Chapter 432: Who Are You Asking to Bow Their Head?

"Monkey King: Hero is Back" has finally been submitted for review.

The total actual investment for this film reached as high as 147 million, making it the largest investment for an animated film in the current Huaxia film market.

When many people promote their work to the public, they tend to inflate the investment amount to highlight that it is a big investment and a major production.

Luo Mo has no interest in that, so when it is announced to the public, he will directly state that about 150 million was invested.

This investment amount is larger than on Earth, and by quite a bit.

There was no helping it; on Earth, the entire team could be said to have gone all-in for this film, but in the end, the money was still not enough, and they even launched a crowdfunding campaign...

Although the final result was that those who participated in the investment all made a fortune, looking back at the journey, it still feels very bitter.

Luo Mo is willing to spend money; he is willing to make some of the rougher parts more refined.

He Yuanguang repeatedly tried to persuade him, feeling that this was increasing the difficulty of recouping the investment, but as he kept producing... he got hooked!

——Throwing money around really feels great!

The final result was: the investment amount for this animated film is comparable to the current box office record for domestic animated films.

This kind of behavior can be summarized in four words—a fool and his money are easily parted.

During the production process, He Yuanguang felt absolutely wonderful; everything used the best, and everything was done to the highest standard.

After it was finished, he watched the final cut himself and was very satisfied with the effect.

But he still fell into deep worry, feeling the pressure was immense.

"Recouping the investment is too hard!" He Yuanguang thought to himself.

According to the box office split on Blue Star, they can ultimately get about one-third of the film's box office.

This figure is not fixed and can only be roughly estimated.

For example, if we have a close partnership with a certain cinema chain, the split might be higher, and they will give us more screenings.

For example, if our relationship with a certain cinema chain is average, but we want them to give us more screenings, then we have to make certain concessions and take a smaller share.

"We still need to spend money on promotion before the release, and spend money on word-of-mouth maintenance after the release..."

"If the box office doesn't reach 500 million, then it's really all for nothing," He Yuanguang thought to himself.

Therefore, he very considerately did not call Luo Mo, but sent a WeChat message instead, so as to avoid letting him hear his nervousness and anxiety from his tone and pitch, which would indirectly affect his mood.

In his view, the big money was all invested by Luo Mo, so he should be more nervous.

In reality, Luo Mo is relaxed as can be.

As soon as he saw the WeChat message, he started humming a song happily.

At the same time, he also practiced a few lines of Opera Singing.

——Preparing for the theme song in the film.

After thinking for a moment, Luo Mo made a call to the publicity team at the studio.

"The news about 'Monkey King: Hero is Back' being submitted for review can be released," Luo Mo said.

"Understood!" The publicity team immediately took the order.

It's just that they all had a common voice in their hearts: "The boss is going to stir up trouble again."

………

………

The news of "Monkey King: Hero is Back" being submitted for review spread very quickly.

Many people felt nothing was wrong at first glance.

But after noticing two characters, they were immediately shocked.

"A film? This is a film?"

As mentioned before, when the concept trailer was released, it was not announced to the public that this was an animated film.

Therefore, most people instinctively felt that this was an animation with a Journey to the West theme.

For ordinary netizens, actually, just looking forward to it is enough.

But for some people, countless Win Hao appeared in their minds.

"Was Luo Mo deceived by He Yuanguang? Was he hoodwinked by him? Or was he kidnapped by personal favors?"

Yes, the first reaction of many industry insiders was—He Yuanguang insisted on making a big animated film!

There is no way around it; many people in the animation industry have sentiment.

Especially someone like He Yuanguang who has failed in films before.

Defeated again and again, fighting again and again!

Nowadays, the animations jointly produced by Luo Mo Studio and Tongguang Studio are all very popular, and the word-of-mouth is also very good.

Entering the film industry can indeed be considered a natural progression.

People in animation like He Yuanguang are very pure.

