EFB Chapter 191 Help me contact Haidilao [5000]
Chapter 191 Help me contact Haidilao [5000]
Chapter 191 Help me contact Haidilao [5000] (Seeking monthly votes)
"The drop in North American box office revenue was well controlled in the second week, and online reviews are overwhelmingly positive. Judging from these positive reviews, many people will likely watch it two or three times!"
Rob came to Chen Xun early in the morning with his tablet to look at movie data.
Chen Xun looked at the data on the screen:
Rotten Tomatoes score: 77% Freshness, Audience Score: 82%.
Metacritic overall score: 63/100.
"Justin Lin has upgraded the racing film into a Heskell-style heist blockbuster. Fast & Furious 5 is a true rebirth of the series."
"Stupid? Yes, brilliant? Absolutely, this is the craziest vault dragging scene you'll ever see."
The People's Daily in China stated: "From street racing to transnational heist, 'Fast & Furious 5' has completed a magnificent transformation of the genre."
The Beijing News also gave it a good review: "Prioritizing live-action action design and restraining special effects shows respect for the audience's intelligence."
It has a Douban rating of 8.3, with over 120 million ratings!
It has already climbed into the top ten of the best action movie list, and its ranking is still rising!
"This score is quite high for an action movie."
Chen Xun knew the nature of Douban; there weren't many commercial films rated 8 or higher.
"The key point is not just in China!"
Rob added, "It also has a 7.5 rating on IMDb, which is great for an action movie. Good audience reviews mean that long-term box office success is guaranteed. Universal has decided to extend the screening period, at least for another month."
Chen Xun opened Weibo.
His fans organized private screenings in various locations and distributed homemade merchandise, banners, badges, and cards for free at cinemas.
Some viewers who don't usually watch movies bought tickets to support him after seeing his performance on "Happy Camp".
His fans are still incredibly supportive!
"Your popularity in China is higher than Universal Music Group expected."
Rob was very proud, as if it were his own honor: "Especially young viewers, they feel that you are a representative of Chinese people breaking into Hollywood, plus your performance on the show is genuine and unpretentious, which makes you very likable."
After Robert left, Chen Xun sat alone in the living room.
He opened the panel:
【Acting realm】
Level: Popular Reputation Progress: 13%
【Core Traits】
Character credibility: 55/100
Cultural influence: 28/100
[Skills Bar]
The essence of practical combat action performance (gold): 75%
Street vehicle attack and defense instincts (purple): 71%
Cooper's Promise (Exclusive): 5%
The most obvious changes are the two new core traits: Persuasiveness and Cultural Influence, which now have 55 and 28 respectively.
Chen Xun pondered this change.
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The increased credibility of a character may stem from the audience's recognition of the role he plays.
After the film's release, many media outlets did indeed comment that his acting was quite natural and his action scenes were convincing.
But the cultural influence metric is rising even faster than the character's credibility.
That's interesting.
He thought back on what had happened during that time.
The movie became a huge hit in China, with fans booking out entire theaters, media coverage, and even an article published in the People's Daily.
These are not just box office successes, but also a cultural phenomenon.
A Chinese-American actor has landed a significant role in a mainstream Hollywood commercial film and delivered a commendable performance, sparking discussion.
Is this what cultural influence is?
How can we get more people to see, discuss, and even change their opinions as a result?
Chen Xun recalled his past life, where some actors saw their value skyrocket after starring in a hit movie, but quickly faded into obscurity.
Some actors, like Jackie Chan and Jet Li, are not just actors, but also cultural icons.
They showed the world Chinese Kung Fu and the potential of Chinese actors.
He's far from that level yet, but he seems to be on a similar path.
In the afternoon, Chen Xun received an unexpected phone call.
It's Shen Man.
"Chen Xun, I've seen the box office figures. Congratulations."
Shen Man's voice sounded much more relaxed: "I'm busy here too. The station saw the ratings data for that episode of 'Happy Camp,' and it broke records. The station leaders talked to me and said they could consider giving me a small team to try making a sample episode of a new variety show."
"That's great!" Chen Xun was happy for her. "What direction?"
"It's not completely finalized yet, but I want to make a reality show that combines travel and food. However, it won't be the kind where celebrities just eat and drink; I want to show the lives of ordinary people in different places."
Shen Man paused for a moment: "By the way, the concepts of Running Man and Extreme Challenge that you mentioned on the show, I looked them up and there aren't any similar ones in China yet. I talked to the production manager about it, and he was quite interested."
Chen Xun smiled.
He mentioned it casually, but he didn't expect Shen Manzhen to actually research it.
"If you have an idea, just do it!"
