Huayu: Hard fight against Zhang Weiping at the beginning

Chapter 525 Seat Troubles
The next day, mainstream media in the United States reported news about Pacific Rim.

Especially the comments of major directors on Zhang Chen.

James Cameron: "Zhang Chen was born to do this..."

Michael Bay: "It's a great director. Pacific Rim is refreshing to me..."

Quentin: "I'm a fan of Zhang..."

Peter Jackson: "The setting of prehistoric times is a surprise. I think it will become a classic like King Kong..."

Steven Spielberg: "The premiere of Pacific Rim is very instructive. The wearable device he pioneered can play a very positive role in promoting the film."

He is one of the producers of "Transformers" and knows very well the role of wearable devices in movies.

If "Transformers" had been able to use this kind of method to promote its products, the box office revenue might have been tens of millions more.

On the Fox set, Roland Emmerich looked at a series of reports in the newspaper and thought back to last night's premiere.

The Chinese movie "Pacific Rim" was well made and is in no way inferior to Hollywood productions in any aspect.

So will his "2012" be bad?

For the first time, Emmerich began to doubt himself.

If the other party's "2012" is a huge success, wouldn't I be a fool who added insult to injury?
He was struggling with whether it was necessary to continue with the doomsday movie he was preparing.

Inside Warner Bros., David Heyman is listening to a report from his subordinates: "The survey shows that after the premiere, the general audience's expectations for the movie are on the rise..."

"Critics' ratings were not very positive, but they also admitted that Pacific Rim was innovative in terms of monster movies..."

"Paramount seems to be paying special attention to our Pacific Rim. They are afraid that Pacific Rim will become a competitor to Transformers..."

"Okay everyone, take advantage of this trend and continue to increase publicity efforts to get off to a good start..."

Just when Pacific Rim was being hotly discussed by the North American media, Zhang Chen, Fan Xiaopang and other main creators flew back to Beijing.

Whether Pacific Rim can make its money back depends on the North American market.

But whether the record for large ships can be broken depends on the Chinese market.

What's more, the mainland market is directly responsible for Star Entertainment and China Film.

At this time in the country, propaganda has already been overwhelming.

There was only one blockbuster released during the Lunar New Year holiday, and there was no other movie competing with it. "Pacific Rim" achieved almost full media coverage.

"Assembly" has been released for a month and is still in theaters, maintaining a box office of several million every day.

But we have received a notice that starting from the 7th, each theater can only schedule one show at most, and the rest will be transferred to "Pacific Rim".

Some cinema chains, such as Golden Harvest, even directly announced that starting from the 7th, all movies would be removed from the shelves and only "Pacific Rim" would be shown.

This scene is even more terrifying than "The Promise" back then.

Han Sanping had gambled everything.

If Pacific Rim fails again, he will probably have a hard time.

On the streets, various buses, bus stops, and building advertisements are all covered with posters of "Pacific Rim", and the subway is similar.

A series of partners of Star Entertainment are making efforts.

Wanda has invested heavily this time, and a full-body model of the "Pacific Rim" mecha stands in the center of the Wanda Plaza in every city.

Some are Danger Wanderers, some are Cherno Alpha, and some are Storm Red.

It is not a 1:1 replica, but it is also 10 meters high.

This is much more domineering than the original "Transformers".

The Transformers models are only six meters high and are only placed on landmark buildings in important cities. The coverage rate is far from that of "Pacific Rim".

In the past two days, Wanda Plaza has become the most popular tourist photo spot. Many young people will take photos with the models, and some people will even specially collect all three photos before they are satisfied.

As a close partner of Star Entertainment, Light Media has not fallen behind either. All of its variety shows are making special features about "Pacific Rim". The frequency with which "Pacific Rim" is mentioned has increased significantly. Wang Changtian himself also said in an interview that he is looking forward to "Pacific Rim".

Real-life mechas have appeared in famous commercial streets in major cities across China, such as Xidan and Wangfujing in BJ, Nanjing Road in Shanghai, Kuanzhai Alley in Chengdu, and Huimin Street in Xi'an, to take part in promotional activities.

At the intersection, the majestic and imposing mechas interacted cordially with the tourists. Many people initially thought that taking photos was charged and were a little concerned.

