Who said this top flow is crazy! This top flow is awesome!

Chapter 269 Landing in Cannes, Lao Peng

Rumors within the industry suggest that Ikeno will likely have to pay 100 to 200 million yen in compensation due to the "Flu" incident—because many of his contracts are revenue-sharing contracts, and if the film doesn't make money, Ikeno will personally cover the losses.

It's "only natural" for him to use the money he earned from "My Love from the Star" and several other movies to subsidize it.

That's why Sister Pliers didn't make sarcastic remarks this time, because she felt that Ikeno was in a "low period" and that she, as a friend... should be considered a friend, right?
We still need to offer more comfort and support, at least... we need to be a little "gentler" in our attitude.

But Chi Ye was clearly not "appreciative". He glanced at Shi Jinwei a few times before saying, "Ah, I have to go. I'm here now, and I'll go over and meet with a few theater chains later."

"...Is it really impossible to release it in mainland China?"

Shi Jin hesitated for a moment, then asked anyway.

The mainland box office is too big. Others are just speculating that "Flu" will most likely be released overseas, but Shi Jinwei, who has been filming with Chi Ye all this time, knows that Chi Ye is planning to do just that.

He has been busy with this matter ever since the official announcement of the technical adjustments to "Flu".

So... does that mean the box office performance of "Flu" is doomed?

"Uh…"

To everyone's surprise, Chi Ye paused for a moment upon hearing this, then suddenly laughed: "Not necessarily."

"It's okay if I can't go... Hmm? Not necessarily?"

Pliers Sister was stunned again.

How can there be a "not necessarily" statement here?
Didn't they say it didn't pass the review?

Is it going to be edited and released online after its Cannes premiere?
Ikeno didn't explain much, only saying, "The reason why 'Flu' was blocked was partly due to its content, but more so due to other reasons."

Other reasons…

Shi Jinwei seemed to be deep in thought.

Regarding the issue of "Flu" being blocked from obtaining its publishing license, different versions have circulated within the industry, but most people believe that it was the content and the Beijing literary circle that were behind it.

In fact, this is indeed the case.

But if we really talk about it, as the leader said, "Influenza" is the kind of book that's "maybe approved, maybe not." It hasn't been approved yet simply because it's not "good enough" yet.

Let's wait until it "works out" before making any decisions.

Ikeno wouldn't let go of the mainland box office market, the world's second largest, which is also his "home turf." Ikeno is just trying to maximize his own interests now. If he really fails to be selected for Cannes, he may ultimately choose to cut the screening for the sake of profit.

Or, you could lie down to the Empress Dowager, beg her to take care of you, get married, and let her give you some "privileges".

Ahem...

It's not there yet, it's not there yet.

"How are the negotiations with the theater chains going? Are they progressing smoothly?"

Pincer Sister realized that she had indeed changed a bit, and that she was actually able to ask such a caring question about Ikeno.

Chino also felt that she had changed, and that Pliers had become very boring—"Why don't you keep making sarcastic remarks? You're making me not know how to get along with you anymore, my Pliers."

"That's not a good idea. Now is not the time to talk about copyright. This is to get to know each other first and make contact, so that when we meet at the Cannes Film Festival, it won't seem like we're strangers."

Shi Jinwei: "...That's good."

"Ok?"

Shi Jin glanced at him and said, "I said your talks didn't go very well, but it's actually quite good. I'm very happy to hear that."

Chiye: "..."

"Haha."

Shi Jinwei had already vaguely sensed Chi Ye's "cheeky" nature, so she didn't mind satisfying Chi Ye's "special fetish".

"That's it. If we lose money this time, we lose money. We might lose money again next time. You should get used to it in advance."

"……pliers."

"what?"

"You've lost your billing in 'Goblin,' so I'm going to promote the second male and female leads. You'll be fourth billing."

Shi Jin's pupils dilated in shock: "What?!"

"Bye-Bye."

Feeling refreshed, Ikeno turned around and walked towards the RV.

"...No, I...Ikeno, you can't do this! I'm the female lead, and you've relegated me to fourth billing? Isn't that a bit inhumane? How am I supposed to explain this to my fans? What will the industry think of me?!"

Chi Ye turned around and smiled slightly: "Not only will I give you fourth billing, but I will also give Sheng Ning first billing at the premiere of 'The Flu'."

"?!!!"

Shi Jinwei's vision went black for a moment: "You...you...you're shameless!!"

"Sheng Ning, Chi Ye, (Note: the above rankings are in order of preference)"

Chi Ye climbed into the RV, leaving Shi Jinwei speechless with anger.

