The issue of actor salaries is indeed a headache.

Because the script for this TV series has only 21 episodes, which is far from the fifty or sixty episodes that are common nowadays.

If a TV series has 50 episodes, and the actor's price is 100,000 per episode, then that's a 5 million salary.

A 5 million salary is the level of a top-tier star.

As investment enthusiasm shifts towards the entertainment industry, Huaxia film and TV production has reached an unprecedented peak over the past year.

The production and broadcast of various high-investment films have led to news of collective salary hikes for film and TV stars, who are the core of the industry chain.

However, a recent industry survey report shows that this year's collective price hike for second and third-tier stars is just bluff.

It's probably to test market reactions.

Currently, only more than twenty actors, including Chen Daoming, Zhang Guoli, Chen Kun, and Fan Xuexue, charge over 100,000 per episode.

Chen Daoming, Li Youbin, Tang Guoqiang, Wang Gang, Li Baotian, Chenbao Country, Li Xuejian, and other slightly older seasoned actors, although rarely having works currently, hold the highest status among actors, with an average episode salary of 150,000 for TV series.

Representatives of the mature '70s actors, such as Sun Honglei, Chen Jianbin, Chen Kun, Yao Chen, and Fan Xuexue, have seen their prices rise in recent years due to continuous good works, with an average episode salary around 100,000 and still rising.

Of course, Yao Chen is definitely out now.

Their cheating scandal has been fermenting after the new year, they and their husband lost almost all acting offers, and nearly all endorsements were canceled.

Not only did they lose them, but they also have to pay compensation.

Especially since Yao Chen has a film already shot and pending broadcast; now her reputation is ruined, even if it continues to air, the audience won't buy it.

The producers will definitely seek compensation from her.

This bizarre couple both cheated, and after their divorce exposed each other, leaving everyone bewildered about what they're after.

Furthermore, young actors like Huang Xiaoming, Wang Baoqiang, and Deng Zhao have an average episode salary of about 70,000, while second and third-tier actors have an average salary between 20,000 to 40,000.

As for Qi Hao and An Feng, they weren't actually included in the statistics list.

These two haven't filmed TV series in five years and are now firmly film actors.

You can't calculate their salary based on "The Return of the Condor Heroes."

That series discussed salaries as far back as 2003, at a time when the market was poor, and few had an episode salary exceeding 50,000.

Zhang Jizhong also cried poor.

The result was An Feng getting 8,000 per episode, Qi Hao 12,000 per episode.

Certainly a friendship price.

Now making statistics, sorting Qi Hao and An Feng by this rate, and they wouldn't even match up to third-tier actors.

Now Qi Hao and An Feng are returning to TV series.

Everyone feels that they will likely set a new TV series salary record.

If they knew that Qi Hao and An Feng's series has only 21 episodes, they'd probably think so even more.

Take Zhang Guoli, for example; in '07 when he starred in "Golden Wedding Anniversary," his per-episode salary was 150,000 across 50 episodes, totaling 7.5 million.

This wasn't a particularly exorbitant salary for him.

However, you can't say Qi Hao and An Feng's salaries would be less than Zhang Guoli's.

If calculated at 7.5 million, for 21 episodes, the per-episode salary would have to reach 350,000.

This is a salary that's hard to even imagine in today's TV series market.

20,000 or more are few and far between.

Let alone 35,000.

It's also a bad shock to the market.

So, Qi Hao had a sudden idea.

He announced this TV series is a wedding gift for his fiancée, and the series will be fully invested by An Feng.

He would act with zero salary!

Everyone was dumbfounded.

You friggin'... this is asking for trouble, the way to self-destruction.

Foolish!

However, since Qi Hao is willing to do so, no one has a reason to stop him.

An Feng thinks it's too absurd; who gives this kind of gift.

Qi Hao seems to have a quirk for giving gifts, like gifting his mom 200,000 worth of Tesla stocks and advising her to hold them long-term.

Forget this investment, and look again in ten years.

He now gifts her a TV series for their wedding, and even acts with zero salary.

So, how much is this gift worth?

The recently aired series with a high cost is counted as "New Three Kingdoms," with a per-episode cost of 1.45 million, a total cost of about 150 million.

But the first broadcast recouped the cost from four satellite TV stations, each paying 400,000 per episode, totaling 1.6 million per episode.

Meanwhile, audio-visual rights set a record in drama transactions, 90,000 per episode for 90 episodes, adding 8.1 million in revenue.

Even online rights sold for 150,000 per episode.

Including overseas rights in Korea and Neon, along with the second-round and local station sales, "New Three Kingdoms" made a big profit.

Even though the reputation is far from the old version, it can still be very profitable.

This is the TV series market.

