Global Film Emperor

Chapter 469 Gradually Changing
The incident caused by the exile was no small matter. On the contrary, all matters concerning animal protection organizations are considered serious in Western countries. The incident gradually escalated, first sparking anger among animal protection organizations in the UK, and then animal protectors from many other countries joined in, even smearing the creators of "Exile".

For example, accusations of animal abuse by Mickey or Lu Ze have been fabricated against many of the film's creators. These crimes, which only exist in the minds of animal rights activists, seem to have been made concrete and real, gaining the trust of many people and generating hostility and even resentment towards the creative team.

This time, it could be said that Lu Ze, Mickey, and even Universal Brothers have broken through the barriers of the film industry and become famous in many circles.

But such fame is definitely not what any of Lu Ze and his colleagues wanted. In order to avoid being blamed for this, Mickey had no choice but to use legal means to protect his and his colleagues' innocence, even though this is usually the last resort used by artists and companies when they are subjected to cyberbullying and slander.

Of course, conflicts will always occur. Many viewers who have seen "Exile" have taken the initiative to stand up for the film and Mickey and others. In fact, most viewers who have seen "Exile" did not pay much attention to the scene of the lobster restaurant on the beach and never expected that this scene would hurt the sensitive hearts of some extreme animal rights activists.

In defending "Exile," many viewers also encountered attacks from animal rights activists, which led many people to have a prejudice against animal protection organizations. Regardless of whether this public opinion storm is won or lost, it will not benefit animal rights activists. After all, extremism, sensitivity, and fragility are gradually replacing people's original kind label for animal rights activists.

There has been a constant stream of criticism regarding "Exile" and Universal Brothers Pictures, with many major newspapers joining in. Yesterday, there were even instances of animal rights activists blocking moviegoers from entering cinemas, even if the people weren't actually watching "Exile."

Since the outbreak of the incident, the box office of "Exile" has shown a clear downward trend in many countries, but this does not worry Mickey too much, because he knows that the incident will soon take an important turn, which may prove that it is easy to brainwash people.

……

In real life, most people, including Lu Ze, are unwilling to visit Mickey's home because his new house has an unconventional style that can create a sense of oppression. It seems that everyone except Mickey would feel uncomfortable with it.

Beneath the dark red walls, there was a matching four-piece bedding set in the same color. Above the bed hung an abstract portrait, not by a famous artist, but by an unknown painter who supposedly died of depression.

The twisted body resembles a ritual dance, with its head twisted 180 degrees to face out of the frame. Its irregularly shaped eyes have pupils pointing downwards, as if observing the actions of the people in the room.

The young model beside her had already woken up, but upon opening her eyes and seeing this eerie portrait, she chose to close her eyes again, trying to use the darkness in her eyes to shield herself from the fear brought by the sight she saw when she opened them. To be honest, if Mickey were famous and rich enough, she would never have come to Mickey's house to spend the night with this mentally unstable madman. You know, even though she was exhausted last night, she still didn't sleep well and even had several nightmares that she couldn't remember at all.

The phone rang. Mickey was still fast asleep beside her. He was a very peaceful sleeper, not snoring, not talking in his sleep, and not turning over. His hands were folded over his lower abdomen, and he looked as serene as a sleeping vampire. Helpless, the young model gently nudged the man who frightened her and handed him the phone. She then put on a thin nightgown and went into the bathroom, looking down at the famous painting "The Scream" hanging on the bathroom wall.

Why are you calling me so early?

"I heard there's a lot of commotion in Liverpool? Should I go back?"

"No need, I've already taken care of it. You don't need to worry about it. Just stay home and enjoy the New Year. China is so peaceful and there aren't so many troubles here."

He sat on the edge of the bed, brushing the long hair that had fallen across his forehead behind his head, chatting idly with Lu Ze while disassembling the nesting dolls that Lucas had brought back from Russia.

He picked up the cigarette pack; it was light and flimsy. He shook it gently, but no sound came out. He frowned, crushed the pack, and tossed it into the trash can. The beautiful model emerged from the bathroom, wearing a semi-transparent gauze nightgown that Mickey had given her. Mickey seemed to have a strange need for nightgowns, always keeping a few at home for the women who stayed overnight. However, his gaze wasn't fixed on the genitals, seeking a subtle, hazy beauty. Instead, he observed the waist and legs, the angle of light refraction between the sheer and opaque areas.

Seeing Mickey on the phone, the tanned, Latina-looking young model pointed to the door. After receiving a nod from Mickey, she tiptoed out the door.

