Entertainment Rebirth Rhapsody

Chapter 471: Successfully Blocked "Avengers 2"

In mid-May, the Marvel Universe superheroes came together, and "Avengers: Age of Ultron" swept the entire European and American film market like a hurricane.

On the first day of its release in North America, the box office of "Avengers 2" exceeded million US dollars, and the box office in the first three days was million US dollars. Almost all movies were overshadowed by its brilliance.

"Operation Mekong" is no exception, but what surprised the media and the public was that the film's box office decline was not as large as the outside world had expected. The appeal of mountains and rivers has not been exhausted. Coupled with the good reputation of this Chinese-language film, it still earned 36 million US dollars in the third weekend in North America. The decline from the previous weekend was less than 30%, and the decline was even smaller than last week. The box office curve is quite healthy.

On the Rotten Tomatoes rating website, "Avengers 2" has a Rotten Tomatoes rating of only % and a media rating of only points, which is far lower than "Operation Mekong"'s % rating and media rating.

The situation is the same in European countries. The box office data of "Operation Mekong" is very strong. In the third weekend, European countries closed at nearly 2 million US dollars. The decline was even healthier than that in North America. In terms of word of mouth, it also far exceeded "Avengers " and was not helplessly beaten by Marvel's superheroes!

This phenomenon amazed the Western media, and when reporting on "Avengers: Age of Ultron", they couldn't help but mention "Operation Mekong".

In Asia, Marvel animation does not have the appeal of Europe and the United States. Although "Avengers 2" also topped the weekly box office rankings in Asian countries with its huge investment, excellent special effects, and the advantages of a sequel, the box office of "Operation Mekong" is still very stable, and the box office gap between the two films is even smaller.

If the two films were released at the same time, this Marvel superhero blockbuster with a $300 million investment might not necessarily be a match for "Operation Mekong" in Asian countries.

Not to mention China, the China Film Group just said one thing: Sorry, there is no space for "Avengers 2" to be released in May, let's talk about it in June!
A Chinese-language mainstream film surprisingly withstood the competition from Hollywood blockbusters around the world. Despite the threat of "Avengers 2" taking nearly million US dollars at the global box office in its first week, it still earned million US dollars at the global box office in its third week.

Amidst amazement, "Operation Mekong" successfully blocked the global sweep of Hollywood blockbusters.

After three weeks and seventeen days of release, "Operation Mekong" easily broke the billion global box office mark, reaching 1.03 billion U.S. dollars. Shanhe's myth of "Mr. Billion" is unbreakable!

This week, the two biggest news in the global film, television and entertainment industry are the global explosion of "Avengers 2" and Shanhe's works breaking one billion again. Almost all entertainment media put the two movies on the headlines.

"The Marvel Universe is unstoppable, "Avengers 2" is rampant around the world, Huaxiaqiu is still strong, and "Operation Mekong" has broken through billion again!"

"Two commercial blockbusters from China and the United States dominated the global film market this month. Avengers 2 came with great momentum, but it did not crush Huaxia Qiu as expected..."

"Disney Huaxiaqiu is in internal strife. The outcome of the global box office battle between "Avengers 2" and "Operation Mekong" is unknown, but Huaxiaqiu has won the reputation first!"

...

Disney has always reaped the benefits of Shanhe in the past, but this time it finally feels the pain of being blocked by Shanhe!
The top executives of Disney and Marvel are extremely upset about this situation. They are simply asking for trouble. Why did they choose this release date in the first place? Hua Xia Qiu is really a monster. A purely Chinese ideological film can still bring them considerable obstacles two weeks later. They should have listened to the advice of that old rogue Bruckheimer and moved the release date to a later date!

At this time, on the set of "Green Book", the old rogue was gloating with Shanhe, joking and laughing about the troubles of Robert Iger and Marvel President Kevin Feige.
"Haha... Look, Disney and Marvel have finally suffered the consequences of your actions this time. You didn't listen to the old people and are suffering now!"

"What kind of suffering?"

Shanhe responded to the old rogue while watching the footage in the camera.
"Avengers 2 has grossed million US dollars in three days. What else do you want? You old man are just taking advantage of your age!"

"How come you didn't suffer? Do you know what the first-week box office data of Avengers 1 was?"

"I don't know, it's similar to Avengers 2, right?"

“Much worse!”

Old God Bruckheimer replied calmly,

"Avengers 1 grossed $ million on its first day in North America, $ million in its first week, and over $ million worldwide. Look at the difference!"

"So many?"

Shanhe glanced at the old rogue who was gloating over his misfortune.
"Don't say it's all because of me. Operation Mekong isn't that great."

