Chapter 215: Turn a Snake Into a Dragon

Wu Yuchen doesn't care whether Li Yapeng eats soft rice or not, as long as "The Swordsman" does not affect him.

Half a year has passed since last year, and part of the Xiangshan side has been built. Of course, the crew scenes to be filmed were first picked up and built first. For example, the "Swordsman" has now been stationed in it. Zhang Dabeard proposed The scenery is all done.

The scenery of Xiangshan was indeed created first with the scenery of the Ming and Qing dynasties. After all, these two dynasties are the closest to the present, and many costume dramas are mostly set in these two dynasties. Just because Wu Yuchen himself doesn't do braid scenes, it doesn't mean that Xiang Shan won't be allowed to do braid scenes. In fact, costume scenes are still very popular. If he doesn't do them, many crew members will be driven away.

After hanging up the phone, Wu Yuchen thought about it. In fact, apart from his personal movies, Miracle Pictures actually relies on TV series for the bulk of its income. There is nothing we can do about it. This year is the lowest period for Chinese movies, but it is also the golden age of TV series. Many famous domestic actors, such as Chen Daoming and Ning Jing, will often appear in TV series. It's not that I don't want to act in movies, it's just that the output of movies is low, there are few opportunities, and they don't make money.

Although Wu Yuchen continues to cast some domestic films every year, the general environment is such that he alone cannot turn it around. The market must wait for the economy to improve before the market can become bigger and stronger.

Of course, the theater chain reform in the middle is also a very important part. At present, China has not yet lifted the ban on private capital in theater chains, but that does not mean that something cannot be done. On the surface, each theater chain must be state-owned, but you can participate as a small shareholder first, and after the market is liberalized in two years, you can then acquire those high-quality theater chain assets you like.

Wu Yuchen thought for a while, then dialed Cai Yinong's phone number to communicate with her about the matter. While chatting, Cai Yinong talked about F4 and Huang Xiaoming again:

"When "The Swordsman" was making a fuss a while ago, Huang Xiaoming wanted to run for Linghu Chong!"

"He wants to play Linghu Chong?"

"That's right! But I stopped me. I called Producer Zhang and asked. The filming of "The Swordsman" will take five or six months, and F4 will have an Asian tour in the second half of the year. , how could he have the time to stay with the group for so long!”

Wu Yuchen nodded when he heard this. He opened a company to make F4 popular to make money, not to be a nanny for Huang Xiaoming. Besides, your teacher Wu is very nice to you. There are also "Love Hotel" and "Full House" waiting for you. You can enjoy the addiction of this idol drama all at once.

If you really want to make a costume film, I will give you a movie called "Emperor" next year. Anyway, you and Alyssa Chia are old partners in "Meteor Garden" and have a tacit understanding. Then invite Director Chen to teach you in person and force you to do it. At 50-50, this level can be improved little by little.

Cai Yinong suddenly asked again on the phone:

"Director Wu, many people from Hong Kong Island are now coming to the company to invest, not just once or twice. Should I still reject them all?"

Little White Bear Media Company on Hong Kong Island was actually a leather company when it was first established. Later, with F4 and "Meteor Garden", it became famous. However, the Hong Kong film and television industry at that time did not pay much attention to it, and just lamented that it was lucky to have such a hit, and a combination could support a company.

However, half a year ago, it was revealed that Little White Bear Film and Television Media invested US$100 million in the construction of Xiangshan Film and Television City in the mainland. It not only set off a storm of public opinion in the mainland, but also caused a great shock in the film and television circles of Hong Kong Island. After all, this is US$100 million!

Many media in Hong Kong have tried to dig it up, but they don’t know who is behind the big water pipe investment. Some speculate that it is red capital, and some speculate that it is money from the United States. I only know that it must be closely related to Wu Yuchen. Recently, haven’t you seen that Cai Yinong is in charge of the work?

Don’t worry about whose money it is, show off your money!

