Chapter 219: Thoughtful Fan Bingbing

For the "A Beautiful Mind" project, Wu Yuchen thought very clearly; the main goal was to go for the Oscars. If DreamWorks occupied the bulk of the investment, they would definitely do their utmost to help "A Beautiful Mind" compete for the Oscars. The interests of both parties were consistent, and it was impossible for the previous Disney backstabbing incident to happen again.

And this time, it wasn't just DreamWorks...

Wu Yuchen glanced at Grazer again. This guy could directly find Spielberg and talk business with DreamWorks; he must have some influence among Hollywood and the Jews, so the power for "A Beautiful Mind" to compete for the Oscars increased by another point.

With the project negotiated, all three revealed smiles. Subsequently, the three discussed the matter together. "A Beautiful Mind" definitely couldn't be filmed this year; after all, Wu Yuchen's energy now had to be concentrated on "Pirates of the Caribbean."

However, Wu Yuchen also agreed with the two that he could finish the script for "A Beautiful Mind" within a month, and then Grazer, the producer, would start the preparation work for the film. At the same time, Spielberg would be responsible for coming forward to persuade John Nash.

John Nash won the Nobel Prize in Economics in 1994 and was only 72 years old this year, still alive and well. Since they wanted to use his life experience as a blueprint for a film adaptation, they naturally had to obtain his personal consent. And for things like persuading people, it was naturally most appropriate for someone with prestige like Spielberg to come forward.

Time slowly entered September, and Fan Bingbing was quite happy during this period. In the past two months, she had collaborated with Huang Haibo and others, serving as the female lead Zhu Qiqi in the "Wu Lin Wai Shi" crew, thoroughly enjoying the treatment of being the female lead. This was something she had dreamed of for the nearly 5 years since she entered the circle!

At the same time, during the summer vacation, "Young Justice Bao," which she filmed last year, was broadcast as scheduled, and as soon as it appeared, it swept across the country, immediately becoming a phenomenal hit drama.

The most eye-catching person in "Young Justice Bao" was naturally the actor who played the male lead Bao Heitan, Zhou Jie. He became famous two years ago relying on "My Fair Princess," but now he successfully transformed through Bao Heitan, letting people inside and outside the circle see his strength and acting skills. The female lead Gao Yuanyuan had also previously enhanced her fame through the role of Ling Chuchu.

Although Fan Bingbing only played the female second lead Pang Qiuyan, her scenes were not few and were very brilliant. This was her second representative role besides Jin Suo, and importantly, this time she was finally no longer a maid. Even if someone recognized her while shopping, they didn't all start shouting "Jin Suo, Jin Suo," but many people remembered that her name was Fan Bingbing!

If nothing else, just the simplest point: the company told her that there were many more advertisers looking for her to do endorsements now, and the endorsement prices had at least doubled compared to before.

However, the company suggested she not take them yet. After all, she was only the female second lead in this drama. After "Wu Lin Wai Shi" is broadcast next year, Fan Bingbing's status as the female lead will definitely see another surge in value, and it won't be too late to take them then. Regarding this, Fan Bingbing naturally followed the advice.

Although she didn't say anything excessive, the whole time she had the tone of an older sister looking down on a younger sister, and even advised her to study hard and lay a good foundation so she could go further in the future. This posture of publicly teaching Keira naturally made Keira very unhappy.

Depp directly raised his wine glass and shouted: "Of course, the great Captain Jack will sail the Black Pearl and spread his glory all over the world!"

A few days ago, the "Zhenzhugang" crew finished filming, and the crew members who had wrapped up were asked about the "Pirates of the Caribbean" side during interviews. The female leads of the two crews were both English roses from the UK, so they were naturally compared.

Keira also leaned over to clink glasses with the two, and after putting down the glass, she said indignantly: "Damn it, I really want to grow up quickly!"