Once they found out it was completely free, they flocked to it.

The children surrounded the mecha as if it was a festival, especially the boys, whose love for this thing was in their genes. Although it felt like plastic instead of steel, it still made them excited.

The actor who played the mecha was conscientious and posed in various ways to meet the requirements of the photo. After each photo was taken, the mecha would say: "On December 12, remember to come and support the movie~"

"Young man, I think you can become a mecha pilot. See you on December 12th at Storm Red~"

"Want to know how I beat up the monster? Just watch the movie~"

The promotion of "Pacific Rim" is so crazy that in Zhang Chen's hometown of Taiyuan, Shanxi, some people have already taken the lead in inviting real-life mechas to their weddings or their children's 12th birthday parties to liven up the atmosphere.

The attention it received was naturally extraordinary and it even made the local news.

Some people took a different approach and replaced wedding gifts with movie tickets for Pacific Rim.

Today, everyone is here to witness my child's happiest moment, eating and drinking. On the 7th, I will invite everyone to watch a movie together, it will be lively~
Zhang Chen and a group of main creators arrived in Beijing at 12:30, just in time for tonight's premiere.

The domestic premiere was deliberately delayed by one day to ensure that Zhang Chen and others could arrive on time.

At the airport, Dong Jianqiang picked up the people, and on the way back the convoy could be seen from time to time the giant poster of Pacific Rim.

This time, "Pacific Rim" is the largest film and television project that Star Entertainment has ever handled since its establishment, and the premiere ceremony is of the highest standard.

At that time, the Bird's Nest had not been completed yet, and the Workers' Stadium was the one that could accommodate the largest number of people.

But it is December now and the Workers' Stadium would freeze the audience to death, so the choice was the Great Hall of the People.

Many people believe that the Great Hall of the People is closed to the public.

Of course not to the public.

But the deputy hall can.

The premiere of Zhang Yimou's film "Hero" was held in the deputy hall that year.

When promoting to the outside world, of course, they would only mention the Great Hall of the People.

What we want is a gimmick!

Xingchen Entertainment did the same thing this time.

"What happened to the premiere?"

"Media, celebrities, theaters, offline interactions, everything is ready, we're just waiting for the premiere to begin. Oh, and the news from across the ocean has also been reported back to China, all praising Pacific Rim. This time we have everything ready..."

Dong Jianqiang handed over a few newspapers. Zhang Chen flipped through them briefly. They were all about yesterday's world premiere.

The Hollywood directors were generous in praising him. Zhang Chen threw the newspaper aside and said, "Don't worry too much about it. Warner Bros. must have spent a lot of money to get these guys to say good things about him..."

Warner Bros. is certainly not stupid. They are chasing Zhang Chen because they will collaborate with Zhang Chen on a movie called "2012".

If Pacific Rim fails, 2012 will most likely fail as well.

Sky blue is waiting for misty rain, and I am waiting for you

Smoke curls up from the kitchen, thousands of miles across the river
On the bottom of the bottle, the Han Li imitates the elegance of the previous dynasty

Just when I foreshadowed to meet you

A cell phone suddenly rang in the car. It seems that Dong Jianqiang is also a fan of Brother Lunzi.

Dong Jianqiang answered: "Hello, Mr. Li, yes... the premiere tonight...

Thank you, thank you, thank you Mr. Li for your support...

Okay, let’s meet and chat later, and I must have a few more drinks…”

As soon as the phone was hung up, it rang again: "Xiao Ming?
Want to book the whole place? Thank you~
By the way, there is a role that suits you well. Come for an audition when you are free. However, I have no say. This is a project directed by Fu Donglai. You know, he is Director Zhang’s teacher. OK, let’s meet and chat later…”

After hanging up the phone again, Dong Jianqiang smiled bitterly: “Look, they either want investment or roles.

He came up without saying anything and just said he wanted to book the entire theater to show his support, and there was no way to refuse.

Ever since the release of next year's film list, my phone has not stopped ringing. People have been calling me to find connections, either to invest or to get people in. I guess it's about the same with Chen Xi. When we get to the venue, Wang Jinghua, Chang Jihong and others will definitely come to you..."

