Internet moguls are being held hostage by the entertainment system!

Chapter 404 Times have changed; now it's the Hong Kong entertainment circle's turn to play supporting roles!
Huo Wenxi's lips moved slightly, her eyes darting around.

She glanced at her boss, Yang Albert, sitting next to her, and saw that he nodded imperceptibly before continuing to explain the cooperation plan between Emperor Entertainment and Datang Pictures.

"Mr. Chen, we can discuss the details of the cooperation under this premise, such as the investment ratio between the two parties and the actor configuration."

"This is indeed something I'm quite concerned about."

Chen Xiu responded with a smile, then turned to look at Wei Feng, signaling him to continue.

"Cough cough."

Wei Feng, mimicking Huo Wenxi's earlier manner, cleared his throat and said to her, "President Huo, actually, before you came here, we had already discussed the method of this cooperation internally."

"Please say."

"During the Spring Festival at the beginning of this year, there was a movie called 'Detective Chinatown 2' produced by Datang Pictures. I wonder if you have heard of it."

"Of course I understand, Mr. Chen. What kind of cooperation are you referring to?"

Huo Wenxi suppressed her excitement and looked at Chen Xiu with expectant eyes, thinking: Although I put the investment in "Detective Chinatown 3" as my top priority before coming here, the chance of success was less than 5%. I didn't expect that Datang Pictures would take the initiative to offer it... I will definitely get an A+ in this year's performance evaluation!

Meeting Huo Wenxi's gaze, Chen Xiu did not answer, but simply pointed at Wei Feng.

Seeing this, Huo Wenxi smiled apologetically at Wei Feng: "Excuse me, Mr. Wei, what kind of cooperation are you referring to?"

"Hehe, we can collaborate with Emperor Entertainment to film a spin-off web series of the 'Detective Chinatown' movie series."

"Web series?"

"Yes! Due to the explicit content of the web series, the filming locations had to be Thailand and Hong Kong. Emperor Entertainment can provide us with assistance in the filming of the web series and in the selection of supporting actors."

Wei Feng's smile remained gentle, and his tone and attitude were sincere enough.

However, what he said was quite clear: Yinghuang could only assist Datang Pictures in this collaboration.

A movie adaptation of "Detective Chinatown" is out of the question; getting a web series would be a good outcome.

Huo Wenxi frowned and asked, "President Wei, is our collaboration limited to web series?"

"That's how it is for now. There might be collaborations on TV series in the future."

"What about the movie?"

"We don't have that idea in the short term. If Datang Pictures' film business grows in the future, there will be opportunities for cooperation between the two parties."

Wei Feng refused, but didn't completely refuse.

In business negotiations, one should not speak too absolutely; one must always leave room for maneuver.

However, for Huo Wenxi, the information revealed in Wei Feng's words was far from what they had expected.

Emperor Entertainment's business in film and television is mainly focused on movies. Datang is only willing to cooperate with them on web series and TV series. Isn't this like sending a Michelin-starred chef to work in a tea restaurant?

Huo Wenxi silently complained to herself, and after a moment of contemplation, she was about to speak.

As a result, Yang Albert, who had been silent all along, raised his hand first to stop her.

Yang Albert's eyelids were half-closed, his gaze was gloomy, and he said to Chen Xiu, "President Chen, this is not the kind of cooperation I expect."

"What is it?"

"Emperor Entertainment's film and television business is still mainly focused on movies, and I'm thinking of cooperating with Datang Pictures in this area."

"Currently, the ratio of movies to TV series and web series in Datang Pictures' business is about 4 to 6. The cooperation I just discussed with Warner Bros. is about the cooperation between the two parties on film content."

Chen Xiu paused for a moment, then looked straight at Yang Albert and said, "Warner can provide us with overseas distribution and can also have Hollywood stars play supporting roles. Compared to Warner, does Emperor Entertainment have any advantages that I haven't noticed?"

"..."

Yang Albert had nothing to say, because the two companies were simply incomparable.

Both parties in a partnership are aiming to maximize their own interests.

In the film sector, Datang Pictures' cooperation with Warner Bros. yielded greater profits than its cooperation with Emperor Entertainment, so Chen Xiu's choice was understandable, and Yang Albert had no grounds to complain about it.

Seeing the senior colleague whose temper had been quelled, Chen Xiu smiled and said, "It's not that we can't cooperate on movies. Just like President Wei said, as long as Datang Pictures' film business grows in the future, we can still cooperate."

"That's okay too."

Yang Albert nodded slightly, thinking that since he had already come all this way, he couldn't just come away empty-handed.

Although web series may not be considered mainstream, they are still spin-offs of the "Detective Chinatown" series.

Thinking about it this way, I felt a little better.

Seeing that he was softening his stance, Chen Xiu continued, "The 'Detective Chinatown' web series that we're collaborating on this time will also be available on Netflix and broadcast globally. If Mr. Yang's company has suitable artists, they can also play important supporting roles in the series."

"supporting role?"

Yang Albert frowned slightly, clearly showing his dissatisfaction with the amount of cake he received.

Chen Xiu nodded affirmatively: "Yes! It's an important supporting role. We already have someone in mind for the lead role in this web series."

"It doesn't matter this time. What I want to ask is, in future collaborations, will our actors only be able to play supporting roles?"

Yang Albert grasped the key point of the topic.

In fact, when Chen Xiu first met and chatted with him in Hong Kong, she had already emphasized the topic of main characters and supporting characters.

During this negotiation, Wei Feng and he each repeated their statements.

If Yang Albert still doesn't understand what this means, then he's wasted all these years.

