I was just thinking about taking the arts exam and you said I've been playing supporting roles

Chapter 381 The final box office of "Jinling"!

March 23, 2012, a weekend.

Post-production on "Killer Dragon" is proceeding smoothly, mainly focusing on editing and rendering; there aren't many special effects in the first film.

The box office performance of "The Flowers of War" once again surprised many people.

Because it won the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival, its box office revenue exceeded expectations by 1.5 million yuan, officially surpassing the 17.31 billion yuan record of "So Young" yesterday, reaching 17.33 billion yuan and becoming the new Chinese film box office champion.

Currently, the daily box office of "Jinling" is still fluctuating around one million, and it is expected to increase by two to three million over the weekend.

Barring any unforeseen circumstances, this film will ultimately not reach 18 billion yuan at the box office, but it will likely surpass 17.5 billion yuan!
The film's release key has already been extended for a month, and China Film Group wants to extend it again until the end of May. Chen Jin feels that the end of April should be about right.

He didn't want to spend another 5000 million to reach a round number; although 18 billion+ would look much better than 17.5 billion, it wouldn't make much sense. If it were 20 billion, Chen Jin might have gone for it.

In Chen Jin's view, 17.5 and 18 are just round numbers, and the fact that it surpasses "So Young" is something that many people never thought possible.

Winning the title of the highest-grossing film in history was already enough to satisfy Chen Jin.

After all, he hadn't even thought about this before "Jinling" was released.

Currently, "Jinling" and "So Young" are ranked first and second respectively on the Dida app's China Film Box Office chart, which is definitely far ahead.

"Jinling" has grossed 17.33 billion yuan [temporarily]. Combined with "So Young" at 17.31 billion yuan, "Avatar" ranks third with 13.78 billion yuan, which is about 4 million yuan more.

This is not the scariest thing.

The most terrifying thing is that "Transformers 3" ranked fourth with 12.88 billion, and "Mission: Impossible 4" ranked fifth with 10.12 billion... The gap is getting bigger and bigger.

These are also the only five films in China to have broken the 10 billion yuan mark, with the sixth being "The Founding of a Republic" at 9.18 million yuan!
The first one's box office revenue is more than double that of the seventh and eighth place.

Just like how the future "Ne Zha 2" will have more money than the second-best... phenomenal films all like to play a game of chance.

If we consider the box office figures for Chen Jin as the lead actress and the main actress, they are 46.63 billion and 63.94 billion respectively!
One actor has grossed nearly 50 billion yuan, while the second male lead in "Jinling" is considered the main actor, and his box office earnings are over 64 billion yuan!

It's important to know that currently, apart from Chen Jin, there are very few male actors in China who have earned 10 billion yuan as the lead actor, let alone 50 billion yuan; this is absolutely an outrageous figure.

From a box office perspective alone, Chen Jin's performance can be considered a devastating blow to the Chinese entertainment industry.

In its next update, Dida app will add rankings of domestic male and female leads, directors, and box office figures for lead actors.

This wasn't Chen Jin's request, but rather Song Zhongjie's idea.

This will make users more engaged, encouraging them to log in from time to time to check, and perhaps even buy a ticket on the spur of the moment, making the actual box office performance clearer.

It can only be said that the ultimate goal of ticketing websites is to generate various data, which is deeply intertwined with the entertainment industry.

The release dates for "Nanjing" in Europe and America have been basically finalized. MK2 will be released next month, while Harvey will release "Nanjing" in mid-May, which coincides with the summer movie season in North America, one of the hottest movie seasons in North America.

It's clear that this guy is still very confident in "Jinling", mainly because the reaction at the screening was quite good.

Many theater managers are eager to release the film, and they'll see how many theaters it can be shown in on the first day. If it gets more than 1000 theaters, that would be a success.

Most of it was Harvey's money.

This guy was still haggling over the contract, but in the end he reluctantly transferred $3250 million to CETC's overseas account. So no matter how much "Jinling" sells at the box office, it has nothing to do with CETC anymore.

If Harvey wants to make more money, he has to negotiate with theater chains one by one.

As for the Asian distribution rights, there are many film companies that have contacted him and CETC. For example, Jiang Zhiqiang wants to acquire the Southeast Asian distribution rights for "Jinling" and even confidently guarantees that it will be released in Japan.

But Chen Jin felt it was unreliable, and he wanted to wait until the box office results in Europe and America came out before making a decision.

Just like the future "Oppenheimer", it became a huge hit all over the world, causing Japanese audiences to get restless and leading to various public opinion attacks.

