Global Film Emperor

Chapter 422 Mickey's Another Bombshell!

In the blink of an eye, more than a month has passed, and the season has changed from late spring to midsummer. However, the temperature in the UK during the summer is much lower than in China, remaining consistently below 30 degrees Celsius. If it weren't for the fact that it is located in a coastal city where rainy days account for more than half of the year, Liverpool would truly be a very suitable city for retirement.

Thanks to Lu Ze, the crew evacuated Kassel Island yesterday, ending the filming of their island life. However, it was precisely because of Lu Ze's stable performance that the filming schedule was halved compared to expectations, completely disrupting Ke Sha's planned filming schedule and causing the crew to stop work for three days, leaving Ke Sha to readjust the filming schedule.

After leaving the Hawaiian-style manor room and sleeping in his own bed, Lu Ze suddenly had the illusion that the room had shrunk. Although his current residence was considered one of the top wealthy residences in Liverpool, the difference was still very obvious compared to the manor, and there was no comparison.

Despite the small size of the room, Lu Ze slept much better than in the manor's guest rooms. His own bed provided a sense of security that the guest rooms couldn't offer. Perhaps this is what the Chinese call "small room gathers energy" – a concept that suggests that small rooms can hold a lot of energy.

Eight hours of sleep is more than enough. Feeling refreshed, I went to the bathroom to groom myself. My dark skin shone with a healthy glow, making my face look even more resolute.

Lu Ze, who was in a good mood, was suddenly overcome with gloom while washing and rubbing his hair. The amount of hair falling out of his hands was more than normal. Looking in the mirror and lifting his bangs, he found that his hairline had not receded. He took a picture of the back of his head with his phone and there were no obvious thinning areas, which reassured Lu Ze a little.

The water in the UK is quite hard, and prolonged contact with the scalp can indeed lead to hair loss. Just look at the princes of the British royal family; most of them have bald patches as they get older. Lu Ze hadn't paid much attention to it before, since he had thick hair and rarely had any gray hair, let alone hair loss. But now, this handful of hair in his hand has given him a wake-up call.

He really needs to protect his hair, otherwise going bald will not only narrow his acting opportunities, but if he really ends up with a kappa-like hairstyle, he will be too embarrassed to show his face in public, just like Song Guiyuan, who would probably be laughed at to death.

Even someone as composed as Lu Ze would panic when faced with hair loss. He even hesitated to wash his hair with tap water, instead rushing to the kitchen to fetch a bottle of mineral water to clean his hair, while still considering whether to use some hair growth products.

Lu Ze was worried about this all morning. He knew that washing his hair with mineral water all the time wasn't a good solution. Just as he was fretting over it, his phone rang. It was Mickey calling.

"Hey? Why are you calling me so early?"

"The filming at Blue Channel has finished, and the champion has been chosen. If you're free, come to the company now. Kesha and the others are here too. Let's set their filming dates and also think about which role it would be best for them to be in."

Who won the championship?

"What's the man's name... let me see. Oh, Ding Zhiyi. The woman's name is Xu Shuang. Okay, we'll talk about the details when we meet. There's one more thing... well, never mind, we'll talk about it when you come to the company."

"Ding Zhiyi..."

After hanging up the phone, Lu Ze smiled. It was a name he missed. The two had worked together on the movie "Wrong Love" before, but the movie received only so-so reviews, and they hadn't been in touch since.

He had met Ding Zhiyi at the recording site of Zhejiang TV before, but before they could speak, they were delayed by negotiations. He was looking forward to Ding Zhiyi calling him, but for some reason, his phone number never appeared on Lu Ze's caller ID.

The last time Lu Ze saw him, although he still looked like a handsome young man, he was actually already thirty years old. Lu Ze sometimes felt that time really flies. In the blink of an eye, the creamy-faced young man was about to miss the golden period of his career as a high-quality male actor.

Compared to Lu Ze, whose career has been thriving in Europe in recent years, Ding Zhiyi's career in China has been rather bleak. Despite his commendable acting skills, hard work, and strong learning ability, coupled with his attractive face, it is no exaggeration to say that he has unlimited potential.

But this promising talent is stuck in romance movies and can't seem to break free. The film offers he receives are mostly for lovey-dovey stuff. Even if he hasn't had enough, the audience is getting tired of it.

Logically speaking, it's perfect to make romance movies in your early twenties, since your acting skills aren't mature yet. Making simple, popular works is the right choice. After you turn twenty-five, it's not shameful to make these kinds of movies. You might even make a blockbuster. It's worth taking a gamble.

But once you're over thirty, it's a bit unacceptable for a film actor whose acting skills have matured to the point of being ridiculed as an "old cow eating young grass."

To put it bluntly, romance movies are the most suitable choice for TV actors to switch careers or as a whetstone for young actors just starting out in the industry. However, for actors who have been in the industry for several years or even more than ten years, making movies that please young girls is undoubtedly self-destructive.

Clearly, Ding Zhiyi also realized this, and three years ago he tried to transform his career for the first time, even going so far as to switch careers to film period dramas, but the results were not good and fell far short of expectations.

After that, the company stopped mentioning his career transition and asked him to get back on track. At least until a real turnaround occurred, he should continue to honestly make movies that suited him. This implied that he understood that his fate had been set by the higher-ups: either continue to cause trouble and be abandoned by the company, or make money for the company until he got old and could no longer make money, at which point he would be abandoned by the company.

