Chapter 2: What? Spider-Man is from Huaxia?

"Sony Pictures announces the reboot of the live-action Spider-Man project!"

"The project was initiated in 2001 but failed to be filmed until now in 2006."

"Director Sam Raimi withdrew from the project, and Mark Wei Bu took over as director!"

"Mark Wei Bu stated: I will not start filming until I find the ideal candidate; casting for Spider-Man cannot be compromised."

"Heath Ledger, Leonardo DiCaprio, and other superstars were all rejected; the director's reason was that they did not fit the character's persona."

"Sony Pictures launched a second large-scale audition; actor ethnicity is not limited to white people; Latinos, African Americans, and Asians are all eligible to audition."

"Shocking! 18-year-old Chinese actor Bright Xu received the director's approval! Mark Wei Bu declared: He is Spider-Man!"

"An Asian Spider-Man is coming? Sony Pictures has gone mad! Who is this Chinese person?"

"Shocking! US media reveals that the live-action Spider-Man actor is actually from Huaxia! So the question is, who is Xu Can?"

Spring of 2006.

North America, Los Santos.

An old apartment located in Chinatown on Sunset Boulevard.

Xu Can sat in a rental room of less than 30 square meters, staring with his mouth agape at the agent at the door.

The room was piled high with luggage and miscellaneous items; after the agent entered, he could not even put his feet down and could only stand at the door.

The window was blocked by buildings, making the light slightly dim.

Although the room felt slightly oppressive, Xu Can could not hide his surprise at this moment.

"Really? Are you not joking with me? Did I successfully cast?"

The agent, Happy Hogan, was a white, chubby middle-aged man.

He was dressed in a suit and leather shoes, but his bulky figure could not hide the sense of absurdity.

"Of course! Xu, if you are willing to act, the role of Spider-Man is yours."

However, the agent hesitated for a moment and then said with deep concern:

"But I still suggest you act in another large-scale production, The Fast and the Furious 3: Tokyo Drift."

"The Fast and the Furious?"

The agent Happy Hogan earnestly advised:

"Yes, the director is of Chinese descent and will definitely value you highly. Secondly, this sequel is highly expected by Universal, with an investment of 85 million US dollars; it will absolutely be a huge hit!"

"Spider-Man is, after all, a comic adaptation, which is quite risky. Moreover, having a Chinese person play Spider-Man, I am very worried about the reception."

"You really need to proceed with caution; do not give up another better project just because of your personal preference!"

In Happy Hogan's view, comic adaptations were synonymous with failure.

Except for the Superman movies of the 1980s, all subsequent live-action comic adaptations, without exception, suffered disastrous critical and box office failures.

This was simply a taboo in Hollywood!

Otherwise, why did the director look at so many stars, yet they all refused to participate in Spider-Man?

Was it not because they feared the reputation would be too terrible and bring negative effects to their careers?

In contrast, The Fast and the Furious 3, as a series, had both reputation and market.

It was also a rare story set in East Asia.

The investors specifically sought an Asian director and an Asian male lead, which would also please the huge Huaxia market.

Perhaps Xu Can would enter the mainstream Hollywood circle in one fell swoop and usher in a soaring career.

Regardless of which aspect one looks at, The Fast and the Furious 3 was far better than Spider-Man.

Happy Hogan spoke until his mouth was dry and tongue was sore, but Xu Can raised his hand to interrupt him.

"Happy, I know what you mean. But I am certain that this Spider-Man is truly different."

Xu Can's eyes were extremely firm.

Because he was a reborn person, he knew very well the potential of Spider-Man!

Do you understand the gold content of the 2002 annual box office champion?

It was precisely due to the confidence brought by Sony's Spider-Man that Marvel would subsequently, despite being avoided by major companies, firmly proceed with filming Iron Man!

Thereby launching the Marvel Cinematic Universe to sweep the globe.

Of course, all these were things from Xu Can's previous life.

Now he has been reborn into the parallel world of 2006, and the world line has undergone certain changes.

The original Spider-Man had not even started filming yet!

Comic adaptations still held a low status in Hollywood.

Marvel was still a small company on the verge of bankruptcy and had not yet launched its own film universe.

In 2001, Sony had attempted to film Spider-Man.

Unfortunately, Tobey Maguire in this parallel world did not take the path of acting; he was unknown in Hollywood.

Without a suitable casting, the filming process was full of difficulties.

The original director, Sam Raimi, announced his withdrawal.

In 2002, Spider-Man had not yet been released when it encountered project delays.

Until 2006,

Sony, not wanting the Spider-Man IP to rot in its hands, found director Mark Wei Bu to reboot the filming!

During the main character open casting, Xu Can stood out from countless auditioners.

He became the original Spider-Man!

When Xu Can was young, he was very active,

learning Peking Opera martial arts from a neighbor grandfather, and practicing martial arts forms and sanda for many years.

Since rehearsing a play for the New Year's gala in junior high school, Xu Can opened the door to a new world.

In his past life, he did not study acting, but in this world, he embarked on a completely different path.

Relying on his excellent Peking Opera foundation, his powerful singing voice, and his handsome looks,

Xu Can was admitted to the Acting Department of the Beijing Film Academy with the first-place score, becoming a classmate of Yang Mi.

However, before his first semester at the Beijing Film Academy ended, he was drawn into a whirlpool.

Xu Can accidentally witnessed a certain professor at the school assaulting a female student,

and after a secret investigation, he also discovered that the professor engaged in corruption and improper conduct such as sexual coercion.

Xu Can filed a formal complaint with his real name, triggering a huge uproar and becoming a hot social topic at the time.

Although that professor was sent to jail,