The undercurrents would quietly flow without revealing themselves to the public. Murphy was unconcerned with the potential chain reactions triggered by "The Wolf of Wall Street" and its related promotional activities. As long as the benefits were substantial enough, some risks were entirely worth taking. The second week's performance of "The Wolf of Wall Street" proved that all the efforts were not in vain.
Stimulated by a series of scandals about Wall Street, from Tuesday onwards, the film's daily box office in North America didn't follow the usual downward trend but instead kept rising.
Wednesday brought in $7.85 million, and Thursday $8.25 million...
Such a box office trend defied normal market patterns and left many professional analysts astounded.
Despite the favorable media environment for "The Wolf of Wall Street," Murphy decided to continue increasing the film's buzz by giving an exclusive TV interview on Fox News on Friday night.
This interview took place on the first floor of the Fox Tower in Century City, featuring a one-on-one format between Murphy and the host.
The interviewer was Jesse Watters, a middle-aged journalist and one of Fox News' star reporters. He hosted "The O'Reilly Factor," one of the highest-rated news talk shows in the United States.
20th Century Fox put Murphy on this show, aiming to garner more attention for "The Wolf of Wall Street."
"Hello, Murphy."
Seeing Murphy sitting in the opposite chair, Jesse Watters nodded slightly and asked, "Can we start?"
"Of course." Murphy gestured invitingly.
Since this was a live broadcast, the show's director had them wait for a moment until the scheduled time before giving the start signal.
Three cameras were positioned to capture the wide shot, Murphy, and Jesse Watters' angles, all placed on the same 180-degree line, ensuring none of them interfered with the others' shots.
On the right armrest of Jesse Watters' sofa chair, hidden from the cameras, lay a piece of paper filled with pre-written questions. After delivering an opening monologue and formally introducing Murphy to the audience, he glanced at the paper and asked the first question.
"Murphy, everyone knows you excel in directing various genres of films." Jesse Watters looked puzzled. "Why did you choose such a sensitive subject like 'The Wolf of Wall Street'?"
"Making any film is a passionate process, driven by the motivation to explore the inner spiritual core," Murphy answered, well-prepared for such questions. "For me, filmmaking is about exploring the meaning of the world. During the making of this film, I felt the theme becoming more profound, though I only touched the surface. I'm obsessed with finding the spiritual core of life—this is the theme of most of my personal films, like the emptiness of Jordan Belfort and Clark Kent's search for self."
Jesse Watters quickly followed up with his second question, "But many are questioning 'The Wolf of Wall Street' for promoting values that contradict our universal values."
Addressing the prevalent values in contemporary American society, Murphy didn't shy away. "Perhaps everyone views things differently. I see a world filled with extreme selfish materialism, driven by 'the pursuit of happiness.'"
He emphasized, "They're not driven by 'true happiness' but by 'the pursuit' itself. 'The Wolf of Wall Street' can be seen as an exploration of the deadly sin of greed."
In front of the live cameras, Murphy's response was quite different from his private conversations with Carla Faith and Gal Gadot. "I believe materialism and selfishness are signs of the decline of contemporary American society."
Pointing to the ground beneath him, he added, "This is a land of greed! That's why I made 'The Wolf of Wall Street.' Not to showcase this greed but to immerse everyone in it, to become part of it, to enjoy its allure, and ultimately to be destroyed by it."
"Greed is indeed terrifying; it can ruin a person!" Jesse Watters first praised Murphy before asking a sharp question. "Recently, some media outlets have pointed out two major charges against your film. What do you think about that?"
"Two major charges?" Murphy seemed completely unaware. "I've been busy with work lately and haven't seen them. What are the two charges?"
Jesse Watters glanced at Murphy. This wasn't a pre-arranged question, but something he had prepared specifically. He couldn't tell if Murphy genuinely didn't know.
"The first charge," Jesse Watters continued, looking at Murphy, "is that the film amplifies a distorted set of values."
