novellhall Chapter 124 Is Chen Xun Korean? [5000]
Chapter 124 Is Chen Xun Korean? [5000]
Chapter 124 Is Chen Xun Korean? [5000]
After a two-hour movie, the lights came on.
The atmosphere in the theater was extremely lively.
"Great! It looks better than I expected!"
"Chen Xun's acting was quite good, he didn't break character, and his action scenes were also quite crisp."
"The special effects are amazing, definitely worth the ticket price!"
"I thought it would be the kind of Eastern elements that Westerners would see, but the integration is actually not bad, at least it doesn't feel out of place."
"Popcorn chips are above standard! Just pure enjoyment!"
Shen Man sat in the middle of the back of the theater and didn't rush to get up.
She sat silently, her fingers unconsciously rubbing together the movie ticket stub.
The ticket stub is printed with the words "Green Lantern: Rise of the Azure Dragon" and a half-body portrait of Chen Xun wearing the Green Lantern suit.
A fellow actress from the same production crew, Arlene, sidled up, her eyes shining: "Manman, what do you think? I told you he was handsome! Chen Xun is so handsome! And he's even from USC!"
"My God, aren't you also studying at USC? Do you know him?"
"If it were me, I would have snapped it up early and it would be taking off right now!"
Arlene is a makeup assistant who has only been in the industry for two years. Hollywood is a sacred temple to her.
Shen Man forced a smile, feeling a pang of sadness in her heart.
She stood up and picked up the empty popcorn bucket and Coke cup: "Let's go, there are too many people."
On the way out, I could hear young audience members excitedly shouting, "I want to see it again! I'll bring my parents!"
"That programmer character is so realistic, I suspect the screenwriter was spying on me at work —"
"I almost cried during the part about my grandma; it made me miss my maternal grandma."
Many people have already planned to invite their friends to watch it a second or third time!
Word-of-mouth from the broadest general audience began to spread at an astonishing rate in both the real world and online.
On Weibo, the related topic quickly became a trending topic.
#GreenLanternIsGood# followed by the word "Explosive".
#ChenXunGreenLantern#
#After watching Green Lantern, I want to be a programmer#
Clicking through reveals a massive amount of real-time audience feedback: "Just came out of the theater, it exceeded my expectations! Chen Xun held his own!"
"I highly recommend it! I'm not a fan, just a casual observer and I think it's great, a visual feast."
"I was a little hesitant because of what the film critics said, but I'm glad I came to see it, otherwise I would have missed a great movie."
"The Chinese lead actor has a lot of screen time! Those who say he's just a supporting character, come out and show yourselves!"
"The final Azure Dragon has such an Eastern feel, yet it's also very sci-fi; the combination is ingenious!"
"The overall pacing is tight, and the jokes are well-placed; it's worth the ticket price!"
The comment sections of Weibo posts from those film critics and industry insiders who had previously given negative reviews were instantly countered by netizens who had seen the film: "Judge, have you seen it? If you haven't, don't spout nonsense."
"Saying Chen Xun is just a plot device, doesn't that make you cringe? He's the core of the whole film!"
"The film treats Chinese culture with great respect; the scene with the grandmother was very heartwarming. Where is it distorted?"
Of course, there were also criticisms: "The plot is still a Hollywood formula."
"The villain is a bit weak."
"Some of the lines are translated a bit strangely."
However, compared to the overwhelming positive audience feedback and the surge of support for the Chinese lead actor, these criticisms seem insignificant.
Shen Man looked down and scrolled through her phone, the screen's light reflecting off her face.
Those enthusiastic word-of-mouth recommendations, affirmations of Chen Xun's acting skills, and praise for the appropriate handling of Eastern elements in the film—
Scroll through them one by one.
She recalled a year ago, in that dilapidated room converted from a storage room near Koreatown in Los Angeles.
I remember Chen Xun's halting, accented English back then.