This time, the film list only announced the names but not the cast, which gave many people room for imagination and made them feel that there was an opportunity.

If the actors have been decided, you can still snatch them up. But if the actors haven't been decided, then it's just fat meat hanging in the air, and it depends on who has the ability to get it.

Arrived at the venue and went through a very complicated security check.

This is the case with the Great Hall of the People. Not only do you need to apply in advance, but security checks are also stricter than at other venues.

When Zhang Chen entered the venue, he immediately attracted some people's attention.

Many people came up to say hello, and Zhang Chen responded to them one by one.

After a while, Chen Xi and Li Ming came over to say hello.

"Director Zhang Chen, I am Liming, thank you very much for your invitation~"

Leon Lai was specially invited by Zhang Chen to attend the premiere.

This was what Chen Xi told him in person.

Not only that, Chen Xi also told him that Zhang Chen had a very good impression of him, and he would be one of the two male protagonists in Golden Harvest's new project next year, "The Villain", the other male protagonist being Hong Jinbao.

He is also the male lead in the blockbuster "Storm", and his opposite is Hu Jun.

In the ensemble drama "The Siege of the City in October", he also plays an important role, and his opponent is also Hu Jun.

It can be said that the one who will benefit the most from Golden Harvest's film slate next year is not this year's most popular Donnie Yen, but him and Hu Jun.

Of course Liming came specially to express his gratitude.

After 2000, his works gradually decreased.

The other three of the Four Heavenly Kings have made their own progress, but he has stagnated. Some people have joked that he is the "filler king".

Zhang Chen smiled and waved his hands: "You're welcome, Li Tianwang. Come to think of it, I ate the sugar pills you donated when I was a kid~"

I'm not kidding. Zhang Chen was born in 82, and Leon Lai donated the sugar pills in 92. Zhang Chen really benefited from it.

The Four Heavenly Kings are old news, and many young readers don’t even know about them.

During the Four Heavenly Kings period, there was a saying in Hong Kong: You are popular, but can you be more popular than Leon Lai?

Even though Andy Lau is the most successful among the Four Heavenly Kings now, but in fact, when he first debuted, Leon Lai had more fans than the other three combined.

Leon Lai was really handsome when he was young, the kind who was invincible.

People like Daniel Wu and Nicholas Tse are ten streets ahead of them.

Don't think being handsome is a big deal. The film and television industry is all about looks. If you're not handsome, you won't even have a chance to show your acting skills. Leon Lai is really a high-quality idol. He's handsome, has a positive outlook, and most importantly, has no scandals.

Hu Jun also has a very good reputation, but at least there is the Mazu goddess. Leon Lai really has no black material.

Well, it can’t be said that it’s nothing. The woman he feels most sorry for in his life is probably Wang Meng.

I know everything!

Haha!

"By the way, you and Mr. Hu know each other, right?"

Zhang Chen thought that since the two had worked together on "Infernal Affairs", they should be very familiar with each other, but in fact they were not.

Hu Jun starred in "Infernal Affairs 2" and Leon Lai starred in "Infernal Affairs 3".

After Chen Xi explained, Zhang Chen realized that he had made a mistake.

"It doesn't matter if you don't know him. You'll know him after filming for a while. Mr. Hu is also a very good person, but he has a strong aura. You have to be careful not to be overshadowed by him..."

In the original version of "Storm", King Liu was overshadowed by Hu Jun and was completely unable to keep up.

In "The Besieged City", Hu Jun's role as Yan Xiaoguo is simply awesome, he turned a villain into the best in the whole show.

A soldier should die on the frontier, why should his body be wrapped in his horse's hide?

His aura is really strong, especially the part where he drinks life-and-death wine with his subordinates to serve the court, which makes you feel that this is what a soldier should be like.

Liming smiled. Although he didn't know Hu Jun, he had heard of him before.

How popular is Hu Jun in Hong Kong?

He was noticed when he starred in "Infernal Affairs 2" that year. Johnnie To liked his domineering aura very much and said frankly that if Hu Jun had come ten years earlier, he would not have needed to hire thugs for his gangster films.

Moreover, his acting skills are superb. He may be chatting with you in a friendly manner the last second, but as soon as you shout "action", he immediately switches to ruthless mode and his eyes are as sharp as a knife.