"As long as it's Not Losing, it's a victory!"

Most investors in the industry did not think that Luo Mo was actively interested in this matter.

"Who doesn't know that animated films don't make money?" they thought to themselves.

To be precise, it's not that they don't make money, but that every one they make dies.

It's just that they can make some children-oriented ones during holidays to earn some money from children and parents.

In their view, Luo Mo and He Yuanguang have a pleasant cooperation, and he is also one of the major shareholders of Tongguang Studio.

He Yuanguang insisted on chasing his dream, and Luo Mo definitely couldn't refuse out of politeness; being kidnapped by personal favors is also normal.

If Guang Shu knew the thoughts of these investors in the circle, he would definitely be shocked: "So 'Monkey King: Hero is Back' is a project I pushed for!?"

If Luo Mo knew, he would Afraid be thinking: "So if the box office flops, I can still shift the blame to Guang Shu."

Of course, he definitely still wants to be a decent person.

After all, if he hadn't appeared, Guang Shu would definitely have already packed his bags and gone home to have a second child.

Capitalists only look at money and align themselves with money, while animation professionals have differing opinions.

"Is Guang Shu making a comeback again, again, and again?"

"Regardless of the result, Guang Shu is still a person very much worth admiring."

"Sigh, the market environment is bad; what can be done? People aren't willing to go to the cinema to watch animation."

"But if the market environment is bad, don't we also have a certain amount of responsibility?"

"If the product isn't good, others naturally won't buy it."

"Then I don't think it's just a quality issue. Wasn't the previous *Red Earth for a Thousand Miles* good? It was praised all over the internet, yet the box office was only a few tens of millions, and *Red Earth for a Thousand Miles 2* had its funding pulled and died in production."

Many people chatted and chatted, and even started arguing.

As for the 【Mo Sheng Ren】, they were actually a bit dumbfounded too.

They were actually quite looking forward to Luo Mo acting in a movie.

After all, he could only be considered a guest star in *Cat Demon*, so strictly speaking, Luo Mo's movie debut was still in Retention, and his first time was still there.

But everyone waited and waited, only to end up waiting for... an Animation?

Fortunately, the animations Luo Mo produced previously were indeed all excellent, so many fans still expressed a willingness to go to the cinema to take a look.

Hmm, there were even individual wealthy female fans who expressed that they wanted to treat people in the fan group, or even directly book out a screening for fans!

Originally, if things had developed like this, the early heat for *Monkey King: Hero is Back* would have dropped in a few days.

It's the same old saying: movies are synonymous with real money.

Watching a movie costs money, and movie tickets are getting more and more expensive now.

If a movie really isn't attractive enough, the heat really can't get high.

However, that very evening, a piece of news was exposed and directly Air Dropped to the number one spot on the Hot Search of various platforms.

Many people were left dumbfounded.

"The production cost of *Monkey King: Hero is Back* is nearly 150 million!?"

"Did they type it wrong?"

"Tsk, to actually make such a low-level mistake."

"The box office record for an animated movie hasn't even broken 200 million, and your production cost is 150 million?"

"They got it wrong, they got it wrong, they definitely got it wrong."

But everyone waited and waited, and did not wait for Luo Mo Studio to issue a statement to deny this point.

Over at Tongguang Studio, there was no stance taken, and no rumors were refuted.

So... could it actually be true?

In an instant, the internet just exploded!

Yes, now that movie box office records are being broken repeatedly, the investment in domestic films is also climbing step by step.

In the past, investing ten million was considered a big production; now, an investment of over a hundred million is not rare at all.

This point is the same as on Earth. In the past, so-called low-budget films referred to ones like *Crazy Stone*, which only had an investment of a little over one million.

Now, the ten-million level is just a small investment, a small budget.

But, for an animated movie, why on earth would you spend so much money?

You don't even have high-priced actors' fees.