And that desperate night in the wilderness, when those thugs surrounded them, it was Chen Xun who rushed out—
"Manman, what are you daydreaming about?"
Arlene nudged her: "You know, isn't Chen Xun even more handsome in real life than in the movies? I heard his girlfriend is Christine! Wow, that's awesome, a real pride of USC!"
Shen Man turned off her phone screen, forcibly suppressing those surging memories back into her heart.
Her expression returned to calm: "It's quite impressive."
She works as an assistant director on a film crew in the capital that shoots online short dramas and low-budget TV series.
My main job is to coordinate extras, keep an eye on set, occasionally relay messages for the director, and also handle some miscellaneous stage management tasks.
Because of her status as a returnee from the USC directing program, producers and directors treated her fairly politely, thinking she was "knowledgeable" and "good at English," and would assign her some tasks involving foreign information.
But that's how it is.
Every day, I deal with melodramatic storylines, costumes and props with limited budgets, and extras who want to squeeze into the shot even for a second.
Her sharpness has been worn away.
Now all that's left is the exhaustion of making a living and that movie dream that occasionally pierces my heart in the dead of night.
Stepping out of the cinema, a cold winter night wind blew, but Arlene was still excitedly chattering, planning to bring her friends to see it again this weekend.
Shen Man, however, seemed somewhat disinterested.
"Arlene, I suddenly remembered that the extras for tomorrow morning haven't been finalized yet. I need to go back and check the list."
She made an excuse: "You should go back first!"
"Oh? Working so late? Manman, you're working way too hard."
Arlene muttered something, but still waved goodbye.
Shen Man walked to the bus stop alone.
While waiting for the bus, she opened her phone again and went into a photo album she hadn't looked at in a long time.
There are some old photos of Los Angeles inside.
In the kitchen of that dilapidated apartment, two unappetizing dishes sat on the table.
On the USC campus, she held up a poster of an award-winning student artwork.
There's also a profile shot of Chen Xun on the balcony of his apartment at dusk, looking down at the script with a slight frown.
She must have taken that secretly; he didn't know.
The bus arrived, she put away her phone, inserted the coins, and boarded.
The carriage was empty.
She leaned against the window, watching the dazzling cityscape rushing past outside.
She couldn't help but think, what if she hadn't come back? What if the visa problem had been solved? What if she had gritted her teeth and persevered a little longer?
Would things be different now?
Will I ever have the chance to direct my own film on set, instead of just directing extras?
But there are no "what ifs" in life.
Chen Xun carried on her dream, and did it spectacularly.
She should be happy for him.
In fact, seeing his composed performance in the movie, which made the superhero with an Eastern background feel real and believable, she was truly proud of him.
But what followed was a sense of powerlessness and loss.
Chen Xun, who once shared a cramped apartment with her and struggled at the very bottom of Hollywood, has now soared to a height she can no longer reach.
She herself is still in the same place, and is even getting further and further away from her original dream.
Maybe I can give it a try?
Shen Man's eyes shone with a brighter light.
Just then, her phone vibrated; it was the director in the crew's group chat urging her about tomorrow's filming schedule.
Shen Man took a deep breath, rubbed her face which had been chilled by the wind, opened the group chat, and began replying.
"Received, Director. The extras have been coordinated and will be on time at 7:00 AM tomorrow."
"The item list has been verified to be correct."
"The coffee machine on site has been confirmed for rental."
Warner detected data from mainland China.
Its opening day box office far exceeded that of all other films released at the same time, and it also broke the opening day record for films of the same type in China.
The occupancy rate and word-of-mouth index are astonishingly high!
"It exploded! It really exploded!"
Mike, the person in charge, stared at the screen in shock.
However, the direction of the explosion was very different from what they expected.
They initially thought that what would resonate with Chinese audiences would be the combination of Eastern philosophy and cosmic forces.
What surprised young viewers the most was the sense of identification they felt with an ordinary person like us who became a hero.
