Chapter 233: 《The King of Singers》 Scheduled: The Threat of 《Avatar》

The Beijing Film Academy official website has already published the graduation list for this year's graduate students.

Wei Jin's graduation project received the highest score; after all, it is a Golden Bear Award film.

The list of new distinguished alumni also includes Wei Jin's name. According to Teacher Jiang, if he hadn't pursued a graduate degree, Wei Jin should have been on the list three years ago.

"Brother, you've already graduated from graduate school, yet you haven't taken me around the campus."

Jing Tian has always remembered that Wei Jin promised to show her around during orientation, but he never came.

"Tian Tian, Beijing Film Academy is just such a small place, what is there to tour?"

Wei Jin truly cannot understand the little girl's train of thought—is she trying to show off, or just show off? "Didn't we agree to go out for the Spring Festival? That's much more fun than this place the size of a sesame seed, isn't it?"

"Alright then, you can't break your promise this time."

"Mm, not this time."

Calculating the time, the child should be a hundred days old by then, so it will be safe to go out for a trip.

"By the way, did you really receive an invitation to the Spring Festival Gala?"

"It's true, Brother. The song 'As You Wish' has such a great concept; the directing team called personally."

Speaking of this, Jing Tian looks excited. One must know that her dream is to have more people recognize her.

The Spring Festival Gala will be performed in front of over one billion viewers; this is likely the most-watched performance there is.

Sensing the little girl's joy, how could Wei Jin not ask for some benefits? "Then Tian Tian, how are you going to thank me?"

While speaking, Wei Jin's hands have already begun to wander over the little girl's body.

"Bad brother, you only know how to bully me. I've already given you everything, and you're still out there... mm..."

Wei Jin decisively interrupted the little girl with a kiss; some things cannot be said, as dwelling on them too much will lead to excessive concern.

After a long kiss, Jing Tian's little face is flushed red, and she has indeed forgotten about the matter.

"Brother, when is 'Lucy' coming out? Hunter notified me that I have to join the crew by mid-August at the latest."

'Now You See Me 2' has already been greenlit. This time, Jing Tian's role is much larger, which also means she won't be able to wrap up filming in a short time.

"That doesn't matter. Although the specific date hasn't been set, it should be early August, so there is enough time."

Wei Jin estimated the schedule in his heart. 'Bodyguards and Assassins' was already scheduled for July 10th after the May Day holiday, so 'Lucy' naturally has to be pushed to August.

"That's good, this is my first film as the female lead."

Jing Tian is already fantasizing about the female-led film being released and her status soaring. One must know that she was very unhappy about being ranked behind Liu Yifei among the Four Dan Actresses.

"However, Tian Tian, if you join the crew, what about the Spring Festival Gala rehearsals?"

Wei Jin suddenly thought of this issue. The Spring Festival Gala isn't something you are guaranteed to be on just because you were invited; if you don't show up for rehearsals or the performance effect isn't good, you could be cut at any time.

"It's fine, there is a high-ranking leader who thinks highly of me and invited me by name. I only need to participate in the last two rounds."

Wei Jin was surprised to realize this; Tian Tian acts so harmless in front of him that he almost forgot she has quite a significant background.

"My Tian Tian is truly amazing."

"Hee hee."

Looking at the little girl's somewhat silly and naive appearance, Wei Jin reached out and pulled her into his arms, constantly rubbing his nose against her pretty face. In this clingy state, where is there any trace of a billionaire or an entertainment tycoon?

Jing Tian also enjoys this time for two, leaning in Wei Jin's arms and quietly feeling the man's body temperature.

After a long while, Jing Tian seemed to remember something.

"Brother, that show of yours is really so much fun."

Speaking of 'Masked Singer', the little girl looks excited; it is clear she had a lot of fun on the show.

This variety show is not like 'Keep Running'; it is quite simple to produce and started airing on Beijing Satellite TV in early May.

As for choosing Beijing TV, Wei Jin's main goal is to spread the benefits around.

Currently, 'The Voice' is collaborating with Shanghai Television, 'If You Are The One' with Jiangsu TV, and the subsequent 'Keep Running' with Jiangzhe Satellite TV. Shanhe Media and the three major television stations have already formed a close community of interests.

On the contrary, for Beijing Satellite TV, with whom the initial cooperation was very pleasant, Shanhe Media found it difficult to find a suitable variety show for them due to the station's constraints.

