Huayu Entertainment 1995 started with hijacking.

Chapter 302 Visit
In my previous life, after the mainland market opened up to Hong Kong films, there were many frictions, both overt and covert, between Hong Kong filmmakers and mainland filmmakers.

Hong Kong cinema during this period indeed possessed advantages in various aspects: a keen understanding of commercialization, rich filming experience, the greater appeal of Hong Kong stars, and the favor of investors, among others. This also led to a rather arrogant attitude among Hong Kong filmmakers.

Take the regulations for co-productions, for example. The intention was to encourage giving more opportunities to mainland actors in co-productions. However, Hong Kong film producers didn't pay any attention to this, and basically gave them minor supporting roles, some of which were even worthless.

What, you think the supporting characters are too trash? Complaining from the mainland? Fine, then how about I give you the female lead?

As a result, many Hong Kong films have followed a similar strategy: casting well-known mainland actresses as leading ladies. However, most of these leading ladies suffer tragic fates: being involved in car accidents, kidnappings, miscarriages, rapes, becoming vegetative, suffering mental illness, being drugged, having their legs broken, and so on.

It's really turned into a misery contest, with everyone's misery outdoing the last! You have to admire these Hong Kong screenwriters; they've covered every possible form of tragedy. A female lead like Gao Yuanyuan in Jackie Chan's "Rob-B-Hood," with a good image and a happy ending, is truly rare.

It's not noticeable in a short period, but after several years in a row, the good female roles in your movies are all given to Hong Kong actresses, while the tragic roles are played by mainland actresses. Not to mention people in the industry, even the audience can tell that something is wrong.

Please, you were the ones begging the mainland to open up the market so you could come north and make money, and now you're acting all high and mighty.

Not to mention, besides these, there's the superior treatment of Hong Kong filmmakers, their banding together to seize resources, and so on. One of the more acute conflicts was the incident where Xie Biwang and Zhang Weijian beat up Xiao Bailong, and the later Zhao Wenzhuo vs. Zhen Zidan, which were actually products of this kind of conflict.

So, you reap what you sow. Once mainland Chinese films take off, expecting good resources and roles will be a pipe dream. Give you young filmmakers a chance? Forget it!
However, with Wu Yuchen involved, the situation is different now.

Firstly, the commercial films he's made in the past few years have proven that mainland stars can also play leading roles. Even though Hong Kong stars have a certain advantage now, it's definitely not as significant as it was in the past.

In this situation, investors will be more willing to give more opportunities to mainland actors who are both talented and affordable. Therefore, after this opening up, although Hong Kong films are coming on strong and still have advantages, they will no longer have the overwhelming dominance over the mainland film industry as they did in the past. Moreover, the time it takes for this advantage to be erased is likely to be much shorter.

At the same time, Wu Yuchen's status and prestige are undeniable; anyone in the Hong Kong entertainment circle has to bow down to him. Moreover, there's the formidable power of Miracle Films and White Bear Media, which has a presence in Hong Kong. If you come to our territory, you'd better behave yourself and follow the rules. But if you really cause trouble or break the rules, Wu Yuchen wouldn't mind killing a few to establish his authority.

After hearing Wu Yuchen's explanation, Leung Ka-fai could imagine the future of Hong Kong cinema. However, he then laughed heartily and said:

"As long as I don't starve to death, that's enough! At least from now on, when I make movies, I won't have to worry about being blacklisted, having a gun pointed at my head, being kidnapped by gangs, or living in constant fear!"

Many movie fans reminisce about the golden age of Hong Kong cinema in the 1980s and 90s, but many Hong Kong actors don't actually miss it at all. This is because triads were so rampant back then that their personal safety was never guaranteed.

Putting aside other issues, just consider the Eastweek magazine incident last year, where Hong Kong celebrities held a massive protest against the publication of photos showing Carina Lau being assaulted. Think about it, what could Carina Lau and Tony Leung do back then? They had to swallow their anger. Those people got away scot-free, continuing to evade justice, and ten years later they're selling the photos and videos again.

Such incidents were not uncommon in that era. There were countless other cases, such as Jet Li's manager being beaten to death, Andy Lau being forced to kneel, and Tony Leung being kidnapped to the Philippines.

