Chapter 174 174 Box Office

"Chapter 174: Box Office"

"This is beyond absurd... like the other films are just invisible?"

It’s true that Liu Rennong holds significant status in the industry. Other directors, including heads of film production companies, are more than willing to defer to him. On its opening day, *Return Undecided* secured the top spot in screenings, and at least its box office matched its screen allocation.

But halfway through the four-day Spring Festival holiday, the *Return Undecided* crew's actions escalated into sheer absurdity.

The *Boundless Ambition* team, which had long harbored grievances against *Return Undecided*, was naturally vocal about it. Even the director and screenwriter of *Countdown 18* took public digs at *Return Undecided*, quipping, "Thankfully, *Fearless Life* is in this season."

When asked which film he most admired in the Spring Festival lineup—aside from his own *Countdown 18*—the director named *Fearless Life*.

"Because it’s a film that competed fairly. Despite all the external noise, *Fearless Life* earned the audience’s recognition on its own merits, just like its protagonist, Bai Qianshan."

Even the children’s film that had been kicked out of Spring Festival contention threw shade at *Return Undetermined*: "Adults need movies, and so do children. Our series has been running for years, and this year’s screen time is the lowest. What should be shown should be shown; what shouldn’t be forced shouldn’t be shoved down our throats. Does the audience even like your movie? Why force it?"

As some netizens summarized, the *Return Undecided* crew’s current situation was: box office surpassed by *Fearless Life*, blacklisted by peers, and resented by audiences for its persistently high screen share.

"By comparison, the *Fearless Life* crew is almost too dignified."

"+1 +1."

"Wasn’t there a rumor that Director Miao Zhi and Liu Rennong had a falling-out because the latter stole an award from Miao? It’s an old rumor, but since Liu has deep connections and influence, people dismissed Miao as overreaching. But given how *Return Undecided* is behaving, the rumor might actually be true."

"I think so too, because... *Fearless Life* is legitimately great."

In incidents like alleged ticket-sales manipulation and screen-grabbing, the *Fearless Life* crew was clearly the victim. Audiences sided with *Fearless Life* for no other reason than its quality being a cut above the rest this Spring Festival.

*Fearless Life* was also the only film in the season to spark discussions across all platforms.

Documentaries and books about Bai Qianshan blew up, with experts from unexpected fields—military, aerospace, geography—citing *Fearless Life*.

On video platforms, clips of Bai Qianshan garnered far more likes than those of other film protagonists.

Lu Xu’s portrayal of the character was hailed as the pinnacle of his career.

Scenes of Bai Qianshan fearlessly saving lives, his resolute return to his homeland, and the long days and nights in the research base... The vast, desolate, and lonely desert couldn’t stifle his passion and sincerity.

Lu Xu had played many iconic roles, many beloved by fans and frequently featured in video compilations.

But for Bai Qianshan, the most common praise he received was, "He *is* ‘Bai Qianshan.’”

For Lu Xu, that was enough.

In fact, just two days after *Fearless Life*’s release, film forums were already predicting next year’s top three awards, placing bets on Lu Xu nabbing nods for all three.

"Just nominations? Personally, I think Lu Xu could sweep all three."

"Honestly, Bai Qianshan is the most moving character I’ve seen in theaters in years. Lu Xu didn’t just play Bai Qianshan—he channeled his essence."

By the fourth day, *Fearless Life*’s ratings had dipped slightly, from 9.7 to 9.5.

Even so, it remained the highest-rated film of the season. Combined with its commanding lead at the box office, it had nearly achieved a double victory in both revenue and acclaim.

On its fourth day, with screenings surpassing a quarter of the day’s total for the first time, *Fearless Life* commandeered 47% of the day’s box office.

—It wasn’t that other films performed poorly, but *Return Undecided*’s collapse left audiences indifferent to the overall market.

A film that accounted for just 11% of the box office took up 25% of screenings—how could other movies possibly rise under such conditions?

On the fifth and sixth days of the Lunar New Year holiday period, the total box office of *Fearless Life* remained above ¥3 billion (~$420 million), maintaining an astonishing stability. Although the increase in screenings led to a slight drop in occupancy rates, *Fearless Life* had quietly surpassed the ¥2 billion (~$286 million) mark in total box office.

Lu Xu’s "critical milestone in his acting career" was effortlessly—even somewhat inexplicably—surpassed.

It is well known that none of Lu Xu’s previous three films had broken the ¥2 billion domestic box office barrier, making it a seemingly unattainable number for him.

Fans had assumed that reaching ¥2 billion would be a monumental achievement, something worthy of fanfare… but it wasn’t necessary, because *Fearless Life* achieved it with surprising ease.

After surpassing ¥2 billion, the film’s total box office quickly climbed to ¥2.5 billion (~$357 million). Realistically, ¥3 billion (~$429 million) was now within reach.

"Little Dog taking flight!!"

"Aaaah! *Fearless Life* is definitely breaking ¥3 billion!! Another milestone for Little Dog’s career!"

"Hah! Congrats to Director Miao Zhi, congrats to Lu Xu—a new victory for [the fan-coined 'Willow Alliance']!"

