"Would you be interested if you were invited to play Bruce Wayne?" Barry Meyer asked with a smile, but he was not a kind old man, and there was always a hint of cunning and ...... in his smile Treacherous. Such an adjective is not quite accurate, but it is the most appropriate, and it makes the question meaningful.

Lan Li raised his eyebrows slightly, looked at Barry with surprise, and then noticed that the seriousness in those eyes was not a joke, but sincere, but the question was - "Why? I thought you weren't interested in inviting me to play a superhero." ”

Shouldn't that be reversed? You've never been interested in playing a superhero. Barry asked rhetorically.

A shallow smile bloomed on Lan Li's face, outlining a touch of lightheartedness, "If I say that I've always been interested in superheroes, can you believe it?" ”

refused to play "Thor", Lan Li still has no regrets.

"Personally, I love Christopher Nolan's version of the Batman trilogy and Sam Raimi's version of the first two episodes of Spider-Man, and 'X-Men: First Class' and 'The Avengers' are also very good. "Lan Li must be careful when listing works, "Captain America 2", "Ant-Man" and "Deadpool" are almost about to blurt out, but these works have not been released for the time being, and they can't be leaked now.

Then, I saw Lan Li shrug his shoulders slightly, revealing a little smug look, as if to say, "Look, I really like these comic book superhero movies", the mischievous light between the eye waves flickered slightly, making people laugh, and then returned to the original topic.

"I really enjoyed watching these films. In fact, my personal favorite comic book superhero is Wonder Woman. Did you know that when Dr. illiam-Marston created this cartoon character, he placed his own ideas on the psychological causes of sadism and masochism, as well as the discussion and exploration of DISC theory, which is a very interesting thing. ”

Lan Li is talking about the creator of "Wonder Woman", William Marston, Ph.D. in psychology, and the related creation story has also been made into a movie, "Professor Marston and Wonder Woman", which explains the origin of the most popular heroine in history from a different perspective.

"But watching and acting are two different things. For actors, it is necessary to meet a suitable role and a suitable timing. Lan Li said calmly, just last week, he and Paul just talked about this matter, and now they actually talked about this topic again at the Oscar night, is this fate?

Barry had a look of surprise, he really didn't expect Lan Li to know so much about superhero movies. But take a step back and think about it, Lan Li did not refuse the invitation to perform in "Fast and Exciting / Love 5", which already shows some problems, but the authorities are confused, and they have never been able to figure out Lan Li's psychology.

"So, are you interested in playing Bruce Wayne?" asked Barry as he followed Lan Li's words.

Time flies, things change, and the vicissitudes of life.

In July last year, Barry made a special trip to London to visit Lan Li at the Almeida Theatre, mainly for the sequel cooperation of "Edge of Tomorrow" and the negotiation of the details of the cooperation of "Gravity".

In the blink of an eye, eight months have passed, and things have changed dramatically. In the search for a new Batman, progress has not always been smooth, and as one of the Big Three of DC Comics, the Batman project is crucial to Warner Bros.' future blueprint, especially after Christian Bale's release.

At the end of the circle, Barry still stood in front of Lan Li.

"No, I'm not interested. Lan Li's answer was so crisp and clear.

After a long circle of foreshadowing and presentations, Lan Li still refused the invitation, and did not leave any room for negotiation, which is equivalent to what he just said is ...... Nonsense?

Barry's eyes became playful, and without warning, he pulled down his face and assumed the posture of a superior, "Are you kidding me?"

The sharp gaze and violent emotions were instantly vented, and the sky was clear one second, and the next second it was stormy.

Lan Li didn't show any flustery, and calmly asked, "It's up to Mr. Meyer." I thought that the topic was just a small talk at the party, but if it was a serious cooperation negotiation, then my answer would naturally be different. ”

Barry's expression was still unmoved, his cheeks tightened, his eyebrows frowned slightly, he looked fierce, and his eyes gradually deepened to reveal a more dangerous aura, and the posture of the superior who was not angry and arrogant made the air gradually condense, "So, what if this is a formal invitation?"

