Huayu Entertainment 1995 started with hijacking.

Chapter 371 The Difficult Choice of Male Lead

Looking at the capable and beautiful girl in front of him who had just performed a set of boxing and swordplay, Wu Yuchen couldn't help but exclaim, "I didn't expect the Central Academy of Drama to have a freshman like you! Not bad, not bad! I have high hopes for you!"

He had already decided that the role of the fourth female lead, Kongtong Qingjian, would go to her. Although she was the fourth female lead, she still had two action scenes, and if she performed well, she could shine.

"Thank you, Director Wu!"

Wang Zhi was overjoyed to hear this. She had practiced martial arts since childhood, reaching a professional level and even being selected for the provincial team, winning first place in women's swordsmanship, second place in spear fighting, and third place in Shaolin boxing. However, she felt martial arts weren't very useful for girls, so she switched to dance and eventually got into the Central Academy of Drama. Unexpectedly, her martial arts skills had actually brought her a great opportunity!

Oh, she played Qiuya in "Goodbye Mr. Loser" ten years later.

Once this role is secured, the main female characters in the film are basically all in place. As for Jiang Yiyan, the cinematographer/architect? Wu Yuchen didn't even consider her. What are your special skills?
Compared to the female characters, Wu Yuchen naturally put more effort into the male lead. This time, he didn't pre-select the male lead for "Reign of Assassins"; he actually issued invitations to audition, attracting many people to try out.

There are requirements: male actors under 35 years old, which roughly translates to actors born in the 70s. This time, eligible male actors from Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan have all come.

Wu Yuchen's previous film, "Departures," attracted many big names like Andy Lau, Leon Lai, and Takeshi Kaneshiro to audition. However, the final choice for the male lead was surprisingly Zhao Wenxuan, a result that caught many off guard. It's worth noting that Zhao Wenxuan's fame and status are far inferior to the Four Heavenly Kings.

With Zhao Wenxuan's example, everyone knows that Director Wu doesn't just look at fame when choosing actors. This has ignited hope in many actors, even those who aren't very famous, who are all fantasizing that they might actually be suitable and be chosen by Wu Yuchen, making the competition extremely fierce.

To be honest, the male lead who made it to the final round and was personally interviewed by Wu Yuchen is someone with real talent. There's no hope for a completely unknown newcomer.

At this moment, Wu Yuchen looked at Huang Xiaoming, who had already changed into his costume and had his hair styled, and couldn't help but think to himself, "Putting everything else aside, Huang Xiaoming's looks are undeniable."

It's not that Huang Xiaoming is devastatingly handsome, far surpassing many male celebrities, but rather that he is genuinely photogenic. Moreover, his dignified appearance, which conforms to traditional Chinese aesthetics, allows him to pull off most period drama looks.

Think about all the period dramas Huang Xiaoming has acted in. Whether he wore a crown, had a braid, or was even bald, he never looked ugly. Even if people often criticized him in his past life, it was always his acting skills.

Huang Xiaoming took a special leave from the "The Banquet" crew to attend the audition, and he had high hopes for it, feeling that he had a good advantage.

"Xiaoming, you'll be acting in a scene with Zeng Li next."

Not only was Wu Yuchen present at the audition for the male lead, but he also invited Zeng Li along. After all, she had already been cast as the female lead, so naturally, the male lead needed to be someone who was the best match for her.

Huang Xiaoming seemed alright on his own at the beginning, but when Zeng Li came on stage to act alongside him, the problem suddenly became apparent.

When Zeng Li was in school, she had a nickname in her class called "Big Foreign Horse," not only because she was tall, but also because she had a larger frame than most girls. In contrast, Yuan Quan, who had deep-set features, was nicknamed "Little Foreign Horse."

To be honest, although Huang Xiaoming has become more muscular, he is only a little over 1.7 meters tall, so he doesn't really have any advantage standing next to Zeng Li.

When men and women stand together, even if the woman is a centimeter or two shorter than the man, she will appear taller. In reality, it is best if the height difference between men and women is about half a head to look more harmonious and in line with the general aesthetic.

When Huang Xiaoming and Zeng Li stood together, Huang Xiaoming appeared to be at a disadvantage in terms of height and build.

In the previous life's film "The Barber," Chen Kun and Zeng Li played a couple. Looking at them, Chen Kun seemed rather thin and small next to Zeng Li, and they didn't seem very well-matched. Even Huang Xiaoming, who was about the same height as Chen Kun, didn't quite fit the bill.

Instantly, Wu Yuchen thought to himself, it seems that he really needs to find a taller male lead, at least 1.8 meters tall, so that he can match Zeng Li better.