It also boasts solid entertainment value, top-notch visual effects, a smooth narrative, and the collective pride and support evoked by the presence of Chinese actors.
In other words, the film itself is of above-average quality on a professional level, and it accurately hits the emotional and symbolic points that resonate with today's young audience.
Chen Xun had just finished recording a morning TV program and was on his way back to the hotel.
Rob suddenly shoved his phone screen in his face; it displayed Chinese social media trends and box office briefings.
"Your country is crazy about you!"
"The box office and critical reception have both exploded! They absolutely adore your portrayal of Green Lantern!"
Chen Xun looked at the scrolling Chinese comments on the screen, the enthusiastic recommendations from fans, and his own name trending on the hot search list.
My heart is filled with mixed feelings!
Having been Chinese for two lifetimes, he has a deep love for his country.
Although he works in Hollywood, he can still feel the support from behind him!
He knew that what the audience loved was Chen Xun in the movie, and also the symbol of Chen Xun, the Chinese-American lead actor.
This reflects their feelings and expectations towards their own people.
The film grossed 1.8 million RMB on its opening day in mainland China.
The box office in Hong Kong exceeded HK$10 million on its opening day.
Both broke the opening weekend records for imported Hollywood films that year.
The head of Warner Music Asia made an overseas call to Silverman's office, his voice trembling with excitement.
Data analysis indicates that the extremely high occupancy rate, the strong word-of-mouth effect, and the strong screening schedule for the upcoming weekend suggest that this is just the beginning.
Hollywood's industry media immediately shifted their focus.
The Hollywood Reporter's headline read: "Green Lantern: The Eastern Dragon Awakens, Can an Asian Box Office Explosion Save the Global Plan?"
Variety analyzed: "With its cultural affinity and global quality, Green Lantern found its home ground in Asia."
The voices predicting the worst suddenly quieted down considerably.
Capital and public opinion are always the most pragmatic factors.
When the data, in terms of real money, appears overwhelmingly dominant, all analysis and questioning become pale and powerless.
In Beverly Hills, Rob was so excited he was incoherent, starting to calculate how much of the prize money Chen Xun could get from the booming box office.
Keep in mind that 8% of that comes with him!
The explosive start in mainland China and Hong Kong has directly impacted surrounding Asian markets.
Seoul, South Korea.
On its opening day, the film performed strongly at the box office, easily taking the top spot.
The audience in the cinema responded enthusiastically.
Young female viewers, in particular, showed great interest in Chen Xun's powerful yet emotionally nuanced performance in the film, as well as the subtle tension between him and Keira Knightley.
Initially, it received overwhelmingly positive reviews on social media.
"The action scenes were so cool! He didn't look like a complete beginner at all!"
"That eye contact with Keira Knightley, wow, it was a heart attack!"
"The story is very complete, and the Azure Dragon special effects are amazing!"
However, less than four hours after its release, a rumor suddenly began circulating on some South Korean online communities and forums.
"Shocking discovery! Green Lantern Chen Xun's true identity is suspected to be of Korean descent?"
The post was written in a very serious manner.
Chen Xun's facial features possess typical Korean aesthetic qualities, and the post cites some so-called physiognomy analyses of unknown origin.
Even more outrageous, the post included a photo of Chen Xun inviting someone to act in a performance in Southern California.
Lee So-yeon is standing next to him in the photo.
This serves as irrefutable proof that Chen Xun has Korean ancestry!
This utter nonsense quickly ignited a sense of national pride and a passion for research among some South Korean netizens.
"I knew it! How could someone with that kind of charisma and acting skills be Chinese!"
"Look closely at their eyes; they really have that delicate quality that Korean actors possess!"
"Hollywood has been deliberately obscuring the achievements of Koreans, portraying our stars as Chinese!"
"We hope Chen Xun can face his roots squarely. We welcome Han Minguk!"
#ChenXunKorean#
#Hidden Korean Heroes#
These kinds of tags have started to become popular on Korean websites.