As expected, *Fearless Life*’s box office surpassed ¥3 billion. After reaching this number, Lu Xu’s ranking on the "total box office of lead actor films" chart skyrocketed—previously outside the top 10, he now stood at 7th place.

Of course, this was partly because the top two actors’ box office records were staggering. In all of cinema, there are few actors who consistently star in high-grossing films, and even fewer who excel in both critical and commercial success.

Looking at averages, Lu Xu’s ranking could climb even higher—thanks to *Fearless Life*, his average lead actor box office had now reached nearly ¥2.2 billion (~$314 million).

This was a figure even the top-grossing lead actor couldn’t surpass.

And in terms of profitability, Lu Xu was far ahead.

During this year’s Lunar New Year holiday period, *Fearless Life* ranked 4th in production costs but had the highest profit margin by far. With a box office of ¥3 billion, the film had already secured ¥2 billion (~$286 million) in profits.

...

In contrast, the situation for the *Return Undecided* crew was much bleaker.

The team had no intention of maintaining high screening rates, but their contract with cinemas left them with virtually no chance of breaking even—keeping high screenings at least ensured more viewers than lower ones.

At present, *Return Undecided*’s box office of over ¥1 billion (~$143 million) wasn't a complete disaster. However, the brutal truth was that all earnings from these ticket sales went straight to the cinemas. Only after the film’s total box office reached a fixed threshold would the crew receive their share of the profits.

The *Return Undecided* team had initially projected a box office of ¥3 billion (~$429 million), and their contract was signed based on this expectation.

Yet, the film fell far short at just ¥1.5 billion (~$214 million).

The financial bloodbath was devastating.

In some ways, it was even worse than *Sanctuary*—after all, *Sanctuary* was designed to be trash, whereas the director of *Return Undecided* had genuinely high hopes for his work.

To be precise, the director hadn’t initially expected *Return Undecided* to hit ¥3 billion. It was only after listening to Liu Rennong’s advice and receiving his approval that he signed the contract with cinemas.

With *Return Undecided* falling far short of its projected earnings and the losses mounting, the director couldn’t hide his resentment toward Liu Rennong in his remarks.

He was Liu Rennong’s student and had always viewed him as warm, approachable, and supportive—someone who genuinely cared for his students. His smooth career in the film industry was, in part, due to Liu Rennong’s guidance.

But what he hadn’t anticipated was Liu Rennong’s icy response: "Did I hold a gun to your head?"

"You enjoyed 25% screenings for days. When the cinemas complained, I defended you."

Thinking it over, he realized that once the contract was signed, the cinemas were guaranteed to come out ahead no matter how much the film lost.

And to secure more screenings during the Lunar New Year holiday period, the crew had even given up a cut of streaming platforms and DVD sales profits.

As the middleman, Liu Rennong pocketed his share too, and his personal relationship with the cinema chains grew even stronger.

The only ones left holding the bag were the *Return Undecided* crew.

"If we hadn't signed the contract, given our production costs, even with steeper marketing costs, we could still have made a profit." Whether it was the screenwriter or the cinematographer, who was on good terms with him, they'd all said as much to the director.

*Return Undecided* was no Hollywood blockbuster, and its production costs weren’t excessively high. Under a normal film production-release model, even with soaring marketing expenses during the Spring Festival season, *Return Undecided* should've broken even by now.

He had been fixated on the promised prime screening slots and the grand visions painted by the cinema chains, unaware that the crew had already fallen into a trap.

And because the screening rates remained stubbornly high, *Return Undecided*’s reputation among the audience tanked completely. It started strong with 9.0s and 8.9s, but recently, it had dropped to 7.5.

For what it's worth, the score shouldn’t have fallen as low as 7.5. Clearly, the crew had burned all bridges with viewers.

High screening rates led to poor word-of-mouth, and naturally, audiences became even less inclined to watch *Return Undecided*. It was a vicious cycle.

The director’s hair turned gray from worry. Haunted by his own greed, he hit the bottle hard.

When he had complained to Liu Rennong about the box office, he'd been fishing for help—perhaps more promotion for *Return Undecided*, or persuading the cinema chains to ease up on the brutal contract terms. After all, from pre-production to casting, filming, and release, the crew had gone through so much effort. Could it really be that all the profits would be swept away by the cinema chains, leaving the crew with nothing?

But Liu Rennong told him that he had signed the contract willingly, and nowhere in the document did the name "Liu Rennong" appear.

The director’s blood ran cold at that moment.

What chilled him even more was that while *Return Undecided* was headed for disaster in the Spring Festival season, Liu Rennong gave an exclusive interview to a film platform, reviewing all seven movies released during the holiday.

Liu Rennong appeared utterly impartial. He couldn't stop gushing about *Fearless Life*, declaring it the best of the season.

As for *Return Undecided*, directed by his own student, Liu Rennong offered an objective critique, pointing out both its strengths and weaknesses.

"I thought you’d show more favoritism toward your student’s work," the host joked. "Truly commendable, Director Liu. Your selflessness is something we younger filmmakers should learn from."

Liu Rennong waved his hand modestly. "Not at all. In fact, I should clarify something—"

"Many believe I invested in *Return Undecided* and secured its screening rates. That’s a rumor. Let's not spread false rumors. All credit goes to Director Shen Wenjie."