The director starts by learning from the abilities of renowned directors.

Chapter 121 Top Three in Global Film History

A male dormitory at a second-tier university.

"Hongye, didn't you have no classes for the first two periods? Why are you up so early?"

"You go to sleep, you don't have class. I'll get up and go online for a bit."

After his roommate turned over and went back to sleep, Zhang Hongye went to the toilet, then quickly washed up before sitting down at the computer.

Zhang Hongye browsed through the "Shen Qing Bar" forum, then went to the "Movie Box Office Bar" forum to check out some new posts before returning to his home base, the "Shen Qing Bar" forum.

He is a die-hard fan of Shen Qing and the administrator of the Shen Qing Baidu Tieba forum, with the username "Qingmei Zhujiu Lun Dianying" (meaning "Discussing Movies While Drinking Plum Wine").

Yesterday, the news of "Gravity" achieving double-billion-views caused a huge uproar, with the entire internet buzzing with discussion. He spent the entire day browsing posts and handling forum management, only going to sleep at 2 AM, and then getting up again at 5 AM this morning to continue the battle. With his idol achieving such incredible success, both die-hard fans and die-hard haters were flying high on the internet. As a die-hard fan of Shen Qing, how could he possibly sleep soundly?

Domestic box office surpasses 10 billion yuan, global box office surpasses 10 billion US dollars!

How did Chinese films suddenly become so strong?!

A strong sense of pride welled up within me.

"Does Gravity have a chance to break into the top three films of all time?"

Zhang Hongye clicked on the post, which had been published around 4 a.m., and by then the post already had over a hundred replies. He carefully read through the first dozen or so replies and found that the netizens' judgments were highly consistent.

"There's absolutely no doubt that we'll be in the top three."

"Currently, Avatar is number one globally, with nearly $26 billion and potentially reaching $3 billion. Titanic is second with $18 billion. Third is The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King with $11.193 billion, just $100 million more than Gravity. Gravity's final box office is conservatively estimated at $13 billion. Fourth is Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest with $10.662 billion. I feel Gravity may have already surpassed The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King; the data is just delayed."

"It's only a matter of days before it surpasses 'The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King,' and it will definitely surpass it by the end of this week."

"Awesome! If we don't count Shen Qing's works, Chinese films wouldn't even make the top 200, but now they're a shoo-in for the top three!"

"I knew Shen Qing was capable from 'Making a Name for Himself,' and I was right!"

"Tch, hindsight is 20/20!"

"Hindsight is 20/20? Well, let me make a prediction today: sooner or later, Shen Qing will be the greatest film of all time!"

"Mark this! I'll come back to dig up this grave when Master Qing has accomplished his great task."

"mark."

Zhang Hongye grinned. He had never dared to say such nonsense before, but now many people actually thought it was a real possibility!

"Which movie do you think will be Qingye's next history-making film?"

Zhang Hongye, unable to contain his excitement, personally joined the discussion with netizens.

"How are we supposed to guess? There aren't even any options," one netizen commented.

"Actually, there were options. I only recently understood Qingye's amazing move."

Zhang Hongye was somewhat smug; no one on the entire internet had noticed this yet.

"What kind of incredible skill is this?"

"Where are they? Tell me, tell me now!"

"Are you just making things mysterious?"

Zhang Hongye said proudly, "Some people may know that 'Gravity' actually has a comic book adaptation, which was published in the United States many years ago. The protagonist in the original work is not only American, but also a woman named Ryan Stone."

She was aboard an American space shuttle, repairing the Hubble Space Telescope. After the accident, she first escaped to the International Space Station, then to the Tiangong Space Station in China, and finally returned to Earth using a Shenzhou spacecraft. This is a thoroughly Hollywood story! But Qingye changed the International Space Station to the Tiangong Space Station, and the story immediately became a pure Chinese tale. If *Gravity* can do this, why can't Qingye's other comics?

That makes sense.

"Besides 'Gravity,' what other comics has Shen Qing published?"

Zhang Hongye continued, "The protagonist of *Inception* is named Dom Cobb, the protagonist of *Interstellar* is named Cooper, the protagonists of *Frozen* are named Elsa and Anna, and the protagonist of *The Martian* is named Mark Watney. Looking at Qingye's comics alone, they are indeed Hollywood stories, but *Gravity* tells us that these can also be Chinese stories. I guess Qingye created the Chinese version first, and then adapted it into a Hollywood version for publication in the United States."

One netizen asked, "Why go through the trouble of creating a Hollywood version and then releasing it in the United States?"

"That's the most brilliant part, that's where Qingye's intelligence lies," Zhang Hongye said. "Qingye wanted to make a big-budget film that could be a global hit. If the film investment was too large, it would definitely lose money if it didn't perform well in North America. So Qingye first changed the story and released it in the United States to test American tastes. The 'Gravity' comic was very well received in the United States, which gave Qingye the confidence to spend tens of millions or even hundreds of millions of dollars to make it into a movie!"

