Huayu: Starting from Fahrenheit

Chapter 438 Rapid Pursuit Press Conference

On the morning of April 1, 2012, a long queue formed in front of the Regent Beijing Hotel.

Outside the crowd, a large number of young fans gathered on the street, holding up posters of Wu Zhuo and shouting his name.

Today is the day of the movie press conference for "John Wick".

Wu Zhuo and most of the main cast and crew will attend this press conference.

The press conference had already begun to be promoted online a week ago.

Meanwhile, almost all the well-known domestic media outlets were also present at the event.

Of course, the most eye-catching one is Wu Zhuo.

His career reached its peak in the last two years.

Whenever he attends an event, the media and fans are always present.

Today was no different; a large number of fans from all over the world gathered here just to catch a glimpse of Wu Zhuo.

"No wonder he's a superstar!"

Yang Li followed his mentor Huang Yanqing and the group of reporters into the hotel.

As he walked, he looked at the dense crowd of fans on the street.

He is an intern reporter at Sohu News, and today is his first time interviewing Wu Zhuo, a superstar.

Even though he had come prepared, he was still taken aback when he saw the scene.

There are no fewer than fifty media outlets present today, representing mainland China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong.

Even reporters from Japan and South Korea came to the scene.

With so many media outlets, each sending two or three people, the total number of reporters today exceeds 150.

And the fans are even more so.

The street has been completely taken over by fans.

When Wu Zhuo arrived, all the fans went absolutely crazy; Yang Li felt like he was seeing a swarm of frenzied ants.

"This is nothing! You didn't see his new album launch, that was truly terrifying."

Not only media from various Asian countries will come, but journalists from Europe and America will also travel to the scene in person.

Hearing his apprentice's sigh, Huang Yanqing turned around and said:
"It's no exaggeration to say that Wu Zhuo is currently the number one superstar in China."

Let me tell you this: even if Jackie Chan or Andy Lau were holding a press conference next to him, the number of people there wouldn't be as many as his.

Wu Zhuo is now a guarantee of sales.

Any news about him, true or false, receives a lot of attention.

As the group moved slowly forward, Huang Yanqing began to pass on his experience to his apprentices.

"Interviewing Wu Zhuo is different from interviewing other celebrities. Wu Zhuo has a good personality, and he will usually answer your questions as long as they are not directed at him."

Then there's the matter of being followed and filmed. He generally doesn't mind being filmed, but we need to find a balance.

At this point, Huang Yanqing lowered his voice, "If you get any big news about him, don't report it to the newspapers first, give him a call."

Wu Zhuo's team has never been stingy in this regard.

He can pay you double or even more.

"Ah..." Yang Li was taken aback. "Doesn't that mean that any news that is unfavorable to him can't be published?"

"That's about right, but Wu Zhuo himself is a clean-living person, so we usually can't find any really bad news about him."

It's nothing more than his love life.

At this point, Huang Yanqing couldn't help but sigh:
"This guy is practically a carbon copy of Andy Lau. He's extremely self-disciplined, and you'd hardly ever find any scandals about him."

However, only someone like that can become a top superstar in the country in just a few years.

Following the group, Yang Li and his team of reporters quickly entered the hotel.

The hotel lobby was specially decorated and turned into an interview area.

The reporters were seated according to their assigned numbers, and there was a stage set up directly in front of them.

There were also some chairs placed up there, which were the seats for the main cast and crew.

Behind the seats was a huge banner.

The image above is a still from the movie "John Wick".

Wu Zhuo looked haggard and disheveled, holding a pistol in his hand. The smaller figures next to him resembled Tony Jaa and Tom Hardy.

Beyond that, there was a scene of explosions.

"As expected, this drama should be a gunfight drama."

We should have a chance to ask questions later, then you can ask them.

Here is the list of questions we want to ask. You can check it out later; if someone has already asked a question, we'll ask the next questions in order.

Sohu News is one of the more well-known and larger online news outlets in China, so it was placed at the front of the list by the organizers.

After sitting down, Huang Yanqing immediately took out a list of interview questions.

Yang Li took a look and found that they were all questions that had been trending recently.

Questions like: What's the listing process? How much is the film's budget? When is it expected to be released?