He was unwilling to accept it, but dared not resist. He was depressed for several years until the appearance of "The Performer" brought a turning point. He knew in his heart how many resources he had given up, how many colleagues he had offended, and how many senior executives in the company he had disliked. But he still hoped to give it a shot. As long as he won, he could win back everything he had lost, and the problems that had been troubling his career could be solved.

That was all Lu Ze knew. He wasn't surprised that Ding Zhiyi won the championship. Even his warning to Zhejiang TV about not allowing any behind-the-scenes manipulation was to give Ding Zhiyi a chance. If no one had manipulated the championship, he wouldn't have won it. Lu Ze had nothing to say about Ding Zhiyi's serious decline in skill.

This is good news. Lu Ze does not deny that he favors Ding Zhiyi. It is only human nature to prefer people he admires among a group of unfamiliar contestants. As long as things are done fairly, no one can find fault with it.

He put the breakfast plate in the dishwasher, changed into a T-shirt and shorts, and headed out the door toward the company. He knew in his heart that the main reason Mickey called him was definitely related to the second thing he hadn't mentioned.

……

Carrying his car keys, he greeted Jill, the old man in the mailroom, knocked on the conference room door, and after receiving a response, pushed it open. Inside, all the windows were wide open, and the ashtray was full of cigarette butts. Mickey was sitting in the main seat, writing furiously with a cigarette in his mouth. Lu Ze didn't even look up when he entered the room.

He pulled out a chair, blew away the scattered cigarette ash on the table, tossed his car keys aside, crossed his arms, leaned back in his chair, and closed his eyes to rest, not disturbing Mickey. "Phew...he's here?"

The cigarette butt burned his mouth, so Mickey stubbed it out, stretched, greeted Lu Ze, pinched the corner of his eye, and let out a long yawn.

"You didn't sleep all night?"

"To be precise, I haven't slept for two days. Lucas and the other two will be here soon, and we'll discuss the roles then. Right now, it's just the two of us in the room, so I want to talk to you about something else."

"Ok?"

Seeing that Mickey's eyes were as dark as a panda's and he looked completely exhausted, Lu Ze shook his head, got up and poured him a cup of coffee. He didn't try to persuade him to rest early, since this guy always worked like a man without regard for his life, so it would be pointless to advise him.

"I had some inspiration a few days ago and had a new idea that I wanted to film. I've been busy writing the script these past few days. Sigh... I feel much better after drinking some coffee."

"Are you having trouble with the new script?"

Seeing that he was frowning, unlike his usual relaxed and happy smile after finishing a script, Lu Ze knew that this script was quite difficult. Even if Mickey couldn't handle it, it would at least give him some trouble.

"Yes, the romance storyline is a bit difficult. I find it hard to write a character who is extremely tender and pure, like a white moonlight. It's too difficult. A normal person can't be purely good or purely evil. Under the influence of emotions and desires, good and evil should be integrated, not opposites. A person who is always kind doesn't exist in my understanding, so I can't write one."

"I'm not good at screenwriting, and I can't write anything."

"But you're a monster actor, capable of bringing all sorts of people to life. At least you can give me some advice."

"Okay, I'll try my best..."

Lu Ze picked up the manuscript paper and saw that the ink on it was not completely dry. He gently blew on it until the ink was no longer sticky to his hands. Then he stared at the words on it. After reading the first page, he picked up the second page. Just two minutes later, his gaze sharpened, and even his pupils shrank. He frowned and looked at Mickey with a serious expression.

"What is this thing you wrote?"

Mickey lit another cigarette, grinned, loosened the hair tie that held his long hair tightly, and shook his head, revealing his greasy hair that shimmered. Lu Ze noticed that his hair was also thinning a bit...

Of course, this is not important.

"Are not you just saw it?"

"You're fucking insane!"

“I’ll take this as a compliment, but I can’t accept it. I’m very clear-headed, more clear-headed than anyone else. It’s you who are sleeping in your dreams. I’ve already thought of a movie title. How about ‘Nothing to Hear’? After you finish filming ‘Exile’ and Fatino’s assassin movie, which is expected to start filming in two years, you, the Emperor of the Dragon Clan, will play the male lead. In these two years, I will continue to polish this story, and then together with you, we will ignite this world.”

His expression was somewhat fierce, but the smile on his lips never disappeared. He stared intently at Lu Ze, a cigarette dangling from his lips, expecting his response. Lu Ze was speechless for a moment. Looking into Mickey's eyes, he once again re-evaluated Mickey's values, and even Lu Ze felt a chill run down his spine.

He wanted to film a story.

The story of a child born with a disability.

The story of a disabled child who endured eight years of school bullying, yet no one cared about him.

There are many horrors in the world, but the most chilling ones are hidden in school campuses.

"..."

Because he is a shareholder of the company, he should have been informed when the script was being prepared. Currently, "No One to Hear" is still in the script improvement stage and cannot be considered a film that has been added to the release schedule. Even Fatino's new film is still in an unknown stage. Therefore, the recent plot is not due to a faster pace or a messed-up outline. It is just that due to their different identities, he was informed of the project in advance. If they continue to maintain the pace of finishing one film before starting the next, it would be unreasonable.

The pace isn't sped up; it's just that the timeline has been stretched out. By informing everyone about future developments in advance through Lu Ze's current identity, it's also a response to some comments that the outline is messed up.

Requesting votes, thank you everyone.

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(End of this chapter)