Chapter 741: More Than Just an Actor
"How does it feel?"
After the premiere ceremony ended and the audience left one after another, Wang Fang asked her best friend.
"Of course it's great! My brother's movies never disappoint!"
Zhang Yinghui said without hesitation.
Wang Fang nodded.
"I think so too, it's just that the story is a bit heartbreaking, but fortunately it has a happy ending in the end."
After saying that, she took her friend's arm and said with a smile: "Go back and tell Xiaoyue and the others, they will be so jealous of us."
"That can't be helped. They won the premiere tickets through a raffle. It's their fault they weren't that lucky!"
Zhang Yinghui also laughed.
"The movie will be released tomorrow. I guess they will come to the cinema together to watch it. Should we still come then?" Wang Fang asked.
Zhang Yinghui hesitated for two seconds and said, "Come on! To support our idol's movie, let's come and watch it again tomorrow with everyone!"
"Okay, I'll come too."
In the cinema, Gu Wei was saying goodbye to his friends and thanking everyone for their support.
"Brother Wei, let's go." Lu Han and Huang Zitao were both dressed in casual clothes, wearing baseball caps of different colors.
"Thank you both for coming today!"
"Brother Wei, why are you being so polite to us? It's strange to say this!" Huang Zitao spoke carelessly with a slight Qindao accent in his words.
Lu Han also laughed and said, "Xiao Tao is right. It was always Brother Wei who helped us before. We have limited abilities, so we can only come here to help at times like this."
Because of what happened in "Shanghai Fortress" two months ago, Lu Han is still grateful to Gu Wei.
Gu Wei also noticed his condition and patted Lu Han on the shoulder.
"Then I won't be polite, let's get together again when we have time.
When the time comes, Xiaolu will bring Xiaotong out. It’s been quite a while since I last saw her.”
After saying that, he looked at Huang Zitao: "As for Zitao, you can take whoever you want."
"What do you mean I can bring whoever I want? You talk as if I have many girlfriends. I'm single now!" Huang Zitao shouted dissatisfiedly.
Lu Han smiled as if he remembered something.
"Can you bring the female artist signed by your company?"
Gu Wei opened his eyes slightly, and immediately became gossipy as if he had heard some important secret.
"What female artist? Your girlfriend?"
"No, Brother Lu, please don't play tricks on me. Yangyang is just an employee of my company. I am her boss. The relationship between us is purely a work relationship!" Huang Zitao's voice became louder, and he explained a little anxiously.
Lu Han looked amused and said, "Why are you so anxious? I didn't say she was your girlfriend.
Besides, your company has more than one female artist, and I didn’t mention her name, so how can you tell who she is just by mentioning her name? "
"You and me." Huang Zitao was at a loss for words.
Gu Wei smiled and tried to smooth things over: "Okay, next time we have a meal together, Zitao can invite the artist under your company to come along so we can get to know each other. There's nothing to be embarrassed about."
Huang Zitao scratched his head.
"I'll ask her then. It shouldn't be a problem. She's also half a fan of yours, Brother Wei."
Most of the celebrity friends had left, and Wu Jing was the last to leave.
"Brother Jing, thank you for coming to support us today!"
"I haven't had anything to do recently, so I've been at home in Beijing. Since you invited me, I naturally had to come." Wu Jing was wearing a gray casual suit and had a little beard on his face, looking very casual.
"This movie is so well made, it has a bit of the vibe of 'Dying to Survive', and you and Zifeng acted so well too!
This subject will definitely win many awards.”
"Haha, I hope so!"
"How did you come up with the idea of taking on a film of this theme? I have the impression that you have always been making commercial films. This movie has a bit of an art film feel. Aren't you worried that the box office will not be ideal?" Wu Jing asked curiously.
Gu Wei smiled faintly and said calmly, "Whether it's a commercial or an art film, as long as I like the story and the script, I will take it.
As for the box office, I never consider that. As long as the film is well made, the audience will not disappoint me."
Wu Jing was amused by Gu Wei's words: "You, you, although what you said is a bit irritating, but if you think about it carefully, there is nothing wrong with it!"
He said what he thought of.
"Now that I think about it, it was a wise decision not to accept the Climber. You managed to avoid a disaster."
Gu Wei hesitated for a moment: "Actually, I later thought that if I had taken on The Climbers, the final effect of the movie might really be better than it is now.
I was not satisfied with their script from the beginning, and they will definitely make major changes when the time comes. Zhang Ziyi's love line will be deleted if necessary. The movie will focus on the entire mountaineering team, and emphasize the glory and sense of mission of waiting for Mount Everest.
If Li Rengang doesn't perform well, he can be replaced. If that doesn't work, Lin Chaoxian can be asked to take over.