The past two years have been hit by the financial turmoil, and all walks of life in Hong Kong are in recession. The film industry is especially short of money. Hong Kong films have seen a visible decline. Hot money has basically escaped. In the general environment, no one is willing to engage in high-risk, loss-making business. . The appearance of the US$100 million from Little White Bear naturally attracted attention from all walks of life. Since then, Cai Yinong has been invited to attend various gatherings, and there has been an endless stream of people coming to her to seek investment.

Wu Yuchen had been busy with competing for the Olympics before, so he just asked Cai Yinong to shelve these investments until he was done. Now that Oscar's matter has come to an end, he has time to think about it.

"Mr. Cai, are you interested in anyone?"

Cai Yinong heard this and said immediately:

"Director Wu, how about Zhou Xingxing's project? He came to us before to solicit investment and wanted to make a movie about football and kung fu."

Wu Yuchen knew what it was as soon as he heard it, wasn't it "Shaolin Football"!

"How much investment does he want?"

"He raised 10 million by himself, and still has 25 million left."

Wu Yuchen thought for a while and asked: "Zhou Xingxing should still be relatively popular in Hong Kong Island. Now he can't even attract investment, right?"

In the heyday of Hong Kong movies, there was a saying that double-money hits were expected. Now that Cheng Lung and Chow Yun-fat have gone to Hollywood, only Chow Xingxing, a box-office hit, is left.

"On the one hand, his cost this time is relatively high, requiring 35-40 million yuan, and his previous "King of Comedy" did not have enough box office; there are also some external reasons, and he has a feud with the Xiang family.

The two parties completely broke up. I heard that Zhou Xingxing wanted to immigrate to Maple Leaf Country a few years ago, but was blocked by the Xiang family. They found someone to report him as a gangster and provided a lot of information. As a result, he failed to apply for it several times. Rejected by Maple Leaf Country. In fact, preparations for his project started two years ago, but due to obstruction from the Xiang family, it never came to fruition. "

Wu Yuchen couldn't help but click his tongue. It seemed that Zhou Xingxing didn't want to run away, but he just couldn't run away. The Xiang family couldn't bear to part with him as a cash cow.

To be honest, the film environment before the handover of Hong Kong Island was really chaotic. If you didn't have a backer to support you, you would really be beaten to death by the society. Let's just say that Zhou Runfa went to Hollywood in 1995. In fact, it was because Princess Jin, the real big boss behind Xinyi City, stopped playing. Without a backer, he would really be forced by the society to make movies, so Run went to Hollywood directly to join Wu Baige.

Wu Yuchen roughly calculated that the box office of "Shaolin Soccer" in the previous life on Hong Kong Island was 60 million, and Neon was 2 billion yen. The total global box office was about 43 million U.S. dollars. It is definitely profitable if you invest, and it will still be at the Hong Kong Film Festival next year. It won 7 awards including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, etc.

This can be said to be a sure profit in terms of business and reputation. It is also a good investment as Little White Bear Media's first film in Hong Kong Island.

"Okay, Mr. Cai, we will make up for the shortcomings of this movie, but the total cost must be controlled under 40 million."

Cai Yinong was overjoyed when she heard this and immediately agreed. In fact, when Zhou Xingxing came to find her, she wanted to vote, but Wu Yuchen was rushing to the Olympics and ignored him. Now that the big boss has nodded, it is no problem.

"Director Wu, I also have a few good scripts. I will fax them to you later. You can take a look at them when you are free."

Wu Yuchen probably scanned the script sent by Cai Yinong, and felt that Hong Kong movies were really in decline. They were either romance movies or horror movies. But there is nothing we can do. These two types have been the most profitable in the past two years. Needless to say, romance films have an extremely stable audience, low cost, and far less risk than other genres, so they have emerged despite the decline of the general environment.

Because "Shaolin Football" came before him, Wu Yuchen didn't like these scripts very much. But when he saw the last script, he couldn't help but let out a sigh.

…

At the Beijing Airport, three people in a hurry came out of the airport, called a taxi, reported their address, and started talking among themselves.

"Brother Qiang, you are so anxious this time and flew here without any preparation. We can't even speak Mandarin well. I wonder if we can get investment..." Mai Zhaohui said with a sad face.

