I'm just trying to ride the wave of popularity!

Chapter 349 The Storm is Coming!
3 Month 1 Day!
The Chinese film industry was in an uproar after the simultaneous premieres of three movies: "Dark Knight," "Fast & Furious," and "Eragon Knight"!
Social media was flooded with discussions, and the hashtag #BattleOfTheThreeGods# garnered over a million views in just 3 hours!
The fierce debate among film fans, critics, and industry leaders has propelled the Chinese film and television industry to an unprecedented climax!
Countless filmmakers are anxiously watching the various data on major film review websites...

Over the past five months, with the conclusion of "Chrysanthemum Terrace," Hollywood blockbusters have swept through the Chinese market like a hurricane, with super IPs such as "Batman" and "Magic Academy 2" taking turns to dominate the charts. Almost all domestic films have been wiped out. In this moment of despair, countless filmmakers have focused their attention on Zhou Yang.

Without a doubt, Zhou Yang has become the last hope for Chinese domestic films!
March is also an excellent time!

Over the past five months, Hollywood blockbusters have bombarded the market, which has already been exhausted.

And now!
It's a vacuum period for Hollywood movies!
As for Zhou Yang, he has two movies being released at the same time, putting himself in a battle. Regardless of the outcome, the entire month of March will belong to him!

Everyone knows that, barring any unforeseen circumstances, as long as the movie isn't too bad and maintains a basic standard, it will be a success!
So!

He is about to be deified!
However, no one could have imagined that at this crucial moment...
Hollywood blockbuster "Eragon" suddenly announces an early release!
This blockbuster, hailed as the "teen version of The Lord of the Rings," boasts top-notch special effects and a massive fan base from the original novel. It suddenly entered the March release schedule, announcing a head-on clash with Zhou Yang's two films!

This movie!

In terms of investment scale, cast, and special effects, "Dragon Knight" far surpasses all of Zhou Yang's works!
this moment!
Everyone understands!
This is a strangulation!

An operation to stop Zhou Yang from reaching the top!

……

Some felt pessimistic, some felt desperate, but some even went crazy!
Zhou Yang's fans showed their support for his movie with almost fanatical enthusiasm!

On the afternoon of the premiere, the hashtag #DarkKnightPremiere# instantly went viral, with fans flooding the internet with photos of their tickets and the theater, and IMAX screenings were packed to capacity.

Countless people spontaneously formed "second-viewing groups," and despite not being able to get tickets, they still bombarded social media with topics related to the movie.

The tech enthusiasts on the [Zhou Yang's Home] forum worked through the night to dig deep into behind-the-scenes footage, using real-life gasoline-powered videos and special effects renderings to demonstrate the production's craftsmanship and calling for public support.

Even more outrageous, enthusiastic fans dressed up as the Demon Knight and took to the streets, riding Suzue motorcycles around the movie theater entrance, attracting passersby to stop and take pictures. This wave after wave of enthusiasm ultimately propelled "Dark Knight" to its peak popularity, completely crushing "Fast & Furious" and "Eragon" which were released at the same time.

..............................

"Mr. Chen, the popularity of 'Devil Knight' has reached the top!"

evening.

sunset.

Chen Lei stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window of [Hongsheng Capital], looking down into the distance.

The secretary handed over the latest feedback on "Dragon Knight" with a complicated expression.

"Mr. Chen, the current market performance of 'Dragon Knight' is somewhat precarious; its popularity is far below expectations..."

Chen Lei took the market feedback report and scanned the data with a gloomy look.

The movie "Dark Knight" has a rating of 8.9. Within about 8 hours of its release, the number of users discussing the movie on the Internet exceeded 10 million!
However, "Eragon Knight" ultimately only received a score of 6.8, far below the expected 8.

Audience reviews are sharply polarized. On one hand, there is a visual feast of stunning Hollywood-level special effects, with countless viewers captivated by the magnificent scenes of dragons soaring and magic unleashed. On the other hand, there is an angry outcry from fans of the original work, who denounce the plot as being "drastically altered" and losing the soul of the original work.

