Chapter 354: The bigger the cake, the better it tastes
After the premiere of "The Richest Man in Xihong City" was reported, it caused quite a stir on the Internet, especially what Gu Wei said on the stage, which was noted down by the media and interpreted in various ways.
Today's media, especially online media, are particularly good at in-depth digging into news. To put it bluntly, they take what others have said out of context, or completely distort their meaning through cutting, splicing, and other means.
The purpose is also very simple, everything is to attract traffic. After all, in today's Internet, traffic is money.
The media paid little attention to Gu Wei's passionate speech at the premiere. They only noticed his final words: "Chen Teng is the man in my mind who has the potential to become the 'King of Comedy'."
In the minds of reporters, this sentence is the most valuable sentence in the entire premiere.
Not everyone can wear the title of "King of Comedy".
When this title is mentioned in the country, the first person that comes to mind is "Star Master" Zhou Xingchi.
"Master Xing" is known as the Charlie Chaplin of China.
In the 1990s, because the movies he starred in repeatedly broke box office records, he, Cheng Long, and Chow Yun-fat were collectively known as "Two Chows and One Cheng", meaning they were the box office guarantee for Hong Kong movies.
Not only did he achieve great success in commercial films, but he also created nonsensical comedies with a unique style, and even created the "Zhou Xingchi phenomenon", becoming the spokesperson for nonsensical culture.
He has shot many excellent films with unique styles, which have been widely praised by the audience.
Until now, Zhou Xingchi has stopped filming and retreated behind the scenes to work as a director. However, his personal fame still attracts countless movie fans to go to the cinema to watch the movies he directed.
If Gu Wei said this at any other time, everyone might just smile and not take it to heart, thinking that Gu Wei said this because he had high hopes for Chen Teng and was praising him.
But it just so happens that the movie "The Mermaid" directed by Zhou Xingchi and "The Richest Man in Xihong City" directed by Shen Teng will be released on the same day.
At this time, it is no wonder that the media is overthinking Gu Wei's evaluation of Chen Teng.
#Is it that Shen Teng has drifted away, or is it that Stephen Chow can no longer lift the knife? #
#The hottest star in the comedy world has been crowned the future king of comedy. How good is his ability? #
#The future king of comedy or a lucky clown? An in-depth analysis of Chen Teng's acting career! #
#【Xihong City's Richest Man】vs【Mermaid】, a head-to-head battle between the new and old comedy kings! #
##
Various media outlets on the Internet have reported on this topic in various ways, with each headline extremely eye-catching. The content is 50% factual reporting and 50% speculation and association, with various attempts to exploit the topic.
Most people still think that Chen Teng is far from worthy of this title now, and he is even more incomparable with Zhou Xingchi. The gap between the two is too huge. Gu Wei's statement is completely forcibly elevating him and is too exaggerated.
The news written were all in the same tone, basically praising "Zhou" and criticizing "Chen". Everyone chose to ignore that this sentence was Gu Wei's praise for Chen Teng, not Chen Teng's own boasting.
There was even a media outlet that asked Zhou Xingchi during the roadshow for "The Mermaid" what he thought about Chen Teng being the future king of comedy.
Stephen Chow was stunned at the time, and then answered tactfully.
"I've also seen Shen Teng's movies and think he's a comedian with great potential. As for whether he can become the king of comedy in the future, that's not for me to judge. It all depends on his future development."
With Stephen Chow's reply, the topic became more popular, and the so-called "battle between the new and old comedy kings" quickly became a hot search.
#【Xihong City's Richest Man】vs【Mermaid】, a head-to-head battle between the new and old comedy kings! #
It also became a hot topic on Weibo, sparking discussions among millions of netizens.
Although most netizens were not optimistic about Chen Teng, the purpose of promoting the movie was achieved. The popularity of "The Richest Man in Xihong City" on the Internet has completely surpassed "From Vegas to Macau 3" and "Journey to the West: The Monkey King 3", and is only second to "The Mermaid".
"Brother Teng, thank you for your hard work. I know I will give you a big red envelope at the celebration party after the movie is released!
Don’t worry about what netizens say. Don’t you have confidence in our movie?
The more harshly the audience criticizes you now, the more they will praise you after the movie is released.
You don't have to compare yourself with Zhou Xingchi. Why do you have to decide who is the winner? His movies are excellent, and ours are just as wonderful.
The current market can already accommodate multiple films that are selling well simultaneously. There is no point in comparing ourselves with him. We should just compare ourselves with ourselves."
At Xiangshan Film and Television City, during a break in filming, Gu Wei received a call from Chen Teng.
Chen Teng has indeed had a hard time in recent days. Whenever he goes online, he is flooded with news about him, and most of it is not good.
When he was on the roadshow, some reporters interviewed him and asked him why he dared to be compared with Stephen Chow. They almost pointed at his nose and scolded him for being so bold.
Whenever this happened, Chen Teng could only explain with a wry smile and not get angry.
In fact, the current popularity of this topic is also inseparable from the promotion of Gu Wei’s company. The use of internet trolls and the purchase of trending searches are all traditional skills in publicity.