"It's not entirely your fault. There's something wrong with the script of Avengers 2."

Bruckheimer nodded and smiled again.

"But your blocking cannot be ignored. Look, compared with the reputation of Operation Mekong, Marvel is still going to suffer!"

"is it?"

Shanhe turned around and looked at Bruckheimer. He had always admired the old rogue's vision. Sometimes, he, a reborn person, was not as sharp as him.

"What do you think the final box office of Avengers 2 will be? Will it exceed the billion U.S. dollars of the first film?"

"It definitely won't reach 1.5 billion US dollars!"

Bruckheimer raised his finger and shook it.

"Don't even mention 2 billion, it's hard to say whether it will reach billion. I told them a long time ago that Avengers chose the wrong release date. Using a film of this quality to replace the release date of Hua Xia Qiu is simply asking for trouble. Movie fans are not blind and will make comparisons. Just wait and see. Disney and Marvel will get more and more troubled. Who knows, they will have to beg you by then!"

"Come to me?"

Shanhe looked at the old rogue and smiled.

"What's the point of looking for me? I'm not going to take over the Marvel Universe."

"You are the best screenwriter in the world. They have suffered this loss, so they must make some changes. If they want to continue the Avengers series, they must ensure the quality of the script. Your screenwriting skills are unmatched!"

"Hehe... I don't have time to worry about them!"

Bruckheimer came up to him and whispered slyly:
"Qiu, this is a great opportunity to blackmail someone!"

"Fuck!"

Shanhe was shocked by the old rogue's shamelessness.

"You are such a bad old man, you betray your own people!"

"Look at what you said, this is making money based on your own ability, and it's not shabby!"

“That’s true, ha!”

"Of course, we are not employees of Disney or Marvel, so we have no obligation to do voluntary labor!"

"I'm not sure about this!" "Look at you, you've been in the Vanity Fair for so many years, but you're still the same as before. I'll help you with it when the time comes!"

"Haha...Okay, we'll talk about it later!"

...

Bruckheimer's prediction was accurate. Avengers 2 did run into trouble in its subsequent global release. The film's reputation became worse and worse, especially compared to Operation Mekong. More and more fans complained about it online.
"What the hell is "Avengers 2"? The Hulk can actually date Black Widow. It's really shocking!"

"It's really not that good. The characters don't have any personality at all. In the comics, Leo Tron is a pretty awesome boss, but in the movie he's just a moron. To be honest, the quality of Avengers 2 is much worse than Operation Mekong!"

"Marvel has comics as its foundation, but it can still come up with such a rubbish script. Take a look at Hua Xia Qiu's "Operation Mekong". If nothing else, the plot is so ups and downs that it makes people's adrenaline surge!"

"Isn't Hua Xia Qiu the largest private shareholder of Disney? Marvel should ask Hua Xia Qiu to help write the script. Stop ruining the comics!"

...

The sudden drop in reputation was immediately reflected in the box office data. The North American box office of "Avengers 2" fell by nearly % in the second weekend, and the box office for three days in the second weekend was million US dollars. However, the fourth week of "Operation Mekong" fell by less than %, and the North American box office took in another million US dollars in three days of the weekend.

The situations in various film markets around the world are mostly similar. Once the explosive period of "Avengers 2" was over, the box office curve plummeted. In the seven days of the second week, the global box office was less than million US dollars. However, the box office trend of "Operation Mekong" remained stable, and its overseas box office still exceeded million in the fourth week.

Combined with the nearly 400 million yuan box office data in China, "Operation Mekong" once again reported 160 million US dollars in the fourth week of global box office, and the global total box office has accumulated to 1.19 billion US dollars!

Now, the global entertainment media has reached a breaking point. A blockbuster movie that grossed 300 million yuan and came with its own Marvel brand, Avengers gimmick, and market expansion will most likely see a decline in box office performance. It may even not be as good as Hua Xia Qiu's Chinese mainstream movies. This is totally unacceptable!

A Hollywood blockbuster that was previously generally believed to crush everything is now unable to beat even Chinese-language films. How embarrassed is the high-handed Hollywood!

Major media outlets around the world have reported and analyzed the film on their front pages. The situation in North America is relatively good, with most media outlets focusing on the issue at hand, comparing and analyzing the flaws of "Avengers 2" and the reasons why Shanhe's works have remained vibrant for a long time.

"This is a writing failure, Disney and Marvel need to make changes!"

"Hua Xia Qiu's works always have a strong storyline and can always capture the audience's emotions. Marvel lacks this kind of thing!"

"At its core, Hollywood movies are stuck in a quagmire of lack of talent. Movies are not industrial products. Without creativity, they lose their appeal!"

...

