Domination in America, Starting from being a Boxing Champion

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"The Help" earned $27.47 million at the North American box office in its third week, bringing its cumulative box office to $96.7 million, with the $100 million mark soon within reach.

The only regret is that, due to the subject matter, the film performed modestly in overseas markets, earning only $21.42 million over three weeks in 21 countries including the UK, France, Germany, and Italy.

Despite this, the low-budget film's global box office neared $120 million after just three weeks, undoubtedly marking it as a very successful movie.

"Harvey, Link's film has succeeded again. Predictions from the media suggest that Palm Beach Films will earn at least $100 million from this release, and Lionsgate Films will also rake in tens of millions, making more than the jointly produced 'Bridesmaids,'"

Bob said, flipping through the newspaper in the company's coffee room.

"Shut up! Don't talk while reading the paper."

Harvey glared at Bob sitting opposite him, his face dark with anger.

Bob shrugged his chubby shoulders, "What I mean is we should strengthen our collaboration with Link, earn big money together. Even if you hate him, you don't hate U.S. dollars, right?"

"Hmph! Just because three consecutive movies are hits doesn't mean anything. Palm Beach Films' movies won't always be blockbusters. I bet his next movie will flop,"

Harvey said, disgruntled.

"Really? The next one is 'Silver Linings Playbook,' which we also invested in,"

Bob reminded him.

"Shut up! I don't want to hear about it."

Harvey glared at him fiercely and stood up to leave, clearly annoyed.

Watching his retreating figure, Bob shook his head helplessly, thought for a moment, and then took out his phone to congratulate Link.

Meanwhile, Kunas saw "The Help"'s box office numbers, and especially when he read the media's predictions that Palm Beach Films would make no less than $100 million from this movie, he was so furious he clenched his teeth. The papers had earlier reported that Ivanka was pregnant with Link's child, and now the media were saying Link would make a hundred million dollars.

One piece of good news after another about Link made him feel extremely unjust—it seemed like all the good things in the world belonged to Link alone.

Looking at Link's photo in the newspaper, Kunas picked up the phone to call Harvey, hoping to discuss a plan to deal with Link. Link liked female celebrities, and Harvey knew many of them; in this respect, he ought to be a lot of help.

Unfortunately, he had no idea why, but as soon as the call connected, Harvey hung up.

He felt he should find time to talk to Harvey in person in Los Angeles.

—

By November, Link had joined the "The Avengers" cast to shoot the film which tells the story of S.H.I.E.L.D. Director Nick Fury assembling Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Hulk, Black Widow, and Hawkeye, the six superheroes, to form The Avengers, in order to defeat powerful evil forces and ensure the safety of the Earth.

Link continued to play Captain America, with a salary of $25 million, second only to Robert Downey Jr.'s $30 million, ranking him second among the cast members.

The main reason was Robert Downey Jr.'s portrayal of Iron Man in the series, which was most successful and had greater box office appeal.

Furthermore, Iron Man is the lead male character in "The Avengers," with Captain America being the second lead and receiving slightly less screen time.

"Hey, Link, great to see you, I'm a fan of your boxing, and my wife is a hardcore fan of your music."

Robert Downey Jr. greeted enthusiastically when they met for the first time on set.

"Robert, I'm a fan of your movies too. Your Iron Man is my favorite Marvel movie character."

Link reached out and shook hands with him.

"Hey, Iron Man and Captain America shaking hands for the first time, doesn't anyone want to take a photo for keepsake?"

Scarlett Johansson, playing Black Widow, snapped a photo with her phone.

Mark Ruffalo playing Hulk, Chris Hemsworth playing Thor, Jeremy Renner playing Hawkeye, Tom Hiddleston playing the villain Loki, and Samuel L. Jackson as the head of S.H.I.E.L.D. all looked over.

Link smiled lightly and went on to shake hands and greet Scarlett and the others.

The first scene shot was the six superheroes coming together to discuss dealing with Loki and the extraterrestrial monsters. In addition, the production team hoped the main actors would talk more about the script and their roles together, striving for a more seamless cooperation during filming.

"Hey, Link, is this the second time we meet?"

After sitting down, Scarlett Johansson, who directly took the seat opposite him, greeted him with a beaming smile.

Scarlett was dressed in Black Widow's tight leather suit, sporting red curly hair, and with a voluptuous figure, her face bore a slightly seductive expression.

Link thought for a moment; it was indeed the second time they had formally met.

Their first encounter was in a coffee shop in New York in 2009, where he was discussing a new movie "Midnight in Paris" with director Woody Allen, and Scarlett Johansson and her then-husband Ryan Reynolds came over to say hello.

