After all of them were reborn, who would still be an actor?

Chapter 791 The Evil Path Reigns Supreme, The Magical World

It's around eight o'clock in the evening.

Wu Zhikui was trying to find connections at the club.

Meanwhile, Li Mingyang was in Hongguo Mountain, being annoyed by Guo Fan.

Guo Fan tasted the benefits of creating scandals and expressing regrets; the box office of "The Left Ear" kept rising through these hype!

Although Guo Fan doesn't have Su Youpeng's connections, nor does he have the ability to collaborate with Yanzi to promote the Fifth Prince and Little Swallow and evoke nostalgia!

But the film "Left Ear" takes a different path and ends up on the same trajectory as its predecessor!
Yang Yang and Chen Duling were rumored to be dating, as were Ou Shen and Ma Feifei.

Ou Shen and Ma Feifei were supposed to be creating a scandal, but they're actually both deeply involved... and they're really dating!

The box office for The Left Ear is very stable, with daily box office revenue between 20 million and 30 million, even with the reduction in ticket subsidies.

The lowest ticket price for the Left Ear is currently 11.9 yuan.

The domestic Lunar New Year film season is about to usher in the most frenzied box office battle in history. In order to avoid everyone subsidizing too much and not making money,

Capital and higher authorities have jointly devised an unspoken rule: the lowest ticket price is 5.9 yuan 10 days before the film's release, and 11.9 yuan 10 days later.

Left Ear got caught in the crossfire, becoming the first of the top three box office hits to cost 11.9 yuan.

Today's box office growth was significantly weaker than in the previous days.

The Left Ear received a passable rating, with a lot of criticism, but this did not affect its box office performance.

Guo Fan was very obsessed with box office performance and was very anxious, but he had already played most of the cards he could.

Thanks to He Jiong, the schedule for Happy Camp was adjusted, and it aired last Saturday.

We've tried everything, and now we're running out of ideas!

Guo Fan held several meetings with the lead actors, brainstorming together, and finally came up with a brilliant idea...

Yang Yang's appeal as the male lead isn't very strong.

Even with visible efforts, the results were mediocre.

So Guo Fan wanted to change the person he was going to use for publicity, and instead put Li Mingyang on the receiving end.

Li Mingyang naturally disagreed with this.

Even without showing his face, his online presence is terrifying, fueling the movie-watching frenzy during the Lunar New Year season.

The gossip will generate explosive traffic!
He's been in the film industry for so many years, but he's never promoted a romantic pairing with another actor. If he did, Weibo would crash.

"Director Li, are you worried that the female lead, Chen Duling, won't agree? She's very willing to cooperate," Guo Fan said with an endearing smile.

"What does it matter to me if she's willing to cooperate? Don't play dumb with me. I can't agree to this," Li Mingyang said firmly.

Guo Fan, however, did not give up and shamelessly argued about the pros and cons from all angles.

Later on, it was even said that Li Mingyang didn't need to show up; as long as he didn't deny it, that would be enough.

This is just burying your head in the sand!

Li Mingyang still disagreed and advised Guo Fan to focus on film production instead of marketing.

However, Guo Fan did not listen.

After a period of internal struggle, he spoke his mind.

"Director Li, you're being biased. You gave the best project, Train to Busan, to Lao Wu alone, instead of having the two of us work on it together like before."

"You're going overseas next year, so you must train a director who can oversee things in China. Why can't that director be me? You didn't give me a choice at all; you just gave it to Lao Wu!"

"As a director, I'm more suitable than Lao Wu! He can't complete a film independently; he needs people to cooperate with him, and you know that all too well."

"I want fairness."

Guo Fan stared directly at Li Mingyang, his eyes filled with longing and defiance!

Bang!
Li Mingyang slammed his fist on the table. "You want to rebel?"

Guo Fan was stunned. The defiant look on his face disappeared. He bent down and said cautiously, "I didn't mean that. I just want a chance to be treated fairly."

"Using my scandal to promote your movie, is that the fairness you want?" Li Mingyang roared. "Do you have any integrity as a director? Using scandals is just a publicity stunt; the quality of the movie is what ultimately determines success or failure!"