In contrast, European media reports and comments were full of gloating.
"Hollywood's nemesis is here. Hua Xia Qiu used the Hua Xia police to defeat a group of superheroes from Country M!"

"Hua Xia Qiu exposes the essence of Hollywood movies. Without soul, no matter how good-looking they are, they are just a shell!"

“It is certain that the future of movies is not in Hollywood. Europe only lacks a great magician who can change everything!”

...

In China, the domestic media was even more excited. Just as the domestic box office of Operation Mekong exceeded 4 billion RMB, the entertainment media collectively went wild.

"Operation Mekong has grossed over 4 billion, with a global box office of over 1.2 billion US dollars. The Hollywood movie model is not invincible, and the future of Chinese-language movies is bright!"

"With the vast Chinese market as a backing, Shanhe is almost invincible. He can still defeat Hollywood blockbusters!"

"This is a milestone victory for Chinese-language films. Not only has it broken through the 4 billion RMB threshold, but it also means that Chinese-language films have the potential to compete with Hollywood!"

"Chinese film directors, learn from Shanhe. He is blazing a trail for Chinese-language films, but more people need to follow his footsteps..."

...

Bruckheimer is worthy of being an old gangster who has been in Hollywood for decades. He has calculated everything accurately. The box office of "Avengers 2" continued to decline in the third week, with less than US dollars in North America over the three-day weekend. The global box office trend also fell sharply.

Fortunately, the film was released in China. Thanks to Marvel's long-standing influence and the film's big special effects, the domestic box office exceeded 500 million yuan in the first three days.

"Avengers 2" awkwardly and stumbled across the billion-dollar box office threshold, while "Operation Mekong"'s global box office had exceeded billion.

At this point, it has become a foregone conclusion that "Avengers 2" will lose to "Operation Mekong" at the global box office. Disney and Marvel executives have held several meetings to discuss the follow-up plans for the Marvel Universe.

A few days later, Disney President Robert Iger, Marvel President Kevin Feige and "Avengers" series director Joss Whedon arrived at the filming site of "Green Book" together. They really came to Shanhe to learn from him. The Marvel Universe is too important to Disney and cannot tolerate any more risks and mistakes.

At this time, the filming of "Green Book" was already more than halfway completed, and the shooting scene was filming a quarrel between Tony and Don Shirley, which was also an emotional outburst in the film, requiring the two actors to perform superb acting skills.

To be honest, for Shanhe, the filming of this movie was very easy, but he was not very satisfied with it. The reason was very simple. He was not a native of M country, nor did he grow up in that era. Without enough experience, he could not create scenes and dialogues of his own.

Shanhe used a very clever method. In addition to restoring the scenes in his memory, he gave the creativity to two actors. Heath Ledger and Will Smith knew the United States better than he did, and were closer to the characters. So far, Shanhe is very satisfied with their performance, especially Will Smith. As a black upper-class person who came from the bottom, he empathized with the character Don Shirley in the play. For example, in the current scene, his explosive power amazed the entire crew.

"Yes, I live in a castle, Tony, alone! Rich white people pay me to play the piano for them, because it makes them feel cultured and tasteful, but when I step off the stage, in their eyes, I immediately become a discriminated black person, because this is their real culture and tradition!"

Will Smith was in tears during the artificial rain.

"I suffer alone because I am not accepted by my own race, because I am not the same as them, and if I am not black enough, and I am not white enough, and I am not man enough, then tell me, who am I?"

This passage happened during an argument between Tony and Don Shirley, and Don Shirley shouted it out in the rain. Before that, Tony said:
"I know who I am. I've lived in the Bronx all my life with my parents and my brother, and now my kids. I'm the bastard who works so hard every day to make money to put food on the table for my family. And you, you travel all over the world to play for the big shots. I live on the street and you sit on the throne, so my world is much darker than yours!"

Both of their performances were wonderful, but Shanhe still preferred Will Smith's catharsis. His emotions and expressions were on point, very sincere and moving.

"Ka, Will, you did a great job, the little golden man is waving at you right in front!"

However, the talkative Will Smith did not respond to Shanhe's praise at this time. He was still in the character's emotions and crying loudly.

Shanhe walked up and patted Willsmith on the shoulder without saying anything else. When he turned around, he saw Bruckheimer chatting with Robert Iger and Kevin Feige not far away.
However, Joss Whedon, the director of the Avengers series, stepped forward and gave a thumbs up to Shanhe and Will Smith.
"Great scene, Will's performance is astounding, Yau, your films are always so emotionally charged!"

"Hello, Joss, when did you get here?"

"We've been here for a while, we don't want to disturb your work!"

(End of this chapter)