Huayu Entertainment Starts with Xiang Yu, the Hegemon of Western Chu

Yang Mi hadn't arrived when filming for "Brotherhood of Blades" started.

Jiang Yang met with the other main actors first.

The eldest brother, Lu Jianxing, is played by Wang Qianyuan. He was not well-known before, but he only started to gain recognition after winning the Tokyo Film Festival Best Actor award for "The Piano in a Factory" a couple of years ago.

Wang Qianyuan is also a second-generation star; his father is the vice president and a first-class actor of the Liaoning Provincial People's Art Theatre.

Of course, this second generation is a bit old.

He was born in 72, in his early forties, so it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say he played Jiang Yang's father.

The third brother, Xie Miao, was quite affectionate towards Jiang Yang because he had heard that it was Jiang Yang who recommended him, which is why the director cast him as Jin Yichuan.

Although I'm clearly older, I played the younger brother, but that's irrelevant.

This has always been the rule in the entertainment industry.

Whoever has the biggest name is the "big brother".

The three brothers from "Brotherhood of Blades" have officially reunited, and the rest are naturally the villains.

Jin Shijie plays Wei Zhongxian in the film. In Jiang Yang's opinion, he is a true veteran actor who is more suitable for the role of "the uncrowned king" than Zhang Zhen.

Older generations of Taiwanese actors generally don't have accents.

Jin Shijie's private life is somewhat controversial. He married a 22-year-old female student when he was 57 years old, and although he once adhered to the principle of remaining single, he gave birth to twins at the age of 60.

Fortunately, it didn't become a huge hit, so there wasn't much discussion about it.

But precisely because he had a child late in life, he worked very hard to earn money for baby formula, taking on any role without being picky, including some terrible historical dramas.

At least Jin Shijie's performance was decent, which, in a sense, improved the overall quality of the bad drama.

His portrayal of Wei Zhongxian in "Brotherhood of Blades" was outstanding.

Wei Zhongxian's acting was excellent, which made acting opposite him very stressful. Apart from Shen Lian, played by Jiang Yang, the actor with whom he had the most scenes was his godson Zhao Jingzhong.

As the newly appointed head of the Eastern Depot, Zhao Jingzhong wanted to kill Wei Zhongxian as soon as possible, but he was also extremely wary of him.

He harbored a deep-seated fear of his godfather.

Fortunately, Nie Yuan is also a good actor, which is why he was able to keep up with Jin Shijie's performance.

Nie Yuan was in the class of '96 at the Shanghai Theatre Academy, the same class as Hao Lei, who played "Qin Huairu". He was a year older than Yan Yikuan and Yang Rong, and Jiang Yang called him his senior.

They could have formed a friendship, but Jiang Yang's mention of another layer of connection made Nie Yuan slightly embarrassed.

He was also a soldier under director Gao Xixi.

The Zhao Yun in "New Three Kingdoms" exists in another dimension because Nie Yuan had other projects filming at the time, and his schedule was very tight, so he couldn't join other actors.

Therefore, Zhao Yun's scenes were mostly reshot separately, and he often showed a mysterious smile that was difficult to understand.

There were no actors acting opposite him, of course he was confused!

Are you swearing?

Nie Yuan himself was in the wrong, so he could only secretly blame his junior brother for bringing up such a sensitive topic.

However, he performed well in "Brotherhood of Blades". Even though he often played the role of a young general with a white horse and silver spear, he did not make people feel out of place when he played a eunuch.

What's even more remarkable is that he didn't use a high-pitched voice to portray the stereotypical shrill eunuch.

This old man knows martial arts!

Being able to fight is one thing, but the fact that the character isn't faked by the audience shows that the character is believable.

Nie Yuan can act.

How well someone performs in a particular role depends on whether it's worthwhile for them to perform and whether they're given the opportunity to do so.

Finally, there's Zhou Yiwei, the most popular actor in "Brotherhood of Blades," a master of memorable scenes, and a supporting actor whose presence even surpasses that of the main character.

Ding Xiu was stolen by him.

Zhang Zhen and Nie Yuan both wanted to play Ding Xiu after reading the script. Fortunately, Zhou Yiwei and Lu Yang were old partners, which saved them this flamboyant little role.

Jiang Yang discovered that this guy was indeed flamboyant.

