Huayu Entertainment 1995 started with hijacking.

Chapter 212 After 20 years of striving for the Olympics, it's finally happened!
"I'll contact these people, and if they're interested, I'll meet with them in person when I get back."

Wu Yuchen was giving instructions to producer James about the main actors in "The Pirate King." He now held considerable power in the project and was basically the one who made the decisions.

This naturally relates to the actors of several main characters in "The Pirate King." Jack Sparrow, of course, is Johnny Depp, without a doubt. He is the soul of the entire film, and only he could portray such a rare and quirky protagonist charm with his delicate hand gestures and hip-swaying movements.

Then there's the second male lead, the blacksmith Will Turner. Compared to Captain Jack Sparrow, he possesses the typical characteristics of a protagonist: upright, brave, kind, and capable in combat. However, in this movie, he can only be the second male lead.

This role was originally intended for Orlando Bloom, but he couldn't take it. It certainly wasn't because he didn't want to. Few people can resist Wu Yuchen's movies these days, it's just that he's currently in New Zealand with the Lord of the Rings crew, playing his iconic role as the Elf Prince!
Fortunately, the role of the blacksmith isn't irreplaceable; Wu Yuchen plans to cast Hugh Jackman. To be honest, compared to Elf Prince, Wolverine possesses a stronger sense of masculinity, making him a better fit for the blacksmith's character.

Hugh Jackman already had some fame after starring in Wu Yuchen's "Frequency" a couple of years ago. Although he didn't get to star in "Phone Booth," he's still doing quite well these past two years. Last year, he took on the role of Wolverine in "X-Men," which was released this summer.

In his previous life, Hugh Jackman only received $50 for his role in X-Men, but this time he received $300 million. He was very happy to be directly cast in Wu Yuchen's big production and agreed with just one phone call.

Wu Yuchen won't treat him unfairly; he'll offer him 400 million for his role in "The Pirate King." After "X-Men" is released in a few months, Hugh Jackman's popularity will rise even further, and hiring him then will likely start at 800 million.

Then there's the villain, Captain Barbossa. The actor from the previous life, Geoffrey Rush, played him very well, so naturally they won't replace him; they'll still cast him.

"As for the female lead... let's have a public audition. She must be suitable for period costumes and have that classical beauty. Also, she needs to be brave, or rather, have a wild and untamed spirit. The ladylike appearance and rebellious personality will create a contrast."

Wu Yuchen stated his requirements. Actually, Keira Knightley was quite good in his previous life, but he wanted to see if there was anyone better. For now, he'd keep Keira Knightley as a backup option; if not, he'd go for her.

As for the actors specializing in pirate roles, the selection process was naturally left to the production team, so Wu Yuchen didn't need to worry about it.

"In addition, we need to hire several historians who are knowledgeable about the history of 17th-century pirate culture as consultants, and we need to be involved in the set design, such as costume design, props, navigation, and weapons."

James listened to Wu Yuchen's instructions and wrote them down one by one.

After speaking to the producer, Wu Yuchen turned to his agent, Karl, and said, "I have the adaptation rights to a few novels. Go and contact the authors for me and try to secure them."

Carl immediately took out paper and pen to record.

The rights to bestselling novels in Europe and America are not cheap, and many have been acquired by major studios. However, Wu Yuchen's targets are not necessarily bestselling novels; some are lesser-known works, but are intended to prepare him for future Oscar consideration.

He had also thought about some film themes, such as the classic "The Pianist," and the theme of Jewish suffering has been popular in recent years for garnering sympathy and winning awards.

However, he can't make this kind of movie. Putting aside whether the original author would even sell it to him, just the fact that he, a Chinese person, would make a film about the traumatic history of Jewish people is just nonsense, isn't it?

Don't Chinese people have a painful history of suffering in World War II? If a Chinese director doesn't speak up for Chinese people and instead makes a film about the suffering of Jews, even if he wins an award, it will only make his own people criticize him. Wu Yuchen definitely won't do that.

The same logic applies to films about Black civil rights. White people can make films about Black civil rights because white people generally have a higher social status in America; it's akin to the strong advocating for the weak. However, Chinese people, or more broadly, Asian people, have even less say in America and face more discrimination.

As a Chinese person, Wu Yuchen should prioritize making films about Chinese people when he's making films about equality. Otherwise, if he makes a film about Black equality, it just doesn't align with his own interests! If he actually makes a film about Black equality, maybe only Black people would thank him; even a bunch of white people would probably find it baffling—"How can a Chinese person be so empathetic towards Black people?"
Therefore, although both of these themes are likely to win awards and many films are considered strong contenders for the Oscars, he will not choose either of them.

Wu Yuchen delegated everything he could to them, naturally because he was about to return to China with his Oscar statuette. As the saying goes, "To return home in glory is like wearing fine clothes at night."