Zhuang Wenqiang beside him also looked tired. He received a call from Cai Yinong last night and flew from Hong Kong Island to the capital early this morning. This was also his first time here. But Mai Zhaohui was not talking about him when he said "Brother Qiang".

Liu Weiqiang lit up his cigarette and took a sip: "I visited more than a dozen film companies, big and small, in Hong Kong. After watching them, I shook my head. The undercover theme has been badly filmed in Hong Kong. It was hard to get interested this time. Yes, what if you don’t give it a try? When you meet Director Wu later, your heads will be clearer!"

"I know, I know, he's a great Oscar-winning director!"

"More than that, I heard that he is a shareholder of Little White Bear. Mr. Cai said that whether he will vote or not depends on whether Director Wu can like it!"

…

In the office, Liu Weiqiang, Zhuang Weiqiang and Mai Zhaohui, held their fists and bowed slightly to Wu Yuchen and said with a smile:

"Director Wu, it's a pleasure to meet you! This time, a few of us came from Hong Kong Island specifically to seek advice from Director Wu. Our "The Departed" still has many shortcomings. Please give Director Wu some advice!"

Wu Yuchen smiled at a few people, and after having a few cups of tea served, he said with a smile: "Guidance is not a big deal, let's communicate and discuss with each other."

After sitting on the sofa, Wu Yuchen pushed the script in front of several people: "This is the script after I changed it. Can you guys take a look first?"

Liu Weiqiang and the other two people didn't care about drinking tea anymore. They immediately gathered together to take a look. They saw that "The Departed" on the cover had been crossed out and changed to "Infernal Affairs".

Before he even opened the script, Liu Weiqiang gave him a thumbs up and said, "The name changes its mood to a higher level. It's full of philosophical meaning. Director Wu is really sharp!"

Wu Yuchen chuckled and took a sip of tea, knowing that the other party was deliberately putting a high hat on him and indicating to them to read the content inside.

After opening it, the three of them noticed that Wu Yuchen had made many changes to the script. For example, at the beginning, there is a scene where two male protagonists meet by chance in a stereo store. One is buying something, the other is selling something, and then they sit together and listen to Tsai Chin's "The Forgotten Time."

At this time, the screenwriter Zhuang Wenqiang sincerely praised: "Wonderful! It forms a sharp contrast with the tense duel between the two at the end. It echoes from beginning to end, it is really wonderful!"

The three of them then looked through the pages carefully and found that many lines had been changed. For example, the original monologue of Chen Yongren was simply "Being an undercover agent for ten years", but Wu Yuchen changed it to "Three years later and again" Three years, three years after that, three years after that, almost ten years, boss!" This comparison makes the taste different.

There is also a scene for Chen Yongren to meet his ex-girlfriend on the street. The former lover lied about being married and lied about the age of his daughter. It is only a one-minute scene, but it enriches Chen Yongren’s past and increases the thickness of Chen Yongren’s character. It also leaves a lot of room for imagination for the audience, who can’t help but marvel at the exquisite design.

When the three of them saw the final scene between the two male protagonists on the rooftop, they saw that everything they had originally written had been crossed out by Wu Yuchen.

Liu Weiqiang couldn't help but raise his head and asked Wu Yuchen humbly: "Director Wu, do you think there is a problem with this ending?"

Wu Yuchen smiled when he heard this: "It's originally a battle of wits drama, why did it end up being superfluous and let two people fight on the rooftop? It's very out of character."

"Force?" the three of them asked in unison.

"It's just a loss of status and a loss of value!"

Liu Weiqiang and the other three couldn't help but look at each other after hearing this, and then explained to Wu Yuchen:

"But Director Wu, judging from the current movie market, if a crime-type movie like this doesn't add some exciting action scenes, the audience won't buy it..."

Wu Yuchen waved his hand directly:

"If this movie really had a fight between the two male protagonists on the rooftop at the end, it would be too cliche. The battle of wits effect created in the previous part would be lost by more than half. How is it different from other crime movies? Let's take a look first I rewrote the version later.”

