This director is vindictive.

Chapter 469 The Most Bizarre Operation of the Year is Born
Chen Mo had actually anticipated the mediation by the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television.

After all, this incident has indeed caused quite a stir, and to some extent, Chen Mo has indeed broken the unspoken rules. When directors comment on competing products, how should I put it? They're really good at getting caught red-handed.

Especially for a big-name director like Chen Mo, who has a huge influence, it's a disaster for them.

After returning, Chen Mo told Fan Binbin everything that had happened at the meeting.

Fan Binbin laughed so hard he almost fell off the sofa: "So not only did Wuershan and Xu Laoguai not get any advantage this time, they were also choked back by Director Wang in public? That's too tragic!"

Chen Mo poured himself a glass of red wine and leaned lazily against the bar, saying, "The most amazing thing was Director Wang's line, 'Don't make it sound so aggrieved'—you didn't see the expressions on those two's faces at the time; they looked like they'd swallowed a Smurf whole."

He imitated the way the eel blushed, "Especially Xu Ke, when he heard the words 'Ultraman Mediation Kindergarten,' his teacup was trembling."

"Serves you right!" Fan Binbin hopped over barefoot and snatched his wine glass.

"Who told them to make sarcastic remarks about your 10 billion prediction in that interview? Now you know what it means to say 'Chen Mo's film reviews are a pain that breathes,' right?"

She suddenly lowered her voice and leaned closer: "But Director Wang told you not to review competing products, so are you still going to review 'Detective Chinatown 1900'?"

Chen Mo shook his head and said, "Since Director Wang has given me so much face, I certainly can't go against the grain."

Fan Binbin suddenly had a strange expression on his face, and then he inexplicably started laughing.

He pressed his entire body against Chen Mo.

"No, what are you laughing at? Is it that funny?" Chen Mo looked completely bewildered.

"I just remembered something. By the way, which party was the main force in this mediation?" Fan Binbin asked, keeping everyone in suspense.

Chen Mo actually knew this, and said calmly, "After all, Huaying and Hengcheng Films are the main forces behind 'The Legend of the Condor Heroes.' Of course, Wanda must have contributed as well. What's wrong?"

"Seriously? How can they be so clueless?" Fan Binbin said with a smile.

"What do you mean?" Chen Mo asked, somewhat puzzled.

"Think about it, you've already reviewed 'The Investiture of the Gods Part 2' and 'The Legend of the Condor Heroes,' and the impact has already been created. Just like you said, even if you post an article asking netizens to rationally refund their votes, they won't listen to you, and they might even escalate the situation."

"So this result has already been achieved, right?" Fan Binbin suddenly analyzed with a confident air.

Chen Mo nodded: "Yeah, and then?"

"So, since it has already had an impact, this mediation doesn't seem to be of much benefit to 'The Legend of the Condor Heroes' and 'Investiture of the Gods 2,' does it?" Fan Binbin added.

Chen Mo was taken aback.

Then Fan Binbin couldn't help but giggle and say, "Not only is there no benefit, but you just said that 'The Legend of the Condor Heroes' is the main force in this mediation. What are they after? 'Ne Zha' is their competitor, but others like 'Detective Chinatown 1900' are also their competitors!"

Chen Mo suddenly realized that he hadn't thought that much about it at first, but after Fan Binbin said that, Chen Mo couldn't help but laugh.

The main thing is, it seems that's really the case.

Originally, they were all competitors. The reason they joined forces was simply because Chen Mo had brought too much publicity to "Ne Zha".

But in reality, they are also competitors!
"So now you know why I'm laughing, right? What are they thinking? I feel like by insisting that the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television mediate, they've actually stabbed themselves in the back again!"

“Look, if you had continued to give the other two films the same package, at least they would have been on the same level. But now that the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television has mediated, you definitely won’t continue to publish articles. So the films like ‘Detective Chinatown 1900’ won’t have the same negative impact as them. So isn’t this mediation just doing a favor for them?” Fan Binbin said with increasing amusement.

Chen Mo was speechless, because Fan Binbin's analysis really made sense!

Originally, everyone was a victim, so there was nothing to say. But this mediation turned out to be a disaster. They ended up helping their competitor and stabbing themselves in the back.

What's the point?
In fact, this mediation by the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television was no secret at all.

There were still reporters waiting outside the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television at the time.

Soon, the media reported the news that the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television had made an emergency intervention to quell the chaos in the Spring Festival film season.

However, sometimes things really do not go according to human will.

The subsequent chain reaction far exceeded everyone's expectations.

At first, it was just a group of netizens complaining, "There's no more gossip to watch!"

However, the pre-sale refund rates for "The Legend of the Condor Heroes" and "The Investiture of the Gods II" quickly reached new highs, with netizens posting refund requests and adding humorous comments like "helping Director Xu raise money for Ultraman toys" and "can't let the Teletubbies be defeated by the Smurfs." In contrast, after its premiere, "Detective Chinatown 1900," lacking Chen Mo's scathing film reviews, achieved impressive pre-sale results thanks to the fanbase built up by its predecessor and effective marketing.

