Huayu Entertainment 1995 started with hijacking.

Chapter 377

Li Lianjie already had a high box office appeal in China, and he also invited Jay Chou, the then-popular king of the music scene, to create the theme song "Huo Yuanjia" for the film to promote it. As a result, the film dominated the entire Spring Festival film season as soon as it was released.

The movie was promoted with the gimmick of "Jet Li's last martial arts movie", but in retrospect it was just pure marketing. Are "The Forbidden Kingdom" and "The Warlords" just dramas?
However, this marketing campaign was quite effective. Not only ordinary viewers, but even Wu Yuchen was dragged out by Li Xiaoran to watch "Fearless." This generation of young people practically grew up watching Li Lianjie's movies, and the influence they had on them was profound.

"Huo Yuanjia" was quite well made, especially the action scenes, which were very exciting. The kung fu emperor lived up to his name.

As Li Xiaoran watched, she asked Wu Yuchen, "Was Huo Yuanjia this arrogant when he was young?"

Huo Yuanjia has always been portrayed as a grandmaster in film and television dramas. However, this version has changed quite a bit. Huo Yuanjia's fighting in the first half of the movie is exciting, but it also portrays him as a young and impetuous person, even a bit arrogant and domineering. He is a martial artist who cares about his reputation, values ​​loyalty, and is a bit muddle-headed.

Wu Yuchen said with a smile, "It's a common technique in artistic creation. Having many flaws in the early stages is necessary to show the character's growth. But I reckon the Huo family descendants definitely wouldn't be happy if they filmed it this way."

If Wu Yuchen remembers correctly, after the movie's release, Huo Yuanjia's descendants sued the production company, claiming that it severely distorted Huo Yuanjia's true image and damaged his reputation. Wu Yuchen doesn't know whether it was a genuine lawsuit or just a publicity stunt by the production company, but in any case, it seems they didn't win the case.

After a while, Li Xiaoran couldn't help but say again, "Was this cut? The transition is a bit too abrupt..."

Wu Yuchen nodded directly and said, "It was definitely cut, probably quite a bit."

The movie "Fearless" has received a lot of criticism since its release, with most of the complaints stemming from the censored version shown in theaters—the 104-minute version. Those who saw it in theaters could clearly see the cuts, particularly the scene depicting Huo Yuanjia's drastic personality change, which felt abrupt.

The actual version has a 141-minute director's cut, which includes many of Huo Yuanjia's more extreme remarks when he was young. The editing reduces his aggressive and ruthless character, and also includes a crucial scene of him being stranded in a Miao village. This scene is actually very important in awakening Huo Yuanjia's fighting spirit and plays a vital role in connecting the character's growth from a martial arts master to a grandmaster.

To be honest, the deletion of this scene had a significant impact on the film's message, resulting in a less developed character arc.

However, there's no other way. If it's not cut, the difference between 141 minutes and 104 minutes is a full 37 minutes. Without cuts, there would be far fewer screenings per day. Of course, the producers chose to sacrifice some of the film's quality for commercial profits, since the vast majority of viewers are indeed there for Jet Li's action scenes, not for his dramatic scenes.

After returning home from the movie, Li Xiaoran said, "It was alright. There weren't any major surprises, but Jet Li's fighting was quite good. It's better than 'The Promise'!"

Wu Yuchen smiled and shook his head, saying, "Hehe, don't be fooled by how much criticism 'The Promise' received; its box office performance is far superior to that of 'Fearless'."

"The Promise" has now grossed 1.75 million yuan, while "Fearless" also broke 100 million yuan, but only just. It must be said that the promotional campaign for "The Promise" was very effective, and "The Steamed Bun" certainly played a supporting role.

Li Xiaoran also laughed and said, "You know what, with all this fuss between Director Chen and 'Mantou,' if I hadn't seen the movie, I would really have wanted to go to the cinema to see what 'The Promise' is like."

Then Wu Yuchen's eyes lit up, and he leaned close to Li Xiaoran's ear and said, "Sister Ranran, I think the steamed buns from 'The Promise' don't smell as good as yours~"

Upon hearing this, Li Xiaoran looked at Wu Yuchen, crossed her arms over her chest—not to hide them, but rather to subtly lift them up, displaying her impressive physique—and asked with a smirk, "Want some?"