"So, movies like 'The Martian,' 'Inception,' 'Interstellar,' and 'Frozen' are all going to be made into films, and the characters will all be replaced with Chinese people?"

"One hundred percent! These comics have been published in the US for many years and have all been well-received, which shows that Americans like these kinds of stories. Now that I have a better understanding, the next step is to see which one to film first."

"We can film either one first, but Liu Yifei must play the female lead in 'Frozen'!"

"Fan Bingbing is perfect for playing the female lead in 'The Martian'—Commander Melissa Lewis!"

"The lead actress in 'Interstellar,' Emilia Brand, is played by Li Bingbing, and her daughter, Murphy, is played by Liu Yifei!"

"My favorite movie is actually Inception. Zhao Liying is the best actress to play Adrian, one of the female protagonists who is a dream architect."

"Zhao Liying won't do, let's switch to Liu Yifei, and Zhou Xun will play Dom Cobb's wife."

"Liu Yifei, Liu Yifei, let's just give the whole contract to Liu Yifei!"

The discussion on Baidu Tieba quickly spread across the entire internet, with many netizens learning for the first time that Shen Qing had published so many comics in the United States. According to popular science, adapting these comics into movies would require an investment of almost $1 million for each one.

There are two actors in "Gravity". Shen Qing is the absolute protagonist. Unlike "Inception" and "Interstellar", which are different, if any actress can become the female lead, it will be a huge success!

Netizens quickly launched a poll to vote for the leading ladies in these top-tier blockbusters.

Gong Li, Maggie Cheung, Zhang Ziyi, Fan Bingbing, Li Bingbing, Zhou Xun, Liu Yifei, Wan Qian, Zhao Liying, and Li Yitong—all the actresses on the list are paying close attention to this so-called poll. Shen Qing's leading lady in her films, especially in this top-tier Sino-US co-production, is someone no one can resist!

Liu Shishi was not on the list. "Scarlet Heart" has not yet been broadcast. Firstly, her popularity is limited, and secondly, she doesn't seem to have much connection with Shen Qing. Few netizens think she has a chance.

Cai Yinong and Liu Shishi said, "See how popular Shen Qing's movies are? Fans from all sides are fighting over them, and the whole internet is discussing who is suitable for which of Shen Qing's comic works. What about you? You're not on the list, but you're the female lead in 'About Time,' which is about to start filming. Even Fan Bingbing, who is on the list, will be playing a supporting role for you! Actually, Shen Qing really dotes on you."

"K-sister!"

Liu Shishi protested and pouted. After Cai Yinong left, she thought about how Shen Qing had pulled her into his arms that day. She didn't even realize that she was actually smiling as she recalled the memory.

But she should be angry!

The Ministry of Culture and the Film Bureau jointly organized a seminar on "Gravity," which Shen Qing naturally had to attend.

At the meeting, Shen Qing discussed his filmmaking plans for the coming year. Leaders from the Ministry of Culture, Director Tong and Deputy Director Zhang of the Film Bureau, Chairman Han Sanping of China Film Group, General Manager Wang of Enlight Media, and General Manager Yu of Bernard Entertainment, among others, were all eager to see Shen Qing continue making films similar to *Gravity*.

This is a large-scale production.

Even projects like the planned "Taken 3," whose predecessor was a huge success in North America, are now feeling a bit underwhelming.

"Taken 3" only grossed three or four hundred million US dollars at most, which is not as exciting as "Gravity" which is conservatively estimated to have grossed 1.3 or 1.4 billion US dollars.

"Distinguished leaders, *Gravity* is an exception! Its high box office success, besides its decent film quality, is primarily due to the global 3D craze sparked by *Avatar*, 20th Century Fox's efforts to upgrade cinemas worldwide, and the extreme thirst for similar 3D films after seeing *Avatar*. *Gravity* is the first true-to-life 3D film since *Avatar*—"

It's only because it's a genuine 3D film that it achieved such phenomenal box office success. Even if I were to make "The Martian" or "Interstellar," I could never replicate the immense success of "Gravity."

After the seminar, Shen Qing invited Fan Bingbing to dinner alone.

"So, does that mean I can have you all to myself for a week?"

After the waiter finished serving the dishes and left the private room, Fan Bingbing said with a half-smile.

The overseas rights to *Source Code* were sold to Legendary Pictures for $1400 million, plus 10% of the initial box office revenue, and it's finally set to officially launch in North America. Thomas Tull's intention is to capitalize on the continued popularity of *Gravity* and Shen Qing's rising fame in North America by releasing the film quickly. There will be a North American premiere before the release, which Shen Qing and Fan Bingbing, as the male and female leads, will naturally attend, a trip that will take about a week.