However, Scarlett and Ryan Reynolds had divorced the previous year.

Early in the year, Scarlett had also started a 'father-daughter romance' with Oscar Best Actor Sean Penn, 24 years her senior, which lasted about three months. Rumor has it they broke up because Scarlett didn't want to have children.

"It seems like the third time, I remember you were also there at the premiere of 'Inception' last year,"

Link said.

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"Yes, I remember now, Link, you have a really good memory,"

Scarlett said with a smile.

As they discussed their script roles subsequently, Scarlett would rest her face on her hands, her eyes unblinking as she gazed at his face, her gaze so intense it was almost tangible. Under the table, Link felt his calf brushed by her several times.

"Hey, look over there."

At the other end of the long table, Tom Hiddleston, who played Loki, nudged Chris Hemsworth, who played Thor, and in a lowered voice pointed at Link and Scarlett's position.

"Look at what?"

Hemsworth put down his script and glanced over at Link and Scarlett, "Is there something wrong with them?"

With a twisted smile, Hiddleston whispered, "I'll bet that before this movie's over, those two will definitely hit the sack."

"Is that even a bet? Just look at the way Scarlett watches Link, she could almost cling to him. I'd say, give it no more than ten days, no, a week, and they'll become really, really good friends,"

Jeremy Renner, who played Hawkeye, said with a light laugh.

"What are you guys talking about?"

Robert Downey Jr., Iron Man, came over and asked.

"Oh, nothing, just discussing the script."

Loki, Thor, and Hawkeye quickly dispersed, picked up their scripts and pretended to discuss intensely.

Robert Downey Jr. also cast a glance at Link and Scarlett before lowering his voice to Loki, "I bet they'll hit the sack within ten days. If I lose, the drinks are on me. Anyone want to take that bet?"

Loki, Thor, and Hawkeye exchanged looks and chuckled, all of them eager to place their bets.

Some said a month, others said two weeks, but Loki predicted three days.

As it turned out, they were all wrong; after the first day of filming was done, Link was changing in the makeup room when Scarlett slipped in.

Despite being gentle enough,

Scarlett Johansson still took a five-day sick leave afterward.

She only rejoined the crew after a week, and Scarlett didn't dare to cling to him like the first day. Her gaze carried a mix of fear and panic when looking at him, coupled with some inexplicable obsession and admiration. Sometimes she would peek at him secretly but didn't dare to approach anymore.

This was exactly the effect Link wanted, to prevent the Black Widow from constantly harassing him during filming, hindering his work, and potentially starting unpleasant rumors that would worsen his already not-so-great reputation.

Now, this was the ideal situation.

Yet the rest of the main cast was puzzled by the status of the two.

They had no idea what had happened between Link and Scarlett in the changing room on the first day.

They had thought that with a sexy male god and a sexy goddess on set, sparks were bound to fly, but aside from the first day when they were away together for a long time, their interaction was distant, like they were strangers to each other.

Privately, Robert Downey Jr. and Loki, Thor, and Hawkeye discussed the reasons.

Some thought it was a façade, that the two of them might already be sleeping together away from prying eyes.

Others believed that Link genuinely didn't find Scarlett appealing.

And a few thought that perhaps they had some private conflict and that they should find a way to help mend their relationship.

"Hey, what are you doing here? It's almost time to shoot."

In the studio, Link, dressed in the Captain America suit and holding the shield, strode over, tall and muscular with a handsome face that made the others secretly envious.

"We know, we're coming over now."

The others picked up their weapons too and walked onto the set to start filming.

Due to the large amount of big scenes and special effects, most of the movie was shot in the studios in Los Angeles and New York.

The Captain America scenes that Link played weren't very extensive, mainly featuring the Captain's awakening, his recruitment by S.H.I.E.L.D, joining the Avengers, and heading to protect the earth. The grand battle ensued below Stark Tower against Loki and the Chitauri army, eventually aiding Iron Man in repelling the alien invaders and closing the space portal, once again saving the earth from imminent danger.

In addition, to avoid any injuries during action scenes, the crew arranged for three stunt doubles for him and insurance company personnel were present at every scene to supervise and prevent him from performing any risky stunts.

Compared to shooting art films like "Midnight in Paris" and "The Fighter," filming blockbusters like "Captain America" and "The Avengers" could be quite boring; actors mostly just served as tools without the need for dramatic body changes or superb acting skills. They didn't have to worry about being tormented by the director and had little space for improvisation.

"Cut!"

"This take is good! Moving on to the next one."

Director Joss Whedon called out from behind the monitor.

Link and Iron Man, with Black Widow at their backs, stood on the street, looking up at the 'monsters' swarming in from all directions, ready to start the next battle.