At first, Lu Zhiyao was puzzled about what was happening.

He was clearly just a supporting actor, so why was he receiving so much attention?

After carefully reading these film reviews, he finally understood Mr. Pei’s painstaking intentions.

Cui Geng was curious: “Big gains from a cameo role? Even bigger than your lead roles in those two previous films? That doesn’t make sense, does it?”

He found it difficult to understand.

Lu Zhiyao took out his phone, searched for a film review, and handed it to Cui Geng.

“Read this review and you’ll understand.”

Cui Geng reached out to take the phone.

…

This film review had extremely high popularity. The title was: “Today’s Lu Zhiyao Is Not Just a Deserving Award-Winner, But a True Actor!”

“Although Lu Zhiyao’s screen time in ‘The Successor’ is not extensive, far less than in ‘Beautiful Tomorrow’ and ‘Mission and Choice,’ I believe this drama’s significance far exceeds the previous two films.”

“Because it represents Lu Zhiyao’s transformation ‘from actor to award-winner, and then from award-winner back to actor.'”

“Once a person becomes famous, it’s easy to get carried away, to lose oneself, and this is especially true for actors.”

“Forget about famous award-winners; even those newcomers who have just debuted but have secured many resources—which one of them isn’t extremely picky about scripts?”

“Of course, as a good actor, one should be selective about scripts. Refusing poor scripts and choosing to perform in good ones is normal and entirely correct.”

“But many fresh-faced actors don’t select scripts this way at all. They select scripts based solely on payment and billing order. If the money isn’t enough, they won’t film. If they’re not the lead, they won’t film. If the production team doesn’t revolve entirely around them, they also won’t film!”

“They don’t care about, and can’t even discern, the quality of a script. So these newcomers often find perfect agreement with bad film directors: the newcomers want billing priority and to be treated like royalty on set, while the bad directors want to use these newcomers to make money. The two hit it off, but can the resulting film be any good?”

“Even after the film is released, fans will fight over billing order, disparage and attack other actors for not supporting their idol properly, and lavishly praise the nonexistent acting skills of these newcomers.”

“Some actors even publicly complain that there are too few good scripts nowadays, that they simply can’t get good scripts.”

“Why not reflect on whether it’s truly that good scripts are too scarce, or whether what you consider ‘good scripts’ are too scarce?”

“Why not reflect on the fact that you take the lion’s share of the entire film’s budget, leaving screenwriters with just scraps? When people can barely make ends meet, and the scripts they write are criticized and nitpicked by you, revised again and again, how can there be good scripts?”

“What you call a good script is not truly a ‘good script’ in the genuine sense, but merely a script that’s good in your own eyes. You want to be the lead in the film, with maximum screen time, with all supporting actors and crew revolving around you, to fully showcase your character. On top of this, you hope audiences will enjoy it and the box office will explode.”

“Why can’t you get scripts like this? Don’t you have a clue?”

“Why do some so-called award-winners pick scripts for ages, yet end up filming nothing but trash? Don’t you have a clue?”

“It’s because you’re too selfish, only thinking about yourselves, without considering the screenwriters, the production team, or what audiences want to see and enjoy. With such an attitude, it would be a miracle if you could actually get good scripts!”

“In contrast, Lu Zhiyao undoubtedly demonstrates the professional quality of an actor.”

“He is also an award-winner, and currently one of the hottest in the country. Not only does his appearance and physical condition far outshine fresh faces, but his acting skills also completely outclass them. From ‘Beautiful Tomorrow’ to ‘Mission and Choice,’ Lu Zhiyao has consistently challenged himself with more diverse roles.”

“From initially being box office poison to later masterfully handling all difficult roles, Lu Zhiyao has clearly put in far more effort behind the scenes than ordinary people.”

“Many people envy Lu Zhiyao because he had scripts like ‘Beautiful Tomorrow’ and ‘Mission and Choice’ to provide him with a perfect stage. Without these two good scripts, Lu Zhiyao’s acting might not have had such a tremendous breakthrough.”

“So many actors might privately feel jealous and resentful, believing they too could have been made famous by these two films if they had played those roles.”

“To this I want to say, be realistic! Lu Zhiyao and these two films achieved success together. Take ‘Mission and Choice’ for example—a film that’s entirely a one-man show. Could you do it? You’d definitely fail!”

“Moreover, it’s precisely because Lu Zhiyao abandoned this kind of mentality that he succeeded!”

“Speaking of script selection, no one has more right to be picky than Lu Zhiyao. He’s no longer box office poison, but a genuine award-winning actor who can single-handedly guarantee a domestic box office of at least one billion yuan, making him the hottest new-generation male actor in the country.”

