Xu Zheng, who grew up in Shanghai, a glamorous international metropolis, is like a shining jewel, showing his amazing acting talent from an early age. When he was in elementary school, he was already competing with the seniors on the drama stage, which attracted everyone's attention.
As parents, they deeply understand the importance of cultivating children's interests and hobbies, and they do not hesitate to invest a lot of money to help their son Xu Zheng take the step of chasing his dreams.
After entering middle school life, Xu Zheng deliberately chose a school not far from the Shanghai People's Art Theater to study, but this seemingly ordinary decision revealed the fiery soul of an artist in his heart.
He almost completely abandoned the study of culture and devoted himself to the world of theater, eager to experience first-hand the life of a professional crew in the theater. When his peers are struggling for the college entrance examination, Xu Zheng has quietly walked into Renyi, got to know many crew members, and sketched a magnificent career blueprint for himself behind the scenes.
With his outstanding talent and unremitting efforts, Xu Zheng was finally admitted to the Shanghai Theater Academy as he wished, officially starting his journey to the road of professional actor. During his time at the school, he not only devoted himself to rehearsals, but also had a unique understanding of the role, and also had amazing unique insights and exquisite ideas for the scene layout, which made every performance full of praise.
Although Xu Zheng had not yet been able to fully develop his talent at that time, these experiences undoubtedly laid a solid foundation for his future take-off in the film industry.
In 1994, after graduating from his alma mater, Shanghai Theatre Academy, Xu Zheng devoted himself to the powerful Shanghai Dramatic Art Center, and since then embarked on his brilliant acting career.
During his tenure at the Drama Arts Centre, he starred in a number of acclaimed classics, such as "The Lady Reading" and "Night Reading". In 1998, he won the Magnolia Drama Award for Best Actor in the drama "The Color of Stocks" for his outstanding performance, which is undoubtedly the highest recognition of his outstanding acting skills.
After that, Xu Zheng, who had great ambitions, decided to enter the film and television industry. In the millennium, he starred in the comedy blockbuster "Spring Splendid Pig Bajie", which became popular all over the country overnight, and the strange but hilarious role he created in the play was unforgettable, and since then, he has been affectionately called "Brother Pig" by the audience.
Time flies, and in the blink of an eye, in 2010, Xu Zheng and Wang Baoqiang worked together to create the comedy classic "People in Embarrassment", which brought the producer a super high box office income of up to 300 million yuan with its amazing performance, causing a huge sensation.
During the filming of "People in Embarrassment", Xu Zheng met the talented Wang Baoqiang, and he became interested in the very creative and personalized IP of "Embarrassment", so he decided to create his own "Embarrassment" series of movies.
In 2012, he sincerely invited Wang Baoqiang and Huang Bo to join the film "Thai Embarrassment" that he personally directed and produced, which immediately swept the country once it was released, and finally set a box office myth of 1.267 billion yuan, and Xu Zheng successfully transformed into a high-profile business giant.
At the same time, he and the actor Tao Hong, whom he met in 1998 while filming a TV series, have been in love for many years, and the two ended their relationship in 2003, and in 2008, they ushered in the crystallization of their love.
Since then, Xu Zheng's career has expanded rapidly, and Tao Hong has become his most powerful behind-the-scenes assistant and source of wisdom, and the two have written a legendary story of "cooperative marriage" together.
The reason why "Thai Embarrassment" can create a box office miracle of 1.267 billion yuan is that in addition to Xu Zheng's excellent producer and directing talents, the outstanding performance of the starring lineup is also an indispensable factor.
Xu Zheng not only invited his old partner Wang Baoqiang, who performed well in "People in Embarrassment", but also invited the powerful actor Huang Bo to participate in the performance. The wonderful performances of the three outstanding actors on the screen have undoubtedly injected endless vitality into this comedy masterpiece and propelled the box office all the way to soar.
However, just as they were immersed in the joy of victory, a fine of up to 5 million yuan came like a thunderbolt from the blue, and the producers were in a difficult situation. It turned out that during the framing and filming, "Thai Embarrassment" was suspected of infringing on others' portrait rights and other illegal acts, and under the pressure of public opinion, they could only bow their heads and admit their mistakes.
For Xu Zheng, who is already worth more than 100 million yuan, although the fine of 5 million yuan is not a small amount, he still does not hesitate to bear it. What is even more unexpected is that he not only paid all the fines quickly, but also actively pushed the media to widely cover the matter, artificially creating a topic effect and arousing public attention.
In the process, the film received a lot of praise and attention, which led to its box office climbing to a staggering 1.267 billion yuan! However, just as this glorious moment came, there was a depressing scene - Wang Baoqiang, who played the lead role, was only paid 2 million yuan.
For Wang Baoqiang, this is undoubtedly a heavy blow, he worked together with Xu Zheng and Huang Bo, and paid countless sweat and hard work.
As the producer and director, Xu Zheng will naturally allocate most of his salary to Huang Bo. Although we can't know the exact amount, there is no doubt that the part that Huang Bo obtained is enough to make Wang Baoqiang reinvigorate.
Seeing that the other two members of the "Iron Triangle" group received such disparity in treatment, it was really regrettable how Wang Baoqiang felt at that time.
