Chapter 415
He really... I cried my eyes out.
Chapter 415 He really... I cried my eyes out.
Tommy received the call at 10 AM, the news broke at 11 AM, the trending topics exploded at 1 PM, and the hype was secretly prepared in advance...
Before Fang Xinghe left the ward, the whole United States already knew what he was doing.
When he finally walked out of the hospital, more than 40 cameras were set up at the entrance.
A quick glance revealed that all the mainstream media outlets were present.
Today's hot topic broke out suddenly yet naturally.
Currently, half of all entertainment news in the United States is divided between pirates, Lohan, and hurricanes.
The remaining music, stage plays, TV series, Shrek and Superbad, celebrity gossip, etc., only make up the other half.
On days without major scandals, blockbuster movies with all-star casts are the absolute kings of viewership.
Moreover, these three blockbusters not only feature top-tier stars, but their promotional budgets for this week are also astronomical.
With the base level of popularity already established, every move someone makes will be magnified to an extreme degree.
In this situation, whoever can come up with a completely different gimmick can attract all the attention of the onlookers.
Compared to the clichéd hype of Jomapi, the head of the online trolls found the best angle.
In fact, during the film's theatrical run, the other party did engage in charitable activities, with donations of money and goods being routine, and community care and assistance to fans were also common.
Why did Fang Xinghe's work produce such a different result?
First, because it is flamboyant enough.
Not to mention the Bugatti Veyron worth tens of millions, the convoy following behind was entirely composed of Rolls-Royces.
When such a ostentatious motorcade roared through the city center, the internet immediately went viral.
The Harley-Davidsons that followed and the helicopter parade were all filmed by the television station.
The aerial footage was quickly broadcast on TNT News, and the scene was truly breathtaking.
Second, because Tommy himself has a punchline.
ALS is a very niche disease; at least before the Ice Bucket Challenge became popular in 14, not many people knew about it.
Tommy's parents are so representative and dramatic.
Catholics need no further mention, right?
The largest religious sect in the United States, a top-tier white religious group, with the most active community activities and the deepest daily penetration.
The father of this retired soldier is no ordinary person either. Receiving a high-level medal means he participated in real wars, shed blood for his country, and killed enemies. Yet now he's teetering on the brink of bankruptcy...
Moreover, the US has been waging war abroad in recent years, and there are both supporters and opponents, but regardless of whether they support or oppose it, they can always find something to talk about with him.
Plus, Tommy is a true fan of his idols; even if he can't move, he still watches their movies. You can just go ahead and ship them; once you start, you'll be screaming with excitement.
Third, it's also because Brother Fang has top-tier publicity and distribution channels.
Sina Weibo had a low profile throughout the entire promotional period for "Taken".
Prior to this, he had never used his privileges to suppress the online promotion of any film, nor had he launched a massive publicity campaign; instead, he had always followed the proper procedures.
The antitrust investigations in the United States are disgusting. Most of the time they are just a fart, but when needed, they are a powerful tool to kill whoever is targeted.
As a Chinese citizen, do you think Fang Xinghe would dare to manipulate public opinion on his own platform?
Of course he wouldn't dare.
However, the inability to use technical means to take sides does not mean that one cannot properly guide the discussion.
Internet marketing is becoming increasingly important, but unfortunately, no film and television company has the ability to push the "right topics" to the "interested target audience".
Universal Music is no good, Warner Music is no good, and Sony Music is even worse.
Therefore, the online promotion and distribution of movies still follows the traditional model, which is to move the offline promotion and distribution ideas online, and make up for the lack of precise push by achieving high saturation coverage.
In all of Hollywood, only Fang Xinghe could do this.
Q: How can I subtly promote a topic without violating any rules?
A: Let Sony pay StarNet a promotional fee. Don't worry about the technical aspects; we offer this service.
Q: What if other people also send money?
A: We don't sell trending topics; we only provide fair and transparent pop-up ads.
I don't care who gets the bullets, and I don't care if the news headlines are attractive or not. Anyway, our Weibo account can withstand the censorship of the authorities.
As for whether it's effective or not...
If your movie doesn't sell tickets, you can't blame our platform for not being good enough. We don't have that responsibility, right?
……
With so many favorable factors piled up, it's no wonder the news broke.
By noon, the topic had already become a trending topic on Weibo. In the afternoon, the media who had spotted Fang Xinghe at the medical center rushed to the scene.
