Chapter 424: Unrestrained Ideas: I'm Very Fired Up Right Now

China Film Group, inside a small conference room.

Taking advantage of a gap in the Beijing Film Festival, the Chinese and American producers of *Pacific Rim* met here.

It was just that Wei Jin did not expect that as soon as everyone had finished chatting about the film's promotional progress in various regions, the Warner side brought up the idea of a sequel.

Even Han Sanping was somewhat surprised, asking, "Paul, are your expectations for the film's box office very high?"

"Well, it's like this: last year, based on the rough draft of the chronicle provided by Wei, we filled in quite a bit of content, constructed a complete worldview, and published comic novels. Do you know what the circulation is?"

"How much?"

"Currently, in North America alone, it has already exceeded four million copies, and globally it is approaching ten million."

Once Paul said this, Han Sanping and Ye Ning, who were unaware of the situation, directly gasped.

This number is naturally not worth mentioning compared to globally popular best-selling novels, but one must know that *Pacific Rim* itself is not a fan-oriented film; just the chronicle comics being able to be printed in such numbers means that there are a great many people interested.

According to Paul's introduction, the comics have caused a great response and anticipation among the teenage demographic, and with the help of the Summer Slot, the box office expectations for the film are truly excellent.

"So, according to our internal projections, the film's global box office is very likely to exceed 500 million USD."

Han Sanping's 60-year-old brain was already spinning rapidly, seemingly calculating what the final profit would be, but soon, he frowned.

This film's production cost is 150 million USD; even if the global promotional screenings were reduced due to the cast lineup and more online promotional methods were adopted, the overall marketing cost is still over 50 million USD.

According to the box office expectation of 500 million USD, the profit margin is not large; at least compared to the 30 million USD invested and the more than two years of return time, it is not considered large.

Han Sanping whispered a question in Chinese into Wei Jin's ear, and the latter smiled, explaining in a low voice.

"Chairman Han, Hollywood is different from the domestic market; copyright protection awareness is very strong. For this type of mecha film, merchandise and subsequent development are the big money."

What Wei Jin said was the truth; whether it is theme parks or toy figures, this is the correct way to open up a mecha film, but unfortunately, this doesn't work domestically.

After listening, Han Sanping also nodded thoughtfully.

Although compared to Wei Jin's films, which easily have several times the rate of return, *Pacific Rim* is a bit low.

But as a high-risk industry, if a film can break even and make a profit, provide political achievements, and have a steady stream of subsequent revenue, what the hell else could one want?

Ye Ning had the same thought, so in the meeting room, the four parties of investors looked at Wei Jin in unison, waiting for him to give an answer.

Wei Jin smiled and shook his head, "Everyone, the idea of a sequel certainly exists; in fact, the chronicle is the best proof, but it is still too early to discuss this. Let's wait until the film has finished its theatrical run."

Not having received a satisfactory reply, Paul was not surprised; he shrugged and looked at the three people from the Chinese side.

"Gentlemen, I think the previous cooperation was very pleasant. Shall we take this opportunity to cooperate once more?"

Paul's attitude was very sincere; whether it was *Avatar* or *Titanic*, all proved that the potential of the Huaxia film market is definitely over 200 million USD. Setting aside North America, this has already become the world's largest box office market, and co-productions are the future mainstream.

"Oh? I wonder what project Mr. Paul has brought this time?"

Not just Han Sanping and Ye Ning, but even Wei Jin became interested. He looked at Hunter and found that the other party also had a confused look; it seems this was Paul's impromptu idea.

Seeing that the topic he threw out had aroused the other party's interest, Paul felt that the subsequent negotiations should go very smoothly, so he looked at Wei Jin.

"Wei, we noticed a script you registered and felt the creative idea was quite good. Perhaps we could try it?"

"Hmm, I wonder which one your company has taken a fancy to?"

"*Edge of Tomorrow*."

Wei Jin raised an eyebrow; he had to admit that Warner's eye for things was quite good.

*Edge of Tomorrow* is also known as *Live Die Repeat*; in his past life, it was produced by Warner and was a sci-fi film starring Tom Cruise.

This film, adapted from a Japanese anime novel, did not have a good box office performance in his past life; even counting the subsequent DVD copyright revenue, it barely broke even, but the word-of-mouth was quite explosive.

This means that if the release window and promotional strategy were changed, it is not certain that it couldn't achieve good results. It seems Warner has indeed conducted a detailed internal assessment.

Sensing the gazes of Han Sanping and Ye Ning, Wei Jin understood the purpose of Warner bringing this up on such an occasion.

In a flash, Wei Jin's thoughts flew, and he soon had an idea.

