Chapter 567 This is a sure thing

"Brother, congratulations on the box office success!"

Back on the set, Zhao Jinmai was the first to come up.

"Thank you. I haven't been here for the past few days. Your filming task must be much easier, right?" Gu Wei rubbed her head and asked with a smile.

"It's true that there are fewer scenes. All my scenes are with you. If you're not here, of course I won't have any scenes to perform.

But it’s not easy for me either. When I’m not filming, I’m reviewing my lessons.” She frowned slightly as she spoke.

"I didn't know how to answer many questions. I went to see Director Guo, but I didn't quite understand what he said."

"It's okay, come see me later with the test paper."

"Um"

Zhao Jinmai agreed with a smile.

"Since I wasn't busy these days, I went to the cinema to watch Wolf Warrior 2.

The filming is really good, the scenes are super shocking, brother, your acting is so handsome! Director Wu is also very manly!

No wonder it’s so popular now.

The cinema was packed, and I had a hard time buying tickets online, but the seats weren’t very good.”

"You went there by yourself?"

"I went with Sister Ziyi. Let me tell you a secret, Sister Ziyi cried at the end of the movie."

"Little girl, aren't you crying?"

"Me? Of course not." Zhao Jinmai's eyes rolled around, and the words she said lacked confidence and were obviously insincere.

"When you two go out to the movies, be careful not to be recognized by fans~"

"We all wore hats and masks and were more careful.

Actually, only Sister Ziyi might be recognized by fans, so I don’t have to be afraid.”

"Why not? 'Take My Brother Away' grossed over 200 million yuan. Mai Mai, your popularity is quite high now. Netizens call you 'the nation's daughter' and you have many fans."

"Hehe. It's not as exaggerated as you say.

Besides, isn’t the “National Daughter” Guan Xiaotong?” Zhao Jinmai felt a little embarrassed by what Gu Wei said.

When Gu Wei came back, except for Zhao Jinmai, all the cast and crew members including Wu Mengda and Li Guangjie congratulated him.

Some of them have seen the movie like Zhao Jinmai, and some have not, but everyone knows that "Wolf Warrior 2" is a huge hit.

Since the movie was released at the end of last month, in just less than two weeks, the name of "Wolf Warrior 2" has completely broken the circle.

It is now more than just a movie. Watching "Wolf Warrior 2" has become a popular social event.

Men, women, young and old, from all professional groups, everyone is discussing this film.

Many people who don’t usually watch movies also walked into the cinema with curiosity amid the praises of others such as “shocking”, “passionate” and “explosive”.

"Congratulations, congratulations!" Director Guo Fan was also very happy when Gu Wei came back and congratulated him with a happy face.

"I'm sorry, Director Guo, I've taken such a long leave and delayed the filming of the crew."

"It's okay, the leave was agreed upon before filming started, and it's all arranged in the crew's shooting schedule.

It’s okay.” Guo Fan waved his hand, then looked at Gu Wei with emotion.

"I knew that Wolf Warrior 2 would be a hit with you joining the film, but I never imagined it would become this popular!

I looked at the data online today, and the box office should be over 3 billion by the end of this week, right?"

"It's certain. The box office will increase over the weekend. It should be no problem to reach 3.2 billion by the end of Sunday." Gu Wei checks the box office data of "Wolf Warrior 2" every day, and he knows the trend very well.

"That's amazing! At this rate, Wolf Warrior 2 will surpass your film Detective Chinatown 2 and become the number one movie in the domestic box office!"

As a professional director, Guo Fan knows how difficult it is for a movie to achieve high box office.

Even though the domestic film market is so hot now, movies with box office revenue of hundreds of millions cannot be considered big hits. Only movies that break 1 billion can be considered big hits.

But in fact, 80% of the movies released in China every year have a box office revenue that hardly exceeds 100 million yuan.

There are many things involved here, and factors such as plot, starring actors, director, publicity, etc. all have an impact on the final box office.

There are some movies that have good stories and high ratings, but they don’t get high box office, such as "A Hundred Birds Paying Homage to the Phoenix".