Thinking of this, Fan Bingbing directly pulled up her packed suitcase, took her already processed passport, and rushed directly to Beijing Capital International Airport to embark on a flight to America to chase her beautiful dream!

The female lead of "Zhenzhugang," Kate Beckinsale, mentioned Keira during an interview, roughly meaning that it was hard to imagine a 15-year-old girl being able to serve as the female lead of such a large production, saying that at her age she was still laying the foundation, and at the same time wishing her little sister good luck.

Depp opposite heard this and hiccuped, then raised his orchid finger and shook it: "Oh no no no, little Keira, I'm not drinking secretly, I'm drinking openly!"

Keira rolled her eyes upon hearing this: "Forget it, Hugh, who cares about these rigid, old-fashioned conventions? I don't believe you haven't secretly drunk alcohol before! I'm already not a child anymore!"

Subsequently, Wu Yuchen's figure suddenly appeared in Fan Bingbing's mind. She knew how everything she had came to be. If it weren't for Wu Yuchen's care and arrangements, how could she have been so smooth these two years? She might have had to go to court with Qiongyao and ended up bankrupt, and perhaps even her star dream would have been cut off right there.

Hugh Jackman smiled and slowly let go of his hand, but still said: "Only allowed to drink one glass."

Seeing her like this, Hugh Jackman couldn't help but smile and ask: "Keira, are you still thinking about what Kate said to you? Didn't Wu tell you, this is a promotional need for both sides."

Fan Bingbing just thought about how next year, after "Wu Lin Wai Shi" is broadcast, she would be famous all over the country as the female lead, and she couldn't help but feel a warm current surge from her chest, trembling with excitement. It wasn't just because there would be a large amount of money in income at that time; this feeling of being in the spotlight and having her fame constantly expanding was truly intoxicating to her.

"Didn't Wu forbid you from drinking?"

Keira picked up the wine glass again and took a gulp, then asked the two: "Hey, do you think our 'Pirates of the Caribbean' can really beat 'Zhenzhugang' next year?"

"Hey, my dear Keira, you are only 15, you can't drink~" Hugh Jackman winked at Keira and smiled. In Europe and America, there are controls on underage teenagers drinking alcohol.

Keira looked at Johnny Depp sitting opposite: "Hey, even Depp can drink secretly here! Why don't you manage him!"

In a booth at the bar, Keira Knightley sat down, picked up a wine bottle, and was about to pour wine into a glass, but was grabbed by a large hand.

More importantly, if she wants to go further in her future acting career, she must build a closer relationship with Wu Yuchen. After all, this is the number one Chinese director who has great influence both at home and abroad!

Depp laughed wantonly, and after finishing, he clinked glasses with Hugh Jackman again.

"Aha, my prohibition has been lifted, because I'm about to film the relevant scenes, I need to drink to find the feeling!"

"No wonder Wu would find you to play Elizabeth, you are just as rebellious in your bones~"

Keira looked at Depp, who was already half-drunk and half-crazy, and directly treated his crazy talk as wind in her ears, then looked at Hugh Jackman, who appeared relatively steady.

"What? Keira, you seem to have no confidence? Do you think you acted badly? Or do you think we are not as good as the other side?"

Keira explained: "I don't mean that, it's just... Hugh, you know, this is a pirate subject, while 'Zhenzhugang'—war, love, big scenes—are all popular subjects of these few years, the audience's favorite. You understand what I mean."

Hugh Jackman naturally understood what she meant, which was also the common view of many people outside. He shook the wine glass in his hand and revealed a faint smile:

"I believe in Wu. I witnessed him step by step from a new Hollywood director to where he is now. He can create miracles."

Keira curled her lips upon hearing this and then said: "Miracle Wu Dao is currently welcoming his new girlfriend."

A month ago, she had seen Jiang Qinqin who came to the crew, and now another Asian woman who looked very close to Wu Yuchen had come, and it was clearly not the one from before.