This time, upon hearing about 'Masked Singer', a vice director of Beijing TV personally stepped in. After fully understanding the show's rules, they immediately made the decision and offered a sky-high price: a 20 million base price plus a 50% advertising revenue share.

One must know that the production cost of 'Masked Singer' cannot compare to 'The Voice'; at most, it is around 20 million. The price offered by Beijing Satellite TV can be said to be full of sincerity.

Since the show went online for two episodes, the ratings broke 3 directly, and the viewership share in the Beijing area even reached over 26%. It can be called a massive hit, which also made Beijing Satellite TV overjoyed.

According to the variety department's projections, the show's peak ratings should be able to break 5. Among this type of pure music variety show, it is truly in a league of its own.

"Then among the singers you PK'd against, who do you feel was the most impressive?"

"Everyone was wearing masks, so I don't know who they were either, I only know the code name was 'The Wanderer'..."

Wei Jin nodded upon hearing this. A major highlight of this show is that the performers are all pulling out all the stops to hide themselves and will not easily expose their signature voices.

This 'Masked Singer' planned by Shanhe Media is closer to the original South Korean version, having canceled the so-called "glorious reveal" segment.

In his past life, when Wei Jin watched this show, he couldn't help but complain: why does the winner have to be eliminated? They couldn't even copy it correctly.

Although he can understand that the production team needs to look after the guests' faces, the producer now is Shanhe Media. Wei Jin doesn't believe these guests would dare to cause any trouble; since they accepted the invitation, they must follow the competition rules properly.

The facts were indeed so; almost all the guests invited by the production team agreed without much hesitation.

Although being eliminated might be embarrassing, haven't they seen how popular the four mentors of 'The Voice' have become? Even if they refused, the capital or management teams behind them would not agree.

Not only that, these invited guests almost all chose to accept only a symbolic appearance fee. Their teams are very clear that this is a good opportunity to become famous, and the subsequent benefits are the real big prize. Why not use the appearance fee to build a good relationship with Shanhe Media? This is also why the show's production costs are so low.

Regarding the competition format, four guests appear in each episode. First, there is a four-person chorus to give the "Guessing Group" an initial impression of the guests.

Next are two sets of duets. The winners advance directly, while the two losers from the losing set perform a solo song each, followed by another round of PK. The eliminated contestant finally reveals their face, but before the reveal, the Guessing Group will make their final guess for confirmation.

If they guess correctly, the live audience will receive an autographed photo of the revealed artist—not many, just two hundred copies. If they guess incorrectly, the Guessing Group will collectively receive a punishment.

"Tian Tian, then who do you think performed the best among the Guessing Group members?"

This show is related to music, so several new music artists signed under the company have joined the Guessing Group, both to show their faces and to earn some appearance fees.

As for the famous singer Yao Beina, she is a guest, but Wei Jin didn't pay attention to what her specific stage name was on the show.

"Jin Zhiwen, he was just too funny; he kept helping in the wrong way."

Seeming to recall Jin Zhiwen's god-tier performance, Jing Tian laughed until she was swaying. "Haha, he either overacted, or he's just too young."

Wei Jin pondered communicating with the variety show department; scripts were fine, but overdoing it was not good.

"Ah? Are they all acting?"

"Not necessarily all acting, but there's definitely some exaggeration involved."

After becoming capital himself, Wei Jin was very familiar with the tropes; don't ever be surprised why those variety show guests are so brain-dead—it's all just for the show's effect.

"Ah~~ and here I thought I was hiding it so well."

"It's just for the show's effect. You have fun, the audience has fun, that's all that matters."

"Hmm, that's true." —— China Film Group, in Han Sanping's office.

Flipping through the film schedule, Wei Jin thought for a moment and said, "Han Dong, help me confirm the release date for August 1st."

Over these past few years, the Summer Slot has become very mature, second only to the New Year Slot.

"Alright, are we going with the global release route again this time?"

Han Sanping knew Wei Jin's thoughts and only felt that this young man's ambition was too great.

"Mm, we have to try it eventually. Besides, even if it's not ideal, I can accept it."

In fact, Wei Jin also knew that for a production like *Lucy* with a cost of over ten million USD, a global release was far less cost-effective than selling the rights outright.

But Summit Entertainment were his own people, so they would listen to Wei Jin's requests. Furthermore, even if the overseas box office was truly unsatisfactory, the Asian box office alone would be enough to make a huge profit.

"Mm, as long as you have a handle on it."