Finally, Japan was the last country in the world to release "Oppenheimer," delayed by more than half a year, but it still grossed nearly $2000 million at the box office, becoming the highest-grossing Hollywood film in Japan in 2024.

Oppenheimer has sold nearly 10 billion copies worldwide.

Therefore, Chen Jin was not in a hurry.

While showing a film at night sometimes carries the risk of piracy, it has both advantages and disadvantages. The whole world is talking about the film, which is also a form of indirect publicity.

……

Carrying the gift she bought for Belle's daughter, Amoreline, Chen Jin flew to Los Angeles early in the morning and rang the Belle family's doorbell.

Bell bought a house in Beverly Hills, a wealthy neighborhood in Hollywood.

This was Chen Jin's first time visiting.

But if you want to make it in Hollywood, this is an area you can't avoid, because the vast majority of Hollywood stars live here; and right next door is the world-renowned dream factory, Hollywood!
Hollywood Boulevard, the six major film studios, Dolby Theatre, Universal Studios, and many other landmarks are all located here.

"Hi, Chan~~~"

Bell opened the door and was somewhat surprised to see Chen Jin, who had come alone.

"Really just one person?"

Bell was laughing, and Chen Jin shrugged: "I wanted to bring a female companion, but she already has plans!"

"Haha, even someone as young and handsome as you gets stood up?"

In fact, Chen Jin originally wanted to bring Wan Qian along, but she was afraid that Bell might have some reservations, so Chen Jin ultimately decided to come alone.

"Amoline, look who's here?"

Bell called upstairs, and a moment later a cute little girl, about 7 or 8 years old, skipped and hopped downstairs.

She stared at Chen Jin curiously, and finally a bright smile appeared on her face: "Hello, uncle from China!"

I think you should call him "brother"!

Chen Jin made a joke, then handed the Barbie doll gift to Aimolin. Aimolin thanked her, but then suddenly looked at Bell and asked, "Dad, when are you going to China again?"

When Chen Jin accompanied Bell to Nanjing, Aimo Lin called him, which is how they met.

Chen Jin told Aimolin that he could be her tour guide next time he came to China, and Aimolin, who was only 6 years old at the time, remembered it.

"This one……"

Bell looked distressed, finding it difficult to answer the question.

Because he was so busy and focused on filming, he neglected his daughter's upbringing.

"There will be an opportunity. I came here this time to persuade your father to go to China!"

As Chen Jin spoke from the side, Bell was taken aback, while Amorline giggled and asked, "Really?"

"real……"

Chen Jin smiled at Bell, who shrugged. This guy came prepared this time!
It seems it's still because of that script.

However, the reason Bale called Chen Jin over was actually for the same reason, so the purpose was the same.

"Chris, aren't you going to introduce him to me?"

Bale's wife, Siby Blazik, came out of the kitchen, and Bale quickly introduced the two of them.

"Chan, Chen Jin, I told you!"

“Siby Brazik, my wife!”

"Hello!" Chen Jin waved politely and gentlemanly to Qianbi, who responded enthusiastically: "Chan, Chris has mentioned to me many times that he was very grateful to have you as his translator when filming in China. He said it was a wonderful experience!"

"Haha, I'm honored too. Back then, I was just an unknown actor..."

"But it's different now!"

"No, no, no, I'm still nobody in North America..."

Chen Jin told a self-deprecating joke, and everyone in the room burst into laughter.

"In China, Chan is a household name!"

Bell was trying to flatter Chen Jin, but Chen Jin shook his head and followed Bell into his living room.

Sisby went back to the kitchen to prepare dinner with the nanny; while Amoryn was busy taking apart the Barbie dolls Chen Jin had given her.

A 7-year-old girl is at the perfect age to play.

Chen Jin and Belle sat casually on the sofa, with two cups of coffee and a lot of desserts in front of them.

"Chan, I've read your script!"

After chatting for a while, Bell got straight to the point about "A Trip to Hong Kong"!
Chen Jin smiled and asked, "Have you finished reading?"

"It's okay. Actually, I know you called me here because you probably wanted to talk to me about this!"

"really!"

Bell pursed his lips and shrugged apologetically.

Chen Jin didn't think anything of it. In fact, before he came, he had already mentally rehearsed the upcoming scene.

However, we should still try to fight for it.

"Actually, I still hope that you can finish reading the script!"

"This story may not be the Hollywood-style heroism you understand, nor is it a three-act plot. I used the Hollywood-style script to make things easier for the actors and director!"