Seeing that Liang Jiahui was so open-minded, Wu Yuchen smiled and didn't continue the topic. Instead, he asked, "Tony, did you visit Director Li in Los Angeles when you came? How is he doing now?"

Upon hearing this, Liang Jiahui shook his head and said, "Director Li told me that he will never make any more superhero movies! The water is too deep, and he can't handle it!"

Upon hearing this, Wu Yuchen laughed and said, "It's not that the water is too deep, it's that he wants to make the movie too profound! He wants both commercial success and depth, which is not so easy!"

Li An's "Hulk" was indeed a failure after its release. This big-budget production with a production cost of 1.4 million has not yet grossed 2 million worldwide. It is definitely not going to break even based on box office alone, because there are huge marketing expenses. Even with DVDs and merchandise, it will take several years to slowly recoup the losses.

However, this is actually a good thing for Wu Yuchen. It's not that he's gloating over Li An's misfortune, but it makes it easier for him to invest in Li An's next film. Now that Li An is facing criticism because of "The Hulk," investors will be hesitant, and Wu Yuchen can have Miracle Pictures acquire his "Brokeback Mountain" later.

This movie was incredibly profitable: a budget of 1400 million and a box office of 1.78 million. That's ten times the initial investment, and it even won an Oscar! You can blindly invest in Li An's art-house films; they almost always make a killing.

At this point, Leung Ka-fai couldn't help but ask, "Director Wu, are you still going to make 'Batman'?"

The failure of *The Incredible Hulk* naturally poured cold water on the superhero genre. In Liang Jiahui's view, if Wu Yuchen were to take on *The Batman*, he certainly wouldn't be solely focused on box office success; he'd also want deeper meaning, a pursuit shared by many great directors. What if he follows in Li An's footsteps and fails?
Wu Yuchen understood the meaning behind Liang Jiahui's words, smiled and shook his head, saying, "Batman and the Hulk are different."

"The Hulk's characteristics and established image are too strong. Audiences want to see his violent side, his transformation, his action scenes, and him smashing things... So audiences don't have much patience for him. It's difficult to strike a balance between ensuring commercial success and giving him delicate emotions and profound meaning."

"But Batman is different. He is a figure of darkness. He never fights criminals with superpowers. He relies on his mind and flesh and blood. Compared to other superheroes, he is more like an ordinary person."

Wu Yuchen left it at that and didn't say too much, but Liang Jiahui understood one thing: Director Wu was confident that he could balance the commercial appeal and the film's themes, achieving what Li An couldn't.

Liang Jiahui smiled at Wu Yuchen. He didn't know if Wu Yuchen would succeed. Although Wu Yuchen's words sounded reasonable, everyone was confident before filming and had their own set of logic. However, "Batman" was none of his business; what he needed to do now was to make "Pirates of the Caribbean 3" well.

In the past few months, besides Li An's "Hulk," several other Hollywood blockbusters have been released. First was the highly anticipated "The Matrix Reloaded," which achieved great success upon its release, with its global box office currently exceeding 600 million and heading towards 700 million. Everyone is looking forward to what kind of grand finale the third installment will bring.

In contrast, Terminator 3, another film with a large global fanbase, fared much worse. Although Schwarzenegger returned after 12 years, the film has only grossed a little over $3 million worldwide, which is far from recouping its $2 million production cost.

Schwarzenegger happily took his paycheck and went on to become governor, but the production company is probably having a headache, having to find ways to recoup costs from related sources.

Meanwhile, Pixar's new animated film "Finding Nemo" has been a huge success, raking in box office revenue worldwide. It has already grossed over $8 million globally and shows no signs of slowing down.

This not only delighted Pixar but also gave Disney a boost. Thanks to its new president, Robert Iger, the "smiling Mickey Mouse," Disney re-signed with Pixar, and the film generated considerable revenue for Disney, causing its stock price to rise.

This made Wu Yuchen realize that Robert Iger is truly a remarkable figure. Disney has really been revitalized since he took over.

Last time, he even asked Disney to help him with public relations for the Oscars unconditionally. Although Wu Yuchen said verbally that it was something Disney owed him, after actually winning the Oscar for Best Director, he had to admit that he should remember the favor they had done for him.