"Paul, cooperation is no problem, but I have one condition."

"What condition?"

"I am very interested in DC's Joker; I hope Warner can transfer the copyright..."

Before Wei Jin could finish, Paul became somewhat agitated.

"Impossible, Wei. DC's superheroes cannot be transferred."

Paul's reply did not exceed Wei Jin's expectations, even though compared to Disney, Warner's development speed for DC superheroes is very slow.

But since *Batman*, as long as Warner's top management isn't stupid, they should know that superhero-themed films have a bright future, so how could they possibly transfer them?

This was just Wei Jin's negotiation tactic; after all, the "open a window" theory is universally applicable.

Seeing that Wei Jin was not at all annoyed by the refusal, he smiled and threw out his real goal.

"Hey, Paul, my good friend, don't be agitated. Or, instead of transferring, how about leasing?"

"Leasing?"

"Yes, leasing. Warner leases the Joker's copyright to me for five years. If I haven't developed it by the time the time limit is up..."

Now Paul understood; this method is similar to patent licensing, which is actually a good choice.

After pondering for a while, Paul did not answer immediately but asked.

"Wei, I'm curious. DC has so many superheroes—Superman, The Flash, Wonder Woman—why would you choose the Joker?"

"Hey, friend, don't you think the Joker is super cool?"

Wei Jin laughed softly; he couldn't very well tell him that *Joker*'s box office would exceed 1 billion USD. "Alright, a genius's ideas are always so unrestrained, but I can't give you an answer for the time being. I need to communicate with the top management."

"Of course, I look forward to your good news."

Wei Jin spread his hands to show he didn't mind; he believed Warner would make the right choice.

Of course, even if the cooperation could not be reached, it wouldn't have much impact on him.

Subsequently, Hunter, representing Summit Entertainment, chatted with Han Sanping about *The Hunger Games* and *A Quiet Place* entering the domestic market.

After some back-and-forth, Han Sanping finally agreed to *The Hunger Games* entering in the second half of the year as an imported film, while *A Quiet Place* could only enter as a Flat-fee Film.

Regarding this, neither Hunter nor Wei Jin pushed too hard; there were simply too many imported films this year, and quite a few with investments of over 100 million. This result was already very good. After Paul and Hunter left, Han Sanping and Ye Ning looked at Wei Jin with burning gazes.

"Wei Jin, regarding the project *Edge of Tomorrow*, what is the specific situation?"

In Han Sanping's view, since Warner Bros. took the initiative to propose the cooperation and Wei Jin's requirements were not high, there shouldn't be much turbulence; he was more concerned about the new project now.

"Uh, this script mainly tells the story of..."

As Wei Jin unfolded the topic, elements like exoskeletons, the apocalypse, reincarnation, and time loops made Han Sanping's eyes grow brighter and brighter.

"This project, if we are going to do it, I'm afraid the investment won't be small."

Looking at Han's expression, Wei Jin knew what he was thinking, and there was a hint of helplessness on his face.

"Han Dong, if this project is really going to be done, China Film Group is indispensable, and of course, there is also Wanda."

For a Sino-US co-production, it is impossible to play alone without China Film Group; as for Wanda, they are incredible right now.

Wanda is currently acquiring the North American AMC Theatres, which is the second-largest cinema chain in North America, owning 347 theaters with a total of 5,048 screens, and is also the world's largest IMAX and 3D screen operating company.

Once this acquisition is achieved, Wanda's influence in North America will be huge; future Summit Entertainment projects will definitely have to hold onto this thigh.

What's more critical is that the profit margin for this project is limited, and Wei Jin never intended to hog the profits; it's just right to use it to maintain relationships between allies.

If it were a blockbuster series like *The Hunger Games*, then Wei Jin wouldn't be so generous.

"Haha, then I'll just wait for it."

Han laughed somewhat exaggeratedly; he was nearing his retirement age, and if he could produce more political achievements, perhaps he could serve another term.

Ye Ning, who was on the side, also smiled and nodded, "Thank you, President Wei."

Leaving China Film Group, Wei Jin timed it perfectly to attend the premiere of *Killing*, after all, he had promised Huang Bai.

It was a pity that during the film festival, there was simply too much news to report, so the media's attention naturally wouldn't be focused here.

Coupled with the fact that the film's producers, Xingmei and Yunying, didn't have much influence in the industry, and the director Guan Hu didn't have much appeal, there weren't many industry insiders who came to support the premiere, making it look a bit desolate.

Perhaps Xingmei's Qin Hong didn't have high expectations for this film either; the premiere didn't have any gimmicks, and the feature film started directly after a round of interviews.