Many online media outlets even reprinted the related speculations.
Less than four hours after the incident, some people posted these comments on Chinese social media.
Initially, it involved moving and translating.
Screenshots of posts on Korean online forums claiming Chen Xun possesses "typically beautiful Korean traits," along with physiognomy analysis.
There's that group photo of you and your friend from USC.
Coupled with headlines such as "High Energy Ahead" and "Latest Scientific Research Team from South Korean Netizens," it quickly spread.
Chinese netizens: ? ? ?
After the content and comments were read, the entertainment sections of platforms such as Weibo, Tieba, and Bilibili were flooded with various sarcastic and mocking comments.
"Here it comes, here it comes! The traditional art may be late, but it's finally here! It's the turn of the living this time, isn't it?"
"Hilarious! They arrest a Chinese person and claim they're of Korean descent? Shouldn't the guy selling pancakes at the breakfast stall downstairs also get a DNA test? What if he's actually a member of the Korean royal family living among commoners?"
"The headline 'Shocking Discovery: Hollywood's Hottest Star is Actually My Long-Lost Oppa!' even UC Shocking News Department was impressed."
"I suggest that next time South Korea just say that the Earth belongs to South Korea and that the solar system was discovered by South Korean ancestors. That would be much simpler."
Various memes and emojis have emerged as a result.
Someone photoshopped Chen Xun's Green Lantern look onto the South Korean flag, captioning it "Inviting the guardians of the Republic of Korea."
There's a compilation of stills of Chen Xun as Han-Lee in "2 Broke Girls" and stills from a Korean drama, captioned "On the versatility of Korean actors."
Even more outrageous, they made a diagram of the origins of South Korean spacefaring!
From Confucius to the Dragon Boat Festival, from Zhu Yuanzhang to Chen Xun, all pointed their arrows toward the Korean Peninsula.
The caption reads: "One day, if the world explodes, it will be because of us Koreans!"
#Korea is the origin of everything#
#Chen Xun was married to a Korean#
#South Korean netizens are trying to claim kinship again#
The hashtag #WithYou quickly became a trending topic on Weibo.
Each one is followed by a "dog head" or "laughing and crying" emoji.
This wave of creative mockery from Chinese netizens was quickly exported back to the Korean internet through Korean-speaking netizens and overseas Chinese.
Posts on Korean websites that were originally only circulating in specific communities suddenly saw a flood of Chinese and machine-translated Korean comments, filled with various memes, emojis, and "hahaha".
Beverly Hills.
"Hahaha! Wait a minute—let me catch my breath—"
Christine, dressed in a loose old T-shirt and athletic shorts, sat cross-legged on the soft carpet in the living room.
Holding an iPad in his hand, he laughed so hard he leaned back and almost knocked over a bottle of red wine next to him.
"The whole thing was bombed by South Korea—my God, are all your netizens comedic geniuses? This is worse than any stand-up comedy I've ever seen!"
Chen Xun sat on the sofa next to her, holding a tablet in his hand.
The screen is displaying the Weibo trending topics list.
#South Korean netizens are trying to claim kinship again#
Following this was a bright red "Explosive" character, and below it were all sorts of memes and witty comments.
He couldn't help but chuckle.
Sometimes netizens' jokes are really outrageous!
"Oh, I have this!"
Christine turned the iPad screen toward Chen Xun, where a meme that had been shared tens of thousands of times was displayed.
Chen Xun's Green Lantern costume photo was photoshopped to the very end of the famous "Origin of All Things: Korea" long image.
The arrows, in order, lead to Confucius, the Dragon Boat Festival, Zhu Yuanzhang, and even the Olympic pyramids and Mars rover, all pointing towards the Korean Peninsula.
"This picture has gone viral on Instagram. Even people who aren't Chinese are sharing it, saying it's the best internet cultural export of the year."
