Huayu: Starting from Fahrenheit

Chapter 343: The Red Cliff – A Flood of Criticism

Wu Zhuo probably understood what Wang Leehom's manager meant.

Judging from the current situation, the collaboration between the two has been very effective.

It not only garnered extremely high attention, but also had a significant impact.

If the two continue their efforts and cooperate, it will greatly benefit both of their careers.

However, relatively speaking, it will definitely be of much greater help to Wang Leehom.

Wu Zhuo currently enjoys considerable international influence.

In Japan and South Korea, they are on par with top local celebrities, truly living up to their superstar status.

If Wang Leehom is to engage in long-term joint promotional marketing with Wu Zhuo, it can enhance his brand awareness in both markets.

Even in Europe and America, Wu Zhuo can provide Wang Leehom with considerable assistance.

"We probably won't have the chance to work together for a while, my schedule is really packed right now, I'm really sorry."

A flat refusal would seem too heartless.

So Wu Zhuo subtly declined.

The long-term marketing partnership with Wang Leehom has actually been beneficial to Wu Zhuo.

Just like the Super Band that Rolling Stones recently created, Luo Dayou, Li Zongsheng, and Wakin Chau are teaming up to hold a concert.

The collaboration of several big names has indeed attracted considerable attention in the music scene.

In contrast, if Wu Zhuo and Wang Leehom, two of the most popular singers in recent years, were to hold a concert and release an album together, the buzz would definitely be huge.

However, Wu Zhuo debuted as part of a group, and he really isn't interested in forming groups with others anymore.

If it weren't for Calvin Chen's good relationship with him and the company's repeated talks with him, he wouldn't have wanted to continue with the company's small team.

There's a saying that goes, "a powerful alliance," and that's very true.

However, in the entertainment industry, this statement takes a much longer seriously.

Bundled marketing is acceptable.

But if they were to release an album and hold a concert together, it would really not be worthwhile.

Take Fahrenheit for example.

Fahrenheit now wields considerable influence in the Chinese music scene and throughout Asia.

Each of them alone could carry a concert for 10,000 people.

Hmm, Calvin Chen might be a little short...

If four people hold a concert, the audience will be 10,000 people; if one person holds a concert, the audience will also be 10,000 people.

Smart people know how to choose.

This is why groups that become popular to a certain extent will eventually break up.

Of course, some groups are popular as a group, but the individual members are not popular, or even unknown when picked up alone.

In this case, they would have to unite together.

Wu Zhuo and Wang Leehom are both top-tier singers in China.

It's really not a worthwhile plan for two top-tier singers to release an album and hold a concert together.

Not to mention Wu Zhuo disagreeing, HIM International Music wouldn't agree either.

"What are you talking about? Everyone is so busy, who has time for this?"

Seeing Wu Zhuo's predicament, Wang Leehom frowned and glanced at his manager.

Upon seeing this, his manager gave an awkward smile, seemingly without having discussed it with Wang Leehom beforehand.

Wang Leehom's manager stopped speaking, but Wu Zhuo and Wang Leehom didn't fall into an awkward silence and continued chatting about other topics.

As we chatted, we inevitably started talking about movies.

Wang Leehom spoke with great enthusiasm:
“I learned a lot from director Ang Lee on the set of Lust, Caution. I plan to direct a movie myself when I have time.”

oh……

Wu Zhuo's expression was somewhat strange as he thought of some rumors from his previous life.

It's said that Director Wang's two films were filmed by proxy.

Wu Zhuo wasn't sure whether it was true or not.

However, as far as he knew, Wang Leehom hadn't really learned much about this.

Being a director is not something just anyone can do.

Anyway, Wu Zhuo definitely couldn't be a director. After hesitating for a moment, Wu Zhuo nodded subtly, "If you want to be a director, I think you should find a mentor to learn from."

Old Wang's biggest stain is undoubtedly his divorce case, and then these two movies.

Both movies did quite well at the box office. After all, Wang Jianlin is quite popular and he also invited popular actresses to join the cast, so the box office results were not bad, at least they didn't lose money.

But as for its reputation, that's a mixed bag.

The songs in it are all pretty good though...

……

In late July 2008, Wu Zhuo and Wang Leehom's collaborative album "Left Wu Right Wang" officially began pre-sales.

Thanks to the overwhelming online discussion and the phenomenal streaming numbers on major music platforms, this EP sold out instantly as soon as pre-orders opened.

To support the two, Wu Zhuo and Wang Leehom's fans each bought several, or even a dozen or twenty copies.

The phenomenon of obsessive fans, which would later become famous, first emerged at this moment.

With the enthusiastic support of their fans, the pre-orders for this EP exceeded 1.5 million copies before its official release.

These staggering figures have drawn widespread media attention, creating a stark contrast to the recent online backlash against the film "Red Cliff."

"Left Wu Right King" received widespread acclaim.

Wang Leehom's "Full Power" is considered another masterpiece by him and a milestone in his creative career.

Wu Zhuo's "Always Remember Us This Way" has garnered rave reviews from fans and music critics alike.

Wu Zhuo changed the place name in the song to a place name in Taipei.

As a result, the place quickly became a tourist hotspot, with a large number of mainland fans buying tickets to visit.

In contrast, "Red Cliff" became the target of everyone's crazy criticism and abuse.

"Mengmeng, stand up!" has become a popular internet meme.

John Woo was subjected to a barrage of criticism.

Incidentally, many of the actors who appeared in the show were also affected...

"China Film Group and John Woo called us, asking you to recommend 'Red Cliff' during your interview."

On July 23, "Left Wu Right Wang" will be officially released, and Wu Zhuo and Wang Leehom will jointly hold an autograph session in Beijing.

Before the autograph session started, Wu Zhuo was getting his hair and makeup done when Xiao An, who had just gone out to answer a phone call, came in.

As soon as she finished speaking, Wu Zhuo couldn't help but complain:
"They're already criticizing me like this online, and they still want me to recommend them?"

"It's no big deal to recommend them. Most of the celebrities in the industry have already helped with the recommendations. It's fine if they haven't contacted us yet."

They specifically gave us a heads-up; ignoring it would definitely offend someone.

Xiao An noticed that Wu Zhuo was reluctant, so she took the initiative to comfort him.

"I understand. I'll mention it during the public interview."

Although I really don't want to watch this movie, there's nothing I can do. In this industry, sometimes you just have to do it this way.

One aspect is interpersonal relationships, and another is that China Film Group personally extended an invitation.

It's no wonder that China Film Group personally got involved and asked people to help with the promotion.

With increasing criticism, the film's box office numbers began to stagnate.

And the investment in Chibi was huge.

If they don't want to lose money, they definitely have to find a way to get moviegoers to go to the theater.

As a result, investors and directors began to use their connections to ask celebrities to help with promotion.

Basically, they just want to trick anyone into going to the movie theater.

"They didn't send any reporters, did they?"

Wu Zhuo suddenly asked.

He recalled that many film companies would send reporters when they asked for help with publicity.

"No, not at all," Xiao An shook her head.

"That's good." Wu Zhuo breathed a slight sigh of relief upon hearing this.

If reporters were to actually come, it would be difficult for Wu Zhuo to handle the situation casually; they would definitely require him to praise the reporter according to the prepared script.

If that's the case, Wu Zhuo will be disgusted to death.

(End of this chapter)