Huayu: Starting from Fahrenheit

Chapter 435 Preparing for Public Listing
“I would also like to work with you, Mr. Wu. I will definitely come when you have a suitable project.”

Tony Jaa's eyes lit up when he heard Wu Zhuo say he wanted to work with him.

He's actually reached his peak here in Thailand.

At this moment, he was like Jackie Chan in the 1980s and Jet Li in the 1990s, eagerly wanting an opportunity to break into Hollywood.

He tried several times and contacted Hollywood companies, but he never got a suitable opportunity.

Now that Wu Zhuo has suddenly proposed to cooperate with him, he is immediately excited.

After all, Wu Zhuo is no ordinary celebrity now.

He is not only one of the top musicians in the world.

He is also one of the few Asian actors to break into Hollywood.

Among all actors in Asia, only Jackie Chan can surpass him.

Well, Wu Zhuo's current position as an actor is roughly equivalent to that of Jet Li.

They are well-known in Hollywood, but not quite superstars.

Even so, this is still a very good opportunity for Tony Jaa.

If I can get involved, at the very least I can become a familiar face in Hollywood.

Just like Jet Li back then, he was able to break into Hollywood by playing a villain in "Lethal Weapon 4".

Of course, Jet Li already had some fame in Hollywood before "The Cannonball".

At the time, Jackie Chan became a global sensation with "Rumble in the Bronx," drawing special attention to Chinese kung fu from audiences in Europe and America.

Therefore, Hollywood film companies set their sights on Jet Li, who was as famous as Jackie Chan in Asia, and introduced Jet Li's "Black Mask" to the European and American markets.

Then, the movie's DVD sales exploded, bringing Jet Li a lot of influence.

In fact, it's not just Jet Li's DVDs that are popular in Europe and America.

In fact, Jackie Chan and Tony Jaa are the same.

Jackie Chan failed several times in his attempts to enter Hollywood.

However, the movies he filmed in Hong Kong have always been very popular in the Hollywood DVD market.

Many Western audiences already knew him before Rumble in the Bronx.

This is also why his film "Rumble in the Bronx" was a box office hit.

Many people believe that as long as a movie is of good quality and has good word-of-mouth, it will definitely do well at the box office.

That's not necessarily true.

Good word-of-mouth is one thing, box office success is another.

Looking at the global film industry, an actor's ability to create a blockbuster film is more or less due to a certain amount of accumulated experience.

Just like Wu Zhuo, Ip Man was able to achieve tens of millions of US dollars in box office revenue in Europe and America, and also had remarkable success on DVD and online.

This is precisely because Wu Zhuo has the support of music fans.

Similarly, Jackie Chan and Jet Li were in the same situation back then.

It's fair to say that without their prior audience appeal, even if a particular play of theirs is of exceptionally high quality, it would be extremely difficult for them to achieve immediate success.

Of course, it's different if you're hitchhiking.

For example, the director you work with is a famous director, or the person you work with is very popular.

Only under these circumstances will you see a newcomer become an overnight sensation.

Tony Jaa's Ong-Bak series has an influence not only in China, but also among many people around the world.

It's just that, currently, it's only attracting attention in the DVD or online markets.

However, converting this attention into box office revenue is not guaranteed.

Therefore, people like Tony Jaa, who already have a certain foundation, often need a formal opportunity to enter the field.

"Let's exchange numbers. If I find a suitable role, I'll contact you via QQ."

In fact, Wu Zhuo had not initially decided to cast Tony Jaa in the film.

But this time the two had a good chat.

He felt that he could take a good look at it when he got back and see if there was an opportunity to find a project to cooperate on.

After chatting with Tony Jaa for a while, Wu Zhuo said goodbye and went into a private room at the hotel with Basong to discuss matters.

Actually, this negotiation wasn't particularly important.

Because both parties had already discussed the general intentions for cooperation.

In addition, the Thai film rights for Legendary Cinemas were sold to Prasong for a relatively low price.

Wu Zhuo came here mainly to open up channels.

This will allow future Legendary Pictures films to directly enter the Thai market.

Then, to show his sincerity, Wu Zhuo made a special trip to Thailand.

Once the two bosses reached a consensus on business matters, they didn't need to worry about anything else.

The company will have a dedicated person to handle the specific details.

It's not like it was a few years ago when Wu Zhuo first debuted.

At that time, his career was unstable, and he would personally handle many things.

For example, in the "Painted Skin" project, Wu Zhuo even personally participated in the negotiations regarding his salary and the order of billing in the credits.

And now, his career has reached its peak.

With so many talented people under his command, he no longer needs to worry too much about these things.

After handing the matter over to the company staff, Wu Zhuo chatted with many people in the banquet hall for a while.

