Chapter 553: Schedule Turbulence, A Near Miss, and the Assistants' New Battle Robes (Seeking Subscriptions)

The post-production of *Edge of Tomorrow* was already finished in the first ten days of the month, but it wasn't until today that the final cut passed the PG-13 rating in North America.

Warner Bros. and Summit Entertainment were the first to publicly announce the film's release date.

Immediately following that, China Film Group announced the domestic release schedule.

"With an investment of 170 million USD, the Sino-US co-produced sci-fi blockbuster *Edge of Tomorrow*, starring Tom Cruise and Jing Tian, will be released globally on December 20th!"

Shanhe Media and Wanda Pictures followed suit and reposted the news.

Just as Wei Jin expected, once the news broke, the film industry could truly be described as being in an uproar.

Everyone knows that as the largest and most popular slot in the country, the New Year Slot generates considerable box office revenue, and a large number of domestic commercial films crowd into this period for release.

Especially from mid-December to mid-January, it can be completely called the absolute essence of the New Year Slot.

This move by China Film Group is equivalent to letting a beast in, the kind that eats people without spitting out the bones.

"Damn it, no wonder Shanhe Media has no films scheduled for December. I thought this kid Wei Jin had changed his ways, but it turns out they had planned it all along. Zuoshandiao is the same; he's about to retire, yet he still won't settle down. What does he want?"

Wang Zhongjun was cursing in his office, feeling that he was being targeted by Han Sanping.

Previously, it was because they considered that there were no blockbusters scheduled for the New Year Slot that Huayi high-profilely announced *Personal Tailor* was aiming for the New Year Slot, intending to seize the initiative and scare off competitors.

Even inside the company, they had already chosen the specific date: the 19th.

But who would have thought that China Film Group would pull a stunt like this? "Fuck!"

It wasn't just Huayi; many production companies in the industry couldn't accept it. After all, also being a script by Wei Jin, *Pacific Rim* raked in over 1.5 billion in box office during last year's Summer Slot.

If it's changed to the New Year Slot, how much more will *Edge of Tomorrow* eat up? Is there any room for other films to survive? Some film production companies even went to protest at China Film Group, but they all left dejectedly in the end.

After all, according to policy, co-productions fully enjoy the same treatment as domestic films, not to mention that domestic capital accounts for a full half of the investment proportion of *Edge of Tomorrow*.

This wave of operations by Han Sanping is completely unassailable; even if they reported it to the General Administration, it wouldn't change the established fact that *Edge of Tomorrow* is landing in the New Year Slot.

The media likes this kind of excitement, and related reports came one after another.

"Sino-US co-produced sci-fi blockbuster *Edge of Tomorrow* will be released during the New Year Slot. Can it surpass the results of last year's *Pacific Rim*? We shall wait and see!"

Han Sanping specifically called Wei Jin, very concerned about what kind of results his last co-production while in office could achieve.

"Han Dong, this time we still made 2D and 3D versions. The visual effects are quite good. I wouldn't dare say we'll catch up to *Pacific Rim*, but in the New Year Slot, the results shouldn't be bad."

Wei Jin didn't dare to guarantee it either. Although this film has the addition of Jing Tian and a changed slot, there have been too many visual effect blockbusters in the past two years, and it's unclear whether the audience will buy it.

However, what is certain is that it will definitely be much better than in the original timeline; losing money is absolutely impossible.

The industry was arguing very noisily, and quite a few people even called Wei Jin, implying that they hoped he would go to China Film Group to coordinate.

Wei Jin was speechless. What a joke; Shanhe Media has a full 20% share, so of course he supports the New Year Slot release.

Ignoring these idiots, Wei Jin put all his thoughts into the new film.

After all, it's his first time starring as the male lead, and Wei Jin doesn't want to flip the car. If he really NG'd frequently on set, wouldn't his lifelong reputation be ruined? How would he assert his authority as a husband in the future? However, working behind closed doors is not a solution. After thinking it over, Wei Jin found Liu Tianchi and Zhang Songwen to discuss character positioning and performance methods together.

Liu Tianchi is a senior acting teacher at the Central Academy of Drama. Although she rarely appears on screen, her theoretical knowledge is very rich.

For a "simulation-style" actor like Wei Jin who has no acting experience and relies entirely on the impression of the finished film in his mind, these theories are very helpful.

And Zhang Songwen belongs to the late bloomers. One wouldn't dare say his acting is explosive, but he really has a knack for teaching students.

Especially regarding the understanding of script characters, Zhang Songwen is very unique. Coupled with his natural affinity and his slow, methodical, and easy-to-understand explanations, it is very easy for students to take it in.

When Jing Tian first debuted, she learned a lot from him, and company artists including Nazha, Liu Yifei, and Ni Ni have also taken classes with him, and many times they even have to serve as the acting teacher following the crew.

