Caught in Affairs with Superstar

Chapter 772: Chapter 517: Turmoil in the Film Crew

”The producer of ’Deep Sea’ is Xu Jinbo, who had previously produced ’Fake Love, Real Marriage’ and ’Cloud Comedy’, both of which had achieved quite impressive viewing results. He’s a very capable producer.”

During a break in the filming of ’Behind the Scenes’, Zhou Lan communicated with Zhou Yun about Yuehai’s suspense drama.

”The original novel of ’Deep Sea’ was rated very highly. After Xu Jinbo took it over, he has been pushing the project forward. However, because the original work is quite short, to adapt it into a screenplay without padding it and adding more original content, the series would only stretch to 12 to 15 episodes. This length, coupled with the fact that it features dual female leads, has resulted in Yuehai not approving the project. But Xu Jinbo is not willing to pad the script, so it has been shelved for two years now,” Zhou Lan explained. ”Previously, Yuehai wanted to repair his relationship with us, so he sent over all the projects from his stockpile that hadn’t settled on leads yet, letting us choose. Everyone unanimously thought the screenplay for ’Deep Sea’ was good.”

”The screenplay is indeed well written,” Zhou Yun said. ”I’ve never played in this type of life suspense drama before. You know, I’m really interested in stories filled with suspense.”

”Yes, the people at Yuehai’s side knew we were interested in the script and immediately said that you were the ideal choice for it. If you’re not acting in it, then no one can,” Zhou Lan laughed.

”It was sent over with a lot of other scripts, and now it’s become a role only I can play,” Zhou Yun commented sarcastically.

”That’s just the way the platform talks. Believe only one-third of it. Before, they also sent over a suspense drama script, saying that since you love deductions, it was tailor-made for you. Remember?” Zhou Lan laughed. ”The key point is, although the platform highly rates it, due to the reasons I mentioned earlier, Yuehai has been hesitant to develop this series; short episodes mean difficulty in breaking even.”

”Can it break even with me on board?” Zhou Yun asked in surprise.

Zhou Lan nodded and explained, ”More than just breaking even. If you act, then despite the short number of episodes, it means they’ll have to pay us a lot less in acting fees. A typical series is currently around thirty episodes, so for a series like this, they would only have to pay half the usual amount. However, advertisement sponsorships for a show aren’t determined solely by the number of episodes. With you in it, advertisers would flock to place ads, as everyone knows the viewership would be anything but low.”

”It sounds like I’m getting the short end of the stick?” Zhou Yun laughed.

Zhou Lan replied, ”Not quite, all in all, you’re currently a TOP-tier artist in the market. Any project you’re involved in will definitely not lack financiers; everyone still wants to make money. To these businesspeople, you’re like a walking money tree.”

”I sound quite pitiful.”

”’Deep Sea’ is a good fit for you, especially since it’s a dual female lead drama, which is a significant opportunity for Yuk Chu,” Zhou Lan said. ”Hopefully, she can leverage this series to tap into a broader market as an actress.”

”Has a director been chosen yet?”

”Xu Jinbo is currently scouting for directors,” Zhou Lan said. ”He has also consulted us for our input. Do you have any thoughts?”

”I don’t know many directors, and the ones I do know all have their projects,” Zhou Yun said. ”Let him find one on his own.”

Zhou Lan nodded.

”By the way, since this is a self-produced drama by Yuehai, and both female leads are set by us, Yuehai wants to use his own actors for several of the main supporting roles. Is that okay?”

”No problem, as long as their acting isn’t terrible. Just don’t cast anyone who can’t even memorize their lines properly,” Zhou Yun said.

...

”’Deep Sea’?”

Guan Siya looked at her agent in surprise, a hint of excitement in her voice, ”You mean Zhou Yun has another drama that’s about to start filming soon?”

”Yes, and it’s our own Yuehai’s self-produced drama,” the agent said. ”I’ve already checked out the situation—among the candidates for the third female lead, the company is considering picking either you or Cheng Shenlv. I’m working to secure the role for you. While you’re on set these days, make sure not to upset Zhou Yun. Otherwise, when Zhou Yun sees the cast list, your name might just get crossed out, and all efforts will be in vain.”