Chapter 154 The male lead of Painted Skin is confirmed, and Director Zhou is eyeing another blockbus

Chapter 154 The male lead of Painted Skin is confirmed, and Director Zhou is eyeing another blockbus

On October 10, "The Myth", which had been released for a month, was completely withdrawn from theaters, and the total box office was quickly reported.

9100 million.

There is a certain gap between this and previous expectations in the industry.

After all, looking at the previous trends, everyone thought this would be another movie with a box office of over 100 million yuan.

In the end, it ended at over 9000 million, which is a pity.

However, Brother Cheng Long and the production team were not affected at all and held a grand celebration banquet with great fanfare.

The invitation was also sent to Zhou Qing.

Zhou Qing was busy with the preparation and casting of "Painted Skin" and did not attend.

Brother Cheng Long said in an interview that he and the director were actually quite satisfied with the box office, which was already very good.

Although it didn't exceed 100 million, the box office is really not low.

Looking at the whole year of 05, the box office of "The Myth" is currently the highest among all films released in China.

Among domestic films, "Seven Swords", which had previously attracted much attention in the industry, only had a box office of 80 million.

What about all the Hollywood blockbusters?
The highest-grossing film was "Star Wars Episode 3," but it only grossed over million.

Anyway, nowadays, "Myth" is indeed a unique one.

But the momentum of "The Myth" will not last long, because a top Hollywood blockbuster will be released in November.

"Harry Potter 3".

This is definitely a super tiger.

So what comes next?

A number of blockbusters such as "The Promise" have been scheduled for December, and the status of "The Myth" is really in jeopardy.

"It's really hard to get over 100 million yuan at the box office. Even Jackie Chan couldn't do that."

Huang Bo couldn't help but sigh.

You have to know that this is the international superstar Jackie Chan.

There is also the Korean beauty Kim Hee-sun.

It couldn’t even break the 100 million yuan mark.

"What are you thinking? How can a box office of 100 million be that easy?"

Zhou Qing couldn't help but roll his eyes at Huang Bo.

Although Zhang Guoshi's "Hero" created a box office myth of 02 million yuan in 2, until 09, only Zhang, Chen and Feng could achieve the achievement of over million yuan.

No other director from the mainland can do this.

It wasn't until 09 that Ning Hao's "Crazy Racing" broke this record, making him the fourth director to enter the million yuan club.

Breaking 100 million, how could it be so easy?
"Your movie will definitely be fine."

Huang Bo changed the subject and his laughter revealed a strong confidence.

Aoko's "La La Land" earned 80 million yuan. Now that she is directing a commercial blockbuster, it shouldn't be easy for her to make over 100 million yuan, right?

Zhou Qing smiled but said nothing.

He didn't tell Huang Bo that his expectation for "Painted Skin" was not to break 100 million, but to break 300 million!
"Director Zhou, thank you very much for giving me this audition opportunity."

Zhao Wenzhuo, who had freed up some time, came to Zhou Qing as soon as possible and expressed his heartfelt gratitude to Zhou Qing.

At the same time, there is also a hint of excitement.

Although Zhao Wenzhuo is doing well in the TV drama circle now and is very famous.

But in fact, Zhao Wenzhuo had been holding his breath.

His dream is a movie, not a TV series.

You should know that Zhao Wenzhuo had a very high starting point. He played opposite Li Lianjie when he made his debut, and the villain he portrayed, the Nine-Gates Admiral, amazed the film industry.

He then starred in "Once Upon a Time in China II", becoming the youngest actor to play Wong Fei-hung.

Then there was Fahai in Xu Ke’s Green Snake, acting opposite top stars like Manyu Zhang and Wang Zuxian.

This is an achievement that many actors cannot achieve in their entire lives.

It is no exaggeration to say that Zhao Wenzhuo's starting point is already standing at the end point of others.

People in the circle generally regard Zhao Wenzhuo as Li Lianjie's successor.

But the result?

With such an explosive start, he actually made it into the TV drama circle.

Although Zhao Wenzhuo seems to be doing well, he is actually still not satisfied in his heart.

But Zhao Wenzhuo also understood that it was easy to fall out of this circle but extremely difficult to get back in.

If there is no major opportunity, he will probably be confined to the TV drama industry for the rest of his life.

But Zhao Wenzhuo never could have imagined that this great opportunity that he only dared to think about would actually fall on his lap!

A director of Director Zhou's level actually asked me to make a movie.

Zhao Wenzhuo was so excited that he couldn't sleep all night.

"You're welcome. The main thing is that there's a role that I think is suitable for you."

Zhou Qing smiled and exchanged a few words with Zhao Wenzhuo.

"Do you know the story of Painted Skin?"