"Anyone saying that clearly didn't watch the film seriously."
Facing the live broadcast cameras, Murphy wasn't going to dismiss political correctness and proper values. Instead, he shifted the blame entirely onto Jordan Belfort. "The main character's real-life counterpart is a man possessed, disregarding all restraints. How far can he go? It's fascinating. If people have such power, what will happen? This story might be about the darkness that exists within each of us. This idea has always fascinated me."
Pausing for a moment, he continued, "I wanted to present this character and everything that happens to him as honestly as possible, not to judge him but to let the audience walk in his shoes. In the free-market capitalist system, the game rules are to climb to the top at all costs. This film isn't about making a good guy or a bad guy."
Jesse Watters seized on the key point and asked, "So, was it Jordan Belfort who prompted you to make this film?"
"What intrigued me was the richness of his life, like being able to mix various colors on a canvas," Murphy didn't hide this fact. "The range of his actions, the different areas, places, and interactions involved. Beyond that, there's the dark side of it all—the harmful acts affecting many, often without the perpetrators even realizing it."
Shaking his head, he said, "Is this phenomenon unique to America? I can't be sure. But my rational mind tells me that such people are everywhere. If our circumstances were different, we might commit the same mistakes. This is a universal human nature we need to confront, not avoid!"
Hearing these words, Jesse Watters couldn't help but feel that, among all the public figures he had met and interviewed, Murphy Stanton was a master at presenting himself. It was hard not to admire such eloquence.
With these thoughts in mind, he continued, "Do you know what the second charge is?"
"Let me guess." Murphy shrugged, "Is it about the film's explicit content?"
Jesse Watters nodded, saying, "Many believe 'The Wolf of Wall Street' pushes the boundaries of an R-rating with NC-17 level content. Isn't it a bit excessive for a wide-release film?"
"I don't think so." Murphy shook his head. "When making this film, the first thing I thought of was 'sacrilege,' relative to 'sacredness,' and 'debauchery,' relative to 'propriety.' But it wasn't deliberate nudity. 'Sacrilege' and 'debauchery' are tangible aspects within a specific culture."
"Did the MPAA ask you to make cuts?" Jesse Watters inquired.
"I'm well-acquainted with the MPAA," Murphy didn't shy away from this. "I've been dealing with them since I started making films. My films always push the boundaries, including 'Man of Steel.' But they're never violent for the sake of violence, or explicit for the sake of explicitness."
Jesse Watters quickly followed up, "But there's a scene in the film where a prostitute pulls a candle out of the married Jordan Belfort's rear and drips wax on him. You even used a close-up shot. Isn't that too much?"
"This scene can't be viewed in isolation; it needs to be seen within the entire context."
Laughing, Murphy said, "The point here is that Jordan Belfort's wife is very angry at him, but he doesn't even know where he is or what he's doing. He even lies to his wife. So, I wanted the audience to see what he was really doing. When the prostitute drips candle wax on his back, he suddenly yells out, 'Oh yeah! Oh yeah! I remember now!' It's handled in an extreme way to show that he's completely lost his mind. There's a bit of humor in it."
"Hmm..." Jesse Watters nodded and finally asked, "Money and drugs broke all of Jordan Belfort's moral boundaries. The audience clearly can't like such a protagonist. Do you think they'll still appreciate this film?"
Such questions had obvious answers, but Murphy wouldn't bring up the box office numbers. The Oscars required a certain level of sophistication, so he said, "Jordan Belfort is different from Bernard Madoff and Jeffrey Skilling. The latter two wouldn't crash helicopters. Compared to them, Jordan Belfort's image is more entertaining. He himself is the epitome of entertainment until death."
Murphy emphasized, "Not judging the character while making the film is a crucial aspect of directing."
The live show quickly concluded, and shortly after leaving the Fox Tower, Murphy received the viewing figures. Tonight's interview was watched by nearly 7.5 million people, which was quite impressive.
How this would translate into box office revenue would be seen over the weekend.
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