The advance team had boarded the flight to the United States.
And around this time, news of our movie’s production began to spread to the world.
-Chief stars Heavenly Yuah, White Siu, and Nam Hyun-ho. Fantastical action blockbuster “Code Number: 7” aiming for a fall release?
-Young prodigy Nam Hyun-a, famous at Sundance. Following “Brotherhood,” once again collaborating with Nam Hyun-ho.
This side also didn’t reveal much.
It’s just that some things inevitably had to be disclosed.
With news of the production of “Code Number: 7” following “Revenge,” anticipation among movie fans continues to build.
Because, in this stagnant market for theaters, it’s surprising that not one, but two Korean blockbusters are currently in production.
“Of course, whether they’ll be hits is something we have to wait and see.”
Since neither of the two works exist in my memory, it’s hard to predict how they’ll perform at the box office.
Inside the plane en route to L.A.,
I skimmed through the news about our movie’s production as well as the airport fashion photos that had just gone up, then turned off my smartphone.
Heavenly Yuah’s airport fashion today—jeans, blouse, and a cardigan—was once again steadily racking up clicks.
She just has that kind of figure; no matter what she wears, it always looks good on her.
And sitting beside me was Heavenly Yuah, who yet again managed to make a living for reporters, deeply engrossed in something.
Even though they were asking her to power down electronic devices for takeoff, she was still focused on the screen, giving the impression that she was reading something monumental.
“…Yoo-a senior. Your phone…”
“Ah, right.”
“What on earth are you reading with such intensity?”
“Webso.”
“Webso? Web novel?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“Wait, why on earth are you reading a web novel all of a sudden?”
Though there’s no rule saying that Heavenly Yuah can’t read web novels, it still feels a bit out of place seeing someone so refined delving into what seems like subculture.
Anyway, it must be a romance novel, right? Reading romances isn’t really that big of a deal, but if it goes into the BL territory, even Heavenly Yuah might have some trouble…
“Are you reading a romance?”
“No, why would I read that?”
“Not a romance, then? What are you reading?”
“Obviously, it’s male-oriented content.”
“…Male-oriented?”
So, I asked what she was reading, and, to my surprise, she was indeed looking at male-oriented content.
And the reason for it… well, it’s quite something.
“Do you have a particular reason for reading male-oriented web novels?”
“It’s not much. Male-oriented stories are about what men like in the female protagonists.”
“…I suppose that would make sense?”
“That’s why I’m doing some research. Seeing what kind of women men prefer.”
“Ah, I see…”
“It can’t be helped. In this area, I’m nowhere near as skilled as Su-yeon, right? That woman… she’s…”
“Definitely…”
From my perspective, Moon Suyeon seems quite intimidating, but in this area, she truly is a specialist.
The woman who graduated top of her class from the distinguished courtesan curriculum of Hao Moon is an SSS-tier specialist.
Her technique in winning over men practically feels like a passive ability.
In contrast, Heavenly Yuah is practically a newborn in this regard.
Still, the question remains whether she can actually gain anything meaningful from male-oriented web novels.
“So, have you gained anything from them?”
“I’ve gained confidence, at least.”
“Is that so?”
“Apparently, if a character is pretty, there’s a good chance they get favored first. Blonde hair and blue eyes also seem to score some serious points. And above all…”
“Yes?”
“In the world of these web novels, Heavenly Demons are often overflowing with righteousness.”
What she said is absurd but not incorrect.
In most novels, Heavenly Demons do lean toward being righteous figures.
Without a Heavenly Demon, I don’t know, but when there is one, they’re practically always beautiful, and they have a very high probability of being the rightful queen.
“Something that would make Su-yeon senior faint, I suppose.”
“What’s wrong with that? She’s not here.”
“That’s true…”
Moon Suyeon didn’t manage to join the first exploration team this time.
Her role in this movie was a striking supporting character, and her appearance wasn’t extensive.
With her currently focused on promotional events, she was scheduled to visit the U.S. with the follow-up team.
Generally, the company wouldn’t force such events on anyone, but she personally requested and took on the schedule.
This woman has been quite serious about making money lately.
—Huh-hum~ I’ve got to think about independency. All Siwoo has to do is show up; I’ll have everything ready.
It’s clear from her attitude that she is planning her post-independence life, starting from finding a new apartment. Though, I am slightly worried about her back.
With the good settlement ratio of our company, if she starts performing at concerts, releasing albums, and attending events, she could probably afford a nice apartment pretty soon.
“Well, whatever, let’s move on. Let’s talk about the future. To be honest, I have something I’m concerned about.”
“…Concerned about?”
“Yes, concerns.”
“What’s up?”
“Revenge. That’s the issue.”
As I recalled Moon Suyeon’s spirited declaration of independence, I felt a bit stupefied.
But then Heavenly Yuah reinvigorated the conversation by bringing up her worries about “Revenge.”
“Revenge,” Of course, losing Dream Meta Studio stings, but why should we particularly care about another movie?
“If you’re worried, what exactly are you concerned about?”
“The release date. I have a feeling it might coincide with ours.”
“Wha-what? Surely not… to that extent.”
“Commonly, there are ‘auspicious dates’ for releases. It just so happens that a date that’s auspicious for us might also be auspicious for others.”