In this way, with the gimmick of our collaboration and the adapted script, I feel that the box office of "The Climbers" will not be lower than that of "The Captain" and "My People, My Country".
Of course, another possibility is that the film studio cannot meet these requirements, and I will quit the filming mid-shoot."
After hearing what Gu Wei said, Wu Jing shook his head helplessly.
"Your request is too much."
"That's a bit of a big shot, isn't it?"
Wu Jingzhi nodded: "Yes, we are just actors after all. When we are not directing, we just need to do our job as an actor.
Wouldn't it be acting like a tyrant if I did what you said?
No, the average drama queen is far inferior to him. You are so dissatisfied that you even want to change the director."
Gu Wei shook his head.
"Brother Jing, as actors like us, we can no longer just think about acting.
Ordinary actors just need to play their roles well after taking on a role, but the audience's expectations of us are too high. People spend money to go to the cinema to see my name, Gu Wei, so even if I am just an actor, I have to be responsible for the audience's trust.
Just like today's movie "Better Days", I'm not bragging, but if I hadn't played the male lead, how could a movie of this theme have such a high reputation and have a pre-sale of nearly 200 million yuan?
You should know that Zeng Guoxiang’s last Golden Horse Award-winning film "Soul Mate" had a final box office of less than 200 million yuan.
So now when I accept a role, the most important requirement is that I must have a share of the investment. I want to have a say in the crew. Otherwise, I won’t accept the film even if it is highly regarded.”
Gu Wei’s words deeply touched Wu Jing.
In fact, he has always regarded himself as an actor. When filming, he would do whatever the director asked him to do, just to play his role well, and at most he would give some suggestions on the martial arts scenes.
Later he became a director himself because he was about to become out of fashion and no one wanted him to act in a movie, so he had to promote himself.
After the "Wolf Warrior" series became popular, he became the most box office-appealing male actor of the middle-aged generation in the domestic entertainment industry. After becoming famous, he had no shortage of opportunities, and Wu Jing returned to his original thinking when filming.
Now after hearing what Gu Wei said, he also realized that he was different from before. He was carrying the expectations of many audiences on his shoulders, just like "The Climbers". Many audiences went to the cinema just for his name, Wu Jing.
After thinking for a while with his head down, Wu Jing looked up at Gu Wei.
"So, what's circulating online about Zhou Dongyu is true. It's not the official claim that the actor voluntarily withdrew because the role was unsuitable, but rather that you kicked her out."
Gu Wei smiled and nodded: "Brother Jing, you know my personality when we were filming together. I never act superior even to extras.
Since Zhou Dongyu doesn't want to cut his hair, he might as well quit playing the role!
"I remember you were college classmates, right?"
"We didn't have much of a relationship. When I was in school, I was still a nobody, and she was already a big star. After she entered the entertainment industry, we didn't have much interaction."
Gu Wei and Wu Jing chatted for a while and agreed to have a drink together next time they had time. Then Wu Jing left the venue.
#Gu Wei's new film "Better Days" held its premiere in Beijing. The scene was very lively and the fans' enthusiasm for watching the movie was unprecedentedly high! #
#Wu Jing, Lu Han, Li Xian, Zhang Yi and others appeared at the premiere. Wu Jing praised Gu Wei for his courage to challenge new themes and new roles! #
#Golden Horse Award-winning director Tsang Kuo-hsiang's next masterpiece follows "Soul Mate," with Gu Wei and Zhang Zifeng delivering brilliant performances. #
After the premiere, news related to "Better Days" was reported by various media outlets.
Many official media outlets are also paying attention to this movie.
School bullying is a widespread phenomenon on campus, but there are very few movies on related themes, so this kind of "positive energy" movie that reflects social phenomena will more or less receive official attention and promotion.
Some film critics and audiences who attended the premiere wrote down their thoughts on the movie after returning home.
This movie is so thoughtful. When things are at their most desperate, a ray of light suddenly appears before your eyes. Xiaobei and Chen Nian are the light in each other's lives. Xiaobei doesn't want Chen Nian to be stuck in the mud, and strives to push her towards a bright future. This setting really touched me.
Gu Wei's acting is as good as ever, and all the emotions are perfectly captured. I was pleasantly surprised by how well Zhang Zifeng performed. The little girl has truly grown up. Thank you for such a great film, and I wish it a huge box office success!
I went to the premiere and cried my eyes out, but it was a really great movie.
The combination of Gu Wei and Zhang Zifeng reminds me of the first "Detective Chinatown" I watched many years ago. Sinuo has grown up.