After experiencing Xu Zheng's "2 million blows", Wang Baoqiang suffered the biggest setback in his life. In 2018, his wife Ma Rong and his agent Ganlu Zili were inseparable, and the two had no scruples, acted in embarrassment, and personally attacked Wang Baoqiang, and the abuse was endless, which seriously affected his career.
The once loving husband and wife are now turning against each other, and the once sweet moment turned into bitterness. Faced with the double betrayal of his wife and closest friends, Wang Baoqiang almost collapsed, and his emotions fell into a bottomless abyss.
However, he did not give up because of this, but regained his confidence even more firmly and devoted himself to the shooting of new works.
After years of experience, Wang Baoqiang finally ushered in his own dawn. In 2022, the movie "In the Octagon Cage" starring him caused a sensation again. The film resonates strongly with the audience as it tells the touching story of a small man in a difficult situation who finally regains his freedom through his tenacity and unremitting struggle.
At the press conference of the film, Wang Baoqiang was full of gratitude and affectionately expressed his strong support for director Chen Sicheng in terms of funds and experience. In contrast, Xu Zheng's behavior of only giving Wang Baoqiang a salary of 2 million yuan in "Thai Embarrassment" seems too stingy and narrow-minded, which is really embarrassing.
Although he once fell into the darkest moment of human beings, Wang Baoqiang forged ahead bravely, and with his own talent and perseverance, he finally overcame the thorns of life and ushered in a new dawn! And the movie "In the Octagon Cage" starring him is not only a new starting point for his acting career, but also a symbol of a man who has suffered trauma and regained the meaning of life.
Back in 2018, the movie "I Am Not the God of Medicine" directed by Xu Zheng made his acting career reach a new peak. This film tells the touching story of an ordinary little person who does not hesitate to risk buying counterfeit vaccines in order to survive, which deeply touches the hearts of the audience and arouses strong resonance.
As soon as the movie was released, it received countless praises. Xu Zheng won the Golden Horse Award for Best Actor with his superb acting skills, and also won more than ten important awards such as outstanding filmmaker and special producer, which is well deserved. However, just as Xu Zheng and the entire crew were immersed in the ocean of honor, a sudden storm quietly came. The prototype character, Lu Yong, expressed great indignation at the adaptation and distortion of the plot, and then launched a lawsuit against the film.
Although this lawsuit did not shake Xu Zheng's lofty status in the industry, it undoubtedly added a touch of haze to the originally beautiful results. As a director and screenwriter, Xu Zheng will inevitably process and adapt the experiences of the archetypal characters in the creative process to enhance the dramatic conflict and appreciation. However, if the original book is exaggerated or distorted, it will undoubtedly cause harm and insult to the archetypal characters. Therefore, being questioned and accused afterwards is also a problem that Xu Zheng, a film giant, needs to think about.
However, no matter how much criticism and controversy from the outside world is, "I Am Not the God of Medicine" directed by Xu Zheng has always been a masterpiece of excellent quality and far-reaching social influence, and has won high praise from the audience and many film critics, there is no doubt about it.
It is worth mentioning that during the Spring Festival in 2020, the Chinese New Year comedy "Embarrassing Mother" directed by Xu Zheng was originally scheduled to meet the audience on the first day of the Lunar New Year, and the producers were full of expectations. However, due to the sudden new crown pneumonia epidemic, movie theaters have closed one after another, and the release plan of "Embarrassing Mother" has also been postponed.
However, what is remarkable is that Mr. Xu Zheng's extraordinary move has aroused strong disgust and dissatisfaction from colleagues in the industry! The reason for this is that during the special period of the new coronavirus attack on the world, the vast majority of film and television companies have chosen to act cautiously and resolutely decided to postpone the release date of the film in order to be safe. However, Mr. Xu Zheng is unique and bravely chooses the bold strategy of free online broadcasting, which undoubtedly puts other filmmakers in an extremely passive and embarrassing situation.
As expected, when the epidemic gradually subsided, many films that were originally planned to be launched in the spring were snubbed by the audience, and the expected enthusiastic response and widespread attention were gone, and Mr. Xu Zheng's decision undoubtedly became an important fuse. Although he successfully won a high level of attention in a short period of time through the work "Embarrassing Mother", it also brought a lot of shock to the entire industry.
However, looking at the overall situation, Mr. Xu's move is clearly based on commercial considerations, and its main goal is to ensure that "Embarrassing Mother" can gain sufficient exposure, so as to lay a solid foundation for future broadcast revenue and derivatives income. From this point of view, his marketing wisdom and keen market insight are undoubtedly worthy of recognition.
However, it is a pity that in the "Thai Embarrassment" before "Embarrassing Mother", Xu Zheng once gave Wang Baoqiang, who played the leading role, only 2 million yuan, and this kind of "careful calculation" behavior made the former "Iron Triangle" friendship completely broken.
Now, with Wang Baoqiang's resurgence with "In the Octagon Cage", the grievances and entanglements between the two have finally come to an end.
Some commentators pointed out that if Xu Zheng had generously shared the high box office revenue of "Thai Embarrassment" with Wang Baoqiang, perhaps their "Iron Triangle" combination would not have disintegrated. However, history cannot be reversed, and we can only look forward to whether Xu Zheng and Wang Baoqiang, the two former partners, will have the opportunity to work together again in the future.