"That's good. Has Fatini contacted you these past few days?"

"They asked if I needed any help, but I refused. Is there anything else? If not, I'll hang up. It's so annoying to be called so early in the morning; I'm sleepy."

"There is one. Do you have any connections with European publishers?"

"What? Publishing a book?" "Yeah."

"Oh ho, so you've been an actor for so long that you want to become a writer now? I don't have any business dealings with publishing houses."

After spending a few days in the capital, Mickey picked up some non-authentic Beijing accent, adding the retroflex endings in a rather strange way. But Mickey seemed to love speaking Chinese that way, making Lu Ze feel particularly awkward.

It was probably because Lu Ze disturbed his sleep that he was being so annoying. Lu Ze couldn't stand it, so he said a few words and hung up the phone. Mickey grinned and revealed a slightly bland victory smile. Then, he saw a Facebook @ message in the notification bar, which made the smile even more unrestrained.

A retweet comment from the official Facebook page of the Liverpool animal protection organization clearly indicates that Marshall has made his choice.

"In the past few days, the controversy surrounding the film 'Exile' has gradually spread to various European countries. After careful and repeated viewings of the film, my organization has made a summary and would like to express our views here. We also urge all kind-hearted colleagues to approach this matter with a calm mindset and never resort to violence to solve problems, as this is something that no one can bear."

"After friendly consultations with the creative team behind 'Exile' and a correct interpretation of the film's core content, it can be confirmed that the spirit of 'Exile' is correct and healthy. Any need for food is understandable. As human beings, as the film says, we should stand from a human perspective and treat vulnerable lives with kindness."

This comment is long and tedious, but its general message is that killing animals for food is understandable, since everyone here is human, a higher life form at the top of the food chain, and should not abandon humanity to seek companionship with weaker creatures.

Furthermore, humans should not be singled out and completely separated from other life forms, because humans are also part of the ecosystem. After humans die, they will feed other life forms. In a fundamental sense, there is no difference between humans eating meat and tigers eating meat. This should be treated calmly. In this regard, animal protection organizations have specifically criticized extremist members, claiming that they have distorted the original intention of animal protection. The purpose of the organization is to protect other life forms from being hunted because of economic ties. Being too serious about food needs is putting the cart before the horse.

That's roughly the gist of it. After watching the whole thing, Mickey suddenly realized that Marshall's ability to downplay the issue was indeed quite remarkable. The reason the animal rights activists are rioting now is because there are scenes in "Exile" that smear them. Mickey has never denied this, because that scene was indeed meant to smear them.

Now, Marshall doesn't mention that scene at all, but only analyzes the core spirit of "Exile" and offers his support, letting animal rights activists focus on their words and completely diverting their attention. Mickey browsed the comments and found that no one was still arguing about that scene. On the contrary, they were as devout as if they had heard the Bible, expressing regret for their words and actions in recent days, and even going so far as to apologize to Mickey on Facebook.

This fully demonstrates that when people enter a group, their IQ really does decrease, and they become more easily manipulated. This is especially true for teenagers whose minds are not yet fully developed. They behave even worse, lacking independent thought and self-determination, readily trusting others, and easily choosing their spiritual leaders.

This can be a good thing, as it allows people to quickly find role models, set their own goals, and greatly benefit their growth, provided that they choose the right spiritual leader.

The kind of person I want to be may sound like imitating my role model, but it's not shameful at all. If this has a negative impact on your future, then don't doubt it, there must be something wrong with the role model you trust, just like Marshall, the role model for these young animal rights activists.

When a role model you trust stands on the side of your sworn enemy and presents a set of reasons that you find convincing, what will you choose? To make peace with the enemy? That's not surprising at all.

Of course, there will still be people with firm stances. Even if their organizations have clarified the situation regarding "Exile", people with their own opinions will not quickly change their stance. How should we deal with such people?

It's very simple: sending them friendly signals will easily dispel any lingering resentment they may have.

"Kesha, go to the police station and release those guys who vandalized the company. Have them sign a settlement agreement, and we'll pay their bail. We'll get it done in a bit."

This matter shouldn't be handled by me; the director should take the lead, since he's the main target of the attack. The one who tied the knot must untie it.

After making one phone call, all he needed to do was this. This incident might not be a strange loss for them. On the contrary, it might become an important factor for the second takeoff of "Exile". Everything depends on whether the public's impression of Universal Brothers improves.

"..."

(End of this chapter)