Chapter 210: Unstoppable, King of Cinema

On the early morning of the 13th, entertainment and business media in every major city across the country worked overtime to print their newspapers.

One must know that with the rise of the internet, the print media industry has been increasingly declining; it is rare to have such sensational news, and waiting until daytime will surely drive a wave of sales.

As news of the opening day box office for *The Martian* spread, the entire entertainment circle was stirred.

Many people had a premonition about the film's big success—after all, it was a major sci-fi production with a 400 million budget—but they did not expect the box office to be this explosive.

The opening day box office was nearly 50 million; one must know that among the hundreds of films released domestically each year, only about ten or so manage to exceed 50 million in total box office, so this is truly exaggerated.

Following this data, 500 million is absolutely no problem, 600 million is not a dream, and even 700 million is not impossible.

For a time, many people recalled Wei Jin's statement at the premiere, "Just relying on the domestic box office is basically enough to break even." It seems that was truly no empty boast; this foresight is simply too exceptional.

Many people have a premonition that the achievements of *The Martian* are destined to be recorded in the history of Huaxia cinema. — Following the broadcast of *The Voice* on the evening of the 12th, more and more people learned of the news that *The Martian* had been released.

On the second day of the film's release, which was also a weekend, the single-day box office hit a new high, smashing through a shocking 58 million.

Breaking 100 million in two days, creating history! "A wild 107 million in two days, *The Martian* is unstoppable!"

On the third day, the box office continued to maintain its strength, with a single-day box office of 54 million.

The opening weekend three-day box office for *The Martian* reached as high as 161 million, setting a historical record for opening weekend box office.

At the same time, box office figures from all over the world were collected from all directions, leaving industry peers shocked.

The opening weekend box office in Hong Kong was 21 million, Taiwan was 32 million, and North America was 53 million USD. In its first three days, *The Martian* grossed 133 million USD globally, strongly topping the global opening weekend box office chart!

Crucially, the word-of-mouth was also good, with an IMDb rating as high as 8.3, meaning this result was not just a flash in the pan.

For a time, Wei Jin's fame resounded globally, drawing the attention of other countries and regions around the world.

Although this was not the first time a Wei Jin film had won the global opening weekend championship, it was the first time a Huaxia-language film had topped the global weekly championship, and it did so by leading the second-place global opening weekend champion by a wide margin.

Many overseas filmmakers were marveling at the rapid development of the Huaxia film market, while also being shocked by the quality of *The Martian*. They did not expect that the first sci-fi blockbuster from the Huaxia people would be in no way inferior to a Hollywood blockbuster.

The dual harvest of overseas box office and word-of-mouth for *The Martian* also caused domestic media to collectively climax!

"The rise of a great nation, domestic sci-fi films go global!"

"*The Martian* explodes globally, topping the global weekly championship in its first three days!"

This was a feast belonging to Huaxia filmmakers, and also a feast for the national media. — Hunter called to report the results of *Taken 2*: North American box office 177 million, global box office 373 million USD.

Hearing this number, Wei Jin nodded with satisfaction.

This film's investment was no more than 45 million USD; in terms of box office alone, the net profit would be no less than 100 million USD, and adding subsequent peripheral revenue, it could be called a great success.

"Mm, very good, just agree to the demands of the main creative team."

Since the film is making a huge profit, there is no need to haggle over a little bit of the actors' pay.

"Very well, boss."

Hunter also agreed with the boss's approach; it is best not to change the cast for a series.

"By the way, regarding the screen allocation for *The Martian*, try your best to negotiate; the more, the better."

Because it was a Huaxia-language film, the market potential was unknown at the start, so the film's release rate did not reach the limit of Summit Entertainment.

"Rest assured, boss, it is already being pushed. Seeing the opening weekend box office performance, many theaters are willing to open screenings. It's just, why wasn't this film shot in Hollywood?"

This was not only Hunter's confusion, but also the confusion of Summit Entertainment. With this script plus Wei Jin's drawing power, if it were a Hollywood blockbuster, the box office should have been even higher.

"Hunter, I am a Huaxia director; isn't it expected that I shoot Huaxia-language films? You can't expect all scripts to be shot as Hollywood blockbusters, can you?"

Regarding this script alone, Hollywood was indeed the best choice, but Wei Jin just wanted to try pushing Huaxia-language films to the world. For this, he could afford some box office losses; besides, this result was not bad at all.

"Alright, boss, as long as you are happy." — The Berlin International Film Festival official announced the first list of films shortlisted for the Main Competition Section.

