There is a strange phenomenon in the entertainment industry, actors with little strength bounce in front of the audience all day long, while those who are really powerful disappear as soon as they don't film, such as Wang Baoqiang.
As Xu Zheng said, Wang Baoqiang is a typical actor who disappears without filming, but not filming does not mean that he does nothing, he just embarked on another path.
In 2010, Wang Baoqiang partnered with Xu Zheng in "People in Embarrassment", showing his talent in comedy.
The low-budget comedy was an unexpected and huge success, grossing 50 million at the box office, far exceeding expectations.
The success of "People in Embarrassment" inspired Xu Zheng to continue to develop the "Embarrassment" series of films.
In 2012, "People in Embarrassment: Thai Embarrassment" allowed Wang Baoqiang and Xu Zheng to join hands again, creating a box office miracle of domestic films at that time.
However, behind this brilliant achievement, there are some hidden contradictions.
According to insiders, Wang Baoqiang was dissatisfied with the distribution of salary.
Although the movie was a great success, he only received a salary of 2 million, while Xu Zheng and Huang Bo received considerable box office dividends. This huge income gap makes Wang Baoqiang feel guilty.
This contradiction reached its climax in 2014 during the preparation of "Hong Kong Embarrassment".
At that time, Xu Zheng offered Wang Baoqiang a salary of 5 million, but Wang Baoqiang put forward an unexpected request: zero salary, but an investment share of 10 million and a 10% box office dividend.
It is said that when he received this proposal, Xu Zheng was silent for a long time.
He felt that this was too much to ask. After several rounds of difficult negotiations, the two sides were never able to reach an agreement.
In the end, Xu Zheng found Wang Baoqiang and said: "Baoqiang, we have cooperated for so many years, you are very important to me. But this time, I may not be able to meet your requirements. I hope you understand. "
After Wang Baoqiang heard this, he was silent for a long time, and finally only said one sentence: "I understand." Since then, the relationship between the two has become estranged.
Without Wang Baoqiang's joining, "Hong Kong Embarrassment" finally hit the streets, and some film critics commented: "Without Wang Baoqiang, this movie seems to have lost its soul." "
Wang Baoqiang's acting career started not smoothly. When he first entered the film and television industry, he was just an unknown small role actor, and most of the time he could only be a trickster on the set.
Sometimes I can't even perform in a group, so I can only be a martial arts stand-in. But Wang Baoqiang always has a dream of being an actor in his heart.
Once, Wang Baoqiang heard that a certain crew was recruiting group actors, and he rode a bicycle for dozens of kilometers overnight to go to the interview.
As a result, when I arrived at the scene, I found that I didn't even have the opportunity to perform in a group, so I could only help move props on the set.
Despite this, he did not lose heart, but offered to stay and help, hoping to learn some acting skills.
Wang's efforts finally paid off in 2003.
This year, director Li Yang encountered a bottleneck in the casting of the new film "Blind Well". One day, he stumbled upon a stack of old resumes and was attracted to one of the photos.
Although the young man in the photo is not outstanding, he has a unique temperament. This is Wang Baoqiang. Li Yang had a flash of inspiration and felt that he might be suitable to play "Yuan Fengming".
To confirm his intuition, Li Yang arranged a special audition. He asked Wang Baoqiang to improvise the daily life of a miner.
Wang Baoqiang's performance convinced Li Yang that this seemingly ordinary young man was the "Yuan Fengming" he was looking for.
During the filming, Wang Baoqiang performed excellently, even in the dangerous scene of the collapse of the mine.
Li Yang was impressed by his professionalism and acting talent. The film later won several awards internationally, and Wang Baoqiang's name began to be known to more people.
Next, by chance, Wang Baoqiang got the opportunity to participate in "No Thieves in the World" directed by Feng Xiaogang.
On the set, Wang Baoqiang was a little restrained at first, but Feng Xiaogang encouraged him to play his own characteristics.
As a result, Wang Baoqiang created a simple and lovely image of "silly root", which unexpectedly won the love of the audience and became a household name star in one fell swoop.
In 2006, Wang Baoqiang received another invitation to "Soldier Assault".
In order to better interpret the role of Xu Sanduo, he began to experience the life of the military camp a month in advance, training with real soldiers every day.
This dedication was finally recognized by the audience, and the broadcast of "Soldier Assault" not only allowed Wang Baoqiang to gain a firm foothold in the entertainment industry, but also opened a new door for him.
This drama allows the audience to see a different Wang Baoqiang, he is no longer just the "stupid root" that makes people laugh, but a flesh-and-blood character who can resonate.
With the popularity of the series, Wang Baoqiang quickly became a leader among the post-80s actors.
His name began to appear frequently in major media reports, and many directors began to take the initiative to come to the door and invite him to participate in new plays.
However, after becoming famous, Wang Baoqiang did not immerse himself in the joy of success. He began to seriously think about the direction of his acting career.