Although he didn't win Best Director, the Best Foreign Language Film award for "Amour" alone has already caused a sensation in China. Everyone is eagerly waiting for him to bring the Oscar back. Han Sanping is calling him every day, urging him to return. If he doesn't come back soon, the country will be in an uproar.

……

At one of the arrival gates at Beijing Airport, a huge crowd had gathered, forming several layers around the area. The airport had anticipated this situation and had specifically dispatched a team of staff to maintain order.

The outermost perimeter was filled with onlookers and fans, some holding flowers, others carrying banners, chatting excitedly with joyful expressions on their faces.

Further inside was a group of reporters carrying long lenses and microphones. However, since the plane hadn't landed yet, they weren't using their equipment and were just chatting and joking around.

"Hey, this is quite a big mobilization! Look, even government officials have been mobilized. We've never seen anything like this before!"

As the reporter spoke, he looked at a small group of people standing at the very front of the arrival gate, and there stood Han Sanping.

"How can that be the same? This is China's first Oscar! Its significance is extraordinary!"

"Wu Yuchen is truly amazing. He said he'd win an Oscar, and he did it with ease! He said he'd make money in the US, and the box office skyrocketed. Just a few days ago, Disney announced that 'The Sixth Sense' had already grossed $7.5 million worldwide. I wonder if it can reach $8 million."

"8 million US dollars! Tsk tsk tsk, this movie's box office is four or five times that of China's entire annual box office. It's incomparable! It's just a pity. A few years ago, it would have been the world's highest-grossing film. But last year, there was a Star Wars prequel. Sigh!"

Star Wars is like the American equivalent of Journey to the West, one of the cultural symbols of the United States. This Star Wars prequel, The Phantom Menace, has grossed over 9 million dollars, making it the second highest-grossing film in history after Titanic.

"Hehe, Director Wu is still so young, he will definitely be able to win the global championship in the future!" The reporter said with great confidence, clearly full of confidence in Wu Yuchen.

"Yes, that's exactly what makes him worthy of being called China's number one director! No wonder he can easily attract $1 million in investment; Director Wu's name alone is worth $1 million!"

Among the small group of people at the arrival gate were not only Han Sanping, but also Hou Keming from Beijing Film Studio. Zhu Yongde, the general manager of Shanghai Film Studio, also came in person this time, after all, the female lead in the movie, the old lady Wang Danfeng, was from Shanghai Film Studio!
Zhu Yongde looked up at his watch for the third time: "It's already past the appointed time, why hasn't the plane landed yet?"

Han Sanping remained calm: "It's an international flight, it takes more than ten hours to fly, so it's normal for it to be a little off-time."

Just then, the roar of airplanes outside grew louder and louder.

"I'm coming!"

Immediately, the reporters all hoisted their cameras and microphones, ready for anything. Outside, a circle of fans buzzed with excitement, holding up banners. Han Sanping and his group also stood at the entrance, eagerly anticipating what was to come.

Everyone was filled with anticipation, and every second felt incredibly long.

Finally, after a long while, the crowd erupted in cheers the moment the group emerged.

The person leading the way was none other than Wu Yuchen. He walked at the front with a smile on his face and his head held high, holding an Oscar statuette in his hand!
"The Oscars are here!"

"Ahhh! Wu Yuchen, I love you!"

"Welcome home!"

"Gong Li!"

"Uncle Ge!"

Hearing the screams erupting outside, Wu Yuchen saw the red banner being raised:

"A warm welcome to 'Amour' for winning the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film!"

Wu Yuchen smiled. The enthusiasm of China for the Oscars right now is truly indescribable!
Before boarding yesterday, he knew by phone that someone would be picking him up today, so he took out the Oscar before disembarking. The other passengers on the plane were also very considerate, letting Wu Yuchen and the crew of "Love" come out first to enjoy this honor.

When Wu Yuchen and his group arrived at the arrival gate, Han Sanping and his entourage proactively greeted them and shook hands with Wu Yuchen: "Director Wu, welcome back! China Film Group thanks you all!"

Wu Yuchen didn't say anything, but handed over the little golden statuette in his hand, which immediately prompted Han Sanping, Zhu Yongde and others to reach out and touch it: "After 20 years of trying to win the Olympics, it's finally done!"

Hou Keming came up and hugged Wu Yuchen tightly, gripping his shoulders. He didn't say anything else, just repeatedly said "good" three times.

At this moment, reporters and photographers kept surging forward, frantically pressing the shutter to take pictures, all recording this moment of the Oscars landing in China.

The screams of fans on the perimeter were even more frenzied, and the security personnel worked hard to maintain order, but they also managed to let over a few people who had arranged in advance to present flowers.

Not only Wu Yuchen received flowers, but Ge Cunzhuang, Wang Danfeng, Gong Li, and even Huang Lei also received flowers. Han Sanping and others also shook hands with everyone in the crew.