Some movies have big stars and big directors, but if the story is terrible, they will still flop, such as the "Meow" starring Louis Koo and Ma Li last month.

So it is really difficult for a movie to become a big hit.

In the past two years, Internet capital has entered the entertainment industry in large numbers. These IT professionals are accustomed to speaking with data, and they try to use various models to explain why a movie is a big hit.

Then find out the various factors that lead to box office success, such as big directors, big productions, popular stars, and hot topic promotion.

However, so far, there are very few "hit" movies produced according to Internet thinking that are truly hits.

But it’s just the beginning, and these big companies have plenty of money and have no plans to back down.

"It's not difficult for [Wolf Warrior 2] to surpass [Detective Chinatown 2], but I don't know how much the film can actually achieve." Gu Wei was not too excited about Guo Fan's praise. Even now, he was not willing to tell others about his goal.

"Wolf Warrior 2" is so popular now. No matter where the final box office results are, it will create a new record in domestic film history." Guo Fan sighed and then laughed.

"With this movie in the lead, isn't our film 'The Wandering Earth' destined to be a hit? Your second collaboration with Wu Jing alone is worth 100 million in publicity fees!"

Before the filming of the movie, Gu Wei suggested that Wu Jing play "Liu Peiqiang", but Guo Fan didn't think there was anything special about it.

Wu Jing's image is more suitable for "Liu Peiqiang", that's all. There are many stars in the circle who can play this role.

But now it's different. This is the second collaboration between Gu Wei and Wu Jing after "Wolf Warrior 2". Last time they were master and apprentice comrades who evacuated overseas Chinese and fought against the villain mercenaries. This time they are father and son who work together to save the earth. This gimmick alone can attract countless audiences to go to the cinema.

Guo Fan felt like he had done nothing, and yet a pie fell from the sky and hit him on the head.

Why worry about the movie box office? This is a sure thing!

Gu Wei smiled. He knew exactly what Guo Fan was thinking, but this was what he had planned in advance.

He collaborated with Wu Jing on "Wolf Warrior 2", which was partly to make money and gain fame, but also to pave the way for "The Wandering Earth".

On the night that Gu Wei returned to the crew, Guo Fan was very sensible and organized a dinner for the main creators to celebrate for him.

We have been filming for over a month and it was very tiring carrying dozens of kilograms of weight every day. This event allowed everyone to relax.

The filming of "The Wandering Earth" continues in an orderly manner, and "Wolf Warrior 2" is still reaping box office revenue at a speed that makes everyone astonished.

After the box office exceeded 1.1 billion in the first four days of the week, the box office trend in the second week not only did not weaken but strengthened. In the first five working days of the second week, the average daily box office was more than 250 million yuan, with the highest being 293 million yuan in one day.

Over the weekend, the film achieved exaggerated box office results of 405 million and 426 million respectively.

As of Monday, August 7, "Wolf Warrior 2" had been released for two weeks and 11 days, and had earned a total box office of 3.246 billion yuan.

What is unbelievable is that on Monday, the third week, "Wolf Warrior 2" still showed no signs of decline, with a box office of 243 million yuan that day.

Seeing that 4 billion or even 4.5 billion is not a problem for "Wolf Warrior 2", a number of media critics in the circle, while praising it, also quietly raised their expectations for the final box office of the film.

It is now generally believed that "Wolf Warrior 2" is very likely to break the box office record of 5 billion RMB, reaching an unprecedented height in the domestic film market.

Huayi Brothers.

"Am I too old to keep up with the times?

How could a domestic film actually sell so well? " Wang Zhongjun looked at the reports about Wolf Warrior 2 with a look of disbelief on his face.

At this time, three days have passed in the third week, and "Wolf Warrior 2" is about to reach a box office of 4 billion yuan, and the momentum is still strong. After the weekend box office surges, there will be no problem in breaking 4.5 billion yuan.

“I’ve watched this movie, and it’s quite good, but I feel it’s about the same as last year’s Operation Mekong.