Actually, it wasn't just Wu Yuchen; Huang Xiaoming himself felt it when acting alongside Zeng Li. He looked at Zeng Li at eye level, and her figure definitely made him feel some pressure.

Actually, it's not like he hasn't acted with tall actresses before. For example, when filming "The Return of the Condor Heroes," Liu Qianqian, who played Xiaolongnu, was also 170cm tall. However, Liu Qianqian's frame was noticeably smaller than Zeng Li's, so she appeared petite standing next to him. He could easily make her look smaller by wearing some padding in his boots. But this is a movie, and one starring Wu Yuchen, so the requirements are likely to be very strict.

Sure enough, a moment later Wu Yuchen said, "Xiaoming, we're not strangers anymore, so let me be frank with you, your fit for the role is still a bit lacking."

Huang Xiaoming glanced at Zeng Li and gave a wry smile: "Teacher Wu, I understand. I am indeed lacking."

If his acting skills are lacking, he can still work on it, but he can't change his physical attributes.

If this were in another production team, Huang Xiaoming might argue that he and the female lead don't look good together, so why not just find a different female lead?

However, now "Reign of Assassins" is Wu Yuchen's drama, and Zeng Li has been directly cast as the female lead. Based on Huang Xiaoming's understanding of Wu Yuchen, he could roughly guess that the relationship between Zeng Li and Wu Yuchen must be unusual, so he didn't mention it at all.

He wouldn't hold a grudge against Wu Yuchen for this, after all, Teacher Wu was his great benefactor, who had helped him a lot, and had just gotten him to Hollywood to participate in "Fast & Furious 3" this year.

However, Huang Xiaoming then asked, "Teacher Wu, how about I try for the second male lead?"

Upon hearing this, Wu Yuchen glanced at Huang Xiaoming and then said, "Xiaoming, are you sure? Aren't you afraid your fans will be unhappy?"

Huang Xiaoming today is not the same Huang Xiaoming as he was a few years ago; he is now an incredibly popular male star among the younger generation. Moreover, fan culture has gradually emerged in recent years, so if he plays a supporting role in the same drama, it's equivalent to him supporting other male stars of the same generation and elevating their status.

Therefore, few celebrities are willing to do such things. For example, even among the Four Heavenly Kings, Andy Lau wouldn't play a supporting role to Leon Lai. Even if it's a role he likes, he has to give it up for the sake of his fans. Upon hearing this, Huang Xiaoming laughed and said, "Mr. Wu, what are you saying? I'd be willing to act in even a minor role in your movie!"

Wu Yuchen smiled to himself, thinking that Huang Xiaoming was no longer the silly boy he used to be; his social skills had truly evolved to a high level.

Wu Yuchen thought for a moment and said, "Xiaoming, if you really want to act, then try the role of Lei Bin and play a couple with Yan Danchen."

Huang Xiaoming smiled and readily agreed: "Oh? I can act with Danchen too? That's great!"

If Huang Xiaoming is willing to join "Reign of Assassins," it would be a good thing, since he does have a lot of fans, and even more after "The Return of the Condor Heroes" airs next year, which will directly increase the box office of "Reign of Assassins."

Since Huang Xiaoming couldn't do it, then Chen Kun, who was of similar build but even thinner, naturally couldn't either.

To be honest, Chen Kun felt a pang of sadness after hearing Wu Yuchen's negative answer. His career was already progressing quite smoothly compared to his peers, but compared to Huang Xiaoming in the same class, he was far behind.

Back when he was still in school, his career was far more successful than Huang Xiaoming's. He first starred in Wu Yuchen's film "My Brothers and Sisters," and later played the male lead in "Love Will Carry On," becoming a household name across the country and the envy of countless classmates. At that time, he was far ahead of Huang Xiaoming.

Later, Huang Xiaoming gave up acting and signed with a boy band, which caused quite a bit of controversy in their class and made Chen Kun feel that his silly classmate was too reckless.

However, as F4 became incredibly popular and achieved great fame, they transferred that popularity to the film and television industry, becoming triple-threat stars in film, television, and music. This put them far ahead of everyone else, and they even starred in an Oscar-winning film, making it impossible for Chen Kun to catch up.

So he had high hopes for the male lead role in "Reign of Assassins" and wanted to work with Wu Yuchen again, but that didn't work out.

Watching Chen Kun's disappointed departure, Wu Yuchen thought, "He's still a bit lacking compared to Huang Xiaoming." It wasn't that his acting was bad, or that he was a bad person, but Huang Xiaoming had just been able to open his mouth and ask for a role, while Chen Kun simply left after being rejected.