It's clear that Sohu and Wu Zhuo have a good relationship, as their conversations mostly revolved around "John Wick".

After familiarizing himself with the interview list, Yang Li marveled at the huge poster on the stage.

Tom Hardy should be considered a big star in Hollywood, right?
Wu Zhuo really has some connections; he actually managed to get him to play a supporting role.

In fact, Yang Li didn't know who Tom Hardy was originally.

He only learned about the actor through various channels, including the internet, after Legendary Pictures announced that Tom Hardy would be the second male lead in "John Wick".

He was surprised to find out that the actor named Tom Hardy was actually quite a big shot.

He debuted in 2001 with the classic war film "Band of Brothers," and also starred in "Black Hawk Down" that same year.

Then, according to Yang Li's investigation, this guy had actually been shortlisted for and won quite a few awards.

In 2007, he was nominated for the British Academy Film Award for Best Actor for his role in the film "Stuart: Life Backwards".

In 2009, he starred in the drama film "Bronson," for which he won the British Independent Film Award for Best Actor.

Then, he is best known for his role as Eames in the 10-year sci-fi blockbuster "Inception," for which he was nominated for a Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor.

Judging from his qualifications, this guy is definitely not just a small-time actor.

"Tom Hardy? He does have some fame, but it depends on who you compare him to. Compared to Wu Zhuo, he's really a nobody."

Wu Zhuo is now someone who can stand alongside Jackie Chan, Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, and others.

Haven't you heard? It's said that Sylvester Stallone invited Wu Zhuo to star in *The Expendables* more than once.

Huang Yanqing said this with a very proud tone.

I don't know when it started, but Wu Zhuo has somehow become someone that everyone can be proud of, just like Jackie Chan.

If a Chinese actor were cast, Tom Hardy could be relegated to a supporting role.

The publicity has probably already spread everywhere.

But with Wu Zhuo.

Not only does he not promote it himself, but even the audience subconsciously feel that it is an honor for him to play a supporting role to Wu Zhuo.

"The cast of this movie is actually quite strong. In addition to Tom Hardy, there is also Tony Jaa, a top Thai action star."

This person has a high international profile.

And then there's Matthew McConaughey, that's a true acting powerhouse. The awards he's won in the US alone could fill a whole container.

Huang Yanqing pointed to the man on the poster who looked very bad and said.

That person was Matthew McConaughey, who played the main villain in the movie.

This person is even more famous in Hollywood than Tom Hardy, and has won many awards and starred in a large number of Hollywood blockbusters.

He's a true veteran actor.

Just as Huang Yanqing was talking to his apprentice, the atmosphere suddenly became noisy, and many people stood up. Yang Li quickly followed everyone's gaze and saw that the main cast and crew of the film crew were coming out.

Leading the group is none other than Wu Zhuo, China's undisputed top star, a powerful figure, and an international superstar.

Following behind him were Benny Chan, Tony Jaa, Tom Hardy, Matthew McConaughey, and—Li Bingbing, and Daniel Wu.

"Why are Li Bingbing and Daniel Wu here? Are they going to be in it too?"

Yang Li and his master exchanged a glance, both looking surprised.

If these two really do end up acting.

That show has quite a cast.

However, Yang Li immediately became excited.

In recent years, three people have become synonymous with handsomeness online.

One is Edison Chen, who has already retired from the entertainment industry; the other two are Alvin Wu and Daniel Wu.

Anyone who goes online will find this.

There are tons of regional Wu Zhuo accounts online.

Examples include Wu Zhuo from the Southwest, Little Wu Zhuo from the Northeast, and Big Wu Zhuo from Guangdong.

The same goes for Daniel Wu; he has a bunch of clones online.

Today, two of the most handsome men in the Chinese-speaking world are about to star in a movie, with Wu Zhuo going head-to-head with Daniel Wu.

Needless to say, the experienced journalists present already imagined the level of online buzz this would generate.

clack clack...

The sound of camera shutters immediately filled the air.

"Thank you all so much for coming to the press conference for the movie 'John Wick'."

Your presence here shows your support for us. We have prepared small gifts for you after the press conference, so please remember to take them.

It's nothing valuable, just a small token of my appreciation.

Wu Zhuo sat in the center position, with Matthew McConaughey on his left and Tom Hardy on his right.