*Forever Enthralled* was ranked first; of course, this was of no use, but the media could not resist hyping this gimmick.

For a time, the eyes of the circle were all focused on Chen Shiren, as if his winning the Golden Bear was already a certainty.

"Good brother, do you have any art-house films suitable for me?"

After a bout of entanglement, Fan Bingbing asked while giving Wei Jin a massage.

This woman basically did not get along with any of the Four Dan Double Bing; recently, Zhang Ziyi had been riding high, with both high box office and art-house films for awards, making her somewhat envious.

That was why today's event of taking the initiative to meet with Wei Jin happened.

"Is winning awards important to you? You need to figure out your own goals and direction. No matter how many awards she wins, she is still just an actor."

Wei Jin slapped Fan Bingbing's plump buttocks, causing a wave of flesh to ripple.

"The path you are on now is quite good: earning money through TV dramas to increase national popularity, while participating in films to accumulate connections."

Wei Jin's version of *The Empress of China*, in order to avoid censorship, reduced revealing shots, which meant it was destined not to reach the original's achievements, but the viewership ratings still broke 5, which counts as a rare high-quality work.

With just this one TV drama, Fan Bingbing's endorsement and commercial performance prices rose by at least 30 percent compared to before; among the Four Dan Double Bing, she was already ranked near the top.

"Mm, I'll listen to you, but are there any projects suitable for me next year?"

This year, Fan Bingbing could be called a model worker; at the beginning of the year, she had just finished filming a TV drama and immediately participated in three or four films, earning quite a lot, but she still felt unsatisfied.

"Mm... the few projects currently in development are not very suitable for you."

Regarding next year's TV drama projects, Chen Zhiming had already reported to Wei Jin; the only ones confirmed for the first half of the year were *The Myth* and *Palace*.

*Palace* had already been promised to Liu Shishi, and besides, Fan Bingbing was not suitable for this type of role; she needed either a female character with a powerful aura or a female character who was naturally seductive.

As for the female characters in *The Myth*, they were indeed brilliant, but the screen time was not much; for her to play them would be a bit of a step down.

In terms of film, to be honest, it was really hard to arrange for Fan Bingbing; her status was here, after all. One could only look at the projects of Golden Harvest.

"Good brother, I don't have any prospects for next year yet, so you have to help me."

Fan Bingbing used her perky curves to rub constantly against Wei Jin, which actually gave the latter a unique sense of pleasure.

Pushing the woman's head down, Wei Jin "instructed" her while thinking. "Mm... the screenwriting department is working on a 'quick transmigration' drama, which counts as a female-led script. It's still in the writing stage, so we'll see when the time comes."

Hearing this, Fan Bingbing felt somewhat proud; this man was just soft-hearted, but she worked even harder with her mouth.

Seeing that the foreplay was about enough, Wei Jin patted Fan Bingbing's perky buttocks, and the latter immediately understood, lying down to wait for the man's favor. — Shanhe Building, inside the chairman's office.

"President Wei, over at Tudou, payments haven't been very timely during this period."

Many of Shanhe Media's dramas are broadcast on Tudou; some adopt a buyout of copyright, while others adopt a click-count revenue share. Basically, there is a significant amount of capital returned every month.

However, Tudou has been holding back funds for several months recently. Although he knows this is Wei Jin's industry, Chen Zhiming is responsible for Shanhe Media, so these matters still need to be brought up.

"I know about this; give them some time to ease up."

The competition between video websites is too intense, and with Wei Jin having started purchasing copyrights in advance, Tudou is truly spending money like water.

Fortunately, everything is worth it. Supported by the burning of funds, Tudou has become the undisputed number one video website in the country, and preparations for going public can also begin in advance.

Thinking of his previous phone call with Wang Wei in North America, Wei Jin felt some emotion; he had divorced after all.

But this time, with a pre-signed property agreement and Wang Wei being very generous, there shouldn't be any loose ends; it can be considered a clean break, and finally, there won't be any more "Tudou Clause" incidents.

As for the matter of going public, Wei Jin still needs to study it for a while. — In the office of the Graduate Student school at Beijing Film Academy.

"You kid are something else now, the King of Cinema."

Teacher Jiang looked at his once-proud student and teased him.

"Teacher Jiang, please don't tease me; that's killing with praise."

Facing his teacher's ridicule, Wei Jin was somewhat between laughter and tears; the domestic media just loves to make exaggerated headlines.

In the last two days, the media counted the box office of films since Wei Jin's debut and discovered a shocking fact.