"You've really tricked Shen Teng!"
Gu Wei hung up the phone. Yang Mi, who was eating melon seeds while listening to his call, said gloatingly.
Gu Wei reached out and grabbed a handful of melon seeds from Yang Mi's hand and started cracking them.
"How could I possibly be trying to trick him? Just wait and see, he'll have a chance to thank me later.
This is all for the promotion of the movie. Once the movie is released, those who criticize him harshly now may eventually become his fans."
"Tsk, who can predict the future? Anyway, Shen Teng is being scolded pretty badly now!"
Yang Mi questioned.
"Sister Mi, we've been friends for such a long time, don't you still trust my judgment of the future?
How about we make another bet?"
Gu Wei smiled maliciously.
"Ahem~ There's no need to bet. Chinese New Year is just over a week away, so we'll just have to wait and see the results~"
Thinking back to what happened during those two nights, Yang Mi still feels a little ashamed.
It didn't take much physical effort, but the scale was too big. If she didn't want to leave the impression of being untrustworthy on Gu Wei, she would definitely not agree to it.
Yang Mi refused to fall for it, and Gu Wei had no choice but he didn't care.
The bottom line is something that is broken bit by bit. If there is a first time, there will be a second time. There is still a long time to come. With his relationship with Yang Mi, there is no need to worry about not having opportunities.
"Miss Mi, are you going home for the New Year?"
Gu Wei asked casually.
"I'm not going back. It's only one day. What's the point of going back? I'll just stay on set and continue filming. That's what everyone is planning."
After she said that, she thought of something and smiled at Gu Wei.
"I almost forgot, you have to go back to Beijing to participate in the Spring Festival Gala on your 30th, right? Tsk tsk, big stars are different. This is your second year on the Spring Festival Gala, right?"
“I don’t dare to be a big star, I just have a little fame and I can sing better.
In fact, when I received the invitation from the Spring Festival Gala program team, I was also very conflicted. Performing on the Spring Festival Gala meant that I could not go home for the New Year, which was the case last year.
In the end, I couldn't resist the sincerity of the Spring Festival Gala directors, so I reluctantly accepted it."
When Yang Mi was sarcastic, Gu Wei was very proud and acted in a flattering manner.
Then he looked at Yang Mi again, smiling and teasing her.
"Actually, if you practice the [Offering of Love], maybe the directors of this year's Spring Festival Gala will invite you."
Yang Mi glared at him and threw the melon seed shells he had just cracked at him.
Gu Wei dodged with a smile.
Yang Chaoyue, the young assistant standing not far behind Gu Wei, watched his boss and Yang Mi laughing and playing, his eyes watching his nose, his nose watching his mouth, and his mouth watching his heart.
Is this the fourth or fifth female celebrity who has a close relationship with his boss?
She felt that if she had the ability, she could write a novel called "My Scumbag Boss Aquaman", which would definitely be a big hit!
On Monday, February 1, the crew of "Mojin: The Lost Legend" held a grand celebration banquet at the Wanda Hilton Hotel in Beijing.
Two weeks after the film was released, it finally achieved a box office of 1.679 billion yuan, ranking third in the Chinese-language film box office rankings.
With such excellent results, the producers naturally have to celebrate it well. The main creators have made great contributions, so red envelopes are also indispensable.
The producers of "Mojin: The Lost Tomb" are Wanda Media, Huayi Brothers, and Light Media, and they are also the distributors. Wanda's investment accounts for the largest proportion, while Huayi and Light Media have the same investment proportion.
"Mr. Wang, long time no see, congratulations!"
"Congratulations!"
In the banquet hall, Huayi Chairman Wang Zhongjun and Guangxian President Wang Changtian, who had just arrived, were greeting each other.
"Mr. Wang has reaped a huge reward this year. All the films Guangguang invested in and released have sold out. We at Huayi are so envious!"
Wang Zhongjun complimented him.
He is indeed very jealous of Light Media's performance this year. Since the beginning of the year, movies such as "The Return of the Great Sage", "The Left Ear", "Lost in Hong Kong", "Mojin: The Legend" and "Bad Guys" have been released and sold well. Light Media has either been the investor or the distributor, and it can be said that it has made a lot of money.
"Haha~ I was just lucky. Huayi is the big brother in the film and television industry. Our lighting is far behind them."
Wang Changtian was very happy about Wang Zhongjun's praise, but he still remained humble on the surface.
The two of them complimented each other a few more times, and Wang Zhongjun suddenly asked.
"I see that Mr. Wang has always maintained a good relationship with Gu Wei of Wei Ming Tian Xia. This year's hits like The Return of the Great Sage and The Left Ear were both produced by you two together.
To be honest with you, Mr. Wang, we at Huayi have always wanted to work with Gu Wei, but unfortunately we never had the chance."
Wang Changtian glanced at him without changing the smile on his face.
"I first met Gu Wei when he was filming the first part of Detective Chinatown. I later discovered that he is truly talented, especially in film and television. He has a very good eye, and the collaboration between us is becoming more and more enjoyable."
