Chapter 490: Flowers and Applause

Chapter 490: Chapter 490: Flowers and Applause

As the lights came up and the screens slowly faded to black after the midnight screenings across theaters nationwide, the epic pirate legend blockbuster,

"Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End"—touted as Hollywood’s largest-scale and most expensive production to date—officially made its debut with a wide release in North America.

Long before its release, the overwhelming, multi-channel promotional campaign, the massive general audience base built up by the first two installments, and the immense buzz generated by the talk show promotional tours had already pushed audience expectations to the absolute limit.

Countless moviegoers booked their theater seats half a month in advance, with pre-sale tickets for major prime-time screenings selling out at lightning speed.

Theater chains added extra screenings and expanded auditorium capacities overnight just to accommodate this unstoppable moviegoing craze.

On its opening day, the box office figures surged and climbed steadily, showing absolutely no signs of slowing down.

In the end, the film swept the competition, raking in an explosive $68.2 million on its opening day.

This shattered the summer single-day opening box office record previously set by Irene herself, leaving all other films released during the same period far behind and establishing a massive lead at the top of the North American box office charts.

When the first-week box office tallies were released, the results shocked all of Hollywood—an astronomical $165 million opening week, virtually securing its spot as the year’s box office champion.

And that was just the North American data; after opening simultaneously in multiple overseas countries and regions, the box office growth was equally terrifying, and global hype spiraled completely out of control.

Such an explosive box office performance left Disney and Fox, the co-Producers, ecstatic.

Their executives were overjoyed, calling Irene’s personal phone one after another to offer their congratulations, their voices filled with uncontrollable excitement and relief.

They were relieved that they had firmly chosen to deeply bind their partnership with Irene, and relieved that they had secured this top-tier IP sequel that was rewriting the landscape of commercial cinema.

For a time, invitations to parties from major brands, partner companies, and film circles flooded in.

Almost every night, there were various celebration banquets, industry dinners, and social gatherings knocking on her door, with everyone wanting to build connections and ride the coattails of the massive "Pirates" craze.

During this period, with back-to-back shoots and interviews to promote the film, Irene was already physically and mentally exhausted.

Every day, she received countless calls with virtually identical congratulations, repetitive business pleasantries, and insincere social small talk, making her feel incredibly weary.

And this was already the case after she had handed her office phone over to Vera.

However, unable to decline the warm invitations from all sides, and not wanting to let down the years of hard work by the three companies and the entire crew, Irene simply took the initiative to propose that Echo Pictures, Disney, and Fox co-host an exclusive celebration banquet.

They would invite close friends from the industry, the core cast and crew, and partner teams to quietly celebrate this hard-won victory.

This proposal was instantly approved by all three companies, who quickly finalized the venue, itinerary, and guest list, dedicating all their efforts to preparing the exclusive celebration feast.

Just two weeks after its release, the film’s global box office surged past the $500 million mark.

Its box office growth rate, attendance, and critical acclaim all led the annual charts by a landslide, completely solidifying its absolute status as the year’s ultimate blockbuster.

Riding this wave of peak momentum, the three parties jointly chose the top-tier Four Seasons Hotel in Beverly Hills as the venue for the final celebration banquet, booking an entire floor of the luxury ballroom to create a top-tier, star-studded celebration.

That evening, the Four Seasons Hotel was brilliantly lit and packed with celebrities.

The grand occasion was unprecedented, with an atmosphere that was not at all inferior to past post-Oscar parties.

Hollywood A-list actors, renowned directors, gold-medal Producers, executives from major film studios, top agents, and fashion socialites gathered together.

Clad in elegant attire, they mingled and toasted one another, as the luxurious crystal chandeliers cast light over every inch of the space, elevating the refinement and grandeur of the entire venue to its peak.

The guests coming and going were all prominent figures in the industry.

Every greeting, every toast, and every conversation was an exchange of resources and maintenance of relationships within Hollywood’s top circles.

Countless people took the initiative to approach Irene to toast and congratulate her, their words filled with both sincere and polite praises, commending her unique vision, top-tier management skills, and her personal creation of one cinematic myth after another.

Through the smiling faces and compliments, Irene could clearly capture the complex emotions hidden in everyone’s eyes.

Some truly admired her strength and talent, some were full of envy for her early rise to fame and her possession of top-tier film and television IPs, while even more harbored hard-to-detect jealousy, resentment, and quiet rivalry.

Holding Oscar awards and multiple cinematic blockbusters at such a young age, controlling top-tier IP resources, and building connections across The Big Six Studios, Irene’s rise was far too dazzling—so dazzling that it made countless veteran industry professionals who had worked in Hollywood for years feel wary and unbalanced.

But Irene remained completely indifferent to this and ignored it.

Along the way, flowers and applause, criticism and jealousy had never been absent.

She had long since grown accustomed to the vanity and superficiality of these circles; she would not become complacent over a few compliments, nor would she be affected by the silent jealousy of others.

She politely raised her glass in response and socialized calmly.

After completing all the necessary social protocols, she only wanted to end this clamor and go home to lie down and rest in peace.

Just as she was feeling slightly tired and about to find a corner for a brief breather, a slender, fair hand suddenly held out a glass of champagne in front of her, and a crisp, lively voice rang out, dispelling the exhaustion around her.

"Congratulations to our most amazing director and great Producer!"

Irene looked up, her eyes instantly lighting up.

The fatigue on her face vanished completely, and a genuine smile immediately touched her eyes.

The newcomer was none other than Britney Spears.

"Hey, girl! What are you doing here?" Irene’s tone was full of surprise, and she was exceptionally taken aback.

According to her original work schedule, Britney should have been in New York at this moment, fully immersed in recording the third stage of "The Voice."

With a tight schedule and intensive training, she had almost no free time to travel across cities.

Britney smiled and reached out to hug her, her smile bright and gentle, her eyes filled with genuine joy: "How could I miss your exclusive celebration? No matter how busy I am, I have to make time to come and celebrate with you."

She gently explained, "Now that ’The Voice’ has successfully moved on to the third stage of inter-team battles, the format has stabilized, and the contestants have mastered their training rhythms.

At this stage, they can train and polish their performances on their own without needing the coaches to accompany them through every recording. We coaches finally managed to free up some time, so I came to Los Angeles right away."

The reunion of long-lost best friends stripped away the professional pleasantries and distance, leaving only pure relaxation and warmth.

Irene was smiling and chatting with her about their recent lives when her gaze accidentally fell upon Britney’s right hand, and her eyes suddenly froze.

On the middle finger of Britney’s right hand, she was actually wearing a diamond ring with a minimalist design and an elegant texture.

In the past, when attending various fashion galas and brand events, Britney would also wear various jewelry rings and fashion accessories to match her outfits.

Those styles were gorgeous and exquisite, with bold and eye-catching designs, mostly high-end custom pieces sponsored by brands.

But tonight’s ring was completely different.

There were no complex pavé diamonds, no exaggerated shapes—just a simple, plain band set with a tiny main diamond.

It was low-key, restrained, clean, and elegant, yet it carried the gentle texture unique to engagement jewelry, understated yet exceptionally striking.