Then the three of them hurriedly lowered their heads to turn the pages and found that Wu Yuchen had rewritten a new rooftop confrontation and the final ending.

An action of drawing a gun and two simple dialogues are far better than any martial arts scenes. The martial arts is in the form, and the literary drama is in the heart. When they saw that Chen Yongren died at the hands of Big B, who was originally set to be a supporting police officer, the three of them were even more shocked. This reversal was simply amazing. At the same time, it also highlights the theme of the film: living in an endless hell, you can only suffer, and only death can be released.

The rooftop confrontation and final ending that Wu Yuchen wrote for them were not only cleverly conceived and designed, but also directly sublimated the movie! All three of them had goosebumps watching it!

Mai Zhaohui couldn't help but jumped up, and then bowed 90 degrees to Wu Yuchen: "Director Wu, I am really convinced! I admire you very much!"

Wu Yuchen smiled and raised his hand to help him: "I like your story better, so I made some modifications according to my personal taste. Just don't think it's superfluous!"

"What's superfluous? Director Wu, you are the finishing touch!" Zhuang Zhiqiang said immediately.

Liu Weiqiang waved his hand and gestured enthusiastically: "No, ours was originally a snake, but in the hands of Director Wu, you changed it and turned the snake into a dragon!"

Wu Yuchen looked at the way the directors and screenwriters from Hong Kong in front of him were praising him, and he couldn't see any discrimination against mainlanders at all. It's the same everywhere, it's just a matter of flattering others and suppressing others.

In fact, many people wonder why a classic movie like "Infernal Affairs" failed to attract investment in the beginning. On the one hand, it was due to the general environment, and on the other hand, it was also because the first version of the script was indeed not that classic.

Initially it was called "Kill the Cop", but later it was renamed "The Departed". The name "Infernal Affairs" was renamed by the boss after the film was started and he paid homage to the White Dragon King. Many scenes were changed or added temporarily during filming. For example, everyone is talking about the rooftop confrontation and the finale. It was because Tony Leung was not good at fighting scenes, and Andy Lau didn't want to act like this. The pressure from the two protagonists led to the crew temporarily changing the script, thus creating a classic.

Now Wu Yuchen has directly produced the final version. Compared with the rough first version, not only does the entire script have a lot more texture, but the level of the entire story has been elevated. Naturally, the three of them were amazed.

Then Wu Yuchen asked: "Do you still think there are any problems with this script? Tell them and we will discuss them."

The three of them shook their heads and waved their hands: "No problem! Director Wu, after you took care of it, there is nothing that can be changed!"

After finishing speaking, the three of them looked at Wu Yuchen with expectant eyes. He nodded and said:

"In this case, I will invest 20 million in this project."

Hearing these words, Liu Weiqiang and the two people around him immediately nodded and bowed to Wu Yuchen: "Thank you Wu Sheng! Thank you Wu Sheng!"

After a while, Wu Yuchen asked with a smile: "Do you have any ideas about the cast?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Weiqiang immediately said: "Our minds are still vague now. I wonder if Wu Sheng has any good suggestions?"

Wu Yuchen was not polite and said directly: "Liu Jianming invites Liu Dehua, Chen Yongren and Liang Chaowei, Huang Police Officer Liang Jiahui, silly Qiang, please use Zhang Jiahui. As for the others, you can choose as you see."

In the previous life, Officer Huang was Huang Aisheng, and Sha Qiang was Du Zhike. Wu Yuchen didn't know how to use them, so he simply replaced them.

Liu Weiqiang was relieved when he heard this. Fortunately, Wu Yuchen had not assigned all the important roles, leaving Han Chen's role for them to choose from. Otherwise, he, as a director, would really have no casting power.

But after thinking about it carefully, he felt that the people arranged by Wu Yuchen were also very suitable, and he had to say that he had a sharp vision.

Wu Yuchen thought of something else, and smiled at Liu Weiqiang and said: "By the way, there is also a young man named Chen Yongren at the beginning. When the time comes, I will ask Huang Xiaoming from F4 to make a guest appearance."

"Okay! It's not too late for us to welcome Daoming Temple as a guest guest!" Liu Weiqiang naturally would not refuse the popular traffic niche who came to his door.