"If you're worried that the oxen will damage the fields, then I'll bring another person with me."

"Pshaw, there are only oxen that die from exhaustion, not land that's been over-plowed!"

"That's not necessarily true; not all cows are the same."

After exchanging a few more casual words, Fan Bingbing seemed to suddenly remember something and asked, "Do you really like that little actress named Liu Shishi that much?"

Shen Qing asked, "Why do you say that?"

Fan Bingbing said, "It's a low-budget romance movie, and you want to star in it yourself while I play a supporting role. Isn't that obvious?"

Shen Qing smiled and did not deny it.

That evening, Fan Bingbing stayed at Shen Qing's home.

Filming for "Palace" has wrapped up.

While on set, Yang Mi watched the news every day about "Gravity" breaking 10 billion and 10 billion US dollars at the box office, and saw the infatuated looks on the faces of the young girls in the crew when they talked about Shen Qing. She felt an irresistible itch to get back to her boyfriend. The first thing she did after returning to Beijing was to crawl into Shen Qing's bed, and she was even more unrestrained and carefree than usual.

Liu Yifei, Wan Qian, Li Yitong, Zhao Liying, and others were all similar, being much more proactive and relaxed than usual.

I never expected that the box office success of "Gravity" would have this effect.

Fortunately, Shen Qing's energy was strong enough to make Fan Bingbing admit that even an ox could damage the land, otherwise he really wouldn't have been able to handle it.

Avatar has been taken off the screens in the country.

Its final domestic box office was 13.1 billion yuan, more than 6800 million yuan less than the original timeline. With Avatar's run ending, Gravity became the only true 3D movie that audiences could see in theaters, and its daily box office even saw a slight decline.

As of 24:3 on March 21, "Gravity" had surpassed 12 billion yuan at the domestic box office, reaching 12.3 billion yuan. However, compared to its domestic box office, its North American and global box office figures were even more eye-catching.

Also as of March 21, Gravity had grossed $32.7 million in its fourth week in North America, unexpectedly achieving a four-week reign at number one.

With this, Gravity has grossed $4.89 million in North America and $13.37 billion worldwide.

When the news reached China, it caused a sensation no less than the previous achievement of breaking 1 billion yuan in domestic box office and 1 billion US dollars in global box office.

With a box office of $13.37 billion, Gravity has undeniably entered the top three of the all-time global box office charts!

First, *Avatar*. $26.6 billion (currently showing).

The second Titanic costs $18.45.

Third is *Gravity*! $13.37 billion (currently showing).

Fourth, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, $11.193 billion.

A new argument has emerged on the Chinese internet, claiming that Gravity's high box office success is entirely due to the 3D film revolution sparked by Avatar. Without Avatar paving the way, Gravity probably wouldn't have even grossed $5 million, let alone $13 billion.

This argument has some merit, but regardless, the rankings speak for themselves. Gravity, directed by a Chinese director and starring Chinese actors, is still in theaters and has already broken into the top three in global film history with a gross of $13.37 billion.

Shen Qing, right?

"I knew we'd definitely be in the top three globally this week, but I was only thinking about slightly surpassing fourth place. When the numbers came out, I was stunned—$13.37 billion! That's truly impressive!"

"Incredible!"

"Gravity is destined to go down in history."

"Do you guys think they'll be on the 7 PM news again? After all, they're in the top three, it's very symbolic!"

"I bet it'll happen!"

"I guessed so. How much do you think Shen Qing will earn this time? He gets a share of the profits from the high overseas box office, right? It can't be that with such high box office numbers, all the benefits will end up going to foreigners, can it?"

"Shen Qing isn't stupid! I heard that as soon as the project started filming, Shen Qing took $15 million in commission. Their company is the production company, with a production fee of $1500 million. If they can finish filming within $8000 million, then the $7000 million saved will go to Shen Qing, making a total of $1000 million. In addition, Shen Qing will also receive 2500% of the initial total box office revenue from overseas. Not all of the $13 billion is from overseas box office. Assuming it is, Shen Qing will probably get about $1 million."

"Awesome!"

"Impressive, but there's one thing I don't understand. Why did the production company allocate $8000 million for production, and stipulate that any savings up to $7000 million would belong to Shen Qing?"

"That's how it is in Hollywood. I heard that Shen Qing asked for a production budget of $7000 million. The production company was afraid that he would overspend. What if the $7000 million was spent but the movie was only half-finished? What would they do then? Keep investing money? What if they still ran out of money before it was finished? So the extra $1000 million was actually to prevent them from overspending. If the production budget exceeded $8000 million, the production company would deduct money from Shen Qing's earnings."

"Oh, I see!"

"It seems quite reasonable."

>