Hugh Jackman frowned upon hearing this, and then a look of seriousness appeared on his face:

"Keira, secretly discussing other people's private lives behind their backs is a very impolite thing, especially for a figure like Wu Dao. I can pretend I didn't hear it, but it's best not to have it happen again in the future. Otherwise, even if you are young, it will make people disgusted if it spreads."

Keira opened her mouth upon hearing this, but she knew she had made a slip of the tongue. She shrank her neck and turned to look at Depp opposite. Seeing that he was still in a state of being intoxicated by fine wine, as if he didn't care about their conversation at all, she was relieved.

Actually, Keira was right. Wu Yuchen was indeed properly welcoming Fan Bingbing at this time, and it had to be a proper wash—he personally went into the bathroom to wash her clean.

By the time the two came out of the bathroom together, Fan Bingbing's complexion was charming, and her beautiful face still carried the red flush unique to after the rain. Her black hair was dampened by water and stuck obediently to her skin, making her look a few points more charming out of thin air. She was only wrapped in a bathrobe, outlining a perfect S-shaped figure.

Below the bath towel were two long, well-proportioned calves, white and exceptionally good-looking. Her skin, even among actresses, was definitely a leader, actually a point whiter than the bath towel, making one want to take a bite just looking at it.

She was hugging Wu Yuchen's arm tightly at this time:

"Wu Dao, you don't feel sorry for me at all. I flew from Beijing for more than ten hours to Los Angeles, and then transferred from Los Angeles to here without stopping. You tossed me around as soon as I arrived, my legs are numb from squatting just now~"

Wu Yuchen smiled and patted her perky buttocks: "Hehe, I'm replenishing your nutrition and essence!"

Although Fan Bingbing was a bit clumsy just now, the feeling of this first experience was still very wonderful.

Fan Bingbing gave him a charming look upon hearing this, full of style.

Wu Yuchen held her and came to the table. Seeing a cake placed on the table, he smiled and said to Fan Bingbing:

"Bingbing, today is your birthday, I've already prepared the cake!"

Seeing this, Fan Bingbing immediately revealed a look of surprise and kissed Wu Yuchen on the face again: "Brother Chen, thank you, you are so good to me! I'm moved to death!"

Wu Yuchen reached out and stroked Fan Bingbing's black hair upon hearing this: "Bingbing, make a birthday wish!"

Fan Bingbing immediately opened her mouth and said: "I hope to be Brother Chen's little baby for the rest of my life~"

"Bingbing, wishes are all supposed to be made silently~"

Fan Bingbing shook her head and leaned into Wu Yuchen's arms, saying coquettishly: "Brother Chen, this heart of mine is all yours, what secrets could I have~"

Wu Yuchen was in a great mood upon hearing this. Looking at this beautiful, indescribably gorgeous face that had already grown up, he directly wrapped his arms around Fan Bingbing's waist and kissed her. Her soft lips carried a bit of clear sweetness. His large hand reached to her waist, stroking the fine, smooth skin on her waist, which carried a unique, youthful tenderness.

After their lips parted, Fan Bingbing's eyes were misty, looking at Wu Yuchen with a somewhat blurred gaze, panting and asking: "Brother Chen, I also prepared a birthday cake for you~"

"Oh?"

Wu Yuchen looked at this cake of Fan Bingbing's; it was smooth and bright all over, as if it were glowing white!

The cream outside the cake was white and tender. Wu Yuchen first reached out and touched it, then put it into his mouth and tasted it gently. It was very silky, and a faint, clear fragrance lingered on the tip of his tongue, making one have endless aftertastes.

Wu Yuchen's eyes glowed as he looked at it. This cake of Fan Bingbing's own was simply a top-grade product, far higher than what he had prepared!

Wu Yuchen inserted the candles, tasted this incredibly tempting cake that was making its debut, and then hugged Fan Bingbing and sang the happy song together, spending her birthday night together!