The people who came tonight were some well-known figures in the Thai entertainment industry, as well as many entertainment company owners.

Although Wu Zhuo doesn't often work here, these people were invited by Basong to support him, so he still had to give them face.

However, Wu Zhuo did not insist on waiting until all these people had left before leaving.

He left early after greeting some important people.

Mai naturally chose to leave with Wu Zhuo.

It's not really like leaving.

Because Wu Zhuo was staying at the same hotel where the banquet was held, it was just upstairs.

With a beauty in his arms, Wu Zhuo was bound to have another tiring night.

Thai girls have a unique charm.

However, Wu Zhuo did not stay in Thailand any longer. The next day at noon, he boarded a plane and returned to China.

Of course, when he left, he didn't forget to ask Basong to take care of Mai, and specifically instructed him to give her one or two good roles.

Although Mai didn't mention it to Wu Zhuo.

But Wu Zhuo is very clear about what people in this industry, especially female artists, want most.

She simply wants to marry into a wealthy family or gain better career opportunities.

Marrying into a wealthy family is definitely out of the question.

Even Yang Mi, Wu Zhuo never considered marrying her.

It's even more impossible for Mai.

But if you eat someone else's food, you have to give something in return.

Wu Zhuo is not the kind of person who takes advantage of others and then leaves without paying.

Therefore, before leaving, he specifically asked Basong to take care of her.

……

[Wu Zhuo's concert in South Korea drew massive crowds, with many Korean celebrities appearing in the audience]

[Show Lo rode on Wu Zhuo's coattails and successfully rose to become a top star in South Korea]

[Lost in Thailand surpasses 200 million yuan at the box office, breaking both the opening day and opening week box office records]

Jackie Chan admits he may collaborate with Wu Zhuo on his new film.

Wang Baoqiang says he still has several new contracts with Legendary Pictures.

Wang Baoqiang goes public with his relationship; his wife is a former beauty queen from Northwest University.

Wang Baoqiang has achieved success in both his career and love life, becoming the biggest winner this year.

Upon returning to Beijing, Wu Zhuo immediately began to follow the domestic news.

There haven't been any major events happening in China recently, except for the box office success of "Lost in Thailand".

The film grossed 3.2 million yuan in its opening week, breaking the record for domestic film box office and becoming the highest-grossing film in the Chinese film industry at present.

Many organizations have made box office predictions for this film, with the final gross potentially exceeding 10 billion yuan. Its phenomenal opening week box office, coupled with rave reviews, has made it the most anticipated film of this Lunar New Year season.

Meanwhile, news of Wang Baoqiang frequently attending events with his wife has also made headlines due to his popularity.

Seeing the loving photos of Baoqiang and Ma Rong, Wu Zhuo couldn't help but shake his head.

Before Wang Baoqiang married Ma Rong, Wu Zhuo had reminded him to think carefully.

But the other party clearly didn't listen.

Come to think of it, it would be strange if Wang Baoqiang gave up after finally winning over a top campus beauty.

In fact, don't be fooled by Wang Baoqiang's current popularity.

However, neither the internet nor the media really thinks highly of the two of them.

It's not that I think Ma Rong is unworthy of Wang Baoqiang.

On the contrary, many people feel that a beautiful flower has been stuck in cow dung.

Yes, it was that outrageous. At that time, everyone felt that Wang Baoqiang and Ma Rong were not a good match.

Because the two of them are too mismatched in appearance and height.

Moreover, Wang Baoqiang himself actually had some feelings of inferiority.

This might be because he comes from a rural background and doesn't have a high level of education.

Therefore, Wang Baoqiang himself felt that marrying Ma Rong was a blessing.

However, Wu Zhuo's intervention was not without effect.

Although the two still got married, at Wu Zhuo's suggestion, they signed a prenuptial agreement.

Wu Zhuo doesn't know the specifics of how the agreement was signed.

Wang Baoqiang wouldn't tell him about this.

The other party only said that an agreement had been signed.

Then there's Master Song.

This person became Wang Baoqiang's agent in 2009.

When Wu Zhuo became acquainted with Wang Baoqiang, Wang had already been Wang's agent for a long time.

Wu Zhuo couldn't do anything about this person's situation.

After all, although Wang Baoqiang and he were familiar with each other, they weren't close enough for Wu Zhuo to say to his face that his agent had problems.

Therefore, although Wu Zhuo gave a subtle reminder, the other party is still serving as Wang Baoqiang's agent.

Wu Zhuo was powerless to do anything about it.

He wouldn't play the villain and say things like your agent is unreliable or might seduce your wife.

Wu Zhuo dared not speak carelessly about this matter.

Even Chen Sicheng, Xu Zheng, and other close friends of Wang Baoqiang could only remain silent.