Guo Fan opened his mouth as if to say something, but in the end he swallowed it back, nodded, and indicated that he understood.

Li Mingyang waved his hand, dismissing Guo Fan.

As soon as Guo Fan left, Li Mingyang regretted it!

Guo Fan's talent has not actually been fully discovered. He is a great director who is very patient, has dreams, and is dedicated to research.

Science fiction is his true calling!

It's just that they've been following me for too long, their thinking has gone astray, and they've embarked on the wrong path of chasing traffic!
Traffic is important, but quality is more important!
The domestic market is still in its early stages, and the surge in traffic has had a remarkable effect!

Even bad movies can have high box office returns if there's enough viewership.

But audiences aren't fools; they learn from their mistakes and will be more careful when choosing films next time.

Celebrities can make easy money.

After all, they have a solid fan base. If they can't make it in the film industry, they can still go into television or the fashion industry and earn a fortune.

Directors who take bribes will be purged by the market and then by capital, leaving them with no films to make.

For example, Feng Kuzi.

Zhang Yimou is a special case...

First, there is no director on the market with higher artistic achievements than him.

Secondly, despite his reputation as a national director, he has made too many bad films, which has made audiences more tolerant of him. Occasionally, a highlight film can salvage a lot of his reputation.

Just like Jackie Chan and Andy Lau.

Jackie Chan's terrible movies have investors on edge. He can't handle overseas markets or even the domestic market, and the films keep getting pulled from one production to another.

Who knew that the rumor-mongering would become a box office hit?

Those projects that had been suspended were immediately restarted!

Although Li Mingyang made his fortune through popularity and publicity, he still genuinely wanted to make good movies.

However, for the sake of multiple interests, such as publicity and traffic, the quality of the film was sacrificed.

Traffic is an inevitable trend, and seizing this opportunity guarantees success, so of course you should take advantage of it!

"Everyone only sees me crushing others with my traffic in China, but they don't see me bombarding Korean films with high-quality content in South Korea!"

"Traffic is a trap; content is king!"

More than an hour later, Li Mingyang asked Li Ming to call Guo Fan back.

Then, Li Mingyang changed his tune and spoke to Guo Fan in a friendly manner about career planning.

Guo Fan stopped complaining and became more open-minded, following orders in all her actions.

Both of them were just putting on a show and didn't address the real issue.

fair!

But as long as the company keeps operating and the people are still here, there will always be a solution eventually.

not now.

Li Mingyang is too busy right now, with a lot on his plate, so he can only appease Guo Fan for now and deal with it later.

However, Guo Fan's words before leaving made Li Mingyang suddenly realize that some things were slipping out of his control.

“Director Li, you approach every film release with a do-or-die mentality, it’s all or nothing… My lack of composure today stems from my desire to replicate your success…”

"I've calmed down now. The Left Ear was just catering to the market; it's not a classic film and will never become my representative work."

"But can they calm down?"

"Old Wu is holding the movie Train to Busan starring Won Bin and Ma Dong-seok. Xiao Ye and Ah Huo are holding Your Name. Da Peng is holding the web series 'Men's Diary', which is a big IP."

"They are the people closest to you, and also the people who most want to be like you..."

……

The animated version of Your Name is going to be a bombshell for doujinshi!
With its exquisite visuals, it spread exponentially on the internet.

Many people were influenced by their friends to go to the cinema to watch it.

Those who have seen it will find it hard to believe that this is a domestically produced animation.

A large-scale animated film with special effects that surpasses domestic animated films, a visual feast!

On December 25th, Your Name was released on Douban, receiving a score of 8.9 from 12 users!
Rave reviews!

Meanwhile, Your Name is the only film in the Lunar New Year film season with a rating of over 8 points; the reviews for other films are rather mixed.

Da Peng's "Men's Diary" and Guo Fan's "The Left Ear" have received overwhelmingly negative reviews on Douban.

The left ear is still hovering around the passing grade.

The average male student failed completely, hovering around a score of five.

