Chapter 581: 《Medicine》Special Edition

After the total box office of *Medicine* broke 2.8 billion, Tian Ou's Weibo was flooded by netizens.

At the same time, the discourse on the internet also began to change.

Previously, quite a few people were mocking Luo Mo, feeling that he was spouting wild nonsense, daring to say such an outrageous figure as 2.8 billion.

How does that saying go?

Every joke has an element of truth.

Then if it wasn't arrogance, what was it?

But once someone says it and does it, things are different.

What's more, this film is not a purely commercial blockbuster, but a meaningful film, so the concept is completely different.

By the time August 12th passed, the cumulative box office of *Medicine* had reached 3.1 billion.

This figure is already on par with the final box office of *Dying to Survive* on Earth.

Overall, the box office of this film did indeed exceed Luo Mo's expectations.

But there are many factors involved here.

"For example, there is a difference in the cast; the overall cast of the Blue Star version is stronger than the one on Earth in terms of Box Office Appeal and initial buzz," Luo Mo thought to himself.

"Additionally, on Earth, the film source was leaked during the 【Preview】 period, leading to rampant piracy online, which forced the premiere date to be moved up."

"The impact of this was very severe; one can see this from the overall box office trend of that film."

"Besides these, there was also the strong support from the Review Department and other parties, multiple reports by official media, and it even made it onto the News Broadcast..."

"Of course, the main reason is still the matter of medical insurance."

Honestly, Luo Mo cannot figure out right now what kind of figure the final total box office of *Medicine* will reach.

However, exceeding his own expectations is always a good thing.

"It's just... the starting point is a bit high," Luo Mo couldn't help but smile bitterly.

His first live-action film has already reached this level.

I have to say, it has added a bit more pressure on him for the upcoming *Manslaughter*.

"Need to plan this out carefully," he thought in his heart.

On August 13th, Luo Mo received a call from Wang Rong.

"What's up, Brother Rong?" Luo Mo asked.

"Li Dongliang's new film is having its preview today," Wang Rong said.

"Is that so?" Luo Mo appeared uninterested and didn't care much.

This stubborn, arrogant, and preachy old man was not to his taste, and it was exhausting to get along with him.

He felt that with a person like this, living together would be very difficult, and even just having a meal together would probably be a hassle.

Wang Rong continued: "Let me tell you, this Director Li is copying your tactics, following the trend of Large-scale Preview."

"Is that so?" Luo Mo yawned lazily and said: "That's his own business; he can do whatever he wants. Why, Brother Rong, are you Afraid that his new film will have explosive word-of-mouth, thereby affecting the upcoming screenings of our *Medicine*?"

"There will definitely be an impact, but that's also normal. Sigh, it's just that when the momentum looks too good, people always become greedy," Wang Rong said very honestly.

Upon hearing this, Luo Mo smiled slightly.

That's just how movies are; once a new batch of films is released, the old ones will definitely be affected.

Of course, if this batch of films flops miserably, the screening share can still rise back up.

But don't forget, the guaranteed screening share required by the Review Department is there.

It can only be said that the Shuji Dang is too popular; everyone wants to squeeze in, and everyone feels that a 10% screening share in the Shuji Dang is better than a 20% screening share in other periods.

"Cannibalistic" competition is unavoidable.

The business world is like a battlefield; the competition between films is also filled with flashing swords and shadows.

On the phone, Wang Rong also said to Luo Mo: "I looked at the trailer for Li Dongliang's film; there are many overseas stars in it, just from the island nation there's a man and a woman, and there are also some from Korea."

"This subject matter is Afraid to be a hodgepodge of demons and ghosts from the Myth stories of many countries."

"His ambition is not small; he doesn't just want the domestic market, he also wants the markets of other countries."

Luo Mo is actually quite familiar with this kind of operation.

Some directors with big ambitions love to play like this.

And when promoting abroad, the foreign stars will even be placed in the C-Position on the Poster.

For example, when Li Dongliang's film is released in the island nation, he will definitely put that man and woman in the center of the Poster.

This kind of tactic is actually learned from foreign directors as well.

If foreign blockbusters stuff a few Huaxia Actors in, even if their screen time is short, the box office in the Huaxia market can soar.

By the same token, stuffing in a few island nation Actors will also make the box office in the island nation much higher.

However, when the same thing is done by a Huaxia director, the effect is often very poor; others just don't buy it.

There are many reasons involved here, and they are also very complex.

Luo Mo doesn't have much interest in this, nor does he intend to engage in these flashy operations.

He is already carrying out the preliminary preparations for *Manslaughter*.

After finishing the conversation about Li Dongliang, Wang Rong coughed lightly and said with some embarrassment: "Ahem, so, give me a chance to audition for *Manslaughter* too."

"Hm? You want to try for the male lead?" Luo Mo asked.

"I have that thought," Wang Rong said.