More notably, ordinary viewers generally felt that the film was pacing too long and dragging, believing that behind the dazzling special effects, there was a lack of truly moving emotional resonance.

Fantasy films have always struggled to find their niche in the Chinese market, and if the narrative becomes even more obscure, things might get even worse…

Chen Lei put down the data and silently closed his eyes.

In fact, the hasty release date decision for "Eragon Knight" was a brutal game of capital versus time.

The analysis team had already warned that the original author's public boycott, the rushed post-production, and audience fatigue with the fantasy genre could all be fatal flaws at the box office. Releasing it in May and making some adjustments would be slightly better...

But Chen Lei had no choice. In the second half of last year, Hollywood blockbusters were raking in the Chinese market, and in the first two months of this year, the cinemas were still dominated by imported films.

Zhou Yang was very clever; he chose March, a lull in Hollywood movies, to start releasing his film!
“We have to keep him under control…” Chen Lei stubbed out his cigar, his voice hoarse.

Zhou Yang's "The Devil Knight" and "Fast & Furious" are like two sharp knives, piercing straight into the heart of Hollywood's dominance.

If Zhou Yang were allowed to rise to prominence, and even achieve godhood—

He might just ignite the confidence of the entire Chinese film industry!
By then, Hollywood's attempt to control the Chinese market and establish global dominance will likely face obstacles!

There is no turning back in the game of capital. Even if "Dragon Knight" is a hastily produced, flawed product, this battle is inevitable.

Even if it flops, we can't let "The Devil Knight" surpass 4 million at the box office. We must delay Zhou Yang's film's box office data, otherwise...

The lights outside the window flickered, and he opened his eyes, a hint of ruthlessness in them!
"Tell all investors, 'Dragon Rider' must hold up at the box office! The hype must go up! No matter how much money you throw at it, it has to be a hit. Tell the three major theater chains to cooperate!"

"If this movie is going to be a hit, let's not let it be! Let's crush it!"

........................

【Tianyu】

night.

It's too deep.

Xu Haibo stood in front of the data monitoring screen at the headquarters of Tianyu Media, his eyes narrowing as he watched the numbers jump around.

At three in the morning, the backstage area of ​​the cinema, which should have been quiet, was brightly lit.

On the screen, the box office curve for "Eragon" soared dramatically as if injected with stimulants, with midnight screenings even outperforming prime-time screenings by 30%.

He opened the details with trembling hands!

A cinema in the suburbs suddenly scheduled several screenings of "Eragon" that were not publicly available for sale in the early hours of the morning. As soon as the schedule was set up, the screenings were shown as "sold out!"

“They’re injecting water,” Xu Haibo’s Adam’s apple bobbed.

Internal documents handed over by the secretary revealed that Hongsheng Capital, in conjunction with three major cinema chains, launched the "Dragon Project": purchasing tickets for "Dragon Knight" could earn double points, companies that booked entire screenings could receive discounts on housing purchases from Hengteng Real Estate, and there were even "buy one get three free" ghost screenings.

Even more alarming is that the screening schedules for "Dark Knight" in North China by the three major cinema chains are being technically adjusted—the originally scheduled IMAX screenings have suddenly been changed to "equipment maintenance".

"Mr. Xu, I just received a notification." The secretary held up her phone: "All screenings of 'Dragon Knights' are open for overnight pre-sales, from 3 a.m. to 7 a.m., and it shows that 100% of the seats are already reserved."

He pulled up a screenshot of the backend, showing that the same seats were sold three times at different times, like a sophisticated ticket-buying program.

Seeing this scene, Xu Haibo felt as if countless banknotes were burning wildly...

He rushed to Deng Baichuan's office with the data. Deng Baichuan hadn't slept all night.

"Mr. Deng, the box office data for 'Dragon Knight' is suspicious. The investors are frantically buying tickets. It's insane! In all my years in the industry, I've never seen anything like it..."

“This isn’t vote rigging.” Deng Baichuan stared at the report, his voice hoarse.

"Then what is this?"

"This is... a legitimate business transaction that pays taxes."

He slowly closed the data, then silently lit a cigarette and started smoking.

The office fell into dead silence.