"If the show gets made, you promised you'd be the first one on it!"
"It's a deal!"
After dinner, Chen Xun turned on his computer again and looked at the online discussions.
On Douban Movies, there are already hundreds of long reviews for "Fast & Furious 5".
He clicked on several highly-rated comments and discovered that the discussions were not only about the movie itself, but also about his career in Hollywood.
A post titled "From Extra to Mainstream: Chen Xun's Atypical Hollywood Journey" appeared and became very popular.
"Chen Xun did not follow the kung fu route of most Chinese actors, but instead established himself through commercial genre films. This may provide new ideas for those who follow, so that they do not have to be bound by stereotypes and can let market performance speak for itself."
The comments below were varied: "But he's still acting in an action movie, so it's not exactly a breakthrough, is it?"
"Being able to play an important role in an A-list production like 'Fast & Furious' is already a breakthrough. Look at previous Chinese actors, how many have received this kind of treatment?"
"The key is box office success; that's the bottom line. Hollywood is very pragmatic; making money is king."
"I hope he'll act in something different, like an art film or a drama."
Chen Xun looked at these comments and remained calm.
He knew exactly what to do next.
The audition for "Interstellar" is the day after tomorrow.
If successful, he will get a completely different role.
A father struggling between the universe and his family.
This is both a challenge and an opportunity for him!
The second week of Fast & Furious 5's release.
Rob sent the latest box office data compiled by Universal to Chen Xun's email again.
"North America has a cumulative total of 2.3 million, and the global total has exceeded 6 million."
Rob's voice on the phone was a little shaky: "It's only been ten days since it was released, and Universal is predicting it will gross over 3 million in North America and close to 10 billion worldwide!"
"Bro, you've got another blockbuster hit that's grossed over a billion!"
"Moreover, this film broke box office records again for the series, which is simply a historic achievement!"
Rob's voice trembled with excitement: "The Chinese market, look at the data yourself, it has accumulated 8 million RMB, and it is about to surpass North America to become the world's largest box office market. The screening rate is still rising, and now the national average screening rate is 38%, and it exceeds 50% during prime time."
Chen Xun opened the EceI form sent by Robert.
Among the densely packed numbers, a few stood out.
The daily box office has exceeded 100 million for three consecutive days!
The average occupancy rate was 82%!
Even the 10 AM show was 70% full.
"The reputation is very stable!"
"The Douban rating is consistently 8.3, and social media is full of organic recommendations. The cinema manager said that many people have watched it two or three times. One guy watched it five times, saying he just wanted to see the car chase scene."
Chen Xun smiled and continued scrolling through the data.
他看到一条备注：「午夜场（00：00—02：00）上座率异常高，平均91%」
"Are midnight screenings this expensive?"
"I'm puzzled too." Rob also felt it was strange, as the box office for regular midnight screenings was quite dismal: "Later, I asked the Chinese publicity team, and they said it was because young fans had to go to work or school during the day, so they could only watch at midnight, and after watching, they wouldn't leave. They would chat about the plot and take photos at the theater entrance, and it would go on until two or three in the morning."
After hanging up the phone, Chen Xun opened Weibo.
He didn't use his main account, but used a secondary account to browse the super topic and movie topics.
Sure enough, there were a lot of posts in the middle of the night.
At 1:30 AM, someone posted: "Just came out of 'Fast & Furious 5,' the IMAX theater effects were amazing! My palms were sweating buckets during Chen Xun's car chase scene in Rio!"
The accompanying image shows an empty movie theater lobby with the screening schedule for "Fast & Furious 5" scrolling on an electronic screen.
One comment below reads: "I just finished watching it too! Planning a second viewing!"
"I came out and saw a group of people discussing it, so I joined in. We've been chatting in front of the convenience store for half an hour now [laughing emoji]"
"Same here! There are more than a dozen people outside the cinema, talking about everything from movies to Chen Xun's appearance on 'Happy Camp,' and now they're guessing what his next movie will be."
At 2:20 AM, another user posted: "I'm starving after watching a movie, but only McDonald's is open at this hour. Anyone want to go out with me? Location: Chaoyang Joy City, Beijing."
One reply read: "Just got back from eating, and the McDonald's was full of people who had just finished watching a movie."
"The Haidilao hot pot restaurant is still open here, but it's too expensive! [tears]"
"I envy cities that have Haidilao hot pot restaurants; we only have KFC here."
Chen Xun scrolled down and saw a Weibo post from 3 a.m.: "After watching 'Fast & Furious 5,' a group of strangers were chatting excitedly outside the theater. One guy said he took the high-speed train from Tianjin to Beijing specifically to see the IMAX version, and then rushed to catch the earliest train back to work. What kind of spirit is that? That's true love!"