I originally thought that even with Gu Wei joining, 2 billion would be the limit, but who could have imagined it would become so popular!" Wang Zhonglei was also full of emotion.

From the time they founded Huayi Brothers in 1994 to now, 23 years have passed, and they have experienced both ups and downs.

At its most glorious moment, Huayi was known as the number one private film and television company in mainland China, and was unrivaled in the industry.

But neither he nor Wang Zhongjun, the chairman, had ever thought that the box office of a movie could be so high.

"I remember when Xiaogang's 'Endless' was released and grossed 30 million, we were so happy.

That was in 1999, and the film was an absolute hit that year, and it also made Huayi famous."

People like to reminisce about the past when they get older, and Wang Zhongjun is no exception.

"Indeed, until 2008, the total national box office was only 4.3 billion, and I have a deep impression of that year's Olympic Games.

Who would have thought that a single movie could now earn more than the entire domestic box office in the past?!"

"What is the current market value of our Huayi?" Wang Zhongjun suddenly asked.

"Based on today's A-share price, Huayi's total market capitalization is 22.473 billion yuan."

"If Wolf Warrior 2 can really break through 5 billion at the box office, wouldn't that mean that one movie is equivalent to a quarter of Huayi's." Although this comparison method is not accurate, Wang Zhongjun, who was in a state of amazement, didn't care too much.

"Zhong Lei, do you think our previous plan of comprehensive development and film production was a mistake?"

For 20 years, Wang Zhongjun has felt that he has always been at the top of the entertainment industry. Some of his decisions may not determine the trend of the domestic entertainment and film and television industry, but at least they have a certain impact on the industry.

Especially since the company went public in 2009, as his wealth increased and the company grew in size, his confidence grew.

When he formulated the pan-entertainment strategy and decided to enter the real estate industry to build a movie-themed town, he was full of confidence.

Wang Zhongjun, who has been in the film industry for more than 20 years, knows very well that the investment cycle of movies is long, the risks are high, and the rate of return is difficult to grasp. In terms of making money, it cannot compare with finance and real estate.

However, in recent years, there have been many high-grossing domestic films, especially those directed and starred by Gu Wei, which have grossed 1 billion, 2 billion, 3 billion, and are now heading towards 5 billion.

While Wang Zhongjun was envious, he couldn't help but feel confused. If the company had focused on making movies, would Huayi also have a share in these blockbuster films now?

"After all, we are a co-producer of Wolf Warrior 2. Even though we didn't make much money at the box office, this title has a huge impact on the stock market.

Thanks to the recent blockbuster movie, our stock price has risen for two consecutive weeks, and our total market value has increased by 800 million yuan!

Wang Zhonglei doesn’t think as much as his brother. He only cares about the company’s stock price, which is real money.

"You're right, I think too much. There's no point in lamenting these things. It's better to study how to do what's best for us.

How is the post-production of [Ex-Files 3] going?

“It’s almost finished. It’s an urban romance film, so post-production is relatively simple.

We were putting the finishing touches on it at the end of last month.”

Wang Zhongjun nodded.

"What date do you think would be the most suitable for the film to be released?"

"There are only two popular periods left in the second half of the year: the National Day and the Lunar New Year period. There are more popular movies during the National Day period and the time is short. Although our film has Gu Wei joining us and we are not afraid of competing head-on with them, the relatively relaxed Lunar New Year period is obviously a better choice."

"Dapeng's [Sewing Machine Band], Cheng Long's [Beyond the Clash], Happy Twist's [The Shameful Iron Fist], and Wang Jing's [Chasing the Dragon] all have the potential to be big sellers, and none of them should be underestimated."

Wang Zhongjun took a look at the list of movies that have been scheduled for the National Day holiday and found that they were indeed full of blockbusters.

"And there's also Bingbing's boyfriend's debut work, Sky Hunter.

I wasn’t optimistic about him making this movie before, but seeing how popular Wolf Warrior 2 is now, no one can say whether Li Chen will be the next Wu Jing.”

Wang Zhonglei gave a reminder.

