Chapter 732: I hate the feeling of fighting alone

To the American entertainment media, Lu Yan He is a very unique existence.

Where should one begin?

In truth, the arrogance and conceit of the United States in all aspects have already been discussed by many, and in fact, even they themselves do not deny it.

Now, you can often see them frankly admit this in certain programs, attributing it to "the fact that we possess the best talent and the highest level of industry."

And the reality now is that while they are arrogant, they do indeed have the "capital for arrogance." Even if it is very annoying.

At first, the appearance of Lu Yan He was like an unexpected gift to them.

It was just like when *Slumdog Millionaire* swept the Oscars, the lead actor also had a "red-hot" period, but as time passed, he ultimately failed to truly break into the mainstream track of Hollywood.

Yet, over these years, Lu Yan He has demonstrated a persistence that is rare and seldom seen among actors who "do not mix in Hollywood."

Even Marion Cotillard, who has won an Oscar for Best Actress, has "faded from view" in Hollywood over the past two years because she does not often film in Hollywood, focusing instead on her own country's films, let alone other actors.

Since the box office explosion of *The Mist* and his widespread attention, Lu Yan He's hit works on streaming media like *Friends* and *Seventeen Layers*, and the repercussions stirred up in the film industry by movies like *Love Letter*, have kept him from leaving people's sight—at least, from leaving Hollywood's sight.

To Hollywood, the resources Lu Yan He has obtained in Hollywood have an incredible "goodness" to them.

There was his cameo in *Hurricane 2*, and the unbelievable cameo in that film. There was Green Valley's fantasy blockbuster *Godless*. And there was *The Mist 2*, which he had just finished filming.

As an Asian actor, the fact that he could obtain so many top-tier film resources in Hollywood in such a short time is eye-catching.

What's more, he is also a screenwriter, has his own production company, and can co-produce projects with so many film companies.

He barely experienced an actor's "incubation period" in Hollywood before relying on his scripts to enter the true "power circle."

Although his power, as it currently stands, is not yet taken seriously by those at the top of the power hierarchy.

Regardless, Lu Yan He has almost reached a height that others find difficult to achieve, at this age, as a foreigner.

How many people can "bake a cake" (create a project) in Hollywood?

Previously, Lu Yan He had already served as an Oscar presenter twice, which actually showed his influence in the mainstream Hollywood circle.

Or if not influence, at least he had reached a point where others could not ignore his existence.

This time, Lu Yan He finally brought a work to charge into the awards season.

In many people's hearts, this moment actually feels a bit like "everything falling into place."

Tang Mu Wyne has always been a fan of Lu Yan He.

Lu Yan He's ability to make a name for himself so quickly in the American media and film circles is largely thanks to him.

He was the first American film critic to discover this Chinese actor, and also the first to start writing reviews of Lu Yan He's films, performances, and even his career.

Many peers even said he had lost his objectivity.

Tang Mu Wyne retorted directly: Do you not have actors you personally favor?

No one could deny this.

No film critic could say they have no favored actors.

In their line of work, objectivity is of course important, but if one didn't truly love the industry, how could they persist in doing it?

And if one truly loves it, how could they not have favorites?

Tang Mu Wyne had actually already seen the film *Tropical Rainy Season* twice in Xitu'er.

The first time was to see the premiere, and the second time was when he bought a ticket himself.

While watching this film, Tang Mu Wyne was once again moved by Lu Yan He's ability to shape a character.

In Tang Mu Wyne's view, Lu Yan He's performance style actually has a feeling of combining the experiential school and the method school.

This time, Tang Mu Wyne not only came to the New York premiere of *Tropical Rainy Season* himself, but he also brought several of his peers and friends.

Upon arriving at the scene, one of his friends said in surprise: "Is this still New York? Why are half of the people here Asian?"

There were indeed many Asians at the scene.

Tang Mu Wyne said: "This is an Asian film, what is so strange about there being many Asians?"

"Fine, I'm just a bit unaccustomed to it," the friend said. "I have never seen so many Asians in one place before."

"Now you have," another person laughed. "Lu Yan He is now a banner for Asian-American filmmakers. Wherever he is, there will definitely be many Asians; you have to get used to it."

Tang Mu Wyne couldn't help but frown.

Some of the implications revealed in his two friends' words made him feel uncomfortable.

He didn't know if they had subjective malice, but what these words subconsciously reflected was actually a slight exclusion of Asians.

Of course, no one would admit this.

Especially not those of them in the media.

In the current public opinion environment, no one is allowed to openly make "discriminatory" remarks.