Having spent a happy birthday, Fan Bingbing was incredibly happy. She knew that after this birthday, she would truly welcome a rebirth. Her future life path would be a broad, bright road, with a guarantee of being a domestic first-line actress.

However, looking at these huge sailing ships and piers built specifically for filming in the "Pirates of the Caribbean" crew, Fan Bingbing's heart gave birth to more wild ambitions. One day in the future, she would also truly step into Hollywood and become an international superstar!

Wu Yuchen was quite satisfied with Fan Bingbing. It's not to say her appearance or figure—in this regard, she was naturally impeccable, a future ceiling-level figure of Chinese entertainment beauty!

He was more satisfied with Fan Bingbing's attitude. Without him even saying anything, Fan Bingbing took the initiative to solve problems for him, saying that she would definitely not affect his relationship with Jiang Qinqin and Gao Yuanyuan. If there was anything she needed to do, she would even help Brother Chen smooth things over, only asking that Wu Yuchen could remember a little of her goodness in his heart.

Tsk tsk tsk, not only was she compliant with Wu Yuchen, but her thoughtful attitude—how could she not win Wu Yuchen's favor?

Wu Yuchen decided that he must arrange a female lead for her when he goes back. A thought moved in his mind, and he remembered several projects that Cai Yinong reported on the phone. How about that "Love Across Time"?

Maybe her acting skills couldn't compare to the original Zhang Ting, but what does Zhang Ting have to do with him? It must be to promote Fan Bingbing, who is obedient to him!

As for movies, it could also be arranged for her, but he had to find some projects to polish her acting skills first. Her acting skills were still a bit young now, so it was best to find some roles suitable for her first. Wu Yuchen couldn't help but think of Feng Xiaogang. When was his "Cell Phone" filmed?

Wu Yuchen was refreshed. After his spirit was good, he had drive when doing things. Under his constant shouting, the crew was filming more and more smoothly.

The "Pirates of the Caribbean" crew had now moved to the treasure cave for the climactic scenes. Speaking of which, this treasure cave wasn't that simple. Just finding a suitable cave took a long time, and then the crew had to repair and decorate the inside of the cave to meet the requirements. Hiring people to do this took a lot of energy and time. Just filling the cave with 300,000 gallons of water took three or four days, so putting it at the end was just right.

As the big villain Barbossa fell to the ground with an incredulous look, a "Wrap" spread through the crew, followed by a burst of cheers.

This filming took nearly 5 months, which could be considered the longest filming time in Wu Yuchen's career, so he could be considered to have breathed a sigh of relief.

However, wrapping up didn't mean Wu Yuchen was relaxed, because there was post-production waiting for him. Not to mention editing, he also had to keep an eye on the production of special effects. At the very least, he had to look at each one as it was made to see if it met his requirements. As for the music, he directly found the Hollywood music master Hans Zimmer, who was the original composer anyway.

However, busy as he was, some social interactions and entertainment still had to be done, such as this person specifically introduced to him by Katzenberg, one of the three giants of DreamWorks.

"Wu, this is Luo Yi Disney. He is a member of the Disney family, has the blood of Disney flowing in him, and is the true owner of Disney!"

"Luo Yi, this is Wu. I probably don't need to introduce him much; you should know him."

Wu Yuchen looked at the 70-year-old little old man in front of him with gray hair and simple dress, and took the initiative to reach out and smile: "Mr. Luo Yi, very happy to meet you!"

The little old man Luo Yi shook hands with Wu Yuchen and then said:

"Wu, I have seen your films. You are truly a very talented young man. You and Katzenberg are both young talents who should have been our good partners at Disney!"

Katzenberg said upon hearing this: "Luo Yi, I won't forget what I encountered at Disney. I didn't feel the respect I deserved. That was betrayal, without any contract spirit at all!"

Wu Yuchen also nodded: "Luo Yi, my encounter with Disney is probably not a secret to you. No director can tolerate these things!"