The cumulative box office of films directed by Wei Jin has already exceeded 10 billion RMB, and thus, "shock-style" headline news appeared:

"Shocking: The King of Commercial Cinema — Wei Jin, cumulative box office breaks 10 billion!"

For a time, this caused the public opinion that had gradually subsided to become rampant once again.

"Alright, I won't delay you any longer; Department Head Tian is probably waiting anxiously."

Bidding farewell to Teacher Jiang, Wei Jin went straight to the office of the Director Department Head, where his mentor Tian Zhuangzhuang was already waiting for him.

"Wei Jin, congratulations, the box office is great; I am proud of you."

"Teacher, you overpraise me; it is all thanks to the good teaching of the teachers and the school."

Wei Jin respected this mentor from the bottom of his heart, and facing the praise, he was humble for once.

"You, you, if you were always this humble, why would you... sigh, forget it."

Tian Zhuangzhuang also understood that Wei Jin was only acting this way because he respected him, while those other people were not worth Wei Jin's respect.

"I called you here today because the school has some things it wants to ask your opinion on. You are graduating soon; do you have any thoughts about staying at the school?"

After finishing speaking, Tian Zhuangzhuang picked up his teacup with a calm expression, leaving time for his student to think.

"Well, Teacher, to tell you the truth, if the school just lets me hold a title, that's fine, but if I really have to teach or attend various formal events, then I can only refuse."

Wei Jin is unwilling to be tied down, and besides, he doesn't think he can teach anything.

"I knew you were a free spirit; alright, let's drop this matter."

Having completed the task assigned by the school, Tian Zhuangzhuang stopped worrying about it and began to care about the film for the awards.

"To what extent is the post-production of your graduation project?"

"Almost there, I estimate it can be completely finished within a week."

During this time back in the country, Wei Jin has basically been busy with post-production; it's been about ten days on and off, so it can be considered very meticulous work.

"That's good, are you confident this time?"

With the script changed to a foreign background, Tian Zhuangzhuang didn't know if it would have an impact; if they really missed out on a Golden Bear because of this, it would be a real pity.

Thinking of this, Tian Zhuangzhuang, an old man who was always good-tempered, couldn't help but feel some hatred for those who hold positions without doing their jobs.

"There shouldn't be much of a problem, at least there is more hope than for *Mei Lanfang*."

Wei Jin is truly very confident; the English film indeed has a greater advantage and is more likely to be favored by the judges.

"Good."

Looking at his energetic student, Tian Zhuangzhuang was deeply gratified; perhaps it is precisely because of this vitality that Wei Jin can achieve such accomplishments at this age. — The box office myth of *The Martian* continues to unfold; in its second week, it retained the global weekly box office championship!

In the second week, the domestic box office hit 236 million, other Asian regions also accumulated 173 million, and in North America, with the increase in the number of screens, the box office reached 68 million USD, while the European region also took 31 million in box office.

In the second week of the film's release, it accumulated 170 million USD at the global box office.

At this time, it has only been ten days since the release of *The Martian*; the Mainland China box office has already accumulated 397 million, and the global box office has accumulated 303 million USD.

*The Martian* achieved dazzling results, but it was miserable for other films released in the same period.

*Mei Lanfang* had a box office of 72 million in its first week, and it looked like it had a chance to break the art film box office record of *Room*, but now it has been directly crushed; it has been released for almost 20 days, and the box office hasn't even broken 100 million yet. Chen Shiren is simply furious.

As for another film produced by Bona, directed by Xu Laoguai and starring Young Master Zhou, *Women Don't Bad*, it was crushed even worse; after 11 days of release, the box office was less than 10 million, which also set the lowest record in Xu Laoguai's career.

The production and promotion costs of this film add up to about 25 million, and the producers will lose at least 20 million.

It is said that the other investors are so angry they are vomiting blood, blaming Yu Dong of Bona for picking a fight with Wei Jin head-on when there were so many other release windows; it was simply brain-dead.

At the same time, everyone is guessing the final box office of *The Martian*. Based on factors such as seat occupancy, screening schedule, and word-of-mouth, theaters and media have roughly given a range of 650-700 million.

This astonishing number also made industry insiders truly realize that the domestic film market can already accommodate such a blockbuster, and many companies have launched new large-scale productions one after another.

Whether it is external praise or cursing, Wei Jin ignores it; he is focused on the post-production of *The Hunt*. The Berlin International Film Festival is getting closer and closer. The new book is on the shelves, the first update is presented, I sincerely ask all book friends to reward with a subscription and collection, thank you all!

(End of this chapter)