In the past, the purchase price ceiling for four satellite TV stations was 1 million per episode, even the popular "Infiltration" only sold for 600,000 per episode in the first run.

As a buyer's market, TV stations have always controlled drama sales prices; production companies would calculate input costs per episode before investing to know what price they could sell for, how much to earn even before starting production.

"You Who Came from the Stars" is an urban drama.

The cost is much lower than in costume dramas, even with set design and fashion.

So, a cost budget of 1 million per episode is quite fair.

Especially with Qi Hao acting for zero salary, 1 million can create a super high-quality product.

Currently, the quote from a single satellite TV station has reached 500,000 yuan per episode.

If four stations broadcast simultaneously, it's 2 million yuan per episode.

In the first round of airing, an episode can earn 1 million yuan, totaling 21 million yuan with 21 episodes.

Second round, third round, audiovisual product rights, online streaming...

Overall, it's highly likely to bring in tens of millions.

However, when the several TV stations learned that the script for this drama has only 21 episodes, they're all urging Zhonghao Entertainment to expand the script, not saying fifty or sixty episodes, but at least to 30-40 episodes.

Didn't see it coming, Qi Hao, you made it so short.

This suggestion is very normal, nowadays not only the producers aim to make more episodes, but even the TV stations have similar demands.

TV stations can only negotiate advertisements with brands when there are more episodes.

And brands also believe that only with more episodes can there be a high-frequency output to viewers to achieve a brainwashing effect.

If an industry is rotten, it's definitely not due to one single rotten aspect.

But from top to bottom, involving various aspects, there isn't anyone innocent.

The audience too.

They complain that TV shows are like an old woman's footwraps, smelly and long, yet they watch eagerly.

However, Qi Hao only expanded the drama to 25 episodes.

Added some quite interesting content.

After all, the original script involved Korea's entertainment industry, now it's moved to the local environment, with Qi Hao and An Feng acting, a lot of suitable plots can be made.

But 25 episodes are still considered pretty short.

Nevertheless, Qi Hao and An Feng are unwilling to expand further, planning to shoot and sell it as it is.

Others have no way to deal with them.

With fewer episodes, their procurement costs are also much lower.

Additionally, everyone's experienced the popularity of Qi Hao and An Feng; it's something that must be actively suppressed to stay calm.

Everybody is very much looking forward to this drama.

Unfortunately, the filming date for "You Who Came from the Stars" is set for the second half of the year.

Qi Hao will shoot "Lost on Journey 2" around mid-year, and only after finishing it will start "You Who Came from the Stars."

Qi Hao will again be the director this time.

Since the beginning of the year, he began drawing storyboards, using his photographic memory to learn many drawing theories.

Unfortunately, the eyes say they've learned, but the hands are still no good.

Looks like he's indeed not talented in this aspect.

On February 20th, Qi Hao attended Sha Yi's wedding.

The wedding was held at a five-star hotel.

Many celebrities attended.

Feng Xiaogang, Zhang Guoli, Deng Zhao, Xiaoshenyang, and the cast of "The Legend of Martial Arts."

Yao Chen, as one of the lead actors of "The Legend of Martial Arts," naturally came to attend the wedding.

She arrived alone, without bringing that photographer.

Since her divorce and fallout with Ling Xiu Su, this was her first public appearance.

The wedding banned media, but couldn't ban them outside.

She wore a hat and glasses, kept her head down, and was silent.

The media tried interviewing her, but she ignored them.

What could she respond?

She's already begun to feel frightened.

She doesn't know what's happening on her ex-husband's side, nor why he's showing such a crazy level of counterattack.

Based on her understanding of her ex-husband's abilities and personality.

Her ex-husband's struggles would be rather ridiculous.

Moreover, she always felt her ex-husband still had lingering feelings for her, wouldn't have the heart to directly retaliate and expose her scandal.

Unexpectedly, everything spun out of control.

The ex-husband is now like a mad dog.

She fears speaking more would cause more mistakes, in case more scandals get exposed by the ex-husband.

In the entertainment world, apart from agents, the most knowing about celebrities are their companions.

Any filth or dark tidbits, the companion knows perfectly well; really push them too far, they can strip you bare.

If even a companion can't expose any filth about you, it only shows you could become a saint.

Today, Yao Chen refused interviews.

Brought quite a few bodyguards to surround her tightly.

In contrast, Qi Hao and An Feng's security seemed quite insufficient.

Blocked by the media, Qi Hao and An Feng didn't refuse interviews.

"Have you two set the wedding date?"

"Yes, the wedding date is indeed set, May 15th."

"Congratulations to you both, may lovers become partners."

"Thank you."

...

At first, it was basically simple conversation, the media also needing to first numb the interviewees' minds.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.