If you really want to talk about it, Zhang Songwen almost single-handedly drove the acting growth of the three major hell dungeons of the domestic entertainment industry. It is unknown how many pairs of audience eyes he saved; he can be called a person of immeasurable merit.

After a day, Wei Jin felt he had benefited a lot and expressed his gratitude to the two teachers with a proper attitude.

"President Wei is too polite. Your comprehension is very good, even more talented than many actors from professional backgrounds. If you had applied for the acting department, Best Actor awards would definitely be within your grasp, haha..."

Liu Tianchi smiled and gave a compliment. She was very satisfied with Wei Jin's attitude and even more satisfied with her current life.

"Teacher Liu is right. President Wei is a director and screenwriter and has his own understanding of the characters. We are just filling in the gaps and providing some possibilities in other directions for your reference."

Zhang Songwen was also very humble and did not take any credit.

In the few years he has been signed to Shanhe Media, he has gone from an unknown extra to where he is today, step by step, becoming a powerful and popular male actor. This is something he never dared to dream of.

All of this is thanks to the keen eyes of the man in front of him.

"In any case, I still want to thank the two teachers for their efforts. I'll host tonight."

Liu Tianchi and Zhang Songwen looked at each other and nodded immediately.

"Okay, then thank you, President Wei."

The 66th Cannes Film Festival has closed.

Online, in the industry, and on major portal websites, there were overwhelming reports.

"Cannes Film Festival closes, Chinese films show their style; both works shortlisted for the Main Competition Section won awards."

"Since *To Live* in 1994, Director Zhang Yimou has once again won the Cannes Film Festival Jury Grand Prize with *Hidden in the Dust*!"

"The old literary gun Jia Kezhang captured the Cannes Film Festival Oscar Best Screenplay award with *A Touch of Sin*!"

"Great director Zhang Yimou missed out on the Palme d'Or; the journey to a Grand Slam is not yet complete!"

"Director Zhang Yimou stated: 'Though I am old, my heart is not. In the future, I will continue to strive for a Grand Slam!'"

"Cannes Best Actress Ceng Li narrowly lost to French actress Bei Re Ni Si Bei Qiao and failed to defend her title!"

"Closing ceremony red carpet, Baoqiang kissed his wife; the couple is very loving."

"..."

Although they failed to achieve a Grand Slam, the Jury Grand Prize is still a very bright achievement, so Shanhe Media issued congratulations on its official website immediately.

Beijing Film Academy also did the same, exerting its traditional skills and putting up red banners.

It's just that the Central Academy of Drama was a bit awkward; the banners they had prepared couldn't be used.

Wei Jin specifically called Li Jie, intending to comfort her, but unexpectedly, the big sister's mental quality was much better than he imagined.

In her words, "To obtain it is my luck; to lose it is my fate."

This free-spirited energy is worthy of being the first wife.

As for Zhang Yimou, he felt no frustration at all; after all, for nearly the past decade, the European Big Three had been almost entirely out of his reach. This time, relying on Wei Jin's script, he had directly won the Cannes Film Festival Jury Grand Prize, so what more could he be dissatisfied with? The post-production for *The Four 2* was completed two days ago, and Shanhe Ink had notified the client for inspection.

It was just unexpected that Wang Changtian would call personally, wanting to come over with Deng Chao to discuss a new project.

Wei Jin thought for a moment; it was likely that Deng Chao knew Shanhe Media intended to enter the market and was afraid of any complications, wanting to secure the deal early, so he nodded in agreement.

While waiting in the office, Wei Jin also felt a sense of emotion.

Ever since Sun Li gave birth to their child, Deng Chao could be called a model worker, with almost no time to rest throughout the year.

Just before the Spring Festival, he had finished filming *The Four* series, and immediately afterward, he joined the crew for Cao Baoping's new film—the suspense crime movie *The Dead End*, adapted from the novel *Sunspot* by Teacher Cao's wife, the well-known industry screenwriter Jiao Hua Jing.

Speaking of which, Teacher Cao and his wife could be considered a well-known couple in the industry, with one responsible for the script and the other for directing, much like Ning Hao and his wife.

This film, *The Dead End*, was originally intended to seek investment from Wei Jin, but unfortunately, he was filming in Hollywood at the time, and it was during the Spring Festival, so Teacher Cao felt embarrassed to ask. Somehow, Bona got wind of the news and picked up the opportunity.

This film starred Deng Chao, Wang Luodan, Duan Yihong, and others; it started filming after the Spring Festival and had only just wrapped up in the middle of this month.

It was equivalent to Deng Chao starting to record *Keep Running* right after wrapping up, and now he was busy with a new project; he was truly impressive.

However, if one really had to compare, Teacher Cao was even more impressive; at his age, having just finished the post-production for *Dearest* before the Spring Festival, he had already started filming a new movie.

*The Dead End* had just wrapped, and it was said he had already started tinkering with that young girl script he had previously worked on; he was no less diligent than Zhang Yimou.

Wei Jin pondered finding a few more scripts to let Teacher Cao fully exert his role as a tool man.