I am just a passerby. 13 people rated it, and the score hovered around 7 points. Then the box office momentum failed and it started to drop by half.

However, this movie had a phenomenal opening weekend! It broke 200 million yuan at the box office in just three days!

It has already grossed over 300 million in less than a week since its release!
To date, it is the fastest film in the Lunar New Year season to break 200 million and 300 million yuan.

However, it lacked staying power and was limited by its subject matter.

Even with Li Mingyang as the lead actor, it couldn't be pulled off.

Of course, if Li Mingyang is willing to come out and promote the film, he can still boost the box office.

However, Li Mingyang refused to cooperate with the publicity.

Er Dongshen single-handedly carried the burden, traveling all over the country.

The film's final box office prediction is 400 to 500 million, lower than expected, while the pre-release estimate was 900 million.

Nobody expected that Li Mingyang would initially promote my work as a nobody, but after the film's release, he completely stopped promoting it.

This involves box office revenue.

The box office revenue from "I Am Somebody" was sold to Alibaba for 3 million yuan.

Then Alibaba sold the marketing and distribution package to Enlight Media for 1 million yuan.

Even before the movie was released, the producers and distributors, Enlight Media, Bouquet, Bernard, and Infinite Pictures, had already made a fortune.

Even so, Derek Yee didn't run away. Instead, he led a group of extras on a nationwide roadshow, which is quite commendable.

With less than a week to go before New Year's Day, four films are entering the final sprint to reach the box office.

On New Year's Day, five new films were released, and the screenings of four of them were all drastically reduced.

With little time left for the four films, the second opening weekend is crucial!
Li Mingyang's popularity has an obvious impact on the film's box office performance.

All four films are inextricably linked to Li Mingyang.

Thus, Guo Fan's jinxed prediction soon came true.

First, for the animated version of Your Name, iQiyi and Huayi changed their promotional strategy, no longer focusing on Ah Huo and Xiao Ye.

Instead, they partnered with Wanda and Starlight Brilliant to create a collaboration between Jing Tian and the animation San Ye.

This achieves a synergistic effect between New Police Story 2013 and Your Name.

Jing Tian's 7.5 million yuan box office success, stemming from her unique background, made her a star and helped her shed her image as a box office poison.

Although My Beautiful Boss didn't do well at the box office, The Warring States was terrible and flopped, Time Rescuers was pulled from theaters early, and Shadow Lover flopped quietly.

However, thanks to the high box office of "Your Name" and her special status, Jing Tian's box office appeal has unknowingly made her the number one female star in China with 22.56 billion yuan!

Second place goes to Li Bingbing with 19.81 billion, third place to Gao Yuanyuan with 16.45 billion, fourth place to Zhou Xun with 14.5 billion, and fifth place to Shu Qi with 14.02 billion.

Jing Tian has become the most bankable female star in China!

Although it's all inflated figures... the box office numbers are real.

It's unclear how much the synergy between Jing Tian and San Ye will actually benefit the box office of "Your Name".

Because of this synergistic effect, it hasn't gained momentum yet.

The collaboration between Li Mingyang and Lin Xing has caused a sensation online!
The animated version of Your Name has a production manual and a documentary, in which Li Mingyang makes a large appearance.

These were originally intended for publicity purposes, but Li Mingyang gave the credit to Xiao Ye and Ah Huo, so he didn't plan to use them.

However, Xiao Ye took it upon herself to bring it out and broadcast it exclusively on iQiyi.

The animated version of your name will be deeply engraved on Li Mingyang's name.

Xiao Ye and Ah Huo are newcomers after all, and lack experience.

Binding your name to Li Mingyang in the animation is the best choice.

Gong Yu and Wang Dajun had considered this approach, but Li Mingyang distanced himself at the premiere and gave the credit to Xiao Ye and Ah Huo, leaving the two feeling quite helpless.

Exclusive promotion on iQiyi + positive word-of-mouth for "Your Name" + Li Mingyang's massive online following + Huayi's distribution network in Beijing...