“That’s true, but…”
We spent hundreds of billions to produce these films. With such investments, we must rely on audience numbers.
We have to avoid strong competition, and we need to carefully time our releases.
But people tend to think alike.
Like she said, if a date is good for us, there’s a good chance it’s good for others too.
“Furthermore, D-Pictures never shies away from challenges. And for this movie, we’ve got Yoon Ju-won and Jin Seo-hee, right?”
“True. With that lineup, they might even have higher name recognition than us. Plus, their supporting cast hasn’t been fully revealed, so they likely have something else up their sleeves.”
“And they already control the theaters.”
“If it overlaps, it’ll be troublesome.”
“To be precise, it’ll be troublesome for both sides. It depends on what major Hollywood releases come out during that period.”
“Hmm? This year’s major releases… Oh?”
“What’s wrong?”
“Isn’t this the year when Hollywood’s blockbusters blew up one after another, causing a cinema renaissance?”
Because that year, not one or two, but four major blockbusters came out.
And most of them were scheduled for the latter half of the year.
“This… sticking with Revenge might be the easier route.”
If we have two Korean blockbusters produced back-to-back like this, it’s common sense for them to avoid overlapping release dates.
Especially since D-Pictures controls the theaters, it would make sense for us to give them some space.
However, if we consider that Hollywood’s big blockbusters might be the ones overlapping, it might actually be better to compete directly with Revenge.
If they manage to take up a vacant slot after the Hollywood blockbusters pass, we could be in trouble if we can’t break that hold.
And Heavenly Yuah, with her trademark crisis management skills, seems to have at least partly foreseen such a trend.
Is this woman some kind of beast?
With the information we have now, there’s absolutely no way to predict that our releases with Revenge could coincide.
Who would make such a stupid move? It’s obvious we’d just avoid each other.
No matter how you spin it, she’s not your average woman.
“So, what’s your plan?”
“What do you mean?”
“We need to prepare for contingencies.”
She seemed to have started casually, but from my perspective, it didn’t sound so light.
Judging from the circumstances, it’s clear the conversation might head that way, and Heavenly Yuah likely has something she’s mulling over.
“To some extent, I’ve already prepared. We’ll ensure that any negative news from our side is kept under control and stir up public opinion to prevent Revenge from monopolizing the theaters. Beyond that, there’s nothing much we can do since nothing is final yet.”
“…Is that so?”
“Why? Do you have any concerns?”
“I just feel like something’s missing.”
“So, it’s just about managing our potential setbacks and making sure we have fair access to theaters?”
Though if we’re confident in our movie, preventing external risks is enough. But suggesting this plan comes from Heavenly Yuah, or rather the Heavenly Demon, feels overly passive.
Ideally, we should consider things like bribing the rival team, deliberately sabotaging their production schedule, or leaking rumors about the rival actors that could ruin their film. That’s what seems normal in such cases.
“…What exactly are you thinking about?”
“What? No, not really.”
“That doesn’t sound convincing.”
She was probably feeling something was off as she cast me a sharp glance, her suspicion evident on her face.
Since I felt a bit wronged, I suggested what seemed like the most moderate approach to Heavenly Yuah: rumors.
“How about some rumors? They might help.”
“Rumors? What rumors do you think exist?”
“Wh-why not? Isn’t Seo-hee senior known as the scandal maker?”
“Ah, Seo-hee. Yes, that does seem like something that could happen with her. But…”
Regardless of what happens with Yoon Ju-won, Jin Seo-hee seems like the kind of person who could provoke some scandals.
During the awards ceremony, Jin Seo-hee, who had given me her contact details, was known as the queen bee of the industry.
There’s even talk that she’s a top-star detector in a different sense from Heavenly Yuah.
I once heard that if you’re involved in a scandal with Jin Seo-hee, you’re destined to become a top star.
That’s why Heavenly Yuah was quite sensitive during the awards ceremony.
She warned me to be cautious because every time Jin Seo-hee joins a movie, scandals inevitably erupt.
When it comes to Jin Seo-hee, some problems might arise, but…
“Actually, Jin Seo-hee’s scandals don’t even make news anymore.”
“…Is it really that bad?”
“Yes, that bad.”
Because she has caused so many scandals, the public barely reacts anymore these days.
Moreover, her scandals are mostly about rumored relationships, and in other aspects, she’s quite exemplary.
She makes generous donations and actively engages in volunteer work.
In fact, she’s so convincing at portraying heartfelt emotions during scandals that she now even garners support from her fans, who wish that she’ll settle down properly this time.
Such things are all too real, making it seem even more absurd.
This woman is undeniably one for the history books in terms of character.
“Yoon Ju-won senior is famous for being cautious, so there probably isn’t much there. We’ll have to see how the situation develops.”
A woman so notorious that scandals no longer elicit any reaction, paired with a male lead known for his meticulous self-care.
It’s not a combination that would seem likely to produce drama.
So, in the end, it’s just a battle of skills, which will undoubtedly be tiring.
“Frankly, I wish we could have included Tae-kyu.”
A 30-billion-won production with Tae-kyu?
Just imagining it makes me want to burst out laughing.
But D-Pictures isn’t that foolish, right?
Unless aliens make an appearance in Revenge, of course.