Some things, once said, may not be for the good of others, but may even make them enemies.

To be fair, Baoqiang really trusts Master Song.

Not only did he treat Song Da Guanren like a brother, but he also brought his girlfriend with him every day.

Wu Zhuo even overheard Bao Qiang saying privately that after his contract with Huayi Brothers ended, he planned to start a company with Song Da Guanren.

Given their relationship, what could Wu Zhuo say?
Even as an observer, I could see that Master Song and Ma Rong were exchanging glances.

He could only pretend he didn't see it.

Not only him, but even Wang Baoqiang's best friends in the industry, Chen Sicheng and Xu Zheng, must have noticed it too.

But we can only pretend we didn't see it.

……

After returning to China, Wu Zhuo and Liu Shishi spent a few days together.

I also checked Legendary Pictures' performance in 11.

In 11, Legendary Pictures only had one self-produced project released: "Love is Not Blind," which was spearheaded by Zheng Jianfeng himself and did not involve Wu Zhuo.

It ultimately grossed 3.56 million yuan at the box office.

Then, the company invested in as many as six or seven projects, including "Flying Swords of Dragon Gate", "The Flowers of War", and "Eternal Love".

With all projects combined, Legendary Pictures' revenue this year is around 2.3 million yuan, successfully placing it among the top five film companies in China.

However, the company also made significant investments that year.

The investment in "Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons" alone was 1.2 million yuan.

In addition, Wu Jing's "Wolf Warrior" also had an investment of more than 40 million yuan.

Both of these movies may not be released until the second half of 12.

With the recent release of "Lost in Thailand," 12 may be a peak year for Legendary Pictures.

"Mr. Wu, what are your thoughts on going public?"

Just as Wu Zhuo was reviewing the company's accounts and was pleased with the company's performance this year, Zheng Jianfeng suddenly spoke up.

"What do you mean?"

Wu Zhuo raised his head.

“An organization approached me, wanting to help us with the process of going public.”

Zheng Jianfeng hesitated for a moment before speaking.

Wu Zhuo put down the report in his hand and pondered for a moment.

In fact, since January of last year, more than one person and investment company have approached him, wanting to buy some of his shares.

Even China Film Group has shown interest in Legendary Pictures.

The reason these people and companies approached them was because of the stimulus of Huayi Brothers' IPO.

After Huayi Brothers went public, its stock price soared, making it a domestic film and television giant.

Meanwhile, Legendary Pictures has a very impressive financial record, and with the valuation of its assets, it is qualified to go public.

These people want to acquire a stake in Legendary Pictures and then push for the company to go public.

"Mr. Wu, going public is definitely more beneficial than harmful to us."

Once we go public, we can not only use the funds from the stock market to invest in film production.

At the same time, you and I can also cash out some funds.

Didn't you say, Mr. Wu, that you urgently need funds?
I think this is the best opportunity.

Zheng Jianfeng sat down opposite Wu Zhuo and spoke earnestly.

Da da da……

Wu Zhuo tapped the table, deep in thought about the problem.

In fact, going public is indeed a very good idea.

With Legendary Movies' impressive financial results, its stock price will definitely be high after the IPO.

Once the company goes public, Wu Zhuo can immediately cash out a large portion of his money by taking advantage of the listing opportunity.

This money will only benefit his future plans.

His distant cousin left the original 99 Room last week.

Wu Zhuo had invested in this company back then.

After Zhang Yiming left 99fang, Wu Zhuo also chose to sell all his shares, making a profit of 90 million.

In fact, this investment was not particularly successful for Wu Zhuo, because the company had been operating for several years and only made such a small profit.

Of course, although Zhang Yiming's venture was not particularly successful, it was generally successful, since he still made a profit!
So last week, Zhang Yiming called Wu Zhuo and told him that he wanted to create a recommendation engine product based on data mining, a product that would recommend information to users and provide services that connect people with information.

Upon hearing this idea, Wu Zhuo immediately knew that Douyin was about to launch.

So they hit it off immediately and reached an agreement with Zhang Yiming to invest 20 million yuan in him, taking a 51% stake in ByteDance, the company he was about to establish.

However, although only 2000 million yuan was invested in the early stage, Wu Zhuo knew that this was no small matter. As long as Zhang Yiming succeeded, he would definitely need to raise funds and go public.

And it may be more than one round.

In order to ensure that his shares in ByteDance are not diluted, he must ensure that he has sufficient funds to keep up with subsequent financing before the IPO.

Therefore, he is undoubtedly in dire need of cash right now.

In addition, although his net worth is now over 20 billion, his cash flow is actually only a few hundred million.

He was worried that this amount of money wouldn't be enough.

(End of this chapter)