The animated version of Your Name defied the trend, grossing over 3000 million yuan in a single day, surpassing I Am Somebody and The Left Ear, and rising to second place in daily box office!

The Daily Crown is a lowbrow comedy with celebrity appeal!

The movie's marketing campaign was incredibly aggressive. Sohu.com created a special section for it and even featured all three seasons of "Men's Diary" on the Sohu Video homepage for further promotion.

When the movie was first released, Da Peng himself was not optimistic about it.

Lowbrow comedies featuring a hodgepodge of celebrities are a characteristic of the Hong Kong film industry. These kinds of movies generally don't have very high or very low box office returns.

However, after its release, the film "Men in Losers" performed unexpectedly well at the box office, breaking 200 million yuan in four days and nearly 300 million yuan in five days, becoming his best-grossing film ever!
Reputation... is completely unimportant!

Da Peng couldn't tell the difference between those who were criticizing it and those who were watching it. Anyway, the box office was rising very fast. On the fourth day of its release, it suddenly surpassed the well-received "I Am Somebody" and became the top-grossing film of the day.

Da Peng feels that "Diaosi Nanshi" (a popular male-oriented online novel) can break 1 billion views, but it needs popularity and traffic.

Seeing that Xiao Ye brought up Li Mingyang and branded your name with Li Mingyang's name, the box office soared.

Da Peng reacted swiftly, immediately launching a wave of nostalgia through the Sohu platform!

"Men's Diary" is Li Mingyang's first self-produced web series. Da Peng participated later, playing the lead role and also serving as the director.

But in essence, the "Diaosi Men" series belongs to Li Mingyang!

In an interview with his former colleagues, Da Peng talked at length about his experience filming "Men's Diary" and even dug up behind-the-scenes footage from the second season of "Men's Diary" from Sohu Video's archives.

Interview + Behind-the-Scenes Footage: Anchor Point for Li Mingyang, Precise Positioning!

The positive feedback from Li Mingyang's traffic was evident the very next day, with "Diaosi Men" firmly holding the number one spot.

It is rare for a film to suddenly change its marketing strategy midway through its theatrical run, when its box office performance is still good.

However, Your Name and Dior Men were huge successes, with box office revenue rising against the trend!

Although it wasn't as terrifying as Li Mingyang's counter-trend rise, being able to go against the trend on a weekday is a miracle in itself!
Even a fool could see it now!

If you want box office success, leveraging Li Mingyang's popularity is the key!
In response to this situation, the "I Am a Passerby" roadshow underwent a major transformation. When Er Dongshen went on stage, he directly brought a life-size cardboard cutout of Li Mingyang onto the stage, and he no longer mentioned the extras. He only talked about Li Mingyang.

Li Mingyang was praised as a role model for directors across the Taiwan Strait and Hong Kong, a benchmark for film directors at Southeast University, and a banner for film directors at Southeast University!

The first director of Tokyo University, unprecedented and unparalleled!

Derek Yee is the president of the Hong Kong Directors Guild and a very important figure in Hong Kong cinema.

His approval carries significant weight.

Then, he once again enjoyed the fan perks from Li Mingyang!
Li Mingyang's fans have once again organized a group to book out an entire venue to support Lu Renjia! And to support Er Dongshen!
On December 27th, "I Am a Passerby," whose box office momentum had been halved, suddenly made a comeback, surpassing "Your Name" at an explosive speed in just one morning and closing in on "Men's Diary."

The main force of "Diaosi Nanshi" is the general public, while the main force of "Wo Shi Luren Jia" is the fan base. The two sides are locked in a fierce battle!

In the end, Li Mingyang's fan base completely crushed the casual viewership of "Diaosi Nanshi" (a popular male celebrity).

That day, the total market capitalization exceeded 2.2 million for the first time!
Li Mingyang's fans' spending power was astonishing, although it couldn't be sustained. The next day, I, a nobody, fell to fourth place!
But the output in just one day helped me, a nobody, break through 400 million and approach 500 million.

On December 28th, at 9 PM, "I Am Somebody" surpassed 500 million yuan in total box office revenue!

