Chapter 507

On the way back, Zhang Ruoxi remained immersed in joy.

It was her parents who wore thoughtful expressions.

How to put it, they felt Jiang Heng was simply too good, to the point that it exceeded the bounds a big boss and director would have toward a contracted artist; perhaps he had other ideas.

Looking at her daughter's clueless appearance, they worried she might be deceived at any moment!

And the two of them couldn't just stay in Jingcheng right away to accompany their daughter.

At home there were three younger children needing Mother Zhang's care; even if they wanted to transfer schools, they couldn't just come over immediately.

The family business certainly couldn't be stopped just like that.

Director Jiang Heng also said that Zhang Ruoxi should take the arts entrance exam, study acting at Beijing Film Academy or the Central Academy of Drama, and that in her freshman and sophomore years at least, it would likely be hard for her to play a female lead.

In that case, their daughter would probably only be a second- or third-tier entertainer within two or three years, and it's really hard to say how much she could earn.

……

At the end of March, Outstanding Rising Film Company held a press conference for the new film Three Body 2.

Not only did reporters from major domestic media outlets flock to the scene, but some foreign media reporters came as well.

Because Hollywood had been circulating a rumor that Robert Downey Jr., who became famous for playing Iron Man, would appear in Three Body 2 and play the male lead Luo Ji.

At the press conference, a foreign reporter asked Jiang Heng whether that was true.

Jiang Heng laughed, thinking to himself that if he hired a foreign actor to play Luo Ji, domestic audiences would surely curse him out—anyone could see that with their toes! He said, "Well, Robert Downey Jr. is indeed a very good actor; I love his portrayal of Iron Man, and he also likes my films. When we were just starting to prepare Three Body 2, we had a phone call—he would have a cameo in the film, but the one playing Luo Ji is this handsome guy beside me, an excellent actor, Chen Kun!"

After Jiang Heng finished speaking, applause broke out in the venue, and Chen Kun hurriedly bowed his thanks.

The reporters weren't afraid of big news; they just feared a lack of excitement.

Indeed, they then asked Chen Kun what he thought of the widespread rumor that he and Jiang Heng didn't get along.

Chen Kun, holding the microphone, laughed and said, "To be honest, I have indeed heard similar rumors before, and I once wondered, my acting is decent, my looks are all right—why have I been unable to win the male lead in Director Jiang's big productions all these years? Could it really be that he has something against me?"

But whenever I meet him in various settings, his attitude toward me is always good, which makes me wonder if I'm overthinking it.

It wasn't until this time, with the competition for the male lead Luo Ji in Three Body 2, that I truly realized those rumors were false; I hadn't been chosen before simply because others were more suited to those roles.

Director Jiang chose me this time because he felt I was more suitable for Luo Ji. He is truly a great director; when casting, his primary consideration is suitability, not the actor's fame or backing.

"Really, being able to work with Director Jiang is my greatest honor!"

After Chen Kun finished speaking, he first bowed to Jiang Heng, then bowed to the media.

The venue instantly flashed with a sea of camera lights, and applause rang out.

The reporters present were thrilled; this topic was too spread-worthy.

Afterwards, everyone turned to Zhang Ruoxi, who had a youthful air and looked somewhat nervous and uneasy.

"Hello, Miss Zhang Ruoxi. I heard you're still a high school student; how do you view the matter of filming interfering with your studies?"

"Um!" Zhang Ruoxi hesitated for a moment. In fact, before going on stage, the assistant arranged by the company had already helped her draft several questions reporters might ask and told her how to answer them.

But under the gaze of the crowd, she grew nervous and could barely recall anything; fortunately, she still had a rough outline of how to respond.

"Well, I'm not particularly gifted in academics; when I graduated from junior high, I thought about going home to help my parents. It was they who advised me that a girl should at least attend college, so I continued studying."

"Now being able to participate in Three Body 2 and do what I love truly makes me feel very happy."

"Moreover, Director Jiang Heng has also considered this; he said he would arrange a special tutor for me after filming ends to help me catch up on the cultural courses I've missed."

"Here, I am truly deeply grateful to Director Jiang!"

After Zhang Ruoxi finished speaking, she also bowed.

The reporters then asked Zhang Ruoxi a few more questions; the little girl wasn't as nervous and actually performed better and better, showing that some people are just born lucky.

Afterwards, the reporters questioned some of the veteran actors in the cast; those people are all "old oil slicks," speaking without leaking anything, so there isn't much to see.

The reporters then turned their gaze to Ma Dongxi, who stood at the edge of the line and had a sturdy build.

After checking them one by one, there is not a single mistaken version!

"Hello, Mr. Ma Dongxi. Do you have anything to say about playing Shi Qiang?"

"Thank you, Director Jiang, and Director Jiang Wen; if it weren't for him being busy with his own work, I wouldn't have this opportunity. Thank you, heartfelt thanks!"

After saying that, many people laughed, marveling at his good fortune.

"Shi Qiang, he's one of the dual protagonists in the first installment! It ended up in the hands of an eighteenth-tier Korean artist—where can we even reason about this? Even if Director Jiang Wen isn't available, we could let his brother Jiang Wu take the role!"

After the press conference came the opening ceremony; after changing venues, Jiang Heng led the main creators and key crew members to offer incense to Lord Guan, then removed the red cloth from a camera on site, and the ceremony concluded.

The Three Body 2 crew officially commenced production.

First they filmed a few days of indoor scenes at the Outstanding Rising Building, then moved to the China Film Digital Base; after completing the indoor effects and simple outdoor scenes, they went overseas for location shooting.

Because in the novel's description, after Luo Ji was selected as a Wallfacer, he used the authority granted by the United Nations to have people find a place where snow-capped mountains could be seen in the distance, with a lake before him, grasslands and forests by the lake, pure air, and a small estate centered on a villa by the lake, where he settled in comfortably.

Later, he even had Shi Qiang, according to his imagination, seek out a perfect girl, and Shi Qiang brought Zhuang Yan to him.

In China, places where one can see snow-capped mountains with surrounding lakes and estates are not many.

Jiang Heng therefore sent people to look in Northern Europe, and they indeed found such a place quickly.

Word has it that because Jiang Heng was coming to film, the local government asked for no payment and would even provide various conveniences free of charge, with the Three Body 2 crew eagerly awaiting.

Meanwhile, Jiang Heng has already led his team to Huairou to film the scene where Luo Ji meets Ye Wenjie.

Because Ye Wenjie's performance in Three Body 1 was widely praised, the elderly version of Ye Wenjie in the sequel is still played by Zhang Jingchu.

After the makeup artists' work, Zhang Jingchu seemed to have truly become an elderly woman.

Before a makeshift "graveyard" set up in the suburbs of Huairou, the pivotal scene that inspired Luo Ji to finally conceive the Dark Forest theory began shooting! (End of chapter)