This investment amount is directly benchmarking against foreign countries.

——Are you crazy?

The animation industry was hit by a major earthquake because of this, and many people who are more emotional and have sentimentality have started to view Luo Mo as a living Bodhisattva.

This is throwing money to stimulate the development of the industry.

This is donating to the industry!

Even if this *Monkey King: Hero is Back* flops, it must be recorded in the annals of the industry!

For a time, all kinds of discussions were rampant.

The early heat of *Monkey King: Hero is Back* rose step by step.

Sometimes, you can rack your brains on promotion and still not come up with a good idea.

And sometimes, just the four words 【Unprecedented】 are enough.

With real money laid out there, with the figure of 150 million laid out there, the gimmick is enough!

A string of zeros is enough to bring people a visual impact.

As for the producers and investors who were still imagining all sorts of things in the afternoon, they were all dumbfounded.

At first, they all thought Luo Mo was being kidnapped by personal favors.

Making a ten-million-level movie to play along with He Yuanguang is very normal.

Managing people, after all, sometimes requires bleeding a little and paying a price; it's no big deal.

But 150 million, that is completely outrageous.

"How is this being kidnapped by personal favors?"

"This is more like having his family kidnapped by him, right?"

If there wasn't some leverage in He Yuanguang's hands, it would really be impossible for people to believe.

He Yuanguang really had nowhere to reason with.

"I tried to persuade him, I really tried to persuade him."

"But he wouldn't listen!"

"He wouldn't listen!"

As for Luo Mo, what was he doing at this moment?

He went to the airport to pick up Xu Chujing.

After the two of them got into the car, the van drove toward home.

Upon arriving home, Xu Chujing glanced at her phone and said, "In two of my group chats, everyone is discussing your *Monkey King: Hero is Back*."

"What are they saying?" Luo Mo asked.

"Naturally, they are all talking about your investment amount." Xu Chujing prepared to go to the bathroom to wash up later, so she swept her long hair behind her head and began to tie it up.

After tying up all of her slightly wavy brown hair, she said, "Are you under pressure?"

"Not at all. If I lose money, I'll just ask Jing to keep me," Luo Mo said casually.

——*The Me Who Became a Song King Only Wants to Retire and Be a Kept Man by You*.

"Then why don't you come and massage my shoulders first?" Xu Chujing sat down on the sofa and spoke.

"Sure." Luo Mo walked behind the sofa and began to massage her properly.

He knew that Xu Chujing was truly exhausted right now and couldn't handle any fuss.

Technician Luo's technique wasn't bad; he had actually done some research, as having been massaged so many times, he had become an expert through experience.

However, looking at Xu Chujing's pink neck and the skin of her shoulders and back visible beneath her collar, Technician Luo couldn't help but think:

"With this swan neck, these right-angle shoulders, and this back, it would be a pity not to use the Push Oil Series."

——*Push Oil Series*.

Xu Chujing closed her eyes and murmured, "If you want to release it during the Spring Festival slot, I estimate that many cinema chains, as well as some investors, will take the opportunity to negotiate terms with you, or even coerce you."

Making a movie is often even more complicated than making a TV series, which is one of the reasons why it sits at the top of the chain of contempt.

To many people, the larger the investment in this movie, the more you must value it; therefore, the more you will need them, and the easier it will be for them to manipulate you.

Luo Mo placed his hands flat on Xu Chujing's shoulders, stopped massaging, lowered his head, and said to her, "I had a physical exam a while ago, and the doctor mainly told me about two issues."

"One is that my stomach is bad, so he suggested I eat soft rice."

Xu Chujing opened her eyes, turned her head to look at Luo Mo's handsome face, which was extremely close to her own, and said, "Fine, and what's the other one?"

"I also had my spine checked, and the doctor said I can never bow my head for the rest of my life," he said with a smile.

(PS: Second update, asking for monthly tickets at the end of the month!)

(End of this chapter)