It became the second film in the Lunar New Year season to break 500 million yuan, following "Men's Diary"!

Li Mingyang is not in this world of martial arts, but his shadow is everywhere in it.

Everyone realized that in this Lunar New Year film season, whoever gets Li Mingyang's popularity will win the box office.

Li Mingyang didn't actually mind, since he was betting on the overall market; only when everyone was doing well could he safely cash out and leave.

Will Jack Ma agree?
Jack Ma offered double the ticket subsidies to Taopiaopiao, which forced Maoyan to also offer double the ticket subsidies.

They contributed both money and effort.

He just wants to steal the spotlight, dominate this 10 billion yuan Lunar New Year film season, and become a 10 billion yuan filmmaker!

Li Mingyang stole his thunder, could he tolerate that?

However, things took an unexpected turn for the better.

Movies released in January have all changed their marketing strategies, and they've all started to capitalize on Li Mingyang's popularity.

They're all in the same industry. The production crew is so big; if they want to ride the coattails of others' popularity, they can do it any way they want, as long as they're shameless.

Feng Kuzi has completely changed his previous antagonistic relationship with Li Mingyang. He used to get angry with anyone who mentioned Li Mingyang. Now, before the reporters can even speak, he starts praising Li Mingyang for two hours straight.

They turned the privately-designed press conference into a special screening of Li Mingyang's films, deconstructing his movies from the director's perspective.

Two hours were spent deconstructing Your Name and Weathering With You.

Not satisfied, Feng Kuzi continued his spiel the next day, deconstructing Li Mingyang's new world and goodbye to my soulmate.

Feng Xiaogang and Li Mingyang were notorious rivals in the industry. Li Mingyang directly brought Feng Xiaogang down from his pedestal, turning him from a box office king into a clown.

This feud has become very serious.

Feng Xiaogang, who is narrow-minded and vindictive, is willing to go to great lengths to praise Li Mingyang, not to make peace, but to ride on Li Mingyang's popularity.

Everything is for the sake of a privately customized box office!

And the results? Excellent!

It immediately became a trending topic!

After all, anyone who pays even a little attention to the entertainment industry knows about the rivalry between the two.

Feng Kuzi proactively admitted defeat and praised Li Mingyang, bringing a lot of unexpected traffic to the personalized customization industry!

The traffic of young people!

If we say that Feng Xiaogang is all about money and no shame...

The piggybacking on New Police Story 2013 was even more outrageous!

Li Mingyang didn't want to create scandals, so Starlight Entertainment arranged it directly.

There's no need for Li Mingyang and Jing Tian to cooperate, to show up, or to take photos.

They just hired online trolls to spread rumors and fabricate stories. The two of them talked, and the topic stayed on the trending searches for a whole day.

Jackie Chan addressed the media, publicly stating that the person he most wanted to collaborate with was Li Mingyang, and he hoped that Li Mingyang would give him a chance!
The Storm, released on New Year's Day, stars Andy Lau.

He'd take any opportunity to boost ticket sales, saying he hadn't held a concert in a long time, mainly because he was getting old and his energy was waning.

But if he were to put on a variety show with Li Mingyang, he felt he could put on a hundred shows!

In the Weathering With You concert, Li Mingyang once collaborated with Andy Lau!

The audience ranged from teenagers to people in their sixties, spanning all age groups, and the atmosphere was absolutely electrifying!
With Li Mingyang's upcoming 10 billion yuan Lunar New Year film season, many people are looking forward to his concert. Besides wanting to see him, they also want to see Andy Lau.

One is a national idol of the golden generation, and the other is the strongest king of the younger generation. A powerful combination.

Moreover, neither of them has held a concert in a long time, so once they do, tickets will definitely be hard to come by!
Andy Lau made these responsible remarks. Facing a barrage of questions from reporters, he repeatedly emphasized that he was willing to hold a concert with Li Mingyang and even participate in a movie ticket giveaway as a way of giving back to his fans.

Then the pre-sales of Storm exploded, increasing by more than 100 million in one day and becoming the number one pre-sales seller!

Fault line first!

(End of this chapter)