Luo Yi argued: "Hey, you have to understand one point: these were not Disney's original intentions, but all Michael Eisner's personal actions. You cannot equate his actions with Disney!"

Katzenberg shrugged: "But he is the emperor of Disney now, isn't he? He is the helmsman of Disney, and his will will be carried out by Disney. So we should unanimously drive him off the stage!"

Wu Yuchen also helped out: "Luo Yi, Katzenberg is right. The current Disney no longer bears the Disney name, but has completely become the shape of Eisner. If it continues like this, Disney will be made into a mess by Eisner, completely deviating from the spirit Disney had when it was founded, and losing the soul of Disney. The recent sharp drop in Disney's stock price is proof."

Luo Yi Disney shook his head: "Eisner is Eisner. I will oppose him, but I will not do anything that lets Disney down."

Katzenberg said: "Hey, Luo Yi, you have to distinguish between long-term pain and short-term pain. If you don't drive Eisner off the stage, Disney won't be Disney in a few years. You aren't betraying Disney; you are saving it!"

"You don't need to say any more. I will only do what I think is right." Luo Yi Disney's attitude was very firm.

Wu Yuchen could be considered to have seen it: this Luo Yi is an old man who identifies himself with Disney and is absolutely loyal to Disney. He opposes Eisner's rule, but doesn't want to cause harm to Disney.

Subsequently, only hearing Luo Yi sigh: "It's a pity, the one I valued most was Frank. If he were here..."

Many people only know Michael Eisner, the Disney emperor, but actually, there was another person who entered Disney with him and turned the tide: Frank Wells. The two, one singing the red face and one singing the white face, made Disney, which had a market value of only 1.4 billion US dollars in 1984 and was at the bottom of the Hollywood major studios, reach a market value of 28 billion in 10 years, a 20-fold increase.

It's just a pity that in 1994, Frank Wells died in a plane crash. Since then, Disney completely became Michael Eisner's world, and he also became a tyrant that no one could defy.

Then Luo Yi Disney said: "I will find the next Frank."

Katzenberg revealed a mocking smile: "It's useless even if you find him. Eisner won't allow the next Frank to appear!"

Michael Eisner was indeed a bit troubled recently. The reason was none other than the sharp drop in Disney's stock price, which made many shareholders start to complain. The opposition within the company, led by Luo Yi Disney, started picking on his faults again. However, for him, who had been rooted in Disney for 16 years, this wasn't a big problem; after all, the general environment was not good.

However, after seeing a piece of news, his mood became very good:

On September 29, 2000, Apple announced its revised earnings estimate for the fourth quarter of 2000. Because performance was below expectations, Apple's market value was cut in half that day. That's right, in one day, Apple's stock price fell by 52%!

You have to know, the current CEO of Apple is Jobs. Apple's market value was cut in half in one day; he could imagine that Jobs must be in a mess now! Seeing this guy Jobs suffer, Eisner felt very refreshed in his heart!

At the beginning, Pixar was indeed signed into Disney by him, but at the time it was to check and balance this guy Katzenberg, to show that Disney wouldn't be unable to function without Katzenberg, having Pixar as a substitute. But later, after this guy Katzenberg was driven away by him, he found Jobs more and more displeasing to the eye. Because he didn't have the respect he deserved for him!

Although Pixar's works sold well and earned Disney a lot of money, Eisner didn't like Pixar and had only visited it once so far.

Of course, his greater hostility toward Jobs lay in the fact that he had heard a piece of news, which was that there were shareholders behind Disney who wanted Jobs to replace him as the helmsman of Disney!

This touched Eisner's reverse scale. Anyone who threatened his power, he would sweep them all away!

Now that Apple's market value has dropped sharply, it is a not-so-small blow to Jobs' personal prestige. Presumably, those who once wanted to support Jobs will dispel this outrageous idea. ===== CHAPTER 220 =====