"Let me put it this way, this zombie movie... might not be what you're expecting!"

Chen Jin moved closer to Bell.

If it were anyone else, like Leonardo DiCaprio or Brad Pitt, Chen Jin wouldn't bother talking to them at all, because they might be arrogant and dismissive of her. But because Bale knew Chen Jin and she was familiar with his character, she still wanted to give it a try.

An actor who turns down an invitation from Spielberg for a script is truly exceptional.

Bale can be said to have made his Hollywood debut because of Spielberg's "Empire of the Sun," when he was only 13 years old.

Spielberg was his mentor.

Just last year, Spielberg was going to make a film about Lincoln's autobiography, which was destined to be a sensation across the United States. At the time, he wanted Bale to play a supporting role, but... Bale declined.

It's not that he didn't want to act, but that he didn't have the time.

Spielberg's art films are something many people would risk their lives for, because they can win an Oscar.

Bell was no exception.

However, he really couldn't cancel his schedule this time.

It might be because the second male lead isn't the first male lead, but the drama he took on is "Escape from the Crucible," which he's about to join the cast of!
The director of this film, Scott Cooper, is not well-known in North America and has not directed many films.

The script for "Out of the Furnace" was originally intended to be made by Ridley Scott, the director of "American Gangster" and "The Martian," and he had even found the male lead, Leonardo DiCaprio.

But in the end, Scott gave up, and the job fell to Scott Cooper, a young newcomer eager to prove himself.

Cooper is a huge fan of Bale, and he specially revised the script for Bale in order to get Bale to star in the film; Cooper had never even met Bale and wasn't sure if Bale would agree to the role.

Yes, that's how bizarre it is; he modified the script based on Bell's work.

After making the revisions, they used connections and asked around to finally get the film to Bale, but Bale was so busy last year that he had no time to act.

Cooper said it was okay, he could wait.

And so, Bale couldn't stop thinking about the script after reading it, until this year when he finally made time for it.

So, it was because of this director that he turned down Spielberg; because he had already stood Cooper up for almost a year, he waited from "The Dark Knight" all the way to "The Golden City"... If he didn't join the crew soon, Bale himself would feel embarrassed.

In reality, most Hollywood stars wouldn't be available for a script like this, and the director didn't say a word about it.

And then there's Spielberg's pie.

Any actor knows how to choose... but Bale just gave up like that.

This guy went through a lot of hardship for the role in "Out of the Crucible," and it's definitely not a role that just anyone can play.

However, the outcome may not have been as Bale had imagined. The film did not win any awards, and director Cooper remained unknown. The movie, on the other hand, earned nearly 1 million dollars thanks to Bale.

Bale's appeal in North America is indeed among the top, and Batman is very popular.

In Chen Jin's opinion, Bale absolutely deserves an Oscar for Best Actor, and winning three awards is not impossible... It's just that Bale, the investors, and the director all lack public relations skills and connections, which is why the film lost out on awards.

But in any case, this incident shows that Bale doesn't particularly value salary or big paychecks.

In his heart, the script always came first.

If he were really in it for the money, he wouldn't have acted in "Jinling". The 500 million yuan salary was truly a friendly price.

Therefore, the only thing that can impress Bale now is the script for "Train to Busan".

Moreover, Chen Jin believed that Bale would accept the offer after reading it.

This story... as a father, Bell must be very relatable.

"Chris, I don't want to give away any spoilers!"

"But the story of 'A Trip to Hong Kong' is not actually about zombies at its core!"

"The zombie is just a shell; the real essence is humanity..."

"..."

Chen Jin tried her best to persuade Bell, who listened attentively. Just as Chen Jin had expected, Bell had an extraordinary devotion to the script.

It's very likely that this is related to his childhood experiences.

At the age of six, he became a strict vegetarian after reading the novel Charlotte's Web. The novel gave him a new understanding of small animals and meat, and also instilled in him a sense of reverence for the creator.

"Okay, let me take a good look!"

Bale was eventually persuaded by Chen Jin, and he decided to read the script of "A Trip to Hong Kong" before making any decisions.

Just as Chen Jin said, if he still refused after reading it, he had nothing to say; judging from Chen Jin's confident expression, this script might indeed be more than that simple.

"You can go to the manor and take a look; those are some of the plants, vegetables, and other things I've grown!"

Bell took his tablet and pointed to a yard outside: "I'm quite engrossed in reading the script, so I might not be able to keep an eye on you!"

(End of this chapter)