“If it were some fresh-faced actor, upon seeing the script for ‘The Successor,’ they would definitely demand to play Phil. Why? Because Phil has the most screen time as the lead! But Phil is a foreigner, so what to do? Just change the script, make him Chinese-American!”

“Everyone, think about it carefully. If that situation had occurred, wouldn’t the series have lost its essence? Could it still achieve the success it has now?”

“But what did Lu Zhiyao do? Did he care about being the lead? Not at all.”

“He honestly and properly played a cameo role, portraying an ordinary Chinese-American superhero, with screen time completely within reasonable bounds for the entire series. His acting was solid, his performance appropriate, without any attempt to overshadow the main characters or steal scenes.”

“Including Zhang Zuting and others, it’s precisely because they set aside their status and earnestly played their roles well that ‘The Successor’ achieved harmony and perfection as a complete series.”

“That’s why I say Lu Zhiyao has completed the transformation ‘from actor to award-winner, and then from award-winner back to actor.'”

“Initially, Lu Zhiyao was just an ordinary actor who became an award-winner through constantly refining his acting skills. After becoming an award-winner, he didn’t become arrogant or complacent, nor did he rest on his laurels. Instead, he continued to remain grounded, always remembering that ‘award-winner’ is just an empty title, and that he is, in essence, still an actor.”

“A true actor should embody every role they play, rather than making every role resemble themselves.”

“Therefore, we should pay tribute to Fei Huang Studio, and we should pay tribute to Lu Zhiyao! Because they always put artistry first, audience experience first, and place money, billing, and fame afterward.”

“Reality has already proven that those who put artistry and audience experience first are those who ultimately reap financial rewards and fame, while those who are selfish and always put themselves first will inevitably end up with neither wealth nor reputation!”

…

After reading this review, Cui Geng nodded with sudden understanding: “So that’s it!”

No wonder Lu Zhiyao was so grateful.

For an actor, this kind of reputation and evaluation was far more precious than the payment!

Although reputation might seem intangible, it would concretely affect an actor’s box office drawing power.

Many actors exhaust their reputations by filming bad movies for quick cash. In the short term, they might indeed make money, but they soon lose the audience’s trust and fade into obscurity.

Conversely, continuously building a reputation, moving audiences with one quality work after another, inevitably leads to steady ascension, reaping both critical acclaim and box office success.

Lu Zhiyao indeed didn’t earn much money from “The Successor.” Although Mr. Pei was always generous, his role was just a cameo. For someone of Lu Zhiyao’s current market value, a cameo fee was basically negligible.

But the key was that his willingness as an award-winner to play a cameo, to be a supporting actor for others, all for the sake of presenting a better effect for the audience—this behavior won countless fans!

This formed a stark contrast with those restless actors who only thought about being leads and having top billing.

With the aura of such a reputation, Lu Zhiyao’s public image and box office drawing power would inevitably reach a new level.

People would think: if films where Lu Zhiyao plays a cameo are this good, then films where Lu Zhiyao is the lead must be incredible!

In the future, as long as Lu Zhiyao participated in a film, regardless of the length of time or amount of screen time, people would consider watching it.

For an actor, was there any higher praise than this?

Lu Zhiyao explained: “Actually, I thought about it, and there’s another reason.”

“Most of the faces in ‘The Successor’ are foreigners, so domestic audiences and film critics don’t have a very deep impression of them.”

“As familiar faces to the audience, we naturally receive more attention.”

“From this perspective, I’ve really benefited greatly from ‘The Successor’!”

Cui Geng suddenly realized that this was indeed a very important reason.

Although the actor playing Phil had more screen time and good acting skills, he was ultimately a foreign actor, developing his career in the foreign entertainment industry.

For domestic audiences, despite his substantial screen time, he remained an “outsider.”

Lu Zhiyao and the others, however, were their own people.

The domestic buzz could never cross the ocean to those foreign actors, so it was naturally all consumed by Lu Zhiyao and the other domestic actors.

That’s why Lu Zhiyao felt that playing this cameo role had been a big win.

He originally thought he was doing Mr. Pei a favor, but in the end, Mr. Pei had elevated him again.

Cui Geng couldn’t help but marvel: “Mr. Pei is really amazing! He even calculated this!”

Huang Sibo shook his head slightly: “That’s not quite right.”

“If we say this was also meticulously arranged by Mr. Pei, that would be too deliberate. It’s not that Mr. Pei doesn’t have this ability, but rather that there’s no necessity for it.”

“These fine details all fall within the realm of technique, but Mr. Pei has long reached a state of mastering formlessness, where internal skill alone is sufficient.”

“For Fei Huang Studio, it’s about making good, distinctive films, with everything else secondary to this requirement. But if this is achieved, all other benefits, whether money or fame, will follow.”

“So, as long as everyone works hard to make a good film, everything else will naturally come!”