Tang Mu Wyne had not previously detected that they might have such tendencies.

Otherwise, he would not have brought them to this premiere.

Tang Mu Wyne had originally hoped they would watch the film seriously; perhaps it could move them and make them willing to stand up for Lu Yan He.

Hmm, favoritism.

Knowing that Lu Yan He was going to sprint for the awards season this year, Tang Mu Wyne hoped to provide him with some assistance.

"Filming for *Death Stranding* doesn't start until December."

Darren Wilson's other Chinese actor client, Wang Jiaqi, who filmed the sequel to *The Mist* with Lu Yan He, also came today.

She answered with a smile when asked about her next project, then added, "I didn't know you and Lu Yan He knew each other too."

"I ran into him at a cocktail party last year," said Olivia Tuman, a former Oscar Best Actress winner, wearing a simple black gown as she spoke with Wang Jiaqi. She had just received a new Oscar Best Actress nomination last year. "He is a very good young man."

Just as they were speaking, Lu Yan He appeared.

He took the initiative to walk over to them and greeted them enthusiastically.

To Lu Yan He, although actress Olivia Tuman does not shine with the star power of Nicole Kidman or Emma Stone, her acting strength and industry recognition are like Olivia Colman, who won the Oscar for Best Actress for *The Favourite*, and Helen Mirren, who won the same award for *The Queen*. Even if she isn't a dazzling star, there is never any talk of her being "past her prime."

(A side note: In fact, looking at the changes in Olivia Colman's acting career after winning the Oscar, one can see why the West values the Oscars so much. After she won, her career was like it had been blessed; at over fifty years old, and not a beauty-type actress, not to mention one leading role after another in art films by top directors, she also landed important supporting roles in a series of blockbusters like *Wonka* and *Barbie*, which were resources she basically couldn't touch before winning the award.)

In this industry, there is a group of actors like this who are the backbone. They don't engage in star management at all, but their fame as actors, along with the reputation and fan base accumulated over years of acting, ensures they are never short of work, with one project after another coming to find them.

Although many of their films are not so-called big productions or mainstream productions, this does not mean these works are invisible; they can still receive very good attention and even very good feedback.

Just like *Conclave* starring Ralph Fiennes; who would have thought that such a film would sell over 100 million US dollars at the global box office?

Lu Yan He appreciates and admires this type of actor very much.

However, Olivia Tuman was not invited by Lu Yan He this time; she was invited by Green Valley.

Green Valley is currently preparing *Godless* and is negotiating with Olivia Tuman for a role.

Like Lu Yan He, a series of big-budget films like *Godless* requires many big names.

And big names also need top-tier commercial blockbusters like *Godless*.

Fame and influence are always weapons for an actor to rely on.

"Schmidt Lawley even invited Olivia Tuman; it seems he really wants to help Lu Yan He lobby for this year's Oscars."

"But isn't this too early? The situation is still unclear; perhaps Lu Yan He won't even get a good performance in the precursors."

"Then you underestimate the influence of the Xitu'er Film Festival on the Oscars over the years. In the last five years, more than half of the award-winning films at the Xitu'er Film Festival have had outstanding performances in the North American awards season, and the same is true for the Oscar results."

"Of the many film festivals in the world, the only ones that can truly and consistently influence the North American awards season, besides the Xitu'er Film Festival, are America's own Sundance Film Festival. Other film festivals at most influence the Best Foreign Language Film category, including Hexi and the others, unless the winner itself is an American film."

At the premiere, many people were using Lu Yan He's Oscar sprint this year as an entry point to discuss the Oscar situation.

Lu Yan He heard quite a bit of it.

This atmosphere is common at various public relations event sites during the awards season.

Everyone is discussing films, discussing this year's competitors, discussing who deserves to win more, and discussing what the current film circle is really like.

The most critical thing is that everyone knows that such discussions are indispensable and very necessary.

There was Weinstein's successful lobbying for "water queen" Gwyneth Paltrow, creating the most famous "water queen" in Oscar history.

And more recently, Kate Winslet, Cate Blanchett, and others publicly stood up for Andrea Riseborough in *To Leslie*, which actually resulted in her squeezing into the Oscar Best Actress nomination list at the last moment, causing an "airdrop" scandal.

Fortunately, the unacknowledged "water queen" and the "airdrop nomination" ultimately did not bring them better career development—

It can be said that this is a blessing in misfortune.

But it cannot be denied that if influential filmmakers in the Academy publicly stand up and express support for someone, it has a decisive influence on the final result.

