In fact, a fantasy adventure film like Mystery of the Talismans, which carries strong Chinese elements, is quite suitable to have its premiere in China.
However, the current Chinese market still cannot support such a commercial blockbuster with an investment of over 100 million dollars, so the premiere had to be held in North America.
After several consecutive box office hits, Jackie Chan now has a certain appeal in Hollywood and can be considered a top-tier action star.
In terms of pay, he's not on par with actors like Schwarzenegger or Stallone, nor does he rival Tom Cruise in popularity, but at least he has a dedicated audience that appreciates Jackie Chan's style.
And Mystery of the Talismans can be considered a full showcase of Jackie Chan-style action, while also blending elements of fantasy and adventure.
On July 12th, the premiere of Mystery of the Talismans was held at the TCL Chinese Theatre in Los Angeles.
Gilbert, the producer of the film, also attended the premiere to show support for the project.
On the red carpet, Gilbert said in an interview: "I've always liked Jackie Chan's movies. He has a unique mysterious quality that makes films fun and engaging.
The idea for this film came to me while I was shooting The Lord of the Rings in China. I heard some stories about the Chinese zodiac, and that sparked the inspiration.
I've already seen the film myself, so if you trust my opinion, I can say this is going to be a very entertaining movie."
Indeed, Gilbert had already watched the film during a private screening. Overall, with Jackie Chan overseeing the action scenes, even a director like Nolan who isn't known for action films was able to pull it off well.
As for the story, there's no need to worry. Though Nolan is known for complex plots that challenge the audience's brains, this film is no exception.
But since the highlights are the action scenes and visual spectacles, the plot isn't overly complicated, so there's no need to worry that the audience will give up on the movie because they can't understand it.
Gilbert wasn't the main character of tonight's premiere he was just there to lend some support.
Then the main cast of the film made their appearance. Jackie Chan arrived on the red carpet with Bingbing Li and Shu Chang, followed by several familiar Hollywood faces, including Dwayne Johnson, who had recently entered Hollywood and starred in The Scorpion King.
On the red carpet, Jackie Chan and Dwayne Johnson even put on a staged martial arts performance, which ended in a draw.
It must be said, watching a live kung fu performance is quite entertaining, at least judging by the enthusiastic cheers of the fans on-site. Jackie Chan and Dwayne Johnson gave an impressive show.
Besides the film's cast, many special guests were also in attendance. Tom Cruise gave face to the occasion and showed up with Nicole Kidman for the premiere.
Leo also came again with his new girlfriend. When Jack walked the red carpet, his new "Rose" by his side naturally drew a lot of attention.
Some reporters even speculated: "Did Leo ever hook up with Madonna?"
"Wow," gasped one clueless reporter. "Isn't Madonna way older than Leo, and hasn't she been with a ton of people? Leo didn't mind?"
One slightly more informed journalist chimed in: "Clearly you don't know the story. Madonna was actually into Gilbert, but Gilbert wasn't interested in her.
Leo sacrificed himself and took the hit for Gilbert."
"Oh my god, what kind of friendship is that?" exclaimed another reporter, quickly adding, "Then why doesn't Gilbert cast Leo in his movies?"
"That's the difference between you and Gilbert. He became a world-famous director, and you're just an entertainment reporter."
What this knowledgeable journalist said might not be very pleasant to hear, but it was true.
He continued: "There's a rule that all successful film directors follow: the casting must fit the role.
Only then do personal relationships come into play. Otherwise, forcing an ill-fitting actor into a role is just asking to ruin your own reputation.
And from what I know, it was Gilbert who originally recommended Leo to James Cameron. That's how Leo landed the role in Titanic."
These stories from the 1990s intrigued everyone around.
Suddenly someone shouted, "Keanu's here…", and everyone's attention shifted back to the red carpet.
If there was one superstar more popular than the Lord of the Rings cast these past two years, it wasn't the Elven Prince or Princess no matter how outstanding their performances.
After all, The Lord of the Rings was an ensemble film.
Each actor shined in their own way, which diluted any single actor's spotlight or public attention.
On the other hand, in The Matrix series, Keanu Reeves looked cool and stylish, and alongside Charlize Theron, they shared the explosive popularity brought by the franchise, becoming the hottest stars of recent years.
Keanu Reeves now has a flood of offers he can't even take them all.
So it's understandable that his appearance on the red carpet caused a stir.
Keanu Reeves came to attend the premiere of The Mystery of the Talisman without being invited. After working on The Matrix series, he developed a strong interest in kung fu.
It just so happened that Jackie Chan was known as the master of Chinese kung fu in Hollywood, so Keanu Reeves came to see what so-called real kung fu was like.
However, Keanu Reeves might have been a little disappointed the kung fu in The Mystery of the Talismans wasn't as flashy as that in The Matrix.
Jackie Chan's kung fu was more about integrating surrounding props and comedic elements after all, he's dubbed the god of furniture store battles. Of course, in the film, thanks to the added power of the mysterious, Jackie Chan was able to perform some incredible moves as well.
After the red carpet ceremony, the screening session of the film was about to begin.
Gilbert chatted briefly with the core crew: "You all look so nervous. Don't worry, I've already seen the film.
At the very least, breaking a hundred million in North America shouldn't be a problem. It'll definitely make money."
Jackie Chan trusted Gilbert's judgment: "If it makes money, then the sequel project can be brought into the development schedule."
Nolan added, "We've already completed the story outline. If this film turns a profit, the next director can continue from there."
Nolan had already decided he wouldn't direct The Mystery of the Talismans 2. He didn't want to keep repeating himself in commercial films he was currently interested in a project about magic.
Nolan planned to start working on that magic-themed project right after The Mystery of the Talismans, fulfilling his dream of blowing the audience's minds.
Gilbert fully supported this. At Melon Studio, James Gunn had great execution skills and was a solid commercial director with some writing and directing ability.
Sophia was entirely from the indie film circle, aspiring to become the first female director to win Best Director at the Oscars. But that path wasn't easy.
Nolan was a blend of both styles, though he tended to get sidetracked and needed someone to keep him on track. That's where his wife, Emma, came in.
If things got out of hand, there was still Gilbert. As the producer overseeing every project at Melon Film Studio, he held the final say in film decisions.
Bingbing Li was incredibly excited. Ever since she landed The Mystery of the Talismans last year as if in a dream, she could describe it in one sentence:
"With the help of a favorable wind, I soared to the skies."
Indeed, Bingbing Li could be said to have truly risen her attention and popularity back home were now on par with veteran A-list actresses.
As long as the film succeeded, she would become a truly international star one of the rare Chinese actresses to achieve that status.
Actually, the one who benefited the most from this incredible opportunity should be Shuchang. After all, Bingbing Li was just a supporting actress, while Shuchang was the lead, with no less screen time than Jackie Chan.
That was indeed the case. Even before the film had been released in China, Shuchang was already being called the number one child star.
If Weibo's trending list existed at the time, Shuchang's name would definitely be in the top three.
The little girl didn't feel much about becoming famous, perhaps because she had experienced similar situations from a very young age.
But she was genuinely looking forward to the film. After all, it was her first time shooting overseas everything felt fresh, and the filming process had been a lot of fun.
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