The acting of both actors is so good, I recommend everyone to watch this movie! 】
It's fantastic, and I feel like it could be on the list of the year's best Chinese-language films. From the significance of the subject matter to the writing, the director's overall control, and the expressiveness of the two leads, it's all been superbly presented. Gu Wei's performance is fantastic; there's so much drama in his eyes!
[“Better Days” uncovers the often-overlooked issue of school bullying, and depicts a story of a bullied person and a street thug warming each other.
It's not about love, but about two lonely individuals and souls coming closer to each other.
Rather than calling it a youth film, it is more like an educational legal drama.
Zeng Guoxiang tells a story about bullying and anti-bullying from a unique perspective. Just like what Gu Wei said at the end of the film, as long as everyone contributes a little, we can protect young people and protect the world!
【.】
Whether it is film critics or ordinary audiences attending the premiere, the reviews of "Better Days" are overwhelmingly positive.
Wu Jing and other stars who attended the premiere also reposted the movie's promotional poster on Weibo and recommended it to their fans to watch it.
Many celebrities who were not present at the event but had a good relationship with Gu Wei also reposted the Weibo and volunteered to help promote it.
The discussion about this movie online is getting more and more heated, and the pre-sale box office is also growing by leaps and bounds.
"Brother, what do you think the box office of this movie starring Gu Wei will be?"
In Huayi's president's office, Wang Zhonglei looked at the news about "Better Days" on the Internet and asked.
Wang Zhongjun lowered his head and fiddled with the tea set on the table in front of him. His movements were skillful and smooth, and soon a pot of Gongfu tea was ready.
He picked up the cup in front of him, blew on it gently, and took a sip slowly.
"Based on the current pre-sale box office results and the popularity of the film, it should be no problem for the final box office to exceed 1 billion."
“Tsk tsk, I heard that the total investment for Better Days was over 100 million. If the box office can break 1 billion, wouldn’t it be a huge profit!
Gu Wei is truly worthy of his name; this kind of realistic film can also become a hit! "
After their collaboration on "Ex-Files 3", Wang Zhonglei no longer doubted Gu Wei's box office appeal.
If someone else had starred in that movie, the box office would have been capped at 500 million or 800 million, but in the end, the box office exceeded 2 billion.
Huayi made a huge profit and its stock price rose as a result.
“It’s not surprising. With so many films and so many years of accumulated reputation, Gu Wei’s popularity and box office appeal have become quite strong.
The most amazing thing about him is that he has never failed, which is very scary.
In the entertainment industry, even international superstars like Jacky Cheung and Li Lianjie, and big directors like Michael Chang and Chen Kaige, have experienced making bad movies that failed at the box office.
But Gu Wei didn't.
So whenever one of his movies is released, many passers-by will naturally think that it is a good movie and worth watching.
He also has the largest fan base in the entertainment industry.
Even if Gu Wei starred in "Pure Mind", I feel the box office would be able to exceed 500 million.
Of course, if he were to act in such a bad movie, his reputation would be ruined, and he probably wouldn't do it no matter how much money he was offered."
Wang Zhongjun has been in the entertainment industry for many years and was one of the first people in China to make commercial films. With his experience, he can see why Gu Wei is still undefeated at the box office.
"Then how can we break his golden body?"
Wang Zhongjun glanced at his brother.
“Many people in the industry are actually aware of the reason why Gu Wei has such strong box office appeal.
It's easy to make him fall. Just make him make more bad movies, break his myth of invincibility, and make the audience lose confidence in him little by little.
But he has the final say on what play he chooses to act in.
If it’s his opponent, we can only expect him to act in a bad movie.”
Wang Zhonglei nodded. It wasn’t that he had any bad thoughts. After all, Huayi and Gu Wei had no grudges against each other, and they had worked together very happily before.
"What did Tian Yusheng say? How's the script for Ex 4 going?"
Wang Zhongjun lowered his head to drink tea and asked casually.
“Don’t mention it, I just asked him a few days ago.
Director Tian was busy with the film "The Great Wish" and hadn't done anything with "The Ex."
“That Korean adaptation from Hengye Film and Television?
I remember there was quite a stir when it was released, and Gu Wei spoke out specifically on behalf of his artists, pointing the finger directly at the Taiwanese gang.
"Yes, the final box office was less than 200 million. What's the point of all the fuss? It would be better to start preparing for "Ex-Files 4" sooner. If Gu Wei continues to work with them, 2 billion will be easily achieved."
Wang Zhonglei was also very dissatisfied with Tian Yusheng.
Wang Zhongjun thought for a moment and said, "I'll ask Director Tian out for dinner later to see what he thinks. He's the core of the "Ex-Files" series, and he has the final say on what to shoot and how to make the film."
(End of this chapter)
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