Looking at this scene, Wu Yuchen couldn't help but sigh. In his previous life, Li An won an Oscar for "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" but didn't receive this kind of treatment!

why?
Because the submission party for "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" was not mainland China, but Taiwan!

Although the film was shot in mainland China, it was submitted for review and won an award on behalf of Taiwan. What does it have to do with China Film Group or similar organizations? They don't benefit from it at all. At most, China Film Group and similar organizations on the mainland will just clap and congratulate them.

But things are different now. "Love" is a mainland Chinese film, submitted for censorship in mainland China. Wu Yuchen is a pure mainland director. The filming process involved China Film Group and Shanghai Film Group. If we don't give it a grand welcome and make a big show of it, how can we demonstrate the contributions that China Film Group and Shanghai Film Group have made to Chinese cinema? How can we demonstrate that I, Han Sanping, have made contributions to the leadership of Chinese cinema?

After completing these tasks with Han Sanping and his small group, Wu Yuchen was about to leave with them when a unified shout erupted from the crowd:
"Director Wu, say a few words!"

"Director Wu, would you like to say a few words?"

Not only reporters, but many fans also joined in the shouting.

At this moment, Han Sanping also said with a smile, "Director Wu, it's hard to refuse such hospitality, please say a few words~"

Wu Yuchen thought for a moment, picked up the little golden statuette in his hand, held it to his chest, and then said to the reporters and movie fans: "May this Oscar make our Chinese film industry better and better!" "Bravo!" Immediately, a unified cheer erupted from the surroundings.

The moment Wu Yuchen spoke was captured on camera and became the headline photo for many newspapers.

"Celebrating China's First Oscar!"

"Wu Yuchen returns home in glory with an Oscar!"

"The Chinese won the Oscars!"

"Chinese films have entered the world's highest cinematic hall!"

"The Oscars are a victory for Chinese-language films!"

"The Oscars for 'Love,' an honor for Chinese people all over the world!"

In no time, urgently printed newspapers were distributed to newsstands throughout the streets and alleys, reaching people's hands. Of course, television stations were even faster, immediately broadcasting the news. And the internet was even faster!
After several days of buzz, the news that "Love" and Wu Yuchen won an Oscar is no longer news; anyone who doesn't know this is definitely out of touch. But the fact that the Oscars actually came to mainland China still excites everyone once again!
"The Oscars are finally back! We've been waiting for days!"

"It's finally here after much anticipation! But this is the Oscars, they're very particular about this. Waiting a few days is no big deal, it's normal!"

"It really has to be Wu Yuchen; anyone else would have no chance."

"I heard his movie 'Love' is going to be released tomorrow, I'll go see it then."

"We have to go! We can skip other movies, but we absolutely have to see what kind of movie our Chinese film that won an Oscar is like!"

Some older people didn't know what the Oscars were before, but after this period of popularization, everyone knows that the Oscars are the most prestigious film awards in the world, and winning this award means that Chinese films have stood up!

This immediately ignited everyone's national pride; we Chinese are truly capable!

Whether Chinese films have truly stood up or not is unknown, but at this moment, Cai Yinong genuinely believes that Miracle Films has indeed stood up, standing out from the crowd!

The best decision Cai Yinong ever made was joining Miracle Films and working with Wu Yuchen!

The Oscars, the only one in all of China, oh no, the only two, are all held by their company!
Which company can compete with them after this?
What company are you from? What company are I from? How do you compare to Miracle Films?

The Golden Rooster and Golden Horse Awards are not even qualified to speak in front of me. And your Hong Kong Film Awards, don't think that just because we all have the same name, we're all equal. What level are you to deserve sharing the same name as my Oscars?

Cai Yinong personally went to pick him up at the airport, chatting and laughing with the executives of China Film Group. After Wu Yuchen came out from China Film Group, she couldn't help but ask him, "Director Wu, should we put this trophy back in the company now and keep it as a keepsake?"

Miracle Films had already set up a special display case for Wu Yuchen, which displayed all the awards, big and small, that Wu Yuchen had won before.

Wu Yuchen waved his hand: "Let's wait a couple of days. I still have a lot of people to show it to these next few days~"

……

Jiang Qinqin had already bought a house in Beijing. At this moment, she was watching TV, reading reports about Wu Yuchen on TV while looking at the news in her newspaper, smiling happily.

Actually, she had the urge to go pick him up at the airport today, but Wu Yuchen persuaded her otherwise, so she's waiting for him at home now.

The knocking made Jiang Qinqin jump up from the sofa and rush to the door. When she opened it, she saw Wu Yuchen holding an Oscar statuette in front of her.