This seat isn't just because of his status.

Also because of its proportion of screen time in the plot.

Tom Hardy plays Marcus, the assassin friend of John Wu, played by Wu Zhuo.

The two were friends before John retired.

In the movie, he is paid a large sum of money by mob boss Vig to kill the protagonist, John.

The two will have a series of clashes, but Marcus is not the villain. He will be killed by the mob boss because he helped the protagonist.

During this period, he will have a significant amount of screen time.

Then there's the main villain, Vig, who is probably the second most important character in the show after the protagonist.

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call him the second male lead.

"I see that everyone seems very curious about Ms. Li Bingbing and Mr. Yanzu appearing here, so let me explain first."

Both of them will make cameo appearances in our film.

Ms. Li Bingbing plays the role of my wife, a woman who lives in memories, haha...

Then there's Daniel Wu. I won't go into too much detail about his role in the show, but I can say that it's a very important one, serving as a bridge between the beginning and the end.

Everyone can go to the cinema to watch it after its release.

Wu Zhuo noticed that everyone seemed curious about why Li Bingbing and Daniel Wu had come, so he gave a brief explanation.

After he finished speaking, he announced the start of the press conference.

The purpose of a movie press conference is actually quite simple.

It's all for the purpose of generating buzz in the market and increasing media exposure for the film.

In fact, movie press conferences are usually held after filming is completed and before the movie is released.

However, there are some exceptions.

Like "John Wick," this movie is an exception.

Filming for this movie hasn't started yet.

The reason for holding a press conference now is mainly to promote Legendary Entertainment.

With Legendary Entertainment's IPO imminent, it desperately needs various forms of promotion to boost confidence.

Therefore, Wu Zhuo moved the press conference forward to now.

To this end, Wu Zhuo and others even filmed a trailer in advance.

The process of the movie press conference was very simple: introduce the movie's genre and a brief plot.

Then there are the roles played by each actor.

Finally, let's talk about the creators' vision for the film.

After we'd covered most of the groundwork, it was time for the Q&A session with the reporters.

Because prior notice had been given, the reporters did not direct all their questions at Wu Zhuo when they began asking questions.

In fact, if we hadn't given prior notice, today we might have seen all the reporters asking him questions about his situation again.

Wu Zhuo felt that this situation was not good for the film, so he made sure to give them a heads-up in advance.

Therefore, although Wu Zhuo was the main focus of today's questioning, all the main creators received equal attention.

Of course, the two Hollywood actors represent different things, so they naturally received more questions from reporters.

As soon as the Q&A session began, many reporters asked the two of their questions.

"Mr. Tom Hardy, you play the main villain in this film, and I believe you have already read the script."

What is your opinion of this script?
So, how did it feel to work with Wu Zhuo for the first time?

Did you know Wu Zhuo before?

“Wait, good, this is definitely a very good script. I received a call from my agent saying that Abel Wu invited me to make a movie.”

My first reaction was, damn it, this guy is lying to me.

Yes, my first reaction was that the agent was lying to me.

It wasn't until Abel called me personally that I realized, oh my god! It was actually true!
I actually have the chance to work with Abel, one of the world's most famous superstars.

You have no idea how excited I was.

Regarding your question about whether I know Abel.

Oh my god, is there anyone in the world who doesn't know Abel?
I'm not an old-fashioned person; I listen to Abel's songs too.

I even donated a vinyl record to him! It's still in my collection room.

Tom Hardy truly lives up to his reputation as someone who has been in the entertainment industry for many years and is destined for great success.

He speaks with humor and wit.

His words pleased all the reporters present.

Look, our Wu Zhuo is a true international superstar.

Even these well-known Hollywood actors have his fans.

Look at the reporters engrossed in writing their articles.

Wu Zhuo immediately guessed that there would definitely be a news item tonight that said "Tom Hardy is a fan of Wu Zhuo".

"Hey hey hey, what do you mean by 'old-fashioned'? We old-fashioned folks also listen to Abel, okay!"

After Tom Hardy finished speaking, Matthew McConaughey, who was standing next to him, objected, looking at him as if to say, "You need to apologize to me."

"OK, Mr. Matthew, it's my fault!"

(End of this chapter)