The so-called authorities are confused, but bystanders know clearly.

After all, if even Fan Binbin could think of it, how could so many marketing accounts, media people, and netizens not have thought of it?
Soon, some media outlets jokingly commented: "This mediation can be called the most farcical mediation of the year!"

Entertainment Weekly's Sharp Commentary:
Did the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television's mediation become a "divine assist"? Detective Chinatown 1900 won by default, while Xu Ke (the director) stabbed himself in the back.

(Reporter XXX) The “Spring Festival Film Quality Symposium” urgently convened by the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television the day before yesterday has come to an end. It was thought that it could quell the wave of ticket refunds for “The Legend of the Condor Heroes” and “The Investiture of the Gods 2” caused by Chen Mo’s film review. However, it unexpectedly became the most farcical mediation of the year. The mediation not only failed to save the two bad films, but also made “Detective Chinatown 1900” the biggest winner!
Huaying and Hengcheng Films' attempt to mediate was intended to save themselves, but they made a fatal mistake: Chen Mo had already reviewed "The Legend of the Condor Heroes" and "Fengshen 2", and the negative effects were irreversible, while competing products such as "Detective Chinatown 1900" and "Jiaolong Action" escaped the "poisonous tongue trial" because of the mediation.

Data shows that after news of the meeting broke, pre-sales for "Detective Chinatown 1900" bucked the trend and increased by 12%. Netizens joked, "Thanks to Director Xu for his selflessness, Wanda should give Huaying a banner!"

Furthermore, the mediation failed to dampen netizens' enthusiasm for creating memes. Under the hashtag #HelpDirectorXuRaiseMoneyForUltramanToys#, viewers who posted their refund slips photoshopped images to show "sponsorship fees." Film critic Li Mourui commented: "The State Administration of Radio, Film and Television can stop Chen Mo from speaking, but it can't stop the audience from voting with their feet—in this era of bad movies, even mediation can become a death knell for bad films."

As of press time, Xu Ke's team has urgently replaced the publicity director, while Shengshi Pictures only responded that they "strictly abide by industry norms."

This newspaper will continue to follow up on further developments!

In fact, after the mediation meeting, Xu Ke and Wu Er Shan realized they had made a huge blunder.

That's why the head of publicity and marketing was replaced.

However, the damage has already been done.

Since things have come to this point, he should just swallow the bitter fruit he himself has sown, whether it's the eel or Xu Ke.

However, while the pre-sale box office was far from meeting expectations, the pre-sale box office of "Detective Chinatown," "Operation Jiaolong," "Ne Zha," and even "Boonie Bears" began to soar.

They were clearly getting restless.

After all, although pre-sale box office figures do not represent a film's true box office potential, they still have a significant impact.

If things continue like this, then don't expect to get many screenings. After all, other movies in the same period are performing better than yours, so why should you get more screenings?
Chen Mo and Fan Binbin were also gossiping and discussing the matter.

"Do you think they can just sit here and suffer in silence like this?" Fan Binbin asked curiously.

Chen Mo shook his head and said, "It's definitely impossible, after all, it involves hundreds of millions of dollars in interests! Moreover, apart from the first point, the second point of this mediation seems more likely to be a disaster!"

"The second rule? No controlling comments, deleting movie reviews?" Fan Binbin asked.

Chen Mo nodded and said, "Although controlling comments is indeed very unfriendly to the audience and netizens, to be honest, it does have some effect. What it protects against is not so much the netizens who have seen the movie, but the competitors!"

"You mean they'll break ties completely? And directly smear their opponents?" Fan Binbin has been in the industry for many years, so he naturally knows the ins and outs.

"Is it really that bad? After all, if they do that, others can do it too! Wouldn't that create chaos?" Fan Binbin asked, frowning.

Chen Mo smiled and countered, "Then do you think there could be a worse situation for 'Investiture of the Gods Part II' and 'The Legend of the Condor Heroes' than what they are in now?"

"Wouldn't that cause chaos?" Fan Binbin asked.

Chen Mo nodded and said, "I estimate there might be a second mediation, but we won't be the main characters this time!"

In fact, just as Chen Mo said.

The current public opinion surrounding "The Investiture of the Gods Part II" and "The Legend of the Condor Heroes" can be described as extremely negative.

After all, they've already refunded as much as they can, how much worse can it get?
However, some things are a zero-sum game!
In fact, in the early years, it was not uncommon for competitors to smear each other and even directly attack the lead actors.

For example, when a movie is released, some negative news about the lead actor suddenly breaks out, and so on.

Later, everyone reached a tacit understanding to at least play within the rules. But sometimes when people are pushed to the limit, they don't care about the rules at all.

At this point, stirring up the waters is actually a good thing for them.

After all, if everyone rots together, then we're back to square one.

Soon, a large number of negative reviews of movies such as "Detective Chinatown 1900" and "Operation Jiaolong" began to appear online.

Unfortunately, because of the previous mediation by the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television, they could no longer control the comments section. Goodness, this really stirred up a hornet's nest.

(End of this chapter)