Since this film didn't have investment from China Film Group, Han Sanping didn't say anything more and turned to chat about the new project.

"How is it? You've been idle for so long, the project should be starting, right?"

The various funds for *Passengers* had long been in place, and Han Sanping was already impatient.

"Mm, just about."

Chen Xi's ability was still very strong; everything including the studio and various equipment and props was being produced in an orderly fashion. Starting filming at the end of the month would be no problem at all.

"By the way, I have an idea..."

There were many Hibernation Pods in this film, and Wei Jin intended to find some familiar actors in the industry to make cameo appearances.

Just lying in the Hibernation Pod for a one or two-second shot would suffice. Once edited, the effect would be absolutely explosive. This was actually inspiration provided by Boss Yang during *New World*.

After hearing Wei Jin's idea, Han Sanping's eyes lit up.

"Not bad, that's got real potential. Give me a shot when the time comes..."

"That's for sure, your acting skills are so great, sir."

Wei Jin offered a lukewarm compliment, but unexpectedly, it earned him a roll of the eyes from Han Sanping.

"You brat, you're mocking me, right? What kind of acting skills do you need to lie in a Hibernation Pod?"

Seeing that the serious business was finished, Wei Jin thought of another matter.

"Right, Han Dong, there's something I need to communicate with you about."

Wei Jin thought of his meeting with Nolan in North America; this matter had to be notified to China Film Group, as the Asian market belonged to both of them.

"*Inception*, the North American release date has been set for November 27th."

"Hm? Why choose this date? Isn't the New Year Slot good? I remember December is also a hot release period over in North America, right?"

Han Sanping was a bit surprised; this wasn't the best time slot for the New Year.

"Because *Avatar* is set for December 18th. Nolan doesn't have the confidence to face it head-on, and Warner Bros. shares the same view."

Wei Jin also felt a bit wistful, but he could understand Warner Bros.' approach; after all, the North American market was their main revenue zone.

"Is *Avatar* really that powerful? Nolan is a billion-dollar director, and with your script, you still can't compete?"

Han Sanping was a bit shocked; were the foreigners too timid?

"Han Dong, that is Cameron's pinnacle work, honed over ten years. The team *Inception* is using is his own team, so Nolan must know what he's doing."

Others might not know, but how could Wei Jin not? In his past life, *Avatar* raked in nearly 3 billion USD at the box office.

Even until 2023, more than a decade after its release, the film still firmly held the number one spot in global box office, and it was very likely that no film would ever break this mountain in the future; it could be called terrifyingly extreme.

"What we need to consider now is whether we want a simultaneous release in the Asian region. North America doesn't have any objections to this."

"Hmm... let's go with a simultaneous release."

After thinking it over, Han Sanping agreed to this date. After all, it was only a few days difference, and the gimmick of a global simultaneous release might just make up for the box office losses. —— Han Sanping's efficiency was high; the news that *Lucy* was set for August 1st appeared on the China Film Group official website early the next morning.

With an investment of 80 million, the female-led film written and directed by Wei Jin was about to be released.

Many female stars remembered that night they lost without a fight and felt sour in their hearts.

"I don't know what's so good about Jing Tian. Where am I not as good as her?"

"A female-led film; if she can't carry it, it'll be embarrassing..."

Many female artists were preparing to wait for the film's release to watch Jing Tian make a fool of herself, which actually helped build up hype for *Lucy* in advance.

However, the heat didn't last long. That afternoon, the several production companies behind *Passengers* jointly announced project information for the first time:

"*Passengers* has a total investment of 250 million, jointly produced by Shanhe Media, China Film Group, Aerospace Science and Industry, Wanda Cinemas, and Enlight Media!"

Once the news broke, the industry was in an uproar. Although the script had already passed censorship and the filming site had been exposed, no specific information about the project had been revealed.

This time it was different. It was also a sci-fi film, with the same five major production companies, and an investment of 250 million. This made many people think of *The Martian*. Could it be another super blockbuster? Many people started scouting for news, hoping to know the specific cast and start date.

Yang Mi felt complicated at this moment. A 250 million big project, even as the second female lead, would be a significant boost to her status. She didn't know if her choice was correct.

"Mimi, don't think too much. *Brotherhood of Blades 2* is the female lead role after all, and the previous installment had over 300 million in box office."

By comparison, Ceng Jia valued the billing more. Being the female lead in her debut film would undoubtedly better reflect Yang Mi's status.

"Mm, I know, Jia Jie."

Today's second update (End of chapter)