"I saw that during this year's Spring Festival, the promotion and marketing for Weiming Tianxia's film The Richest Man in Xihong City was done by Mr. Wang and your Guangguang.
Judging from the current popularity, it’s going to be another hit movie!”
Wang Zhongjun sighed.
“The film is indeed of good quality, but its final box office performance will depend on the audience’s response after its release.
And it’s not just us at Guangxian. The host of today’s banquet, Mr. Zhang from Wanda, is also one of the distributors.
Only when we work together can the pie become bigger."
Wang Changtian hesitated for a moment and then spoke again.
"Gu Wei is very optimistic about this film. He once said that [The Richest Man in Xihong City] could earn at least 1 billion at the box office.
Although I don't know where his confidence comes from, but in the two years I've worked with him, Gu Wei has never lost, so now I also think this movie will be a big hit~"
"Haha, this is normal. In our line of work, there have been successful people who are lucky. Gu Wei is very lucky now, so there is nothing wrong with being confident.
However, I heard that Mr. Jiang of Anle had a falling out with Gu Wei over the investment share of "Monster Hunt 2", and the lead actor for the second part will be replaced.
Tsk tsk, isn't this a lose-lose situation? Gu Wei has lost the leading actor of a hit movie, and the change of lead actor in Monster Hunt 2 will definitely have an impact on the box office."
Wang Changtian curled his lips in disdain after hearing this.
"Mr. Jiang is old after all. He thinks that since Monster Hunt has set a box office record, a sequel will be no problem, so he doesn't want to share the profits.
After all, the first film was so successful that he got carried away.
We all know that when the incident happened with "Monster Hunt", no one in the circle was optimistic about it. It was Gu Wei who helped him, and in the end the movie had such a good effect.
Mr. Wang, how much do you think Gu Wei contributed to the 2.67 billion box office of Monster Hunt?
Wang Zhongjun hesitated for a moment.
“I really can’t say.”
"Haha, this year's "Left Ear" is the movie that touched me the most. It was originally invested with 40 million yuan, and Su Youpeng is a new director. I am satisfied as long as I can break even.
As a result, after Gu Wei joined, the box office reached 800 million yuan, which really surprised me.
How could a low-budget youth film achieve such a result!
In [Left Ear], Gu Wei invested in the company with his salary. Although I gave him a portion of the profits later on, I didn't feel bad at all. After all, he really brought in the box office.
We can still tell which is more, 100% of 10 yuan or 50% of 100 yuan.
I heard that Gu Wei only joined Bona Films’ Operation Mekong last year after Yu Dong agreed to convert his salary into investment. The film will be released this year, so we can see how it turns out.”
As soon as Wang Changtian finished speaking, someone called him from a distance. He said hello to Wang Zhongjun and walked away, leaving Wang Zhongjun alone with a frown thinking about what he had said.
"Brother, what did Wang Changtian say to you?
Their company's performance this year is really good, aren't they just showing off to you?"
Mr. Wang saw his brother sitting alone and came over.
Wang Zhongjun did not answer him, but asked instead.
"What do you think about having Gu Wei star in the two films our company is investing in this year, 'Youth' and 'Ex-Files 3'?"
Mr. Wang frowned when he heard his brother's sudden question.
"Youth is a film directed by Xiaogang. He has some issues with Gu Wei. Although the ticket sales for Old Boys were surprisingly good this year, it still lost to Blade of the Assassin 2. I'm afraid he wouldn't agree to let Gu Wei play the male lead.
[Ex-Files 3] is fine. Tian Yusheng would probably be very happy if he knew that Gu Wei could play the male lead.
But we already approached him for the second film, but Gu Wei didn’t show up. I don’t think it would be possible to approach him again for the third film.”
"Let's try it. The first film in the Ex-Files series grossed 129 million yuan, and the second film 251 million yuan. Although both made money, they ultimately failed to become a blockbuster of 500 million yuan or even 1 billion yuan.
If possible, I can give Gu Wei a portion of my investment share. I really want to work with him and see if he is really as amazing as Wang Changtian said! "
Wang Zhongjun made up his mind.
"Brother, the [Ex-Boyfriend] series is bound to make money. If we hire Gu Weiyan, we have to let him invest. Isn't that just giving him money for free?"
Mr. Wang is a little confused.
"Based on the ticket sales of the first two films, how much do you think the third film can earn at the box office?"
Wang Zhongjun did not explain but asked instead.
"Well, there's no precedent for this type of movie being a huge hit. Based on previous box office results, it's still possible for the third installment to make 500 million."
Mr. Wang analyzed it carefully.
"Then if Gu Wei's joining can help the box office exceed 1 billion, will you give him a share?"
Wang Zhongjun asked again.
"That's unlikely. Can he have such a huge box office appeal?"
Mr. Wang couldn't believe it.
"I think it's worth a try. I'll discuss it with Director Tian Yusheng first, and then I'll send an invitation to Gu Wei!"
"Understood!"
Seeing that his brother had made up his mind, Mr. Wang said nothing more.
The Huayi Brothers have come this far because his brother is responsible for decision-making and he is responsible for execution, and this has been the case for more than 20 years.
(End of this chapter)
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