Wu Yuchen nodded immediately.

Li Xiaoran then turned around and snorted, "No way! I'll make you drool!"

However, Wu Yuchen, who was already hungry, pounced on her and, amidst Li Xiaoran's half-hearted resistance and laughter, happily began to eat after a short while.

……

There weren't many standout programs from the 2006 Spring Festival Gala, with only "The Auspicious Three Treasures" leaving a lasting impression and becoming a popular mobile ringtone. However, it paled in comparison to last year's "Wishing You Prosperity."

However, while the Spring Festival Gala was mediocre, a TV series became a hit during the Spring Festival: "My Own Swordsman"!
2006 was indeed an important year for the rise of grassroots comedy elements in China. First, the online drama "A Bloodbath Caused by a Steamed Bun" caused a sensation across the internet. Then, the classic and wildly popular comedy series "My Own Swordsman" was broadcast.

There's no need to elaborate on just how popular "My Own Swordsman" was. It's the pinnacle of Chinese sitcoms, and even after 20 years, it still holds a special place in the hearts of many viewers.

Even in 2024, on the 18th anniversary of its broadcast, many people exclaimed, "Guo Furong will be free in two more years!"—Everyone still remembers the debt Guo Furong in the show had to work for twenty years to pay off because she damaged items in the inn.

Almost every actor in "My Own Swordsman" benefited significantly from the show. In her previous life, Yao Dazui was the biggest beneficiary, achieving the most success among them. However, this time she didn't have that same opportunity; Gao Yuanyuan took over the role of Guo Furong!

Gao Yuanyuan is already a top-tier actress on the small screen in China. She has been popular since "Love Will Carry On", and the movie "Kung Fu Hustle" released two years ago also gave her a chance to shine on the big screen.

To be frank, in this case, she was the biggest star and the biggest selling point of the "My Own Swordsman" cast. A large portion of the audience attracted to the show was there because of Gao Yuanyuan. And "My Own Swordsman" didn't disappoint; it became increasingly addictive and entertaining with each viewing! In its previous form, "My Own Swordsman" relied primarily on word-of-mouth, but this time it was different. Not only did it benefit from Gao Yuanyuan's star power, but its performance naturally surpassed that of the previous show, becoming a hit shortly after its premiere and generating constant online buzz.

The drama aired during CCTV's prime time slot in the Spring Festival period. On its first day, it achieved a 3.95% viewership rating, which climbed to 5.26% on its second day, surpassing the ratings of the highly-rated 2005 drama "Moment in Peking" and becoming the top-rated drama of the year. Within 10 days of its premiere, the viewership rating exceeded 10%, and remained above 10% thereafter!

The cast includes Guo Furong, a skilled martial artist new to the world of martial arts; Tong Xiangyu, the innkeeper; Bai Zhantang, a thief who has recently retired from the trade; Lü Xiucai, a learned scholar; and Li Dazui, the inn's chef. Under the same roof, this group of young people creates a series of classic comedic scenes, growing alongside the audience through laughter and tears.

Wu Yuchen was also watching TV with Gao Yuanyuan in his arms, laughing and praising her, "Yuanyuan, you've really succeeded in your transformation this time. You acted well, and a lot of people are praising you!"

Upon hearing this, Gao Yuanyuan proudly raised her chin: "Of course! We filmed 'My Own Swordsman' for a full eight months! If I don't improve a bit, I might as well find a block of tofu and smash my head against it!"

Wu Yuchen smiled and gently touched Gao Yuanyuan's cheek. Gao Yuanyuan's acting skills were indeed much better than in her previous life. While innate talent and natural ability are important for acting, nurture and sufficient acting experience are just as crucial.

In her previous life, Gao Yuanyuan's roles after her debut were basically the same, and she always played herself until the role of Zhou Zhiruo in "The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber", which was a slight change, but not much.

But things are different now. Gao Yuanyuan's acting experience is not only richer than in her previous life, but she also has better resources and has played many different roles. Under such training, her acting skills have naturally improved. After playing the role of Guo Furong this time, it is obvious that her acting skills have improved again.

"Before I joined the crew, I thought Guo Furong was a female knight-errant, so I even found a coach to teach me some martial arts. But it turned out I didn't use any of it. Guo Furong's job was just to serve tea and water, wipe tables and sweep floors!"