While lost in thought, Huang Mengying had already led Wang Changtian and Deng Chao to knock and enter.

After some pleasantries, the host and guests took their seats and began discussing business.

"President Wei, please take a look at the script. This time, it's an adaptation by Old Yu of his own comedy stage play. He happens to have something to attend to today, so I apologize on his behalf."

"It's fine. I can't go looking for the hen just because the egg tastes good, right? Haha."

Wei Jin took the script handed over by Deng Chao and joked with a smile.

The "Old Yu" in Deng Chao's mouth was Yu Baimei, who had written the screenplay for *Dinner Party* released last year.

Counting it up, Yu Baimei was actually a fellow townsman of Wei Jin, and they had met once during a gathering of the Northwest Circle.

As expected, the script in his hand was indeed *Breakup Buddies*.

There was an unwritten rule in the film circle: comedies had relatively lower risks and were less likely to lose money, especially for new directors, making them conducive to building a reputation.

Whether it was Old Zhao or Xiao Hei Pang Zi and other directors who crossed over, almost all chose comedy as their entry point, which was a testament to this.

Of course, the premise was to control costs well, avoid shoddy production, and the script was also critical.

"President Wei, I will direct and star in this film myself, and Old Yu will also be credited as a co-director."

Seeing Wei Jin seriously flipping through the script, Deng Chao explained from the side, including specific filming ideas and shooting locations, saying a great deal as if afraid he wouldn't be optimistic about it.

In fact, how could Wei Jin not know about this film? The box office was quite good, but the word-of-mouth was in tatters.

However, with Wei Jin's current status, saying the script was bad would not only make things difficult for Wang Changtian but might also crush Deng Chao's directorial dream; it was truly unnecessary, and besides, Shanhe Media wasn't the lead investor anyway.

Therefore, after closing the script, Wei Jin asked directly: "What's the budget?"

"Uh..."

Deng Chao hadn't expected Wei Jin to be so direct, so he was stunned for a moment before looking at Wang Changtian, then replied: "Thirty million as a floor; this is already the most frugal."

"Heh, money that should be spent must be spent. Don't always think about saving. Make the budget a bit more relaxed and add ten million. What does Chairman Wang think?"

"If you say add it, then let's add it."

Hearing this, Deng Chao became instantly excited, his face showing an unnatural flush.

"Brother, how about we split the shares fifty-fifty?"

This collaboration was initiated by Wang Changtian, so he had no reason to let Wei Jin be the one to bring it up.

"Many thanks for your kindness, brother, but forty percent is enough."

"Good."

Since the investment wasn't large, Wang Changtian didn't dwell on it, and it was settled in a few words.

"Thank you, President Wei and Chairman Wang, for your support. I'll host dinner tonight; I hope you two will grace me with your presence."

Wang Changtian looked at Wei Jin, the intention of waiting for the latter's reply being very obvious.

"Sure, then call Liu Yan along; it just so happens that Brother Chao and Chairman Wang are both old acquaintances."

"Haha, good."

After the dinner ended and everyone returned home, Wei Jin brought Liu Yan back to the Yanjiao Villa.

It was just unexpected that Liu Yan had prepared a surprise for him.

Inside the room, another assistant, Wang Zixuan, had already changed into the red battle robe of Bu Zhi Huo Wu from *The King of Fighters*.

Her talent seemed ready to burst out from the palm-width cloth, the temptation instantly maxed out; it was completely incomparable to a green young girl like Nazha.

So much so that Wei Jin was excited on the spot; he hugged Wang Zixuan and sat on the sofa, lowered his head, and his large hands began to explore restlessly.

"Mm~~ Boss~~"

Since the National Day last year, Wang Zixuan hadn't played cards for over half a year; how could she, in her thirties, hold back? She started singing on the spot.

A pair of long, beautiful legs, almost completely exposed, were unconsciously pressed together, and her whole body felt as if her bones had melted.

When Wei Jin raised his head, he saw that Wang Zixuan's face was already flushed red, her eyes charming and watery.

What surprised him even more was that Liu Yan had also changed into a new outfit, still a sexy character from *The King of Fighters*—Xia Er Mi.

"Little White Tiger, tonight I want to see if your legs are as powerful as Xia Er Mi's, haha."

Seeing the surprise on Wei Jin's face, Liu Yan was very satisfied; it was worth having Wang Zixuan prepare this during the dinner, as it was supposed to be a program for the annual meeting.

Liu Yan walked over with a cat-like gait, her face carrying a bewitching charm, resembling the character from the game.

"Hmph, now let me let you taste my 'power'."

After speaking, Liu Yan stood on the sofa, forcefully pressed Wei Jin's head into her ultra-short hip-hugging skirt, and then intertwined her legs as if to smother him, fully displaying Xia Er Mi's superb grappling skills.

With a long and satisfied sigh, tonight's KOF fighting match officially began. (End of chapter)