Once, Wang Baoqiang said frankly in an interview: "I am grateful for everything these roles have brought me, but I don't want to be stereotyped. I hope to try more different types of characters and show my versatility. "
In order to break through himself, Wang Baoqiang began to take the initiative to find new challenges. He spent a lot of time reading various scripts and even began to study acting theory in the hope of expanding his acting skills.
After the cooperation with Xu Zheng ended, Wang Baoqiang turned to in-depth cooperation with his old friend Chen Sicheng.
Chen Sicheng's support for Wang Baoqiang is not limited to the work level. When Wang Baoqiang encountered a marriage crisis, Chen Sicheng also lent a helping hand. This kind of sincere help in difficult times makes Wang Baoqiang deeply grateful.
Just when his career was at its peak, Wang Baoqiang's personal life began to have a crisis.
In August 2016, Wang Baoqiang issued a statement on social media, announcing his divorce from his wife, Ma Rong, and accusing her of having an improper relationship with her agent Song Zhe.
This news caused a huge sensation in the entertainment industry and society, and became one of the most watched entertainment news of the year.
At the same time, Wang Baoqiang's career also suffered a heavy blow.
The movie "Havoc in Tianzhu", which he directed and starred in, was released during the Spring Festival in 2017, but the film's reputation and box office were not satisfactory.
Although the final box office reached 750 million yuan, the film's score on Douban was only 3.9 points, which became a low point in Wang Baoqiang's acting career.
Faced with the double blow of his career and personal life, Wang Baoqiang did not give up, but chose to try to transform.
After a period of silence, he completely disappeared from the public's face.
It wasn't until this year that everyone knew that he was going to prepare for a new film project "In the Octagon Cage" during that time.
This film is Wang Baoqiang's second self-directed and self-acting work, and the filming process of "In the Octagon Cage" was full of challenges.
In order to shape the character, he went through rigorous training for half a year, and his weight increased from 140 pounds to 170 pounds.
"In the Octagon Cage" will be released in 2023 and has achieved good word-of-mouth and box office results. The film's score on Douban reached 7.4 points, far surpassing "Havoc in Tianzhu", and the box office also exceeded 1 billion yuan.
The success of the film not only proves Wang's progress as a director, but also marks his successful rebound after a career low.
Wang Baoqiang's acting career has undergone a remarkable transformation, from a highly acclaimed and powerful actor to an entertainment star who pursues commercial interests.
This transformation not only reflects his personal choices, but also reflects the changes in the entire entertainment industry to some extent.
In his early career, Wang Baoqiang won the recognition of audiences and film critics with his solid acting skills and unique performance style.
He has won several awards for his outstanding performance in "The Blind Well", and his performances in films such as "No Thieves" have also shown his potential as a powerful actor.
At this stage, Wang Baoqiang focused on the performing arts, worked hard to shape every role, and showed his love and respect for the profession of actor.
However, as his status in the entertainment industry gradually improved, Wang Baoqiang's career development direction began to change.
He began to appear more in more commercial films, such as the "People in Embarrassment" series and the "Detective Chinatown" series.
While these films were huge box office successes, they were inferior to his earlier works in terms of artistry and depth.
This transformation marks Wang Baoqiang's gradual transformation from a powerful actor who focuses on artistic expression to an entertainment star who pays more attention to commercial value.
With this shift, Wang Baoqiang seems to have begun to pursue more quick money and traffic.
First, he began to shoot more commercials, some of which were controversial about the quality of their products and social impact.
Although the advertisements brought him a significant income, they also raised questions about whether he was too money-focused and neglected social responsibility.
Secondly, Wang Baoqiang began to frequently participate in various variety shows. While these shows have increased his exposure, they have also made some viewers feel that he is gradually losing his professionalism as an actor.
In some variety shows, Mr. Wang's performance was seen as too contrived or deliberately funny, in stark contrast to the natural acting skills he displayed in his early films.
While pursuing commercial interests, Wang Baoqiang also began to seek development outside of actors.
The most striking example of this is when he began to try his hand at directing.
Although the movie "Havoc in Tianzhu", which he directed and starred in, achieved certain results at the box office, it suffered a Waterloo in terms of word-of-mouth.
The work is considered to have a chaotic plot and vulgar jokes, a far cry from the excellent works he was involved in in the early days.
Despite this, Wang Baoqiang did not give up his attempt to direct. His second self-directed and self-acted work, "In the Octagon Cage", has improved in terms of word-of-mouth, showing his progress in the field of directing.
The public has different expectations for Wang Baoqiang's future development. Some people hope that he can return to serious performing arts and reshow his charm as a powerful actor.
There are also those who expect him to find a balance between commercial cinema and artistic pursuits, satisfying the needs of the market without losing his unique style.
There are also some people who support him to continue to diversify and seek breakthroughs in directing, investment and other fields.
In any case, we all expect Wang Baoqiang to maintain his original intention in his future career, constantly improve himself, and bring more high-quality works to the audience.
References:
Baidu Encyclopedia - Wang Baoqiang