the lobby.

Soon, Hong Hye-yeon’s shriek echoed.

“What, what is this!! Why are there so many people! Is this right?!!”

The vast movie theater lobby was packed with people of all kinds, with no room to step. It was beyond chaotic. The murmuring was so loud that it felt like being in a cave.

The number of people was easily in the hundreds, and Hong Hye-yeon, with her eyes wide open, murmured to herself.

“These people… did they all come to see ‘Pierrot’?”

Ryu Jung-min, whose pupils were also dilated, replied.

“…Since ‘Pierrot’ rented out this entire movie theater today, I guess so.”

“……In other words, they all came to see Kang Woo-jin?”

Less than an hour was left until the first screening of ‘Pierrot: Birth of a Villain’.