It just so happens that his Miracle Pictures is going to produce the low-budget project "The Princess Diaries". Disney is actually the most experienced in this kind of dreamy teenage girl movie, and its distribution channels are also the most advantageous. Therefore, Wu Yuchen plans to have Miracle Pictures cooperate with Disney to jointly develop it.

With Eisner's departure and his win of the Oscar for Best Director, his past with Disney can be considered a closed chapter. That's Hollywood for you—there are no permanent enemies, only permanent interests.

……

During the filming of the movie, two people who were not in the industry came to visit.

Looking at Ma Huateng in front of him, Wu Yuchen realized that Ma Huateng was no longer the naive young man he had been a few years ago; he now exuded a mature and composed aura. Beside him stood Zeng Liqing, who had co-founded Tencent with him.

Wu Yuchen laughed and said, "Why don't we just talk about it on the phone? Why bother coming all this way?"

Ma Huateng shook his head slightly and replied with a smile, "That won't do. Since Tencent was founded, we have received so much help from Mr. Wu. We are about to go public, so there are some things that we must personally visit Mr. Wu about!"

After weathering the first two years of the internet winter at the beginning of the century, Tencent seized the opportunity in the SP (Service Provider) business and began to turn a profit. This year, revenue and profits in all aspects are growing, and all conditions for listing have been met. Therefore, they do not want to wait any longer.

However, before launching the IPO, there is one thing that must be settled internally: the shares.

When Tencent accepted the Series B funding from White Bear Fund, it made a condition that Tencent agree to buy back 10% of its shares before the company went public, to be used as an incentive stock pool for its employees.

Little Ma knew perfectly well that the real boss of White Bear Fund was Wu Yuchen. Although it was written in black and white in the contract, it would be too offensive to act solely according to the cold, hard contract. Naturally, they had to pay him a visit, show a good attitude, and clarify the matter face to face.

Wu Yuchen actually knew their purpose, and smiled at them, saying, "Do you think I would be so ignorant as to make things difficult for you at a time like this?"

Zeng Liqing quickly explained, "No, no! Mr. Wu, it's just that going public is so important to the company, and you are the largest shareholder, so we have to make it clear to you. Besides, maintaining a good relationship with the major shareholder is also our management's responsibility."

"Haha, don't worry, I'm quite satisfied with your management. I won't interfere in the company's operations unless necessary. As for this 10% stake, let's say it's HK$2.5 million."

In the last round of financing, White Bear Fund raised $10 million for a 25% stake. However, Tencent's total assets are now valued at between $25 billion and $1000 billion, so the 30% stake will naturally be acquired based on the current valuation.

Upon hearing this, Ma Huateng expressed his gratitude, saying, "Thank you for your trust and understanding, Mr. Wu. We will definitely not let you down, and we will surely achieve a successful listing in Hong Kong this time!"

Wu Yuchen patted Little Ma on the shoulder: "Go for it! I support you!"

He was relatively at ease with Pony Ma. What were those so-called "unfamiliar wife Liu Dongzi," "penniless Wang Xiaomu," and "regretful founder Jack Ma"—what were they all so pretentious about? None of them were as mature and stable as Pony Ma from their "ordinary family"!
Penguins have reached this stage of development and are about to embark on a new journey!
However, Tencent's upcoming Hong Kong IPO wasn't the main focus. Who's currently the most talked-about figure in China's internet industry? It's Ding Lei of NetEase!
Since last year, NetEase's stock price has been rising all the way up, and it has now increased 100 times from its low point. As a result, Ding Sanshi's net worth has exceeded US$10 billion, making him the richest man in mainland China.

That's right, it's what's publicly known. In reality, many wealthy people keep a low profile and don't want to disclose their wealth at all, like Wu Yuchen.

Aside from Ding Lei, Sohu and Sina also surged with this spring breeze. Shanda, which is preparing for its Nasdaq listing, has already announced a market value of 10 billion yuan. These entrepreneurs in Beijing and Shanghai are the real stars, and they're playing on the high-end US server. It's no big deal for a small penguin from Shenzhen to land on the Hong Kong server!
In fact, Wu Yuchen is happy to see this situation. It's good to keep a low profile. Little penguins need to be low-key so they have enough time to develop. In about 10 years, they will be fully grown.

(End of this chapter)