In the annual public relations melee, it is actually difficult to watch all the nominated films. Who to watch first, who to prioritize—if an influential person stands up and says "XXX is worth it," anyone would pay more attention to that person and prioritize watching their work.

This is why Olivia Tuman's appearance at the premiere of *Tropical Rainy Season* sparked so much discussion.

The premiere of *Tropical Rainy Season* began amidst such heated discussion.

No matter how loud the clamor, in the end, dust returns to dust, and the film must speak for itself.

A film that cannot move you will not make you vote for it, no matter how flowery the words of others are.

Someone you admire tells you a film is good, you excitedly go to watch it, and after watching it, you find it's just so-so; you will only be disappointed, not "although I don't like it, I want to support it."

Under normal circumstances, there wouldn't be such a thought.

Lu Yan He sat in the audience, returning once again to the humid, sweltering world of *Tropical Rainy Season*.

After several months, watching this film again, Lu Yan He felt inexplicably nervous at this moment.

This nervousness was the fear of discovering that his performance in the film was not that good.

He hadn't expected himself to have this reaction either.

"Is Lu Yan He going to submit for Best Actor or Best Supporting Actor?"

At the same time, someone was asking Parameter's Zebby Doyle this question.

In the eyes of many in Hollywood, Zebby Doyle's relationship with Lu Yan He is very close.

Therefore, this person clearly believed that Zebby Doyle knew Lu Yan He's plans.

Zebby Doyle shook his head and said: "I don't know Lu Yan He's thoughts."

The person asking Zebby Doyle was Uber Clark, who is very famous in Hollywood, a former child star who successfully transitioned and starred in a very influential American drama, *Lost in New York*, with extremely high popularity.

His performance in *Traces of Pain* this year exploded in reputation at the Sundance Film Festival, and his performance in it is also seen as a strong contender for this year's Oscar for Best Supporting Actor.

So far, the biggest buzz for the Best Supporting Actor category is between him and Lu Yan He.

Of course, the public relations war hasn't officially started yet; everyone is just accumulating public relations power.

Uber Clark started caring about Lu Yan He now because perhaps Lu Yan He might not submit for Best Supporting Actor, but for Best Actor instead.

If he submits for Best Actor, he would lose a strong competitor, making his chances of winning Best Supporting Actor this year much higher.

Zebby Doyle clearly knew Uber Clark's intentions.

He said: "Uber, no one knows what Lu Yan He and his team are thinking right now. Their confidentiality work is very good; even his agent Darren Wilson doesn't know, let alone me."

Uber Clark: "It would be great if he submitted for Best Actor."

"That depends on what his plans are," Zebby Doyle said. "Perhaps you can communicate with him."

"I don't know him."

"*Tropical Rainy Season* is holding its premiere in New York, and he is in New York; you can make an appointment to see him," Zebby Doyle said. "Besides being an actor, he is also a screenwriter; you have a perfectly legitimate reason to ask to meet him."

Uber Clark: "You mean you want me to communicate with him directly?"

"He is a person who likes direct communication, if you intend to hope he submits for Best Actor and doesn't come to compete with you for Best Supporting Actor," Zebby Doyle said bluntly. "Although I can understand your thinking, at the same time, I don't think Lu Yan He will accept it. I'm not saying he won't submit for Best Actor, but he definitely won't make this deal with you."

"What if, after I win Best Supporting Actor this year, I promise to star in a film he writes, which is also produced by you?" Uber Clark asked.

Zebby Doyle finally became serious at this moment.

Uber Clark said: "Zebby, the *Beach Murder* we collaborated on five years ago grossed over 200 million US dollars globally; we should have continued collaborating long ago."

At this moment, Zebby Doyle's phone buzzed.

He picked up his phone and took a look.

"The New York premiere of *Tropical Rainy Season* is over, and the first batch of media reviews is out."

"Hmm?" Uber Clark heard this and immediately took out his own phone.

Both of them started flipping through them.

*The Washington Post*: "*Tropical Rainy Season* will definitely be the hottest film of this year's awards season. Before watching this film, everyone's focus was on Lu Yan He, but whether it is the film's true lead, the boy actor Huang Feng, or the mother actor Qin Shulan, both are hard to ignore."

*The New Yorker*: "Although we already knew that Lu Yan He won the Best Actor award at the Xitu'er Film Festival for this film, and we came to watch it with high expectations, Lu Yan He's performance still did not disappoint us. Beneath the image of an impulsive, irritable, and emotionally expressive teenager, a single profound look from him conveyed a more complex and bewildered inner world. After becoming famous, he was still able to return to simplicity and become a teenager who seemed as if he had never stepped foot in the entertainment industry. Undoubtedly, he delivered a performance worthy of an Oscar."

