Dong Haisheng had initially intended to remove the scenes related to Hailong, making the character a mere figment of imagination, much like Empress Chunyuan.
However, upon further thought, he recalled that in the drama "The Legend of Chunyuan Musk," Zheng Xiaolong had not cast any other actresses to play Empress Chunyuan.
Besides adhering to the original work, it was also because the actor playing the Emperor, Teacher Jianbing, had a wife in real life, Jiang Qinqin (alias), who was a staggeringly beautiful woman.
Even more surprising was that Jiang Qinqin bore a slight resemblance to Sun Li, the actress who played Zhen Huan.
Therefore, the production team didn't need to cast other actresses to portray Empress Chunyuan. By simply comparing Jiang Qinqin's historical costumes over the years, the perfect image of Empress Chunyuan would naturally form in the audience's minds.
Hailong, however, was different.
None of the male leads or supporting actors in the film had a goddess-level wife or girlfriend to match in real life.
Thus, this role had to be cast with an actress, and she had to be the one with the highest颜值 (yan zhi - face value) and the best acting skills, otherwise, it would lack credibility.
Dong Haisheng had his own artistic pursuits and strived for perfection in filmmaking.
Having finally found an actress who could play Hailong, he naturally wouldn't give up.
Seeing Dong Haisheng's willingness to spare no expense, the assistant director couldn't help but show a hint of regret.
Dong Haisheng was a genius in filmmaking, with exceptionally high artistic attainments in this area.
When the assistant director saw the script, he knew this film was destined to be a classic. He then thought about arranging for his niece, who was hovering at the tail end of second-tier artists, to take on the role.
By using the character of Hailong as a stepping stone, she could smoothly enter the film industry, then gain prestige, improve her status, boost her popularity, and see if there was a chance to break into the first tier.
He hadn't expected Dong Haisheng to accept the offer from Liuyun Media. It seemed his eldest niece had no chance.
Although the assistant director was somewhat unwilling, he also knew Jiang Ling's status and that his niece stood no chance of competing with her.
On the side of Liuyun Media, after Dong Haisheng agreed to the offer, they notified Sister Sa to ask Jiang Ling if she was willing to act in the film.
The biggest difference between platinum artists and gold-tier artists is that platinum artists possess complete freedom and choice.
Many people complain about gold-tier artists being demanding, but they don't realize that they are also canaries in the capital's hands.
Some things are simply not up to them to decide; they usually act in whatever the company arranges for them, which is why there are so many bad movies.
Platinum artists are different; they have the right to refuse to perform in scripts they deem to be bad.
Therefore, Liuyun Media's agreement alone was not enough; Jiang Ling herself had to be willing for it to count.
"Lingzi, what do you think?" Sister Sa asked.
"Let me see the script first, then I'll consider it!"
Jiang Ling knew that anything arranged by the system must be a masterpiece, but she still had to put on a show.
"Okay!"
Sister Sa quickly handed the printed script to Jiang Ling.
The system had informed her in advance that this drama was a classic masterpiece, but it had to be buried for ten years before it could be reborn and amaze the world.
Jiang Ling was curious about what kind of drama it was. If it was a classic, why would it be buried?
Could it be like "Da Ming Dynasty 1566," where the premiere ratings tanked, it was forced off the air within ten days, and it was only ten years later that a streaming platform casually brought it back and it became popular again, achieving classic status?
Opening the script, Jiang Ling's brow furrowed as she began to read, and the frown deepened with every page.
After finishing the thin few pages, she couldn't figure it out, so she read it again.