The accompanying photo shows seven or eight young people standing at the entrance of a movie theater, holding movie ticket stubs and smiling happily.
Chen Xun stared at the photo for a long time.
He recalled doing something similar when he first came to Los Angeles.
To watch a movie I wanted to see, I took a bus for more than an hour to an old cinema in the city, and walked back late at night, excitedly recounting the plot along the way.
Back then, I didn't have much money, and I saved up my meal money for several days to buy movie tickets.
Now his movies have become the kind of films that people rush to see in the middle of the night.
This feeling is wonderful.
Fans support you with real money and time, what can you give back?
Chen Xun thought for a moment and sent a message to Robert: "Help me contact Haidilao, I want to do an event."
"What activity? Endorsement?"
Robert called, and I was a little confused.
"It's not an endorsement," Chen Xun explained. "I want to treat all the viewers who watched the midnight screening of 'Fast & Furious 5' to hot pot. As long as it's after the midnight screening, you can go to any Haidilao restaurant and have a free meal by showing your movie ticket stub."
There was a three-second silence on the other end of the phone.
"Bro, do you know how many Haidilao restaurants there are in China?"
Robert slowly began, "Over a thousand!"
"Do you know how many people watch the midnight screenings? At the current attendance rate, there are at least hundreds of thousands of people watching each night. Even if each person spends 100 RMB, that's still tens of millions."
"I didn't say 'please' to everyone."
Chen Xun had already planned it out: "Limited time and limited quantity. The event will only last for one week, from midnight to 4 a.m. every night. Each table is limited to four people. Each person can get a free set meal with their ticket stub. It doesn't need to be fancy, just a basic beef and mutton set meal will do. We can also negotiate a partnership with Haidilao to share the costs."
Why should they share the cost with you?
"Exposure!"
Chen Xun slowly uttered these three words.
Chen Xun had some understanding of Haidilao's public relations team's sensitivity in his previous life.
They would definitely accept this opportunity!
"Just imagine what social media would be like if this event were to happen? #ChenXunInvitesYouToHotPot #AfterWatchingFast5"
"Eating at Haidilao (a hot pot restaurant chain) is trending on social media."
"Haidilao gains brand exposure and positive image, and it also drives traffic during late-night hours. Who eats hot pot at 2 AM normally?"
Rob was silent for a moment. "I need to do the math—but it sounds like it could work!"
"You contact Haidilao's China marketing department, and I'll have the Chinese publicity team cooperate. Tell them that I can personally contribute half, and they can contribute the other half. During the event, I will post at least three related promotional posts on Weibo, and we can also cooperate in filming a video."
"You're getting better and better at marketing."
Robert sighed.
That afternoon, news came from Rob: Haidilao was very interested, but needed a detailed plan and budget assessment. Chen Xun had the Chinese publicity team rush to send over a proposal overnight.
On Wednesday morning, Haidilao responded: Cooperation is possible!
They also sent over the event plan:
The event is limited to seven days, starting at midnight on Friday and ending at midnight next Thursday.
Each store is limited to 100 tables per night, first come, first served.
The standard set meal consists of one basic set meal per person (hot pot base + four servings of meat/vegetables + staple food + beverage), and any additional items will be charged separately.
Chen Xun needs to cooperate with the promotion on social media and give a brief interview after the event.
Cost sharing ratio: Haidilao pays 60%, Chen Xun pays 40%.
Haidilao provides the stores, ingredients, and manpower, while Chen Xun mainly provides the brand and promotion.
Chen Xun did the math. Assuming each store serves 100 tables per night, with an average of 3 people per table, the average cost per person would be around 80 RMB, and approximately 800 stores nationwide would participate.
So the cost per night is approximately: 800 households × 100 tables × 3 people × 80 yuan.
1920 million RMB!
That's 1.344 million RMB in just seven days!
He contributes 40%, which is 5376 million RMB, or approximately 780 million USD.
That's a lot of money, but it's manageable for him!
The salary increase for "Fast & Furious 5" is enough to cover it!
"Agree to their request."
Chen Xun said to Robert, "If the event is successful, we can discuss follow-up collaborations, such as co-branded packages or themed stores."
"You really are—"
Rob didn't know what to say: "Okay, I'll go sign the contract."
On Thursday night at 9 PM, Chen Xun posted a teaser on his main Weibo account: "I heard that many friends went home hungry after watching 'Fast & Furious 5' late at night? Starting tomorrow morning and ending next Thursday morning, as long as you came out after watching the midnight showing of 'Fast & Furious 5,' you can go to any Haidilao restaurant in the country with your movie ticket stub and eat a free basic hot pot set meal."
