Entertainment: I just want to be the boss behind the scenes

Chapter 316 Improvisation

Before the premiere of Wolf Warrior 2, Wu Jing actually held a film screening with the heads of the producer and distributor.

But the version I watched at that time was not the final release version.

Therefore, it was not until today that Meng Bai saw the complete film of "Wolf Warrior 2".

On the screen, the familiar dragon logo flashed, followed by the logo animations of various production companies.

Meng Bai stared at the big screen and saw a shining semicircular arc passing through the middle, followed by a rising sun appearing in the upper left corner.

Under the bright pattern, the four vividly shaped characters "Arc Light Film and Television" slowly emerged.

Although it was not the first time he had watched it - the previous one was "Detective Chinatown" - Meng Bai still felt an inexplicable feeling when he saw the Arc Light logo appear on the big screen.

We have to admit that movies are the highest form of contemporary film and television art.

Meng Bai took a deep breath. Arclight was about to start filming his first film. Perhaps by then, he would feel even more deeply.

Shaking his head to clear his mind, he looked at the empty seats around him and couldn't help but smile.

None of the girls I met today came, so I finally got to watch a movie properly.

At the beginning of the story, a group of KB members were about to hijack a cargo ship, and several AK47s were firing at the ship. The captain ran out of the cabin in a panic, shouting and asking when the rescue would arrive.

At this moment, Wu Jing, wearing a white shirt, ran across the deck, took a deep breath, and then jumped into the sea.

What follows is a six-minute underwater action scene shot in one take.

Just like the opening scene of "Day and Night", the purpose of this kind of showy shot is to grab the audience's interest at the first moment.

As far as Meng Bai knows, the crew spent more than half a month shooting for this six-minute scene. Wu Jing had to soak in the water for more than ten hours every day, and was dragged back by lifeguards several times.

The overall plot of "Wolf Warrior 2" is a conventional Hollywood action movie routine.

The retired protagonist lived a peaceful life, and then was accidentally involved in various events. In order to save his family and friends, the protagonist had to fight monsters all the way. From just protecting himself at the beginning, to saving the world in the end.

What about "Fast and Furious", "Mission Impossible", "Red Fire Battlefield", "Speed Chase"...

It's basically the same old story in a new name.

But this is the power of the Hollywood film industry system. Just like "Ubisoft cans", it can mass-produce a large number of high-quality genre films.

Although the nutritional value is low, as an entertainment film, the main feature is that the quantity is large and the food is filling.

In fact, there is a type of work in the domestic film and television industry that can achieve this level, and that is the "anti-Japanese drama."

To be honest, things like "anti-Japanese drama" have basically nothing to do with history.

In essence, it is similar to Marvel Super Heroes, Touya Special Effects and the like.

Yan Shuangying's "I bet there's no bullet in your gun" and Captain America's "I can do this all day" are the same thing.

As for why we had to choose "Anti-Japanese War", one reason is that there is a large group of middle-aged and elderly audiences, which guarantees the ratings.

Another reason is that this subject matter is the safest.

Costume dramas and anti-corruption dramas were once kicked out of the prime time slot, palace fighting and time travel were restricted, spy wars were regulated, and realistic themes were in an "indescribable and unspeakable" state of suppression.

Among the remaining themes, apart from romance, family, and idol dramas, the only safe haven that can guarantee a stable income is the anti-Japanese drama.

Let’s get back to “Wolf Warrior 2”.

After watching the entire movie, Meng Bai's biggest feelings were the smooth rhythm and the created atmosphere.

Wu Jing's literary performance can't be considered a flaw, but it's definitely not a plus either. So there aren't many literary performances in the whole movie, and more than 80% of the time is spent on fighting.

The atmosphere was also well rendered, especially when the destroyer captain received instructions from his superiors and shouted "Fire" in a heart-wrenching voice!
Missiles fired simultaneously, providing support from a hundred miles away!
The emotions that had been building up for more than an hour were completely released at this moment.

Under the influence of this emotion, even the "extremely childish" text that appeared on the passport at the end did not make people feel embarrassed for a moment.