Both sides quickly got down to business.

"The Painted Skin from Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio? I know Director Zhou."

Zhao Wenzhuo immediately nodded in response.

"Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio" is so well-known that "Painted Skin", as one of its representative chapters, is also well-known to everyone.

It’s not surprising that Zhao Wenzhuo knew this.

"My new film is adapted from the story 'Painted Skin' from 'Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio', and your character is a military commander."

Zhou Qing briefly introduced Zhao Wenzhuo's role so that the other party would have a clear idea of ​​it.

"You know that a girl in the captain's family is a demon, but no one believes you. The brothers who have been through thick and thin with you all think you are crazy."

"Including your best brother."

"Until one moment, that demon killed the woman you loved most, and all your emotions burst out in an instant."

"You shouted to your brothers, 'See, she is the demon!'"

Zhou Qing then described a situation to Zhao Wenzhuo and asked him to try out a scene.

"Director Zhou, can you give me a few minutes to prepare?"

Zhao Wenzhuo attached great importance to this audition, and he made this request to Zhou Qing in a serious manner.

Zhou Qing naturally couldn't disagree and said that he could let Zhao Wenzhuo do as he pleased.

Zhao Wenzhuo prepared for about five minutes before starting his performance.

"Did you see that? She is the demon!"

Zhao Wenzhuo let out a loud cry, veins on his face exposed and his voice a little hoarse.

He sounded a little hoarse and there were tears in his eyes.

All the grief, grievance, and murderous anger in his heart at this moment were displayed on his face.

Zhou Qing couldn't help but nodded secretly.

After all, he is a veteran actor who has been in the industry for more than ten years, so there is no problem with his acting skills.

It can't be said to be superb, but it is completely sufficient to handle the role of Pang Yong.

Even though there is a slight flaw, the opponent's real kung fu is enough to make up for it completely.

"Okay, this role is yours."

Zhou Qing made the decision on the spot.

"Thank you, Director Zhou!"

Zhao Wenzhuo was overjoyed when he heard this and expressed his gratitude to Zhou Qing repeatedly.

The excitement in his heart could not be concealed at all.

This is Director Zhou’s movie!
This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for everyone, not to mention him. There is no doubt that Director Zhou's film is definitely the best opportunity for him to return to the film industry!
"The film is tentatively scheduled to start shooting in February next year. I will leave some time in between so that I can study the script thoroughly after returning."

After briefly explaining some relevant matters to Zhao Wenzhuo, he happily left with the script.

As for Zhou Qing?

He looked at Zhao Wenzhuo's back as he left, but he was thinking about another question in his mind.

Should we also produce the "Ip Man" series?
Nowadays, kung fu films and martial arts films have long been in decline and have been gradually eliminated by the mainstream. This is even more true as time goes by.

Not only does no one watch martial arts films, no one makes them either.

Under such circumstances, the "Ip Man" series becomes even more special and dazzling.

Even if we put all these aside and look at it purely from a commercial perspective, "Ip Man" is undoubtedly one of the most successful film series.

In 08, "Ip Man 1" was released. With an investment of 3000 million yuan, it earned 9000 million yuan at the box office, ranking eighth in the annual domestic film box office rankings.

Some people may think that the box office of "Ip Man 1" was not very high and did not make much money, but this is not actually the case.

Box office revenue is only part of a movie's revenue; there are many other revenue channels.

Overall, "Ip Man 1" has definitely made a profit, and not a small one.

Otherwise, why would Wong Pak Ming continue to develop "Ip Man 2"?

Starting with "Ip Man 2", the box office of this series really started to soar.

"Ip Man 2" directly made 2.3 million, and "Ip Man 3" made 7.7 million.

As for "Ip Man 4", it reached 11 billion!

Wong Pak Ming earned more than 4 million yuan just from the movie "Ip Man 5".

Not to mention that there is also an "Ip Man 5" coming up.

What’s even more rare is that the “Ip Man” series has generally received good reviews and has won many awards.

It is a perfect example of a double success in box office and good reputation.

Zhou Qing was really tempted.

He doesn't even have to direct the film himself. He can just act as a behind-the-scenes producer like Wong Pak Ming and wait to share the money.

Thinking of this, Zhou Qing became more and more eager to make a move.

But there is no need to rush this matter.

For now, let’s focus on finishing the work on Painted Skin first.

"Hello, Director Zhou."

"Hello, Brother Hu Jun."

As soon as Hu Jun stood in front of Zhou Qing, a manly aura came over him.

While Zhou Qing was shaking hands and greeting the other party, he couldn't help but complain in his heart.

That’s right, this is what a military general is.

"I have admired Director Zhou for a long time. I have watched all of his movies and I admire him very much."