The Hong Kong media used the phrase "the wolf king of the north killing his way through Victoria Harbour" to describe Hu Jun's charm.

There are rumors that when Mr. Hu appears in Lan Kwai Fong, female office workers all over Hong Kong will leave work early and wait in wait just to catch a glimpse of this northern wolf king.

He is obviously an actor who performs literary plays, but he performs martial arts plays to perfection.

The Qiao Feng he played was praised as the Qiao Feng that most resembled Qiao Feng.

Although he is not handsome, he has a kind of masculine beauty that makes people feel that he is a manly man at first glance!
In Cantonese, it means very manly!

They chatted for a while and had a great time. Then Zhang Chen saw Han Sanping waving at him.

The Third Master came early today on purpose just to chat with Zhang Chen.

"How are you doing recently? I was worried that you wouldn't be able to make it back~"

"I was lucky. The plane was not delayed and the journey was smooth."

"Did you rest well?"

"It's OK. I overslept on the plane. After today's premiere, I'll have a good sleep..."

The old man and the young gathered together, and Han Sanping finally started talking about business when he saw that there was no one around.

"I have already reported the matter of the News Broadcast to the higher-ups, but there has been no response. Based on past experience, no news is good news, so this matter will most likely be successful~"

"The Third Master is mighty~"

The Third Master waved his hand and said, "Don't flatter me. I have done everything I should do, but I am not sure whether I can get the job."

Zhang Chen mentioned this to him before, if "Assembly" can be on the "News Broadcast", why can't "Pacific Rim"?
The Third Master knew that Zhang Chen had asked him to do so, and he patted his chest and promised that he would come to communicate about this matter.

But whether he can go or not, what he says has no final say.

Zhang Chen didn't force it and just treated it as an insurance policy.

These days, endorsement from official media is still very effective.

The premiere began with the usual red carpet walk, followed by a movie screening, and then Zhang Chen led the main creators on stage to answer questions from the media.

"This is the first science fiction blockbuster in China. I hope everyone likes it. If media friends have any questions, I will try my best to satisfy them..."

Zhang Chen bowed, and the question-and-answer session officially began.

"Director Zhang, many viewers are curious about why the mechas of other countries in the movie all have two arms, but only Storm Red has a three-arm design..."

"Well, regarding this, actually when I first designed Storm Red, I was influenced by traditional mythology, such as the three heads and six arms of Fa Tian Xiang Di and Nezha. However, three heads and six arms were difficult to realize, and not beautiful enough, so later I changed it to three arms..."

“For the first science fiction film in China, how did you feel when filming it?”

"It was difficult, but I kept my word. All the problems encountered during the filming have been recorded. I will publish them free of charge after I have sorted them out. If there are any directors who want to try their hand at science fiction films, I should be able to help you avoid some pitfalls..."

As soon as Zhang Chen said this, he was immediately greeted with applause.

After all, the development of domestic industrial films is short, and many types are not perfect.

Especially science fiction films, which require huge investments.

Zhang Chen's willingness to share his experiences with everyone free of charge is indeed an altruistic act, and even his enemies cannot find fault with it.

“Do you think Pacific Rim and Transformers are the same type of movies?”

There is a mystery hidden in some people's questions.

Zhang Chen heard it, but he still didn't intend to avoid it: "It's the same type of movie. I know what you want to ask, the box office!
I can answer this for sure. The domestic box office of Pacific Rim will definitely exceed that of Transformers. After all, my original purpose in making this movie was to break the monopoly of large ships..."

There was another burst of flash lights. They liked the way Zhang Chen was. He was not afraid and dared to say anything!

With him here, do we still need to worry about sales?

"Forget it. No matter how much we praise it, it's just bragging. Let's just ask the audience what they really think. Everyone can speak freely. If you like it, you like it. If you don't like it, you don't like it. After all, this is the first science fiction film in China. There are definitely some shortcomings. Your opinions can be regarded as a contribution to the development of domestic science fiction films..."

"Xiao Ming, tell me~"

The first person Zhang Chen ordered was Huang Xiaoming.