"Dangdangdangdang~"

Jiang Qinqin was delighted to see this, took the Oscar statuette in her hand and touched it, then went forward to hug Wu Yuchen, stood on tiptoe and kissed him on the cheek:
"Honey, you're amazing! You're incredible!"

Wu Yuchen chuckled and led Jiang Qinqin into the house, listening to her excitedly say:

"Honey, you have no idea, right now the whole school is buzzing about your Oscar win. Forget the banners and stuff, they're even putting up your picture everywhere!"

The photo to be displayed is naturally that of an outstanding alumnus. He's already qualified with his numerous previous awards, but because Wu Yuchen is still a student at the Beijing Film Academy and has student status, it wasn't displayed until now. Now that he's won an Oscar, it doesn't matter if he's still a student or not; it's a must-have photo.

"Moreover, everyone now says you are the number one director in China! Chen Kaige and Zhang Yimou can't compare to you!"

Wu Yuchen chuckled and shook his head. Logically, whether a movie is good or bad is a rather subjective matter; it's difficult to judge the quality of different types of films made by good directors. However, because of awards and box office success, everyone has a standard of measurement, and no one in the film industry can escape these two standards.

When it comes to box office revenue, these two are definitely no match for Wu Yuchen. As for awards…

Not to mention Chen Kaige's lack of success last year, Zhang Yimou did achieve something at the Berlin Film Festival in February, with "The Road Home" winning the Silver Bear Jury Prize. However, compared to the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film, it seemed insignificant, completely overshadowed by the Oscar statuette of "Amour".

Wu Yuchen smiled and gently pinched Jiang Qinqin's slender waist: "So what do you think?"

"Of course! Not just in China, you're the most amazing director in the whole world!"

Seeing Jiang Qinqin's adoring expression, Wu Yuchen couldn't help but kiss her.

After a while, Jiang Qinqin hugged Wu Yuchen and said coquettishly, "Honey, I don't want you to leave~"

Wu Yuchen patiently said, "Okay Qinqin, I also want to stay today, but there are too many things to do today. You know that winning the Oscar is not just my own business, and I will have to attend to many social engagements."

"So, will you be back tonight?" Jiang Qinqin asked, tilting her chin up.

"I just got back, I need to go home and be with my parents."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Qinqin showed a helpless expression. Then, after thinking for a moment while holding Wu Yuchen, she seemed to have made up her mind and said to him, "Then how about I go with you?"

Wu Yuchen paused for a moment upon hearing this, and asked in return, "Today? Are you sure? My grandparents, all my aunts and uncles are here."

"what?"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Qinqin shrank back slightly. Just as she was hesitating, Wu Yuchen said:

"Okay, Qinqin, when you have some free time, I'll take you to meet my parents alone first."

Jiang Qinqin blushed upon hearing this: "Okay, I'll do whatever you say~"

"Don't worry, I'll come and keep you company in a couple of days~" Wu Yuchen patted her back.

……

after an hour.

"Good pear, I don't want to be separated from you either, but I have to go back to celebrate with my parents today."

……

"My dear Yuanyuan, I'll miss you too, but my parents are waiting for me~"

Once back in the car, Wu Yuchen breathed a sigh of relief; he could finally go home. He had no social engagements that evening, postponing them until tomorrow, but he would definitely spend tonight with his parents.

However, Wu Yuchen was right. When he returned home, a whole family of relatives were waiting for him. Who would want to miss the chance to see and touch the Oscar statuette in person? Many people even brought cameras to take photos as souvenirs!
At this moment, Wu Yuchen's grandfather waved his hand and said, "Don't make a sound!"

Then everyone followed his gaze to the "News Broadcast" that was playing on the TV.

Actually, "Love" had already been featured on CCTV's evening news program on the day of the awards ceremony when it won the Oscar. But today, when Wu Yuchen brought the Oscar statuette back to China, it was naturally featured again.

The announcer then said, "Today, renowned Chinese director Wu Yuchen and the crew of the film 'Love' have returned to China with an Oscar! Please see the detailed report."

The scene shifts to Wu Yuchen being greeted at the airport earlier today, showing cheers from the crowd upon his appearance and Han Sanping shaking hands with him to congratulate him. Finally, of course, is Wu Yuchen holding up his Oscar statuette and saying, "May this Oscar bring even greater success to Chinese cinema!"

The announcer then said, "This is my country's first Academy Award, and also the first Academy Award for a Chinese-language film! We hope Director Wu Yuchen will achieve even greater success, and wish Chinese cinema will reach new heights!"

This news segment wasn't short; it lasted a full three minutes. And as soon as the announcer finished speaking, Wu Yuchen's grandfather shouted, "Great!"

Then he started clapping, and everyone in the room naturally followed suit, clapping enthusiastically. This wasn't just happening in Wu Yuchen's home; similar scenes were unfolding in countless households across the country.

(End of this chapter)