Upon hearing this, Wu Yuchen laughed and said, "You should be content. Serving tea and water is much easier than being suspended by wires!"

Gao Yuanyuan thought about it and agreed. If they were to film action scenes, being suspended by wires would be much harder than serving tea and water.

She then shared with Wu Yuchen with a smile: "Actually, I'm not so bad. Sha Yi, who plays Bai Zhantang, was required to lose weight before joining the crew. He didn't eat or drink anything every day and managed to lose more than ten kilograms. But he's also prone to gaining weight. After filming started, his bowl could only be filled to less than half full every day when he came to eat, and he wasn't allowed to touch oily water."

Unfortunately, Jiang Chao, who plays Li Dazui in our group, is the complete opposite of Sha Yi. The director made him gain 30 pounds, so he ate and drank like crazy every day. Sha Yi watched Jiang Chao eat and drink delicious food every day, drooling with envy, while Jiang Chao constantly complained to Sha Yi that he was too full. These two were hilarious!

While watching "My Own Swordsman" on TV, Wu Yuchen listened with great interest as Gao Yuanyuan recounted various interesting stories that happened during filming.

The huge success of "My Own Swordsman" not only boosted Gao Yuanyuan's popularity, but Miracle Pictures also plans to develop it as a major IP. The TV series only generates initial revenue; subsequent films, games, and other projects will follow, with game development generating even more profit than the TV series itself.

After spending the Lantern Festival at home, Wu Yuchen set off again, taking his private jet to Hollywood. However, this time he was not traveling alone, but with the entire crew of "Departures," including Jiang Qinqin.

The nominations for this year's Oscars have been announced, and "Departures" is naturally on the list. Moreover, it is not only nominated for Best Foreign Language Film, but also for Best Original Score, Best Cinematography, and Best Supporting Actor.

To be honest, Wu Yuchen was a little surprised by the Best Supporting Actor nomination. The nominee was Mr. You Benchang. It's not that Wu Yuchen thought his performance was bad, but Hollywood still has prejudices against Chinese actors. He didn't expect to receive a nomination.

An additional nomination is certainly a good thing, but Wu Yuchen estimates that this is about it for now. On one hand, You Benchang is a new face, and a Chinese person at that; just getting a nomination is already a victory. On the other hand, the film company didn't spend resources on public relations for this award, and the old gentleman is quite old; he didn't even bother to come here this time. So what public relations can they do?
However, everyone else in the crew was very happy, including Jiang Qinqin. Many of them were attending the Oscars for the first time!

After arriving in Hollywood and settling everyone in, Wu Yuchen was busy attending public relations banquets with "Departures" while also keeping an eye on other matters.

Transformers is currently progressing smoothly; preparations are almost complete, and filming will officially begin next month. Fantastic Four, however, has encountered some difficulties filming in Canada. Jessica Alba was injured while filming an action scene; although not serious, she will need two to three weeks of rest. She did manage to whine and play the victim on the phone with her sweet father, Wu Yuchen, and he could only offer comfort over the phone, as he couldn't abandon Jiang Qinqin and rush to Canada to be with her right now.

Then there's "Taken". The movie was filmed last month and is currently in post-production. Wu Yuchen went to check it out. Overall, the filming was fine, but he wasn't very satisfied with the initial cut produced by Wu Baige.

"This part, and this part, speed it up a bit. The pace! I want the pace to be even faster! Through editing, we can make the plot more impactful, inject a sense of urgency and dynamism into the film, and keep the audience on the edge of their seats even during brief intervals."

Hearing Wu Yuchen's request, Wu Baige still wanted to persuade him further: "Director Wu, isn't this already fast? Any faster and the beauty and artistic conception will be lost!"

Upon hearing this, Wu Yuchen shook his head: "It doesn't need to be very beautiful. The key to this movie is its pacing. It must constantly engage the audience's emotions, making them feel excited as they fight alongside the protagonist!"

During the filming of "Taken," Wu Baige followed the script without over-improving, so the plot of the film was fine. However, in terms of editing, he still retained some of his personal style and unconsciously tried to create a romantic tone in some aspects.

However, the movie "Taken" doesn't need such romanticism. It emphasizes sharpness, tension, and excitement. So Wu Baige's violence can be retained, but romance is out of the question, as it clashes with the film's style.

(End of this chapter)