Faced with Yang Albert's question, Chen Xiu chose the tactful approach over the direct one.

"Mr. Yang, you said last time that Hong Kong stars actually have considerable popularity in mainland China, right?"

"I did express that meaning." "To be more accurate, it should be that the Hong Kong stars who are still popular in mainland China are basically the leading actors who are still active on the big screen. As for the other supporting actors and young actors, mainland audiences will only feel that they are familiar but not familiar."

"..."

“The amount of film and television works produced in Hong Kong each year is not enough to support these supporting actors. Instead of driving taxis, washing dishes, or delivering food to earn extra money, they might as well come to the mainland to be supporting actors and earn more than the main actors in Hong Kong dramas.”

Chen Xiu's way of expressing herself was relatively tactful, but the content of her words was unusually direct.

The topics discussed at the negotiating table rarely stray from the main theme.

His earlier point about how supporting actors in Hong Kong's entertainment industry can't support themselves but earn more by acting as supporting actors in mainland China is actually a metaphor for the relationship between Emperor Entertainment and Datang Pictures.

Yang Albert understood what was meant, so his furrowed brows never relaxed.

After a long silence, Yang Albert slowly sat up straight, staring intently at Chen Xiu, and said, "President Chen, Emperor Entertainment's partners are not limited to Datang Pictures."

"Of course, the movie 'Project Gutenberg,' which Emperor Entertainment collaborated on with Bona and Ali, is also excellent. I went to see it yesterday."

Chen Xiu appeared very relaxed, showing no signs of embarrassment at the deadlock in the negotiations.

After praising "Project Gutenberg," he changed the subject, saying, "A film like this should be the best work in Hong Kong. Yesterday, 'Project Gutenberg' grossed 3.3 million yuan, and Maoyan predicts that its final box office will be 11 billion yuan, which is about one-third of 'The Road Home'."

Arguing only makes the situation more difficult to resolve, while facts leave one speechless.

All the data Chen Xiu mentioned can be verified on a mobile phone, and Yang Albert cannot refute it.

"Project Gutenberg" is already the best film in Hong Kong cinema, but its box office expectations are only one-third of those of "The Road Home".

Furthermore, "The Long Way Home" is not the best mainland Chinese film in recent years; there are three films ahead of it at the box office, and there will be more in the future.

How much of the value of Hong Kong celebrities remains when placed in the context of real-world business logic?
Watching Yang Albert straighten his posture and slowly deflate, Chen Xiu suddenly said something unrelated.

"Mr. Yang, what period was the golden age of Hong Kong films?"

Albert Yang made his fortune during this period, so he naturally knows this.

"Around the 90s."

"Back then, I wasn't even born yet... Haha, I only learned about that period from my grandmother. At that time, it seemed that domestic industrial products could only be sold overseas through the port city. Your wages at that time increased several times over in ten years."

"Indeed."

"With a solid economic foundation, people will think about developing entertainment, and the so-called golden age of Hong Kong films came into being."

Chen Xiu's gaze was intense, but he didn't spell out his meaning completely, trusting that Yang Albert would understand.

Wei Feng and Huo Wenxi, who had already withdrawn from the negotiating table and become bystanders, had constantly changing expressions on their faces, and they understood Chen Xiu's meaning.

Albert Yang's furrowed brows gradually relaxed, and he sighed, saying, "Does Mr. Chen mean that times have changed, and now it's the Hong Kong entertainment circle's turn to play a supporting role?"

"Is not it?"

Chen Xiu's direct question overturned all the previous euphemisms.

Yang Albert paused for a moment, remained silent, and then slowly nodded.

After Yang Albert finished nodding, Chen Xiu suddenly laughed, breaking the oppressive atmosphere.

"Heh, Mr. Yang, there's no need to be so sentimental. It's just that we've developed too fast in the last ten years, so fast that many people can't keep up. Isn't that how the salaries of celebrities in the entertainment industry have increased?"

"Right."

"So, about the collaboration?"

"Of course you have to continue!"

Yang Albert, his old-fashioned demeanor completely gone, stared intently at Chen Xiu.

"Let's do as you said and collaborate on a web series first, see how it goes, and then we can collaborate in many other areas in the future."

"President Yang adapts so quickly, he can succeed at anything."

Chen Xiu gave a lighthearted, teasing compliment.

Yang Albert didn't take it seriously; on the contrary, he found this way of speaking quite novel: "Mr. Chen, do you think this is an internet slang term?"

“Yes! We live in the internet age, and everyone is a self-media. Mr. Yang, why don’t you have the stars under Emperor Entertainment open personal accounts on Douyin to increase their interaction with fans?”

"I will seriously consider it."

Yang Albert smiled and nodded, then stood up to shake hands with Chen Xiu and say goodbye.

Chen Xiu and Wei Feng saw the two out, and when they reached the door, he called Huo Wenxi aside.

"Mani, could I have a moment of your time?"

"Hmm~, Mr. Yang?"

"It's okay, I'll go downstairs and wait for you."

Yang Albert waved his hand and left first with his assistant.

Huo Wenxi quickly composed herself, put on a professional smile, and said to Chen Xiu, "Mr. Chen, is there anything I can help you with?"

Chen Xiu didn't waste time on preamble and immediately stated her purpose.
"You're the executive producer of the 'Chef Nic' show, right?"

"Correct."

“This month, some of my company’s artists will be guests on the show. I’ve already spoken with Tingfeng about it, and I hope the production team can make an exception for them.”

"No problem, I will explain everything carefully."

(End of this chapter)