After a moment, Xu Haibo stared at Deng Baichuan: "Is it worth it to prevent Zhou Yang from reaching the top?"

"This is no longer our business..."

"Then the relevant departments will investigate..."

"What are they investigating? These ticket-buying screenings were all for people who invited others to sit... Moreover, this is a commercial activity, which falls under taxation. Besides, with so many movie data from the three major cinema chains and so many cinemas, how can the relevant departments investigate? By the time the actual data is available, it will probably be half a month later..."

"What if it gets leaked?"

"So what if it gets exposed? Remember, this is legal, reasonable, and compliant!"

"..."

Xu Haibo was somewhat dazed!
Then nodded.

Just then, the office door was pushed open.

Immediately afterwards, the secretary pushed open the door and entered!

"The opening day box office figures are in!"

Xu Haibo and Deng Baichuan both received the box office data.

They opened the booklet.

Immediately afterwards...

They saw "Eragon" top the box office on its opening day, March 1st!

The film grossed over 3600 million yuan on its opening day!
Next!

Xu Haibo stared intently at the data of the second and third place winners!
Following "Eragon Knight" was "Dark Knight," which grossed a staggering 3400 million RMB in China!

The third place went to "Fast & Furious," which grossed exactly 2800 million RMB!

……

"Even with such a huge investment in boosting box office numbers, the difference between 'Eragon Knight' and 'Dark Knight' is still only 200 million?"

Xu Haibo's eyes widened.

The voice conveyed complexity.

"The Demon Knight is absolutely a phenomenal movie! If it weren't for the manipulation of capital, it would probably have grossed over 4000 million?"

Deng Baichuan remained silent, staring blankly into the distance.

………………

When the first-day box office figures were released, and "Eragon Rider" topped the charts with 3600 million yuan, the entire Chinese film industry fell into a subtle silence.

Although "Demonic Knight" followed closely with 3400 million, the 200 million gap still made countless people sigh with regret—Zhou Yang was only one step away from becoming a legend.

Social media exploded instantly, with fans angrily questioning whether "Eragon" had engaged in unusual practices such as ghost screenings and midnight seat locking.

A netizen posted a photo of an empty movie theater at 3 a.m. that was marked as "full", with the caption pointing to "the last fig leaf of Hollywood capitalism".

Fans of both sides engaged in a fierce online debate, with some defending "Eragon Rider" and others calling for justice for Zhou Yang. The online public opinion arena was in complete disarray.

Industry insiders know perfectly well that this is a blatant attempt by capital to strangle the domestic film industry and prevent Zhou Yang from reaching the top!
Although they were filled with emotion and sighed deeply, and forwarded related comments one after another, they were ultimately powerless to do anything about it.

however……

An eerie silence fell over the Chinese film directing community.

Those domestic directors who had previously clashed with Zhou Yang were now not taking advantage of the box office failure of "The Devil Knight" to kick him while he was down.

Even Liang Xiaogang, who has always been at odds with Zhou Yang, and Hong Kong director Li Mingrui, when interviewed by the media, only vaguely said "no comment," unusually remaining silent.

The strangest thing is that even Zhou Yang himself and the usually high-profile directors under [Xuan Shi Entertainment] have not spoken out for themselves at this moment...

3 month 2 day.

12 o'clock noon.

Just as the whole internet was buzzing about it.

CCTV's "Midday News" surprisingly aired a special feature on March's films.

Intriguingly, while the report lavished praise on Zhou Yang's two works, it made no mention of the box office champion, "Dragon Rider."

Even the poster for "Eragon Knight" only appeared briefly in the shot...

at the same time……

Keen-eyed netizens have suddenly noticed a thought-provoking phenomenon!
Many state-owned enterprises and factories have begun distributing discounted movie tickets for "Dark Knight" on a large scale!

But the strange thing is...
The cinemas designated for these movie tickets were not part of Zhou Yang's partner cinema chain!
Instead, they were all cinemas belonging to the three major cinema chains!

Moreover, some executives of state-owned enterprises even brought their families to watch "Dark Knight" in the three major cinema chains...

(End of this chapter)