……

Ikeno was obviously teasing Pincer Sister, although he never fights for top billing... that's because he was the lead actor during "Love Loop," and after "My Love from the Star" became a hit, no one could surpass him...

He's always been number one, why should he fight for a few rounds?

If he isn't, of course he'll fight for it... It's not about any bad habit, it's just that this is how it is in the global entertainment industry now. Everyone inside and outside the industry values ​​this. Sometimes, the order of billing represents one's status, and status represents the price of film and television fees and commercial appearances...

Do you think that celebrities fighting for top billing is just about making things look good on the surface?

They're fighting for their own interests!

If anyone's to blame, blame the capital behind it, the film producers, and the advertisers. If these people didn't care about billing order, no one would have beaten this person to a pulp.

Of course... Shi Jinwei is not included. Sister Pliers really cares about the order of billing... She's crazy.

Sheng Ning also cares about billing order, but in "Flu", she really "couldn't compete" with Chi Ye, who was both an investor and more famous than her.

Hmm... Sister Ning has been having a tough time lately.

Although the selection of "Flu" for Cannes brought a little comfort to her weary heart, after a moment of reflection, she immediately realized the old problem: the selection of "Flu" for Cannes was not necessarily a good thing; box office, box office, and more box office!

With poor box office performance and being a commercial film, its critical reception is bound to fall short of art-house films…

That would result in a double loss in both box office and critical reception.

At this point, Sheng Ning's team, especially one of her partners, began to feel fortunate that Sheng Ning had sold her shares to Chi Ye. If she hadn't sold her shares in "Flu" and had invested in "Flu" herself...

This time, we're really going to lose everything.

"See? I told you back then that you made the right decision to sell. You were even regretting it in private... regretting what? Regretting that you couldn't lose money."

At the end of January, the Spring Festival is just around the corner.

The VIP lounge at the airport on the way to Cannes.

Partner Yang Fen smacked her lips, speaking with genuine emotion: "If you ask me, Chi Ye's move was a bit too hasty. Holding the world premiere in Cannes at this time completely cuts off the path to box office success."

"But you're making a commercial film, not relying on box office revenue. Are you going to compete with the art films in the main competition based on word of mouth? Can you even compete?" Sheng Ning sat next to her, not smoking, her red stilettos clicking on the ground, and she didn't say a word.

Yang Fen glanced at her, reached out and unscrewed the bottle cap, took a sip of water, and then continued, "If you ask me, you shouldn't have acted in this movie. I said it back then..."

"Stop talking, will you? It's so annoying! Back then, who was it that was so happy to hear that I was going to 'reconcile' with Chi Ye, and came to me in the middle of the night saying that I'm actually quite magnanimous... Who said that? A dog?"

Hearing this, Yang Fen wasn't angry, because she knew Sheng Ning's personality; if she couldn't tolerate him, the two of them wouldn't be able to stay together.

She chuckled, "Oh dear, look at you, getting all worked up over just a few words... No, what I mean is, since Chi Ye lost money this time, you're not allowed to help him. The company's projects haven't been very profitable in recent years, and we don't have much cash flow..."

"How did you come to the conclusion that I'm going to help him?"

Sheng Ning was shocked, even incredulous: "Are you crazy?"

Yang Fen laughed: "Are you still pretending with me? Do you think I don't know about your little secret with him, even if others don't?"

Sheng Ning: "..."

"Hey."

Yang Fen sighed: "The kiwi fruit company was quite happy to get 'Goblin,' but now this has happened... They thought they could make a fortune by following Chi Ye... Oh right, it's not that we can't help him, we can collaborate with him on a TV series."

Her eyes lit up: "How about you and Chi Ye make a period drama? Bring along our company's big gift package, and it's guaranteed to be a hit. Even if it doesn't become a huge hit... it'll still be a minor hit. After all, it's Chi Ye's first big-budget period drama, so there's plenty of hype."

Sheng Ning was speechless for a long time: "...Can you please stop being so snobbish?"

"what?"

Yang Fen looked at Sheng Ning as if she had heard a joke: "You...you said I'm a snob? You're much more snob than me outside. No, Ningning, I was just joking before. You're not really planning to 'lend a hand' to me, are you?"

Sheng Ning remained silent for a while: "Flu is also one of my works, and I really like this movie."

Yang Fen paused, then awkwardly shut her mouth: "Okay... I won't say anymore. I hope this year's Cannes... goes smoothly."

……

This year's Cannes Film Festival is being held in early February, only about ten days after the Chinese New Year. Chi Ye and Sheng Ning arrived in Cannes first, while the rest of the "Flu" crew and main creators will arrive a few days later.