Chen Xun took the iPad, examined the picture carefully, and shook his head with a smile: "This photo editing skill is pretty good, it looks completely natural. It seems that the Koreans have been suffering from the theory of the origin of the universe for a long time, and they have finally found a ready-made target to criticize."
Christine leaned closer, resting her head on his shoulder, her grey eyes glistening with amusement: "Seriously, Chen, how did you feel when those Koreans analyzed your features, saying you possessed typical Korean beauty traits?"
Chen Xun thought for a moment, put the iPad aside, and put his arm around her: "My first reaction was absurdity! I wondered how their brains worked? How could they say such magical things with such a serious tone?"
"This is the Internet!"
Christine shrugged, picked up her glass, and took a sip. "Everyone can be a screenwriter, especially when the story resonates with a collective emotion. Anyone with even a basic understanding of East Asian culture can see that extreme desire for global recognition among some Koreans, even to the point of trying to seize the narrative." But this time, they've hit a brick wall!
She pointed at Chen Xun's tablet: "Your netizens' mockery skills are maxed out; it's like a dimensional reduction attack."
Chen Xun recalled the comments made by netizens about Han and laughed again.
"This matter doesn't actually have any negative effects on your personal happiness."
Christine switched the screen to show him some discussions on European and American film forums: "Many European and American film fans are also paying attention to this East Asian online challenge. They find it particularly interesting, and your popularity has unfortunately spread once again."
Chen Xun nodded.
Christine stretched, revealing a glimpse of her toned waistline beneath the hem of her T-shirt.
"Warner Bros. made the brilliant decision to cast you as Green Lantern! Not only did it boost box office revenue, but it also ignited creative enthusiasm and the cultural heritage battle on the East Asian internet. Warner Bros.' publicity expenditure was well worth it!"
"Is that a compliment?"
Chen Xun was both amused and exasperated.
"certainly!"
Christine turned around, straddled his lap, cupped his face in her hands, and looked at him closely with a smile in her grey-green eyes: "My boyfriend, one person, one movie, and he can stir up half the world's online buzz. Isn't that cool!"
After reading some comments from netizens, the two rushed to the bathroom to take a shower.
Chen Xun and Christine have been very busy lately, traveling all over the world, which has resulted in them not seeing each other for more than a month.
Chen Xun had just finished showering, wearing loose gray cotton trousers and a simple white T-shirt, his hair still dripping wet.
He walked into the living room and saw Christine, who had just finished showering, curled up at the other end of the sofa, clutching her laptop, her brows slightly furrowed, her hands rapidly typing something.
The light from the screen shone on her face.
"Is Obama busy?"
Chen Xun picked up the kettle on the table and poured two glasses of water.
"The new script the director sent me is incredibly verbose."
Christine is a little annoyed!
Chen Xun smiled, placed the water glass on the coffee table in front of her, sat down beside her, and naturally reached out to massage her tense neck.
Christine's shoulders stiffened reflexively for a moment, then slowly relaxed, letting out a comfortable sigh.
"You seem to have increased your strength again!"
She gave a vague evaluation, finally shifting her gaze from the screen to look at Chen Xun.
In the warm yellow light, her gray-green eyes appeared exceptionally clear.
"The aftereffects of filming too many action scenes."
Chen Xun's hand felt the warmth and delicate texture of the skin on the back of her neck.
The months of relentless publicity and previous public pressure had put both of them on edge.
At this moment, in this undisturbed private space, the noise of the outside world seems to be temporarily blocked out, leaving only the two of them.
Christine closed the mic, pushed it aside, turned around, and looked at Chen Xun.
She had just finished showering and put on a loose T-shirt by Chen Xun.
Although it was winter, the fireplace inside was burning very hot, and the air conditioning was running at full blast, so it wasn't cold.
The T-shirt hung loosely over her body, the hem reaching down to her thighs, revealing a pair of straight and slender legs.
Christine sat cross-legged, her eyes fixed on Chen Xun.