Lan Li restrained her smile and replied seriously, "I regret refusing. ”

Barry's eyes widened, and then he caught the calm look in Lan Li's eyes, not afraid at all, the strong confidence that burst out from the inside out, even Barry had to secretly express his admiration, this kind of bearing, is rare in the entire Hollywood.

Involuntarily, Barry chuckled, sincerely.

The anger just now was just a disguise, but he was not able to deceive Lan Li after all, thinking back to the brief confrontation just now, Barry couldn't help but shake his head slightly, "Do you know that you are a madman?" Lan Li looked calm, "Why? I thought you were still interested in superhero movies?"

Lan Li didn't answer immediately, but looked at Barry quietly. The last conversation at the Almeida Theatre was remembered, and the sincerity and calmness with which Barry had shown that he was grasping the dimensions, whether to choose a polite response to a social occasion or a sincere exchange of opinions.

Choosing the former, which requires risk, is an important step in future cooperation, even if it is not a superhero movie, the "Edge of Tomorrow" cooperation, and the choice of the latter, which is business-like and not far from maintaining a good relationship, but the relationship between the two parties cannot go further, but it is enough to insure.

Thoughts flashed through his mind, but Lan Li still made a choice, "Because you are trying to compete with Marvel and seize market share with Disney, which is a grand blueprint, but you ignore the work itself, and even more ignore the character itself, which is not what I want." He chose the former.

Barry was chewing on these words as Lan Li continued without pausing, "More importantly, I don't think I can surpass Christian's Batman, and if I challenge superpowers, Batman's abilities don't appeal to me, and I still like Superman more." ”

"Batman's superpowers? What is that?" Barry frowned slightly, unable to comprehend Lan Li's words for a moment.

"There is money. Lan Li said crisply, and then saw Barry stunned slightly, clapping his hands and laughing.

After laughing, Barry looked at Lan Li seriously.

He had to admit that he was right in his first thought.

Using Lan Li to play a superhero is definitely overkill and a waste of Lan Li's ability and talent. For well-known characters like Batman or Superman, their own appeal is enough, and they don't need the blessing of Lan Li, and for those small characters who are unknown, they purely use Lan Li's appeal to push, which is like killing chickens with a knife.

After a short period of confusion and temptation, Barry still confirmed his thoughts, especially Lan Li's words just now, although short and neat, but very meaningful, which made Barry can't help but look at Lan Li deeply, and after hesitating again and again, he still raised his own question, "What does it mean to ignore the work itself, do you have any opinions on the future blueprint of DC Comics?"

"Barry, are you kidding? Why are you talking about the future of DC Comics here now?" Lan Li didn't answer, but shook his head with a chuckle.

Barry noticed a small detail, in some of the words, Lan Li used the title "Barry" and others "Mr. Meyer", and the whole tone and context were very different, and the attitudes and emotions were also vaguely different, which was really an interesting discovery.

In fact, Barry also found it ridiculous.

I, the CEO of Warner Bros., a top person in Hollywood for many years, and the other party, a young actor who is only 23 years old, is still a small hairy man even if he is in the limelight. But it's weird that they're exchanging blueprints for a multi-billion mega project.

"Why not?" Barry said in an almost rogue manner, still insisting on his thoughts, revealing a heroic side, almost as a scoundrel, "I'm asking you to play Batman, and if you don't give me a satisfactory answer, I won't give up easily." ”

Inexplicably, Lan Li remembered the domineering President Wen.

couldn't help laughing, with a smile on the corners of his mouth and eyes, but Lan Li still gave his own answer, "Do you realize what is the real reason for Marvel's success?"

This is a question that has been discussed in the last life and in the whole industry.

In 2016, "Suicide Squad" and "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice" appeared successively, both at the box office and word of mouth were far lower than expected; in 2017, the performance of "Justice League" was even more unsatisfactory, and the unsatisfactory performance of many consecutive works, although it cannot be said to be a fiasco, but the gap between DC Comics and Marvel Comics is indeed widening little by little.

So, in the fierce competition, Warner Bros. has never been able to break Disney's thigh, what is the reason for this?

In the final analysis, it is still a problem of the times: impetuousness.

This is not Lan Li's personal opinion, and he is not so deep and thorough in his interpretation of the industry, but the consensus from industry insiders in 2017, including Warner Bros. itself, has missed the best time.