Although it is difficult to grasp the audience's preferences, there is no problem in making a rough judgment.

Anyway, as an investor, Meng Bai felt relieved after watching the movie.

I can't say how much the final box office will be, but it won't lose money anyway. So as soon as the premiere was over, Meng Bai called Guo Fan and asked him to wait until the movie promotion period was over and then talk to Wu Jing about investment.

After hanging up the phone, Meng Bai called Tong Liya again.

"It's rare that you would call me."

On the other side of the phone, Tong Liya said in a teasing tone.

Meng Bai touched his eyebrows. There was nothing wrong with what he said, but this sister's tone always sounded weird.

But it's also good news. At least she didn't lump herself together with Chen Sicheng, so there's something to talk about.

"Senior sister is right. It is indeed wrong for me not to burn incense on a regular basis."

Meng Bai laughed it off and mentioned the invitation for a guest appearance.

"The setting for this role is that of a beauty of national beauty and extraordinary grace. After much thought, I think that among the actresses I know, you are the one who best meets the requirements. I have no choice but to come here to cram."

"Well, although the contact was not timely, your vision is still good."

Tong Liya couldn't help laughing after she finished speaking: "Haha, okay, I was just kidding. How long will this guest appearance take?"

"The role doesn't have many scenes, but the makeup is quite complicated and takes a lot of time. All in all, it took about five days."

"Five days? That's no problem." Tong Liya agreed readily: "I'm free from the end of the month to the first half of next month. Just tell me when you want to start."

"Thank you, Senior Sister." Meng Bai said: "Regarding the pay..."

"Why do I need to be paid for a guest appearance?" Tong Liya interrupted Meng Bai and said cheerfully, "Please treat me to a meal when the time comes."

"No problem, Senior Sister, I'll treat you to as many meals as you want."
-
The distributor of "Wolf Warrior 2" was obviously very confident in the film and opened an advance screening the night before its official release.

And the final box office results did not disappoint.

In just four hours, "Wolf Warrior 2" took in 1.01 million yuan in box office revenue through advance screenings, becoming the box office champion of the day.

The total box office in mainland China on the day of the advance screening was 1.72 million yuan.

In other words, "Wolf Warrior 2" took only four hours to earn nearly % of the box office in the entire theater chain that day.

Not only that, according to statistics, this is also the first domestic film to have an advance box office of over 100 million yuan, breaking the previous advance box office record.

On the first day of its release, Wolf Warrior 2 grossed 2.12 million yuan, accounting for 71% of the box office, breaking the single-day box office record for a domestic film.

If advance screenings are included, the total box office in 28 hours would exceed 3 million.

Such a crazy result was beyond everyone's expectations.

The theater chain urgently adjusted the screening schedule, and in just one day, it increased the share from 19% to 50%.

But even so, the movie attendance rate has not declined at all, and has always remained at an average level above 35%.

On the following Saturday and Sunday, the box office results soared, earning 3.1 million yuan and 3.59 million yuan respectively.

So far, the box office of "Wolf Warrior 2" in the first weekend alone has exceeded 9 million.

Not only did it easily break the total box office of "Wolf Warrior 1", it also effortlessly fulfilled the distributor's " million guarantee".

Influenced by the movie, Jingbei Culture's stock price hit the daily limit at the opening on Monday, and then rose by 25% in the following three trading days, with the market value alone increasing by more than billion yuan.

It's not just Jingbei Culture. Almost all the producers and distributors involved in "Wolf Warrior 2" have become hot topics in the capital circle recently.

ArcLight is no exception, but unfortunately it has neither been listed nor received financing, so it cannot take advantage of this sudden popularity.

But Meng Bai didn't care at all.

Maoyan Movie's prediction for the total box office of "Wolf Warrior 2" has been increasing almost every day, from 13 billion at the beginning, to 15 billion, and then to 18 billion today.

Arc Light’s investment accounts for more than 10%, and the box office share alone is a huge profit.

(End of this chapter)