At the same time, big names and big names from the film industry around the world will also arrive in Cannes in the next few days.

—Including the domestic entertainment industry.

Although there weren't many Chinese entertainment films submitted to Cannes this year, and only two were selected, Cannes holds special significance, especially its most famous red carpet, which is a top-tier international event. Many Chinese celebrities are eager to walk the Cannes red carpet.

So even if it's just to tag along, everyone will come and join in the fun.

For example, Peng Chen and Chu Hanzhou, as well as a group of people from the Beijing circle.

People from the Northwest circle also came, but they weren't there to freeload. Although Zhang Yimou isn't active in the Northwest circle anymore, strictly speaking, the label of "Zhang Yimou's Girl" is still very obvious.

The works she was selected for this time were mostly from the Northwest circle; they were there to "support" her.

The night of the 2st.

In a foreign city, a group of people from the Chinese entertainment industry gathered together.

Yoshimi Ikeno didn't come to the "Flu" event because they weren't invited at all.

As the only guest in the "circle of friends" who was absent, everyone's conversation naturally revolved around the cricket's "Flu".

"Ikeno has really messed up this time. I glanced at the works in the midnight screening section yesterday, and they were basically all blockbusters. Flu is out of place among them."

At the cocktail party.

Director Lu raised his wine glass with regret: "It's a pity that our post-production took too long this time. Otherwise, I really wanted to apply for 'Bureau 749' to be the flagship of China's first industrialized big-budget production. 'Bureau 749' should be the flagship."

"Hey, Lao Lu, what you said reminds me. Didn't you say there was a lot of post-production work in 'Flu'? How come they finished the special effects so quickly? Did they submit the application at the last minute?"

Someone suddenly remembered something and exclaimed in surprise, "This speed is faster than all of yours!"

"That's why I concluded that his quality was poor. The fact that he was selected was purely because Cannes saw that there were too few Chinese films submitted this year and gave him face... In previous years, many films with ratings of five or six points were selected. I don't understand what's so great about that."

Director Lu complained: "Just because he was nominated for Cannes, Chi Ye's fans outside are already making it out to be that he won the Cannes Best Actor award... These fans' brains really don't work."

"We've experienced Ikeno's marketing tactics before."

Another team member from Chen Sicheng's company came over and said with a smile, "Our boss said that Chi Ye's marketing is even more ruthless than his; he's a master at ripping people off."

"I'm not going to argue with you about this."

Director Feng nodded: "Chi Ye is indeed quite skilled at traffic marketing. Ever since the Yue Na incident, there hasn't been a single time when public opinion wasn't bad. Last time, when people said it was going to collapse, he managed to clear his name even more. You tell me, this skill is something that most people can't match."

"It's such a pity..."

"What's a pity?"

"It's a pity he's too selfish and doesn't know how to share the pie."

"Just tell me you're not going to give me the money, haha."

"The words are harsh, but the logic is sound, haha..."

"..."

Here, people clink glasses and exchange toasts.

In the corner, Ling Han scrolled through Chi Ye's super topic, listening to the occasional laughter from this group of greasy middle-aged men, and pursed her lips.

What do you know? This actor is just temporarily lying low. How many movies have other young actors flopped? He hasn't had a single one yet, and he always makes grand pronouncements before release…

That's so low-class.

"Hanhan, playing on your phone, hehe..."

Peng Chen walked over with a shameless grin, bent down and sat down next to Ling Han: "Why don't you go over and have a few drinks? It's so lively today."

Ling Han glanced at him: "I don't want to drink."

Peng Chen wasn't discouraged and said with a smile, "Didn't you say last time that you wanted to hear about my past at Rise? I happen to have some free time today, so I'll tell you about it."

"Um?!"

Ling Han's heart skipped a beat. She put down her phone without making a sound and smiled, "Okay, okay, tell me... um... about Chi Ye's past."

"what?"

Lao Peng was slightly confused: "Chi Ye? Why...why?"

"Weren't you his roommate before?"

Ling Han asked curiously, "Gege...do you still keep the dog that Chi Ye used to keep? Why don't you return it to him? That's really unfair of you."

Peng Chen: “…”

He realized that Ling Han used to be a fan of Yu Yan, but now she had switched allegiance and become a fan of Chi Ye…

Fault top flow, fault top flow...

It's all because of the halo effect of the top flow of this fault.

Okay, okay... Ikeno, after this "Flu" pandemic, let's see how you maintain the halo of the top of the fault.

(End of this chapter)