He flirted with Zhu Dan, who played Wei Ting, Wei Zhongxian's goddaughter, and their behavior was so sour and offensive.

These two didn't meet while filming "Brotherhood of Blades"; they were already in a passionate relationship. When they were photographed together, they didn't hesitate and openly admitted it.

Overall, the cast of "Brotherhood of Blades" is very solid.

Regardless of their fame or whether they played leading or supporting roles, they were all truly talented actors, and almost everyone except the female lead received positive reviews.

Let's leave aside the female lead's situation.

Actually, the one with the most doubts was Jiang Yang himself.

Why was Zhang Zhen replaced?

Those with inside information have already heard about Jiang Yang "spending nine million to buy the male lead".

This can't be hidden, and there's no need to hide it.

If you get together and chat for a bit, everyone will know soon enough.

Isn't Jiang Yang too young?

He only recently became popular, and that was because of the idol drama "Legend of Lu Zhen".

Is he capable of making movies?

Jiang Yang didn't need to explain; his bravado wasn't just for show, and the truth would come out in time.

He did indeed have his own ideas about Shen Lian.

Although Shen Lian is the male lead in "Brotherhood of Blades", he is indecisive and lacks any real personal charm, making him less charismatic than Ding Xiu.

What should we do then?

The solid script of "Brotherhood of Blades" is an advantage; changing it would be a huge undertaking, and Lu Yang would not agree to it.

It's okay, there's a way.

Besides Xie Miao, the person who welcomed Jiang Yang the most on set was the film's action director, Sang Lin.

Thank goodness, finally someone who can fight has arrived!

He is not a well-known action choreographer, but he is characterized by realistic action design and emphasizes "real kung fu". This is also the action style discussed with director Lu Yang.

The problem is, where is the real kung fu in "Brotherhood of Blades"?

The action scenes were on par with the original...

One word: Broken.

In short, utterly shattered.

It's almost impossible to find a coherent action shot!

Because Lu Yang followed this principle when selecting actors:

Acting is more important than fighting.

The characters in "Brotherhood of Blades" were indeed well-written, but the action scenes were a weakness, a fact that Lu Yang himself couldn't deny. So, for "Brotherhood of Blades 2," they underwent two months of intensive training before filming began.

Unfortunately, they still didn't use action actors.

Even the most skilled cook can't make a meal without rice; no matter how brilliant the action director's design is, if the actors can't execute it, it's just a waste of time.

Jiang Yang's appearance is Sang Lin's salvation.

What a magnificent "Number One Blade Under Heaven"!

Of course, Xie Miao could also be a good choice, but his role as Jin Yichuan in the film is too minor.

Jiang Yang quickly became acquainted with Sang Lin, who felt an instant connection with him, especially praising his swordsmanship. Jiang Yang then took the opportunity to offer his suggestions.

"What? Shen Lian is the number one expert?"

The script's framework couldn't be changed, so the only thing to work on was the action scenes.

Shen Lian has a slow and indecisive personality, but if he can fight, that would be a big plus.

In martial arts films, "the best in the world" is a very important setting. Just look at the novel "Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils" with its many masters. The Shaolin Sweeper Monk, who doesn't even have a proper character name, made a huge impact with just one appearance.

In "Brotherhood of Blades," Ding Xiu originally occupied this ecological niche.

If he were even slightly less skilled, the audience wouldn't regret it if he died a hundred times.

In the original version, Shen Lian had two one-on-one duels with Zhao Jingzhong, and won both times, but the victories were hard-fought, both being Pyrrhic victories after being initially defeated.

Similar to Ultraman, he can't unleash his ultimate move unless the enemy is at low health.

Shen Lian's victory was entirely due to his high HP. While others were as fragile as paper and would die with a single poke, he was not only unharmed after being stabbed through, but he could also fill his rage gauge and unleash a powerful counterattack.

Is this true?

Now that Jiang Yang is involved, Shen Lian has more possibilities in action scenes, and Sang Lin is eager to try.

When they found Lu Yang, the latter smiled.

"You played Xiang Yu, then Li Yuanba, then Lanling Wang. Your principles for choosing roles are quite consistent."

"Playing a low-ranking officer in the Imperial Guard is beneath you; it's not satisfying enough."

"You won't act unless it's the most intense one, huh?"