After the New York premiere, the American media's evaluation of *Tropical Rainy Season* was mostly praise.

Among them, the performances of Lu Yan He, Huang Feng, and Qin Shulan received a lot of attention.

Of course, the most attention was on Lu Yan He. For the American film circle, the most important person in this film to them is not the director Huang Tianlin, but the actor Lu Yan He.

Because in the early rumors, Lu Yan He's performance in this film was one of the seeds for this year's Oscars; it was because it was linked to the Oscars that so many American media wanted to understand this film as soon as possible.

If it were just said that this film is very good, to be honest, perhaps not so many media would be so interested.

Zebby Doyle shrugged at Uber Clark.

"It seems Lu Yan He is really the trend this year," Zebby Doyle said to Uber Clark. "It just depends on which award he submits for."

The media reputation of *Tropical Rainy Season* after the New York premiere was within expectations.

What was unexpected was that Huang Feng and Qin Shulan also received attention because of it. Although in Lu Yan He's view, they indeed deserved attention.

This matter also had an impact on his award category submission.

"Huang Feng's performance in the film has received a lot of praise. If you submit for the Best Actor category, other competitors might use this point to attack you."

His public relations manager, who is also a very famous public relations manager in Hollywood, Helena Munch, explained to Lu Yan He while Schmidt Lawley and others were present.

"Unless Green Valley puts up the same public relations resources to lobby for Huang Feng."

Schmidt Lawley shook his head and refused directly.

"The funds required to lobby for Lu Yan He alone versus adding two more people are not the same."

Helena Munch: "Then your attack point emerges, because you are a famous actor, you sucked away all the public relations resources of the distributor, while Huang Feng and Qin Shulan, who also delivered wonderful performances, did not get the attention they deserved. In Hollywood today, 'bullying' of half-actors by A-listers is also a topic that receives a lot of attention, and it is a huge black mark."

Schmidt Lawley did not agree with Helena Munch's statement.

"The media just praised Huang Feng and Qin Shulan's performances. Every year, so many performances are praised; are they all valued during the awards season?"

"What I want to say is that when the public relations war heats up later, Lu Yan He's competitors will definitely use this to make an issue and splash dirty water on Lu Yan He. In the current public opinion environment, no one will vote for someone who sacrifices others' interests to gain all the benefits," Helena Munch said. "What we need to consider now is what comes later. Lu Yan He has a good hope of winning an award this year, given the momentum."

Helena Munch said to Lu Yan He: "I suggest you give up Best Actor and submit for Best Supporting Actor. Only in this way will your submission category not conflict with Huang Feng's, avoiding the problem I just told you about. Otherwise, if two actors are submitted for Best Actor, and the one with relatively less screen time gets the nomination while the one who performed equally well doesn't, this will be the most fatal flaw for you this year."

Lu Yan He understood what Helena Munch meant.

He asked Schmidt Lawley: "Green Valley is unwilling to increase public relations funds for *Tropical Rainy Season*, right?"

Schmidt Lawley: "Lu, we cannot do this at a loss. The focus of *Tropical Rainy Season*'s public relations will definitely be on Best Foreign Language Film and the performance award you submitted for. We will not focus our investment on other awards."

Lu Yan He hesitated for a moment and said: "What if the public relations expenses for Qin Shulan and Huang Feng are mainly borne by us?"

Schmidt Lawley looked at Lu Yan He in surprise.

"This is not a small expense, at least several million US dollars. I remember you didn't invest in this film? No matter what kind of return this film gets, you cannot enjoy it."

Lu Yan He nodded.

However, Huang Feng is currently a signed actor of Shi Huo, and he is also the lead actor in a very important film series for Linghe in the coming years.

As for Teacher Qin Shulan, as a national treasure-level actress in Malaysia, before *Tropical Rainy Season*, her acting career had never left Malaysia. If she could really have good development because of this—

Lu Yan He thought to himself, perhaps he could chat with Qin Shulan later. If Qin Shulan is willing to sign her acting contract or overseas agency contract to Shi Huo, it is not an unacceptable thing for him to bear Qin Shulan's public relations expenses.

*Tropical Rainy Season* is clearly going to have a performance in the awards season this year, but if Qin Shulan is not a contender for Best Supporting Actress and does not use this film to show her presence in the Hollywood acting circle, then this opportunity would be wasted.