"Each restaurant is limited to 100 tables per night, first come, first served. See the poster for details. Please plan your time accordingly, pay attention to safety, and have a great meal!"
The accompanying image is a promotional poster that reads: "Fast & Furious 5 × Haidilao Midnight Energy Supply Plan".
Within ten minutes of posting this Weibo post, the comments section was piled up with thousands of comments.
"??? Really?"
"Wow! Chen Xun, you're so good to your fans!"
"I just bought tickets for tomorrow's midnight show. I was wondering what to eat after the movie, and now this is all planned out?"
"How much money did this cost?! —Brother Xun is so generous!"
"Haidilao actually agreed? This collaboration is amazing!"
"I'm going to see it tomorrow! No, I mean, I'm going to see it tonight at midnight!"
"I'm not a fan, but this move has won me over. I'm buying a ticket to support them."
The number of reposts exceeded 10,000 within half an hour, and #ChenXunInvitesYouToHotPot# became the number one trending topic.
Someone below did the math: "Based on 800 stores nationwide, the cost per night is at least in the tens of millions. Chen Xun has really gone all out this time."
One person replied, "But what he gains is reputation and fan loyalty. And by sharing the costs with Haidilao, he might only have to pay a few million. This marketing strategy is brilliant."
Regardless of how netizens interpret it, the event is genuine.
At 12:10 a.m. on Friday, Chen Xun used his alternate account to browse Weibo and saw the first comment: "Just came out of 'Fast & Furious 5' and went straight to Haidilao. There were already more than 20 tables lined up at the door, all of them holding movie ticket stubs!"
The staff said they were prepared, but they didn't expect so many people [laughing emoji]. We're waiting for a table now, but the atmosphere is great; everyone's talking about the movie.
The accompanying picture shows a group of people sitting and waiting for a table in front of Haidilao, each holding a blue ticket stub for "Fast & Furious 5".
At 12:40, another user posted: "We've finally eaten! The waiter said that the restaurant has already served more than 80 tables of moviegoers tonight, and they're almost out of ingredients. The three guys at the next table are reviewing the cars in the movie, and I'm listening with great interest."
At 1:30, a fan posted a group photo: "We came from the same movie theater and shared a big table. Twelve of us ate hot pot together, chatting about the movie, Chen Xun, and life. Strangers gathered together because of a movie and a hot pot meal. It's such a wonderful feeling."
The photo shows men, women, young and old, gathered around a boiling hot pot, raising their Coke glasses in a toast.
Chen Xun continued scrolling down.
Around 2 or 3 a.m., similar posts began to appear more and more frequently.
Some people posted photos of the free meal, some posted photos of themselves with strangers, and some exclaimed, "I've never seen so many young people at Haidilao at the same time."
At 4 a.m., when the last group of customers left, a staff member posted on Weibo: "I'm exhausted tonight, but I'm quite happy. Many customers thanked Chen Xun and Haidilao. One girl even cried, saying she never expected that watching a movie would have such a follow-up."
The scene became even more intense in the early hours of Saturday morning.
In some cities, the queues outside Haidilao restaurants stretch for half the length of the shopping mall.
A new meme has started circulating on Weibo: "Want to go see 'Fast & Furious 5'? The kind with a hot pot dinner included."
"Other people's idols release albums, my idol gives out hot pot vouchers."
On the third day, Haidilao's official Weibo account posted data: "Thank you to all the friends who participated in the Midnight Energy Replenishment Program. Over the past two nights, participating stores across the country have served more than 12 'Fast & Furious 5' moviegoers. The furthest attendee flew from Dalian to Guangzhou just to participate in the event. Thank you Mr. Chen Xun for the invitation, and thank you to everyone who loves movies."
Chen Xun replied with a "clasped hands" emoji to this Weibo post.
On the fifth day of the event, Chen Xun received a call from Haidilao's marketing director: "Mr. Chen, the data far exceeded our expectations. Not only were the event days packed with customers, but daytime bookings also increased by 15%. Our boss said he wants to discuss a long-term partnership with you."
"Long-term cooperation is no problem!"
Chen Xun readily agreed.
Chen Xun discovered that his progress in "acting skills" had increased from 13% to 15%.
[Cultural Influence] has risen to 42!
Chen Xun revealed a knowing expression.
This level of "high reputation" is indeed not just about improving one's acting skills; increasing one's influence can also be upgraded, and even faster.
That's why he chose to do it.
The faster his panel upgrades, the deeper his roots in Hollywood become.
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