Wu Yuchen thought to himself, Xiao Ming, your teacher Wu is treating you well!

A few days later, Wu Yuchen got on a flight to the United States.

To be honest, Oscar and Disney disrupted some of his filming plans this time. Originally, he planned to return to China this year to make a Chinese-language film, but now that he has already completed "The Pirate King" in order to work on Disney, he can only work on this project first, and the Chinese-language film project can only be put on hold until Next year.

…

Justin Wu had heard rumors before that Johnny Depp was a difficult person. The first time the two met, or the first words they spoke, made him understand that this was a fact.

When Wu Yuchen originally planned to reach out and shake hands with him, Depp took the lead and said:

"You made me wait for you for three weeks, don't you think you should say sorry to me first?"

Wu Yuchen smiled and narrowed his eyes. If it were two years ago, he would definitely have apologized directly and then facilitated further communication between the two.

But it's different now. On the one hand, his status is different now and his mentality has changed; and more importantly, the actor he is facing now is Depp, a weird actor in Hollywood.

The reason why this kind of actor is called a weirdo is because he is not as easy to communicate with ordinary people. Sometimes there are too many things and demands. If you apologize first and give in when the two meet for the first time, letting the other person see that you value him very much and even have to do with him, then the other person will definitely be more demanding during the filming process.

So Wu Yuchen simply nodded and said with a smile: "But aren't you still here now?"

"I'm not doing it for you!" Depp's voice rose to a higher pitch.

It's not like he has never rejected big directors. He was asked to play the leading actor Jack in "Titanic" back then, but he directly rejected Cameron.

Wu Yuchen finally had time to say: "I know, you do it because of Captain Jack. You like this kind of subversive weirdo character, and I created him. I have the final say who will play Captain Jack~"

At this time, Depp's agent quickly intervened between the two parties, smiled at Wu Yuchen and said:

"I'm sorry, Director Wu, Depp doesn't mean any harm. In fact, he likes the role of Captain Jack Sparrow very much, and he is very suitable for this role. I believe no one in Hollywood can be better at this kind of charming role than him!"

Wu Yuchen glanced at Depp, who was silent under the supervision of his agent, and said with a smile:

"That's not necessarily true. In fact, I think Jim Carrey is also good. I want to see the effect~"

In a previous life, Depp wasn't the one who was originally looking for "Pirates of the Caribbean". In fact, it is hard for everyone to imagine the character of Captain Jack. When the screenwriter wrote it, he had Hugh Jackman in mind. Yes, he is Uncle Wolf, who is full of male hormones...

Then the producers and film crew naturally disagreed. They were looking for Jim Carrey. Unfortunately, the Hollywood comedy king couldn't miss the schedule at the time. In the end, Johnny Depp auditioned and won the role of Captain Jack Sparrow. Therefore, Wu Yuchen knew that this role was actually very attractive to Depp, otherwise he would not have taken the initiative to audition.

After hearing what Wu Yuchen said, Depp couldn't help but speak again: "Hey, do you think Jim Carrey is a better match for Jack than me?"

Wu Yuchen shrugged: "How about you prove it to me now?"

…

In the dressing room, the agent kept telling Depp in his ear:

"Johnny, don't be willful. This is a 140 million big production. You know, it is very, very rare to have a leading actor that suits your style in a big production of this level. Maybe you can only touch it in your life." Come to such an opportunity!

Wu is the core of this project. He has all the authority over the crew. Don't conflict with him anymore. You also know how successful his past movies have been..."

Depp said impatiently: "Hey, man, you are really more verbose than my grandma right now!"

Seeing his disinterested look, the manager grabbed his shoulders and said seriously: "Johnny, you are different now, think about Lily!"

As soon as Depp heard the name of his daughter, who was not yet one year old, he immediately fell silent, and then said after a moment of silence: "I know."

The agent finally breathed a long sigh of relief after hearing this. Depp, who has never grown up, has become much easier to manage after having a daughter. I hope he can take this opportunity and officially enter mainstream commercial production!