If he really wanted to give it a try, there was also the role of Monk Lu Zhu, which would be quite suitable. If played well, it would be a very impressive supporting role, with even more room for development than Huang Xiaoming's Lei Bin. However, Chen Kun himself didn't mention it, and Wu Yuchen wouldn't either, since quite a few others were also vying for this supporting role.

If Huang Xiaoming and Chen Kun were a bit lacking in height and build, then Liu Ye, who came in next, definitely met the requirements.

He's 1.86 meters tall and has a strong, muscular build, which makes him perfectly suited to Zeng Li's physique. They actually look quite well-matched standing together.

However, Wu Yuchen found Liu Ye's ancient costume look rather...unpleasant.

Huang Xiaoming can pull off both modern and period costumes, while Liu Ye is really not suited for period costumes. If his modern look gets a 9 out of 10, then his period costume look is at most a 5 out of 10, making him look dull and clumsy.

His appearance is characterized by prominent cheekbones, a somewhat sunken face with little flesh, which makes his period costume look very unattractive.

"Director, should I go and change my look again?" Liu Ye wasn't stupid. Even after his own makeover, he could tell that he looked worse than usual. He had come in with a heavy heart and could only beg Wu Yuchen to give him another chance.

Wu Yuchen shook his head and said to him, "Liu Ye, if you want to act in period dramas in the future, you either need to gain some weight and have more flesh on your face, or you need to work on your styling, like getting a big beard to decorate your face, otherwise..."

Hearing Wu Yuchen say this, Liu Ye knew that he didn't have much of a chance, and couldn't help but smile bitterly and say, "No wonder the costume drama 'The Lovely Couple and the Ruthless Sword' that I starred in with Yuan Quan didn't do very well after it aired!"

This drama was his first foray into period dramas, airing six months ago, but it didn't make much of a splash. His recent attempt at "Reign of Assassins" also dampened his enthusiasm for period dramas. It seems he's really not cut out for this type of role; he's just not naturally suited for it!
After Liu Ye left, the next person to enter was Wu Yanzu, who debuted in the same drama as him. Back then, in "The Classic," the two played the two male leads, father and son, which earned them a certain degree of fame in Asia.

Afterwards, Wu Yanzu continued to move between mainland China and Hong Kong, taking on roles wherever opportunities arose, though he went to Hong Kong more often, as his sister had always been based there. And it's undeniable that Hong Kong offered more opportunities than the mainland. Don't underestimate Hong Kong just because it's a small city of 700 million people; in previous years, its annual film production exceeded that of the entire mainland. It's only in recent years that the mainland has slowly caught up.

Wu Yanzu isn't much shorter than Liu Ye, standing at 186cm, and he and Zeng Li look good together. Moreover, compared to Liu Ye, he performs much better in period dramas. Although he's not as dashing as Liu Ye in modern attire, he still manages to capture most of the character's spirit, making him far more impressive than Liu Ye.

Overall, Wu Yanzu barely meets his requirements and can be considered as one of the candidates for the male lead.

Afterwards, Wu Yuchen interviewed Zhao Wenzhuo. Everyone probably thought that Zhao Wenzhuo debuted so early, he must be a senior, right? Actually, he was born in 72 and is only 33 years old now, which is exactly the age requirement for this male lead selection.

Zhao Wenzhuo has many strengths, including excellent action scenes, but he also has many weaknesses. Most martial artists, especially those who are good at fighting, are not tall. Li Lianjie is less than 170cm, Wu Jing is barely 170cm, Cheng Long is 173cm, and Zhao Wenzhuo's height of 176cm is already considered tall.

Wu Yuchen also sighed. Actually, Zhao Wenzhuo's height-increasing shoes would be usable, but compared to that, it would be better to choose Wu Yanzu.

At the same time, Wu Yuchen thought to himself that Zeng Li's failure in her previous life wasn't just due to not being photogenic. Judging from the male leads she was paired with this time, she was incredibly picky; anyone shorter or thinner simply wouldn't do. In the entertainment industry, most male actors are actually between 165-180 cm tall.

That's why he put so much effort into choosing the male lead for her this time. If he weren't his woman, his pool of choices would be so much larger.

“Hong Lei, don’t make things difficult for me. ‘Reign of Assassins’ is a commercial film, so I have to choose a handsome guy for the male lead.”

Once again, Wu Yuchen rejected Sun Honglei ruthlessly, despite Sun Honglei's resentful look. It's true that Sun Honglei always comes to Wu Yuchen's film casting calls, his persistence is commendable, but he's really not suitable!

(End of this chapter)