"It's such an honor to have the opportunity to make a movie with Director Zhou now."

Mr. Hu was also very polite and enthusiastic.

Zhou Qing exchanged a few simple greetings with the other party and also asked Hu Jun to perform a scene.

"You and your wife Peirong have a deep bond, so deep that even if there's a vixen around you teasing you, you'll always stick to your bottom line."

"But one day, you discovered that your wife was actually a demon, and even your brothers were killed by her."

"You don't want to believe that your wife is a demon, but you can't ignore the ironclad facts before your eyes."

Zhou Qing asked Hu Jun to try out this scene.

Hu Jun is a professional actor from the Central Academy of Drama and has been nominated for Best Actor. His acting skills are much better than Zhao Wenzhuo.

Also much better than the original actor Chen Kun.

Zhou Qing was very satisfied with this.

"Very good, Wang Sheng, you will play the role of Senior Brother Hu Jun."

Like Zhao Wenzhuo, Zhou Qing also decided on the spot to give the role to Hu Jun.

"Actor Zhao Wenzhuo appeared in Zhou Qing's studio in a low-key manner, and is suspected to be negotiating with director Zhou Qing about a new movie role."

"Director Zhou Qing's new film casting has begun secretly, and famous actor Zhao Wenzhuo is suspected to have got the role."

"After Zhao Wenzhuo, 'Hero Qiao Feng' also appeared in Zhou Qing's studio. It is confirmed that Director Zhou has started casting for his new film."

All I can say is that the paparazzi are indeed very powerful. The appearance of Zhao Wenzhuo and Hu Jun was reported very quickly.

Another large wave of eyeballs was attracted.

All those actors who had been paying close attention to Zhou Qing's new movie became excited again.

Director Zhou, this is really unkind of you.

Wasn't it agreed that relevant developments would be made public? Why did they start casting secretly?
Director Zhou, please don’t be like this.

For a time, the ripples of Zhou Qing's new film spread again, and many actors in the circle began to jump around.

Zhou Qing's studio was once again busy.

The phone never stops ringing from morning till night.

Even Zhou Qing's personal cell phone received many calls.

"Xiao Liu, please publish the recruitment notice."

Seeing this situation, Zhou Qing simply stopped hiding it and gave an order to his assistant.

"The following is the actor recruitment announcement for the film Painted Skin, directed and written by Zhou Qing:
Xiao Wei (the leading female character), visually aged 20 to 25, is a thousand-year-old fox demon who feeds on human hearts and is cruel and ruthless, but at the same time she is extremely infatuated. She falls in love with the male protagonist at first sight and is willing to give up her life for him.

Xia Bing (female number three), visually aged 20 to 25, is a monster catcher who is free and easy, unkempt, and full of a sense of justice.

……

......"

What the hell, this time there's only a female lead but no male lead?
There isn't even a second male lead?
As soon as the announcement came out, many male actors felt extremely annoyed and wailed.

Can't run anymore.

It seems that the leading male role and the second male role are most likely to be "divided" by Hu Jun and Zhao Wenzhuo.

Those two guys were so lucky that they were noticed by Director Zhou and got the roles so quickly.

On the contrary, the actress was very excited.

The first and third female roles are still there.

Although the second female lead is gone, there are still two important roles to compete for, right?
I just don't know who Director Zhou has chosen for the second female lead?
How come there wasn't any news at all?
Of course, this is not a big deal. While the actresses were secretly complaining, they also tried their best to get the role from Zhou Qing.

But Zhou Qing always gave the same reply: send your resume first.

"It was not easy, but we finally managed to coordinate the schedule."

Zhou Xun on the set of "The Banquet" couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief, and his heart was completely at ease.

It’s not easy. It’s really not easy.

These days, Zhou Xun has been jumping around in the crew of "Night Banquet", doing the work of the relevant big names one by one.

First, it was director Feng Xiaogang. Zhou Xun spent a lot of effort to convince him and he temporarily gave in.

Feng Xiaogang promised that as long as other actors agreed, he would not stop them.

Then Huang Xiaoming, Wu Yan's group, Ge Daye and others, and Zhou Xun also started to attack one by one.

Although it took a lot of effort and some tricks, these people finally agreed.

But Zhang Ziyi, the heroine, said she disagreed at first.

Zhou Xun had anticipated this.

After all, she and Zhang Ziyi are both top four actresses. If she starred in director Zhou's commercial blockbuster, wouldn't her status soar?

This is a huge threat to Zhang Ziyi's status.

It would be strange if Zhang Ziyi agreed to this.

Zhou Xun kept on trying hard for several days and promised many benefits before he finally got the better of the situation.

It's really not easy. (End of this chapter)