Chapter 152: Summer Smoke
The box office of "The Matrix 2" in mainland China finally settled at 7.35 million yuan, and did not break the million mark as previously predicted by the media.

However, in the global market, it achieved a good result of total box office of 8.1 million US dollars, far exceeding the original version of 7.42 million.

In the 2002 global box office rankings, it ranked fourth, only behind "The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers" with 9.26 million, "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" with 8.78 million, and "Spider-Man" with 8.21 million.

Together with the $5.75 million from "Splitting the Mountain to Save Mother", Jiang Heng's personal annual box office total in 2002 reached a staggering $13.85 billion, making him the champion with an absolute advantage.

When the news was first confirmed, CCTV News reported it repeatedly, causing quite a stir for a while.

When it came time to promote "The Matrix 3", Bonanza Pictures used the total box office of the series as a marketing selling point.

The first film grossed $4.6 million, the second film grossed $8.1 million, and the combined global box office for the two films totaled $12.7 billion.

If the third film can have a global total box office of 7.3 million US dollars, the "Matrix" trilogy will exceed 20 billion US dollars

Such an achievement shocked not only mainland filmmakers, but also some leaders felt that it would greatly boost the morale of the people.

So, just as the promotion of "The Matrix 3" was launched, news came out that some leaders thought it was not a good idea to schedule two blockbusters at the same time in the summer vacation, as they would compete with each other. Soon after, news came out that "The Promise" would be postponed.

Jiang Heng was really shocked when he heard this.

I called Han Sanping twice, but no one answered.

There were other friends who were able to find out the answer, but after thinking it over, they gave up.

There are many things in the entertainment industry that can only be done but not said.

For example, people are curious about whether there is any document for the celebrity ban order.

Li Chengru once shared his experience, saying that after the release of "Serious Crime Unit 6", criminal investigation dramas became very popular and various TV stations began to broadcast them.

But it is said that a senior leader said that this was not a good idea, as it would be bad if the criminals knew the methods used by the police to solve cases.

Then there was news that a document was issued that major satellite TV stations were not allowed to broadcast criminal investigation dramas during prime time within ten years, so no one filmed them and the popularity was gone.

But 10 years later, everyone was wondering if the ban could be lifted and wanted to find the document to check the specific time, but it turned out that the document did not exist at all.

It was just a rumor, but everyone took it seriously and carried it out for ten years.

A more typical example is the "Domestic Film Protection Month". It is said that since 2004, the Film Bureau has issued a verbal notice calling on major domestic theater chains to stop promoting the introduction of overseas co-production blockbusters during July and August (or June to July) each year, and to support and promote domestic films.

There is no document on this matter, and "Domestic Film Protection Month" is not an official statement, but it has been implemented seriously for many years.

Jiang Heng thought that this matter would not be groundless, so there was no need to ask too many questions and just wait for the news.

A few days later, China Film Group, the producer of the movie "The Promise", announced that due to technical reasons, the film would be postponed to October 10.

When the news came out, it shocked the entire Chinese entertainment industry.

Many people called him, and Jiang Heng instantly understood why Han Sanping didn't answer his calls and turned off his phone.

I just drive to iQiyi, Tencent Video and Bonanza every day to inquire about the implementation of publicity and promotion.

“Director Jiang, don’t worry. This time we have the right time, right place, and right people. I think The Matrix 3 will definitely make over 8 million!” Yu Dong looked excited.

Jiang Heng's mentality was quite peaceful. The 2 billion US dollars for the trilogy was just a promotional slogan and was not counted.

Whether he succeeds or not, he has made a lot of money this time. It will be enough for him to retire and transform into Wang Duoyu for a long time.

However, for Bonar, encouragement is the main focus.

I asked about the release of promotional posters and the layout of the premiere. The Matrix 3 will still be held at the Workers' Stadium, and the premiere will be on Saturday, July 7.

In addition to the film's main creative staff, many celebrities will also be present as guests.

Everyone thought that since "The Matrix 3" dominated the summer schedule, there must be some inside story behind it, so they came to join in the fun. Even someone with a dull personality like Chen Daoming called Yu Dong and asked for a guest invitation.

Jiang Heng happened to be there, and the two chatted for a while.

"I really like this movie, and I'm eager to know what story you told in the length of three movies!" Chen Daoming said lightly.

Jiang Heng smiled and said, "I can only say that it will definitely surprise people and make everyone feel that their time is not wasted after watching it!"

"That's good, that's good! In fact, I like this setting too much. Life is like Zhuang Zhou dreaming of becoming a butterfly. How can we tell whether it was Zhuang Zhou who dreamed of becoming a butterfly, or the butterfly who dreamed of becoming Zhuang Zhou?"

Jiang Heng smiled and said, "Then scientists have to study it!"

"the scientist?"

Chen Daoming lamented, "Nowadays, many scientists are not thinking about how to do research, but how to make money. How many years has it been since there has been a major breakthrough in global science and technology? Today's human society is just living off the past."

Jiang Hengxin said: "Don't you know that the Trisolaran civilization can lock down Earth's technology?"

Then I thought again, oh, the first part of "The Three-Body Problem" will not be serialized in "Science Fiction World" magazine until May 06, and Liu Cixin probably hasn't written it yet.

Think about it, it’s bad enough that Liu Cixin sold the copyright of "The Three-Body Problem" for only 100,000 yuan, so don’t steal other people’s works.

It’s better to wait for another two years. He sold the copyright in 09 anyway.

Jiang Heng did not mention the theories in "The Three-Body Problem", but only talked about the virtual world, why light has a speed limit, etc. He chatted for a long time before hanging up.

In the following days, Bonna Pictures sent out invitations one after another, but what was unexpected was that Chen Kaige would actually attend.

Yu Dong was in a dilemma. In fact, as an old graduate of the Beijing Film Studio, he was somewhat inclined towards Chen Kaige.

But now that he is in charge of Bonanza and is also a shareholder, it is difficult to talk about any kind of affection.

Smiling, he advised, "Director Chen, why do you still want to come to the premiere?"

"My son wants to watch a movie. I want to watch a movie with him!"

Yu Dong thought to himself: "Hey, is there anyone who talks like you?"

He knew that Chen Kaige had two sons, the elder one was born in 97 and the younger one in 2000. What would he be looking at?

"Director Chen, I know you are angry, but in a public place...!"

"Don't worry, I'm a well-mannered man. I definitely won't cause trouble in front of so many media reporters and audiences. I just want to chat with Director Jiang and take a look at his film!"

Seeing Yu Dong's silence, he couldn't help but laugh: "You can't even make a decision on such a small matter!"

Hey, Yu Dong was so excited by these words that he almost agreed on the spot.

After thinking for a while, he said, "Okay, I'll have someone send you an invitation later!"

After the call ended, he called Jiang Heng again to tell him about it.

"This Old Chen seems to be very angry with me!" Jiang Heng laughed and said, "If he wants to come, let him come. We are at home, so no big trouble can happen!"

(End of this chapter)