"In that case, let's schedule it for the Lunar New Year holiday, right before and after Xiaogang's Youth."

Wang Zhongjun hesitated after he finished speaking.

"Increase the promotional funds for [Ex-Files 3] by 50% and provide more resource support.

Given Gu Wei's current popularity, this film's box office is likely to even surpass that of "Youth."

"clear."

Seeing the current performance of "Wolf Warrior 2", even Wang Zhonglei, who has always had doubts about Gu Wei's box office appeal, no longer has any doubts.

The "Wolf Warrior" series is a film by Wu Jing, but the first film starring Wu Jing alone grossed 500 million yuan, and after Gu Wei joined the second film, it went straight to the top of film history. It seems that the final box office results are likely to be ten times that of the first film.

Who can tell how much influence Gu Wei has on the film and what role he has played?

Of course, this may be a bit biased, but the facts are there, and "Wolf Warrior 2" is not an isolated case.

"Brother Teng, why are you here again?

Brother Bo, you are here too."

On the set of [The Wandering Earth], after finishing the morning scenes, everyone was taking a break when Gu Wei saw Chen Teng, wearing a floral shirt and with a slicked-back hair, walking into the set.

Huang Bo also came in with him.

"Crazy Alien" directed by Ning Hao was also filmed in Oriental Movie Metropolis, right next to "The Wandering Earth".

Speaking of it, the copyright of "The Wandering Earth" was actually originally in the hands of Ning Hao. He had a good relationship with Liu Cixin and helped him manage the film and television copyright.

However, the film and television adaptation of "The Wandering Earth" is too difficult, and Ning Hao feels that he cannot handle it with his own ability. It happened that at this time China Film Group planned to invest in a domestic science fiction blockbuster, so it bought the copyright from Ning Hao and handed it over to Guo Fan.

At this time, Ning Hao also began to prepare a science fiction comedy film, "Crazy Alien", which was adapted from another science fiction novel by Liu Cixin, "Rural Teacher".

Coincidentally, "Crazy Alien" and "The Wandering Earth" started filming almost at the same time, and both were shot at the Oriental Movie Metropolis.

In the original time and space, due to the shortage of funds in "The Wandering Earth", Guo Fan often borrowed props from Ning Hao next door. Careful viewers will find that the spacesuits worn by the astronauts in the two movies are actually exactly the same, because they used the same set of clothes.

However, the crew of "The Wandering Earth" is not short of money now, and Guo Fan does not have to worry about funds. He just needs to concentrate on filming.

But because the two crews are close to each other and are both filming Liu Cixin's science fiction novels, Guo Fan will find Ning Hao to chat about filming when he is free, and the relationship between the two crews is pretty good.

【Crazy Alien】starring Huang Bo and Chen Teng.

Huang Bo and Gu Wei have an average relationship. They met on "Go Fighting" before and are just casual acquaintances.

But Chen Teng is very familiar with Gu Wei, so when he has nothing to do, he always comes to the crew of "The Wandering Earth" to visit Gu Wei.

It would be a bit too formal to call it a visit to the set, because they were too close. They were in different studios in the same film and television base. If he had nothing to do after filming, he could just walk a few steps to Gu Wei's place.

"What do you mean I'm here again?

I'm so sad when you say that, I'm picking on you."

"Uncle Chen Teng, you come to our crew every few days. Doesn't your director say anything about you?" Chen Teng comes here so often and he's not arrogant and easy to talk to, so even Zhao Jinmai has become familiar with him.

"Why call me uncle? Call me Brother Teng!

Mai Mai, I have told you many times that I am in my prime, calling me uncle is making me old.

Besides, you call Gu Wei "brother" and you call me "uncle", so isn't there a generation gap between me and my brother?"

"Hehe, okay, Brother Teng~" Zhao Jinmai agreed with a smile.

"You've arrived just in time. Our crew will be having dinner soon, so we'll take you along."

"Oh, that's so embarrassing. We're not here to eat or drink for free." Chen Teng said this, but there was no embarrassed expression on his face.

"Um, what's on offer today? I always feel like the crew meals here are better than those on Alien."