Conversely, with the current media praise, if Qin Shulan can really have a performance in this year's awards season, even if she doesn't enter the Oscar nomination list in the end, it will be of great help to the improvement of her fame in Europe and America and the acting circle's recognition of her.

Lu Yan He will inevitably have to show his skills in the European and American film and television circle later—to be precise, he has already started to show his skills.

If he can have a powerful actress who has the potential to win an Oscar nomination, it will only be good for his subsequent projects.

Not to mention the benefits that can be converted after she improves her fame in Europe and America.

All the public relations funds invested in the awards season are not for charity. The more you invest, the more benefits you can get in the long run.

Schmidt Lawley didn't know these thoughts of Lu Yan He; he just felt that Lu Yan He was a bit too kind.

"Then are you going to compete with Huang Feng for Best Actor?" Schmidt Lawley asked.

Lu Yan He shook his head. "No, I will submit for Best Supporting Actor. If I submit for Best Actor, there is almost no hope of winning, but for Best Supporting Actor, didn't Helena say it before? In the current situation, I have a great hope of winning, don't I?"

Helena Munch nodded with a smile.

"Of course."

"Then you have no need at all to bear the public relations expenses for Huang Feng and Qin Shulan," Schmidt Lawley said.

Lu Yan He: "Schmidt, I hate the feeling of fighting alone."

Is Lu Yan He considered an A-lister in Hollywood now?

This is a very difficult question to answer.

Because counting it all up, Lu Yan He has only starred in one film, *The Mist*, which can be considered a box office explosion in North America.

As for *Late Spring*, *Love Letter*, and *Road to Glory*, which created many box office records in China and Asia, as foreign language films, their box office performance in North America is not bad, but they haven't formed much of an impact.

But except for him, no second person can cameo in a film with this current achievement and get a salary of 1.5 million US dollars in three days. From this salary, Lu Yan He is definitely an A-lister.

Not to mention his current fame and influence, which is not something that a simple *The Mist* can encompass.

But if one were to conclude that he is an A-lister because of all this, it doesn't seem to hold water.

After all, one still has to look at the actual results.

However, if Lu Yan He can win an Oscar, then he is undoubtedly an A-lister.

Some actors win an Oscar and can use the Oscar to transform themselves from a powerful actor into a famous actor. For example, the aforementioned Olivia Colman.

Some actors win an Oscar to legitimize the industry status and influence they have already formed. Just like the time Leonardo DiCaprio won the Oscar for Best Actor for *The Revenant*.

Lu Yan He belongs to a combination of the former and the latter.

He didn't take a conventional actor's path in China, and it's the same in Europe and America.

Return to the country.

Rest for two days.

Chen Ziyan brought good news: Qin Shulan agreed to sign her overseas agency contract to Shi Huo.

Likewise, Qin Shulan will also join this North American awards season public relations itinerary.

On September 27, *Tropical Rainy Season* began small-scale screenings and previews in the United States and China simultaneously.

The publicity war for the October National Day holiday has already begun.

*Tropical Rainy Season* is the only art film among them, of course, because of Lu Yan He, it is still highly anticipated.

Lu Yan He specifically brought the entire cast to appear on an episode of Peng Zhixing's *Zhixing* for an in-depth interview, and held a special screening, where they had an hour-long exchange on site.

"This film is aimed at its audience; don't worry that the topics we discuss are too deep and not friendly to most viewers." That is exactly what Lu Yan He said to Peng Zhixing and the host of the special screening.

*Tropical Rainy Season* is destined not to be the kind of film that sells over 700 or 800 million.

It can't play the mass card, so it should just follow the "elite route" well.

Let the audience who eat this kind of film walk into the cinema as much as possible.

Therefore, the praise from the media in Europe and America, and the fact that Lu Yan He and the others are going to "sprint for the Oscars" this year, are all the focus of this film's publicity.

The point is that this film is an art film that is clearly not so refreshing, not so funny, and not warm.

This counter-intuitive publicity method made other film parties a bit confused.

Can publicizing yourself with great fanfare as "not so easy to watch," "a bit boring," and "mostly slow-motion shots without dialogue" really attract audiences to watch this film?

After several consecutive days of previews, *Tropical Rainy Season* took 7 million in preview box office with only 2% of the screenings per day, and other film parties were stunned.

They suddenly remembered something from a long time ago.

Remembering that year, also an art film, *Road to Glory*'s long preview period eventually ran out over 100 million in box office. (End of chapter)