The film *Killing* is adapted from Chen Tiejun's novel *Child's Play Murder*. To highlight the theme, director Guan Hu adopted absurd suspense and satirical techniques, emphasizing a style of black humor and black satire.

But in Wei Jin's view, the performances of both Huang Bai and Yu Nan were already brilliant enough; it was just that director Guan Hu's ability was a bit lacking, and the story wasn't told well.

Added to the choice of such a release window, the film's box office was already foreseeable.

After the premiere ended, Wei Jin chatted with Huang Bai for a few moments before returning to Yanjiao Villa.

Seeing that *Big Shot* was about to start filming after May Day, which would take at least a month, Wei Jin had to satisfy his "main palace consorts," and today was the day for Da Meiyuan to serve in the bedchamber.

Returning to the room, he saw Da Meiyuan lying on the bed playing with her phone. Her thin silk pajamas outlined the curves of her beautiful buttocks, and a pair of snow-white calves were kicking back and forth in mid-air, which was extremely alluring.

Wei Jin walked up, sat on the edge of the bed, and stroked the beauty's perky buttocks with one hand.

"What are you looking at?"

Hearing this, Gao Yuanyuan turned her head and handed over her phone.

"Here, a group of directors are complaining, I gave Director Wang a like."

Wei Jin took it and looked; it really was true. Jia Kezhang, Yang Shupeng, Wang Xiaoshuai, and many other directors were all expressing their dissatisfaction with this film festival on Weibo.

Jia Kezhang was targeting the super-standard treatment received by James Cameron.

In his words, the organizing committee treated Cameron as an honored guest throughout the entire process, and the taste of "licking feet" was too strong; they might as well not call it the Beijing International Film Festival, but just call it the Cameron Film Festival.

"Xiao Jin, is it really that outrageous?"

During this film festival, Da Meiyuan had been busy watching movies and was not clear about what happened at the forums.

"Hmm, it is a bit..."

Wei Jin nodded. The organizers did indeed seem a bit sycophantic; not only was the reception super-standard, but they even helped Cameron's team make connections and secured quite a few 3D special effects contracts.

One must know that these films could later be promoted and hyped under the gimmick of Cameron's team's 3D special effects, which was indeed a lot of pressure for other filmmakers.

Continuing to look down, Wei Jin discovered the Weibo post that Gao Yuanyuan had liked was posted by Wang Xiaoshuai. The latter had collaborated with Da Meiyuan several times, and their friendship was indeed quite good.

What Wang Xiaoshuai was targeting was not Cameron, but the censorship system.

He spoke quite reasonably; he didn't ask for a protection month for domestic films, only for some support in production themes and the censorship system, and he even specifically quoted Cameron.

Wei Jin also gave it a like and then posted a Weibo post to express his support.

Although he knew it was useless, it was at least doing his part.

Throwing the phone aside, Wei Jin wrapped his arms around Da Meiyuan's slender waist and sniffed the body fragrance of the Hupu goddess; he was a bit intoxicated.

Just as he was about to take action, Da Meiyuan stopped him.

"Xiao Jin, guess who I met on the scene today?"

Looking at the playfulness at the corner of Da Meiyuan's mouth, Wei Jin had a bad premonition in his heart.

"Who?"

"Your goddess, Scarlett Johansson. Her figure is really good, with a protruding front and a perky back. No wonder you were so infatuated with her that you even wrote a song for her..."

Wei Jin looked at the jealous Da Meiyuan and couldn't help but laugh or cry for a moment. Then, he exerted strength in his arms, pulled the beauty to sit on his lap, and his eyes were sincere and fiery.

"Yuan Yuanjie, you are the most beautiful goddess in my heart."

Wei Jin was telling the truth. Compared to the Black Widow's Western face, Da Meiyuan was completely in line with his aesthetic.

Moreover, after years of his nourishment, Da Meiyuan was completely in the peak beauty period of a woman—a young married woman with a girlish feel, simply irresistible.

Without waiting for the beauty to speak, Wei Jin kissed her alluring red lips directly. The jelly-like touch made him linger, and his hands began to fly up and down.

After a few minutes of wet kissing, the two were already baring their hearts to each other. Gao Yuanyuan's face was flushed, her pretty face was full of spring, and her beautiful eyes were flowing with waves; she was truly both pure and seductive, making one unable to stop.

"Bad guy, give it to me quickly..."

Seeing this, Wei Jin's mouth curled into a smile; the roles of attacker and defender had now reversed.

"Yuan Yuanjie, I have a lot of fire in me right now..."

Gao Yuanyuan cast a flirtatious glance, slowly lowered her fair swan-like neck, parted her red lips, and gently wrapped around Wei Jin. (End of chapter)