Huang Xiaoming took the microphone with a smile: "I love Pacific Rim so much. Both the mecha and the prehistoric are my favorites. I strongly urge that the sequel be shot immediately. I can play a small role in it, no matter how small it is..."

Zhang Chen rolled his eyes: "Are you giving me advice? You are looking for a job for yourself..."

The crowd burst into laughter.

Zhang Chen's eyes searched the crowd, he was stunned at first, and then his face suddenly turned ugly.

The second person he wanted to ask questions to was King Li. After all, he was the main partner for next year, so it would be good to give him some exposure in advance.

But after searching around, no one was found. Finally, Li Tianwang was found in the fourth row. However, an unexpected person was sitting in Li Tianwang’s original seat in the second row - Peng Xiaosheng.

What the hell is this?
Zhang Chen had a bad feeling.

The scene fell into silence, and everyone noticed the change in Zhang Chen's expression.

Everyone followed his gaze, but didn't see anything wrong.

"King Li, I remember you were sitting in the second row, why did you move to the fourth row?"

Li Ming was stunned. He didn't expect Zhang Chen's frown was because of him, but he still stood up and shrugged: "I don't know what happened. At the beginning, my name was indeed in the second row, but after the red carpet, it inexplicably ran to the fourth row..."

Now it was the others' turn to be surprised.

The host noticed that the atmosphere was not right and immediately tried to smooth things over: "Could it be that the staff made a mistake?"

Unexpectedly, Zhang Chen worked on the spot: "Jianqiang, was it arranged by us?"

Dong Jianqiang said innocently, "It's impossible. Li Tianwang is our VIP. His seat was arranged by you personally. It's in the middle of the second row. It's impossible for our people to change it without permission..."

"Someone changed the seat without permission. Who is it? Please return the seat to me..."

When Zhang Chen said this, everyone was surprised.

Damn, this doesn't give me any face at all...

Asking people to give up their seats at this time would be a slap in the face, wouldn't it?
But Zhang Chen just hit him.

No one stood up in that area, and Zhang Chen didn't say anything, just waited quietly.

Finally, someone couldn't bear it anymore and stood up tremblingly: "I... I don't know what's going on..."

Peng Xiaosheng couldn't even speak clearly, and in the end, he left in a hurry without finishing his words.

In such a socially suicidal situation, there was no way for him to sit back in his seat and he could only stagger away.

Zhang Chen's expression finally eased a little. The others were too afraid to say a word, and were glad that they did not use any tricks.

Otherwise, if you were to suffer a public demise like that guy did, you would definitely become a laughing stock in the circle.

"King Li, all right, you can go back to your seat."

Liming then sat back in the second row in full view of everyone, and the people around him gave him kind smiles.

The guests were secretly speculating: "What is the relationship between Liming and Zhang Chen? Why is Zhang Chen willing to do such a thing for him~"

Before they could guess, Zhang Chen said, "You may not know this yet, but King Li was my idol when I was young, a very positive idol artist. Golden Harvest will have four movies next year, except for SPL 2, King Li will be involved in the other three, and he will be the lead actor in two of them..."

hiss~
There was a gasp from the crowd.

King Li is so lucky to get the favor of Zhang Chen.

With Zhang Chen providing resources, Leon Lai's resurgence in popularity is inevitable. Many people are secretly thinking that they should change their attitude towards King Leon.

How should I greet him later? I hope he is not someone who holds a grudge!
……

The next day, everyone thought the media would rush to report on last night's seating incident.

It was indeed reported, but what was more explosive was the box office data.

"Pacific Rim" first day box office: 5231 million.

A new single-day box office record was set.

At the same time, there has been a lot of discussion about the 'seating controversy'.

The media did not name the person, but the description of the male artist named "Peng" almost confirmed his identity.

There was all sorts of ridicule at once.

But none of these are as shocking as the box office data.

50 million on the first day, over 100 million in two days, over 200 million in five days, and the box office continues to grow at an unstoppable momentum.

All media were discussing it hotly. Feng Xiaogang felt a little jealous when he heard the news. The 200 million yuan result that was out of reach for others was achieved by Zhang Chen in just five days.

It doesn’t matter if you don’t accept it!
This recent review is amazing!

(End of this chapter)