"Brother Teng, don't worry, these are all your favorites," Zhao Jinmai said with a smile.

Obviously, this is not the first time that Chen Teng has eaten for free on the set of "The Wandering Earth".

"Haha, Mai Mai is the best. She can remember what your brother Teng likes to eat.

I say, Hiroko, you should also try the food served by other crew members, it’s really better than ours.

Let’s talk to Director Ning later and ask if we can change the restaurant that the crew of “Alien” orders meals from to the same restaurant as “The Wandering Earth” so that I can eat an extra half bowl of rice at each meal.”

"If you get fatter, the director will ask you to lose weight." Huang Bo is famous for his high emotional intelligence and is usually eloquent, but in front of Shen Teng he becomes the one who speaks less.

"You have a point, but my looks are there, so it doesn't matter if I'm a little fatter."

Huang Bo ignored him and looked at Gu Wei opposite him.

"Congratulations on the box office success! Wolf Warrior 2 is incredibly popular right now. I heard you just got back a couple of days ago, so I asked Chen Teng to come over."

"Yes, brother, your movie is invincible. It will soon exceed 4 billion and head towards 5 billion. You have broken all the records in the domestic film market. It's amazing!" Chen Teng immediately responded.

"Wolf Warrior 2 is Jing Ge's film. I'm just an actor who starred with him, but I don't have much credit.

Besides, it just happened to be a good time. Our country has become stronger and the movie just hit the audience's patriotic point, which is why it has achieved its current success.

It can only be said to be a coincidence." No matter how high his achievements are, Gu Wei always maintains a humble attitude.

Chen Teng and Huang Bo complimented Gu Wei a few words, and the crew started to eat, and everyone ate and chatted.

"Look, I have a movie coming up later this year that I'm going to direct and star in, and there's a role in it that I think is perfect for you.

So I came here today to ask if you have any interest?" After chatting for a while, Huang Bo finally told me the reason why he came to visit the set today.

"Brother Bo, you are going to be a director too. Congratulations."

“After so many years of acting, I have some ideas in my mind that I always feel unsatisfied if I don’t film them.” As the saying goes, “A good actor can become a good director.” Seeing so many first-line stars around him successfully cross over to other fields, such as Deng Chao, Wu Jing, Xu Zheng, and Gu Wei in front of him, Huang Bo naturally did not want to lag behind.

"I brought the script, take a look."

Gu Wei took a piece of paper to wipe his oily hands and took the script.

On the white cover were written four big words: "A Good Show".

Then he opened it directly and started reading it in front of everyone.

Everyone else ate normally and didn't disturb him.

Gu Wei read very quickly and finished reading the outline of the story in the script in a short while. He didn't want to read the details, nor did he need to.

"Brother Bo, your story is very interesting, but I really don't have the schedule. After "The Wandering Earth" is over, I have a TV series and a movie scheduled until the first half of next year." Gu Wei closed the script and rejected Huang Bo directly.

".It's okay, I've made some preparations. It's normal for you to have no schedule now that you're so popular.

It’s also my fault that I didn’t find you earlier.” Huang Bo was a little disappointed, but he still took the responsibility on himself with a smile.

“Although we cannot join, there is still a chance for cooperation.

Brother Bo, does your movie need investment? I can invest money for you."

Gu Wei had an impression of Huang Bo's directorial debut. Regardless of whether it was well-made or not, it was a huge hit at the box office. He remembered that it seemed to have exceeded 1 billion, which was definitely a huge profit.

"real?

Besides me, the film's investors also include [Guangguang Media]. It would be great if you were willing to invest." Huang Bo is a well-known actor, but he is still a novice director. He certainly won't pay for all the filming himself. After all, as an actor, he knows the risks of filmmaking better than anyone else.

Guangxian gave him a part of it, but it was still a little short of his expectations. It would be great if Gu Wei could make up for this part of the investment.

"I'll let the company know later. I happen to have a good relationship with Guangguang, so we can sit down and discuss the investment and production of this film."

(End of this chapter)