If it weren't for the fact that outsiders aren't allowed to enter this place, they probably would have already rushed into the ward.
Fortunately, after an anxious wait, they finally saw Fang Xinghe, the great philanthropist, emerge from the building.
“SRSR! I’m from Los Angeles TV…”
"Please wait!"
"One question! Just one question!"
"We'd like to invite you to be a guest on our show, SR. We've worked together before!"
The scene was chaotic, with reporters and hosts acting like mad dogs, and even the 12 bodyguards were struggling to keep up.
Interestingly, the entrance to this unusual building was quite far from the parking lot, giving them ample time to argue.
At first, Commander Fang kept his head down and didn't say a word.
Don't ask, the answer is simply that I do good deeds without seeking fame and don't want to be bothered by the media.
It wasn't until they had trudged a long, long way, their exhausted and timid bodyguards jostled and pushed about, allowing the media to capture enough footage, that the big star finally spoke.
"Hey guys, stop pushing and shoving. One question each, then let us go home in peace, okay?"
"no problem!"
The reporters were overjoyed and readily agreed.
An unusual roadside press conference suddenly began.
The media present included print media, online media, and television stations broadcasting live.
Fang Xinghe's eyes, hidden behind his sunglasses, scanned the room discreetly and knew which media outlet's question to answer first.
—Let the live broadcasting stations wait their turn; let the print media come first.
In print media, these nearby publications are all considered enemies.
The Los Angeles Times fired the first shot: "SR, is this a premeditated hype?"
"This is a planned publicity campaign."
Fang Xinghe's aloof lips curled into a mocking smile.
He didn't deny everything, but he also didn't admit the biggest guilt, putting on the most unrestrained performance in his most authentic state.
"Tommy's illness is real, his identity as a 'starfish' is real, my love and help for him are real, the treatment he received is real, and his parents' relief is real. What kind of hype is this?"
The Hollywood Reporter, seeing an opportunity, immediately chimed in: "But you also got a huge amount of attention. Can you honestly say you didn't do this for the attention?"
"No matter how much attention I receive, I deserve it."
Fang Xinghe's tone grew increasingly cold, as if he were determined to confront the reporter to the end. "But I didn't do these things to gain attention. If you were even slightly professional and knew me at all, you should know one thing..."
As the sound froze, Fang Xinghe casually took off his sunglasses, his imposing gaze landing on the reporter's face.
The guy swallowed hard and instinctively asked, "What is it?"
Fang Ge scoffed and stated decisively, "From the day I received my first salary in the NBA, I have never stopped my charitable work! In the past six years, I have donated tens of millions of dollars to charitable foundations!"
"Wow……"
The surrounding area was in chaos, with many unprofessional but cooperative reporters exclaiming in shock.
Just then, Fang Dashuai raised his hand, picked up the reporter's work badge hanging around his neck, flipped it over to look at it, and then casually threw it back.
The humiliation was genuine, and the ostentation was also genuine.
"It's your family again, your level is just like a gossip tabloid."
Brother Fang waved his hand, as if shooing away a pile of excrement.
“Go ahead and look it up. Although I started paying attention to ALS patients relatively late, I’ve been subsidizing Tommy for six months now. It’s just that I only have the chance to see him in person now.”
"Wow……"
Reporters around exclaimed again – This is not right! This is not the answer everyone expected.
However, in this situation, they did not believe that Fang Xinghe would lie, which meant that the Hollywood Reporter's attack was unfounded, and that SR had indeed been helping today's male lead from the very beginning.
Yes, Fang Xinghe's American team noticed Tommy very early on, and his own philanthropic activities in the United States can be traced back to 2001.
As a reborn individual with a high level of internet surfing skills, surely everyone knows that America is a country with a high tax rate, right?
If you know this, then you should know that doing charity work in the United States is legally tax-deductible.
The best model is to establish a private charitable foundation and then donate appreciating assets such as stocks, thus doubly deducting capital gains and income tax.
Further cash donations will achieve the triple goals of tax optimization, asset preservation, and public welfare value.
Fang Xinghe has always done this. He doesn't have many noble intentions, but he has indeed done a lot and saved a lot of money in a solid way.
Now, his disdainful tone as he vehemently denounced the other party's malicious speculation made him appear exceptionally righteous.
The Washington Post immediately stepped forward to confirm: "Yes, we have detailed evidence regarding the Son of Washington's charitable contributions, and you should apologize to SR for this humiliation!"
