242: Zhao Fan: Don't worry! 'Kung Fu' definitely has half its fans online... they absolutely rigged the votes.

“Director Zhao, why do I feel like the situation isn't great? I see a lot more people discussing 'kung fu' than our 'kung fu legend'!”

It must be said that Mo Lun Tian Film and Television attached great importance to 'kung fu legend' this time.

Xiao Shuiping, the general manager, even brought Zhao Fan, the director, directly to the cinema.

However, after they came out of the screening room, Xiao Shuiping's expression turned a little ugly, and he spoke.

Zhao Fan, on the other hand, was still very confident at this moment, saying:

“President Xiao, don't worry. Even though many people are discussing it, I guess at least half of them are paid water army. Our film is actually very good, and most of the audience reviews are positive.”

“Our film is actually very good, and most of the audience reviews are positive.”

Hearing this, Xiao Shuiping felt a little relieved.

But for some reason, he had a faint, ominous premonition in his heart.

However, the ones with the most unpleasant expressions at this moment were clearly not the people from Mo Lun Tian Film and Television, but rather the group who produced 'magic city fortress'.

Before the film's release, Wu Leilei, the chief director, confidently declared that magic city fortress would undoubtedly be one of the top-quality films of this summer season.

Lin Pianhong, the general manager, believed him and held great expectations for it.

But who knew that when he specifically came to the cinema today to see the audience's reactions, he witnessed a scene that made his liver tremble.

Almost all the audience members coming out of the 'magic city fortress' screening room were cursing it as a terrible movie.

“Director Wu, you... did you hear that just now? Many audience members are criticizing our magic city fortress. What's going on?”

Lin Pianhong looked at Wu Leilei beside him, his expression very serious.

Wu Leilei, the chief director, was also stunned for a moment, then quickly said:

“President Lin, it's too early to say anything. How many audience members really understand movies? The quality of a movie ultimately depends on the box office. I have great confidence in magic city fortress!”

“The quality of a movie ultimately depends on the box office. I have great confidence in magic city fortress!”

“That had better be the case! Otherwise, we'll be in big trouble this time!”

Lin Pianhong slowly nodded.

It's important to know that inviting Little Fresh Meat to join the film this time was already a huge expense.

Or rather, it was precisely because of this part of the expenditure that the special effects budget for the science fiction film was compressed.

If this leads to a box office flop, then Wu Leilei's move to bring in Little Fresh Meat traffic might just be a joke... In fact, at this moment, the team behind 'ex-boyfriend story 2' was relatively calm and even delighted after seeing the audience's reactions.

The audience's reaction did not exceed their expectations.

The explosive popularity of 'ex-boyfriend story 2' could already be predicted this time.

Of course, what slightly surprised Great Director Cheng Dalong was this:

The audience members coming out of the 'magic city fortress' and 'kung fu legend' screening rooms, which he had high hopes for, did not perform as he expected.

“Did I misjudge? These two films don't have the level to compete with my 'ex-boyfriend story'?”

Cheng Dalong thought to himself.

He looked at the screening room in another direction, shaking his head speechlessly:

“This is too fake. How long has it been since I've seen such a fake reaction? This 'kung fu' team probably spent a lot of money buying water army, right?

It's useless. Although a water army can guarantee box office for a day or two, to have strong overall box office, it ultimately depends on the quality of the film!

So, it seems that the king of this summer season is none other than my 'ex-boyfriend story 2'?”

Amidst the expectations of several teams, each with their own thoughts, the audience in the screening rooms changed batch after batch.

Time passed little by little, finally approaching the moment when the daily box office would be tallied.

Let's temporarily set aside the big imported blockbusters. First, all members of the four production teams—'magic city fortress', 'ex-boyfriend story 2', 'kung fu legend', and 'kung fu'—which premiered on the same day, were almost all waiting for the first day's box office to be announced.

First, all members of the four production teams—'magic city fortress', 'ex-boyfriend story 2', 'kung fu legend', and 'kung fu'—which premiered on the same day, were almost all waiting for the first day's box office to be announced.

Although for a film, the first day's box office doesn't represent everything, as there are examples of comebacks against the odds.

For example, 'summer fall', which Xu Lu filmed at the time, was a typical example.

Its first-day box office was not outstanding back then.

However, after a fierce battle, it ultimately achieved an astonishing total box office of 1.5 billion, becoming the box office champion of that quarter and surprising countless people.

But from another perspective, the first day's box office also represents at least forty percent of the outcome.

Especially for seasoned industry professionals, the first day's box office can reveal a lot.

Finally, all the box office data for July 5th films has been tallied.

As many people had guessed, the first-day box office of the four films, including 'magic city fortress', took the top four spots.

'magic city fortress' ranked first, with a first-day box office of 74 million!

'ex-boyfriend story 2' ranked second, with a first-day figure of 69 million.

Da Xu Culture's 'kung fu' ranked third, with a box office of 61 million for the day.

As for Mo Lun Tian's 'kung fu legend', it ranked fourth, also with 57 million.

Further down the first-day data rankings were the big blockbusters imported from abroad.

“President Lin, you see, I told you not to worry. Our magic city fortress ranked first in first-day box office, and a score of 74 million is very competitive this year!”

Seeing the data released, Director Wu Leilei of 'magic city fortress' breathed a sigh of relief and said happily to Lin Pianhong beside him.

Lin Pianhong finally showed a slight smile, nodding and saying:

“It seems the audience still likes Little Fresh Meat, and the box office data proves it.”

Wu Leilei's expression carried a hint of pride as he smiled and said:

“That's right! This move of ours was correct, but something surprised me.

I didn't expect 'kung fu's first-day box office to be better than 'kung fu legend'. It seems this Da Xu Culture also has something going for it.”

On the other side, in the 'ex-boyfriend story 2' crew, seeing their film rank second in first-day box office.

Cheng Dalong, as the director, wasn't too surprised. With the foundation laid by 'Story 1', and with no changes in the lead actor or style for the second part, a high box office was normal.

Thinking of this, Cheng Dalong muttered to himself:

“The first-day box office of magic city fortress is indeed very high, but based on audience reactions, it will likely be cut in half soon.

And this 'kung fu' crew, relying on vote rigging, indeed made it into the top three. I just don't know how much capital they're willing to spend, otherwise... hehe!”

Of course, at this critical juncture when the first-day box office was released, Zhao Fan from the 'kung fu legend' crew was also present.

Standing next to him was Xiao Shuiping from Mo Lun Tian. Both of them were clearly a bit dissatisfied that 'kung fu's box office was higher than their 'kung fu legend'.

“President Xiao, you know that our film didn't rig votes. This 57 million box office is solid data, and I highly suspect the 61 million of Da Xu Culture's 'kung fu' has a lot of water in it!”

Zhao Fan said with a stern face.

Losing to his old company on the first day, even if not by much, was enough to make him unhappy.

Moreover, as someone who had read the 'kung fu' script, he didn't feel that the opponent's script was as exciting as 'kung fu legend'.

So now, seeing that 'kung fu's first-day box office was actually higher than 'kung fu legend'.

His first reaction was that the other party must have rigged the votes; otherwise, it would be impossible!