"You can try, but we are familiar, yet I won't go easy on you," Luo Mo laughed.

"Wait to be conquered by my acting skills, Director Luo!" Wang Rong said.

After many Actors become famous, they all want to get rid of certain labels that audiences have placed on them.

Take Wang Rong for example; if he acts in a Comedy, his Box Office Appeal is at least twice as high as in other genres.

"Genuine Medicine" is a very good start, a very good start indeed.

"Manslaughter" is definitely also a good choice.

In terms of the Suspense genre, he trusts Luo Mo's ability and level.

But everything still depends on the results of the audition.

After hanging up the phone with Wang Rong, Luo Mo had another matter to attend to.

This matter was yet another thing that all filmmakers in the industry would find unheard of and unseen.

………

………

In the afternoon, Team Leader Zhong Lin of the Review Department felt a bit of a headache.

She once suspected: "Are we in the Review Department really being too good to Luo Mo?"

Too indulgent toward him; perhaps even over-indulgent!

Long-term indulgence is indeed not a good thing.

"Listen, just listen to what he's talking about over there! He actually wants to modify "Genuine Medicine" while it's still in theaters and add a small segment."

She had never seen any production company dare to make such a Requirement to the Review Department.

Others are just happy to pass the review safely and go home to burn incense and pray. Good grief, what kind of crazy move is this?

After you've safely passed the review, you still lean into my ear and tell me: "Sister, can I add another segment?"

How is this any different from haggling, how is this any different from getting a bargain and still acting spoiled!

Yes, there have indeed been examples on Blue Star where some movies suddenly had their content reduced while they were being screened.

This includes many web dramas, series, and variety shows, which would also suddenly become like this; as they were being broadcast, some earlier content would suddenly be deleted.

Most of this was required by the Review Department.

Only when certain lines were crossed would this be done.

However, deleting is one thing, and adding content is another.

If this is really allowed, can't others also stuff things in while a movie is being screened?

Moreover, things on the internet are easy to handle, but for a movie currently in theaters, it is more troublesome to operate.

This involves a series of things like 【decryption keys】.

The cinema chains also have to cooperate with many tasks.

Even if you simply understand it as cinemas playing discs for everyone, you would still have to replace all the old discs with new ones.

Honestly, if it weren't for Luo Mo, Zhong Lin would have ignored it directly.

Of course, even if it is Luo Mo, she didn't intend to cooperate.

It's not that the rules of the Blue Star Review Department don't allow this; there is no order prohibiting it.

The Blue Star Review Department is actually quite decent in every aspect.

It's just that from the past until now, there has been no such precedent.

Things that set a precedent still need to be handled with caution.

She feels that she is a person who follows the rules, which is very different from Luo Mo, who likes to play with innovation and likes to set precedents.

Of course, this also has to do with the nature of the work.

"Forget it, I want to see what he wants to add." Zhong Lin is now purely curious.

She just wants to get a free look at content from "Genuine Medicine" that others can't see; isn't that quite delightful, hee hee!

But after she watched it, she was completely stunned.

"He actually added the scene of Cheng Yong being released from prison."

"He added a segment where Cao Bin tells Cheng Yong that Genuine Medicine has been included in medical insurance, telling him not to touch Fake Medicine anymore, and that he should sell impotence medicine instead, as it suits him quite well."

"At the same time, he also wants to modify the end credits to include a segment stating that 3 provinces and cities have already included it in medical insurance, and that it is still being actively promoted."

These scenes of his release from prison also sparked heated discussions across the entire internet when they were broadcast on Earth; many people felt it was very realistic and heartbreaking, because after the Medicine entered medical insurance, no one came to pick Cheng Yong up when he was released from prison, only Cao Bin came.

Of course, some people also said that rules and regulations are just like that, so they argued endlessly, and everyone had their own views and opinions.

Zhong Lin took off her Gold-rimmed Glasses, rubbed her brow, and couldn't help but mutter: "Positive propaganda like entering medical insurance and the government still actively promoting it is really hard to refuse!"

This powerful team leader of the Review Department felt that she had been somewhat manipulated by this young man.

Everything he gives is something you need.

You want it, I want to give it, isn't that just mutual consent?

If Luo Mo knew Team Leader Zhong's thoughts, he would definitely shout that he was wronged.

"Am I, Luo, that bad?"

He was actually just going in with the attitude of giving it a try.

After all, for him, even if the Review Department didn't allow adding content midway, it wouldn't matter.

Anyway, once "Genuine Medicine" is officially pulled from theaters, it can be launched on video platforms.

That would be easier to handle.

After all, being in the middle of a theatrical run and being off-screen are two different things.

"President Cheng of Penguin Video will definitely pay more for the special edition of 'I Am Not a Medicine God'."

"Am I right, President Cheng?" Luo Mo thought to himself, a bright smile on his face.

(End of this chapter)