Hey, good dog!
Fang was very satisfied, smiled at him, and asked, "What's wrong, my friend?"
The Washington journalist, now referred to as a friend, suddenly became incredibly valuable and couldn't stop smiling.
"I know this is a very mundane question, but I am genuinely curious—why do you treat Tommy so differently? And how much money have you invested in Tommy?"
"These are two issues."
Fang Xinghe smiled kindly and tossed him a meat bone.
“But we are friends, so I can answer you.”
"Thank you! Thank you so much! I will always support you. You have brought more than just honor to Washington; you have brought it faith!"
Washington journalists were overjoyed, while their colleagues nearby were extremely envious and stirred up quite a commotion.
Sycophant!
Many people were cursing inwardly, but the sycophant certainly received the best treatment.
Fang Xinghe replied without hesitation: "The first question is that Tommy is not only a pitiful child, but he is also a very aesthetically pleasing male baby's breath."
Perhaps this sounds arrogant, but I still want to say it—loving me is a manifestation of spiritual aesthetics, and worshipping me means possessing a spiritual core that grows towards the sun.
Of course, this is conditional. Only very high-level Stars possess such qualities. Those superficial people who never truly understand me and only judge me by my appearance are not included.
The second question is, how much money did I pay him...?
Currently, it's a little over 238 million, mainly used for prepayment of treatment and nursing care costs. I will continue to take care of him in the future, and the amount... has no upper limit.
"Wow……"
A third gasp erupted from the crowd.
In capitalist society, who doesn't understand the value of the phrase "no upper limit"?
Envious tears streamed down their faces; for many, money had become the sole object of their affections.
However, the questions did not become more friendly; instead, they became more like trying to find a trigger point and break Fang Xinghe's defenses.
The radio program "Today's Laughter," known for its sharp and independent approach, brought up the old point again: "SR, I don't mean to offend you, your good deed is indeed touching, but it doesn't conflict with the fact that you want to gain attention."
Today is the second day of the release of "Taken". You've put on such a grand show. Isn't it all for exposure and buzz?
If that's the case, you can handle it discreetly, or visit Tommy in a few days!
Forgive my bluntness, but this isn't real enough; it completely contradicts your long-held claim of authenticity!
Wow, that's really clever.
American journalists are indeed exceptionally bold and perceptive; when they want a promotion or a raise, they are incredibly difficult to fool.
But who is your Brother Fang?
When he was the head of the online army, these old fogies in front of him had probably already been eliminated by the times.
"Real?"
For the first time, Fang Xinghe stopped and turned to meet the gaze of the venomous snake.
His expression was contemptuous, his tone was indifferent, and his eyes were haughty, as if a god were looking down on ants.
Let me tell you what real is.
That is, whatever I want to do, as soon as I think of it, I will do it immediately, regardless of what others think or how they see it.
This is indeed a sensitive time, but so what?
People with hearts like yours see everything as dirty.
But you forgot, this is just a movie. Even if it grosses over 10 billion, so what? The profit I get is less than the daily increase in StarNet's stock price.
I do my best to promote my work because I hope that more people will see and like it.
If no one likes it, then I'll immediately throw it aside and go back to writing, reading, painting, training, or even falling in love to please myself.
Using something like this to gain attention? My time isn't that worthless.
Silence fell over the surroundings, and all the reporters stared in disbelief.
This was the decisive blow.
Because no matter how absurd this statement may sound, its underlying logic is correct—Fang Sheng doesn't need to make money through movies at all; the efficiency is simply too low.
The outside world often overlooks this because of his behavior, but when people hear his disdain firsthand, they are immediately struck by the realization that he is a super-willful, super-rich man who lives only for what he loves.
The scene was full of venomous snakes, yet they couldn't find any angle to refute it.
Because no one could have imagined that this guy, who always talked about truth, goodness, and beauty, was actually not short of money, but was constantly using cheat codes and desperately needed Starlight and Star Glory.
Therefore, when the underlying logic is clear and unobstructed, everyone is confused.
Judging from this...
Is this really not a publicity stunt orchestrated by Fang Sheng?
That person is actually quite nice!
A female reporter from the women's magazine Alice suddenly felt a surge of poetic inspiration and developed a new understanding of Fang Xinghe that combined admiration and longing—he really was the wind, free and unrestrained, gentle and unruly, calm and gentle, and raging and furious.
That's fantastic! That's the headline of today's news!
(End of this chapter)