Chapter 62: Nationwide Sensation, The Hype Surrounding the Hacker AI

Chapter 62: Sensations Across the Entire Internet, The Hype Surrounding Hacker AI

Qin Feng took a breath and looked at the group of people.

"The pacing, the suspense, and the action are all good. Let's go with this one!"

"Do you all have the posters ready? Release the posters and the trailer simultaneously. Send them out shortly! Let me know once it's done."

"Got it."

"Understood."

Several heads of department walked out.

A dozen minutes later, several major movie websites, the official Warner Bros. website, and social media platforms simultaneously released the movie trailer and three posters.

Shortly after the release, the trailer and posters caused an immediate sensation throughout the film circle.

"Huh? Did I read that wrong? Warner's sci-fi movie trailer is finally out!"

"Good lord, have they finally finished filming? Quick, save it to favorites and watch it immediately."

"Good grief! I've finished watching it, and I'm totally hooked. It seems to feature both a real world and a virtual world, with some intense fight scenes."

"Eh? The lead actor is Keanu Reeves. He finally has a new movie coming out! He is breathtakingly handsome, this is way too cool!"

"I don't care anymore, I'm definitely going to recommend this movie to my friends. There are men in black, there are agents—the full feature film is bound to be extremely dazzling too!"

"Definitely. This trailer successfully whetted my appetite. Let me check who the director is..."

"..."

Qin Feng reposted it at the very first moment, accompanied by a piece of text:

[The film is still in post-production, but the first trailer and posters are presented here for your enjoyment. Please continue to follow The Matrix. If likes exceed ten thousand, I will share behind-the-scenes footage.]

A flood of comments appeared underneath:

"Tears in my eyes. Director Qin, you've finally updated! This time it's finally not a low-budget movie."

"Director Qin, Director Qin, I'm your hardcore fan. I've already liked the post. I'm begging everyone to hurry up and like it too; I want to see the behind-the-scenes footage!"

"So cool! This movie is so ahead of its time! But I suppose artificial intelligence is still far away from us right now, so everyone doesn't need to worry at all."

"Oh please, it's just a movie. Just watch it, buddy."

"It's called The Matrix? That's great, I'll go watch it with my girlfriends when it comes out. By the way, when is the director going to upload a selfie? Waiting online."

"That's right, that's right, post pictures!"

"Posting pictures +1."

"Posting pictures +1, preferably with long hair tied in a braid."

Qin Feng: "o(╯□╰)o"

Are you guys even paying attention to the movie at all?!

...

Meanwhile, netizens who loved the movie's concept sparked a widespread craze regarding hackers and AI.

People began searching the internet for information related to artificial intelligence and the relationship between future humans and AI.

Some people even brought up Asimov's "Three Laws of Robotics":

First Law: A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.

Second Law: A robot must obey orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.

Third Law: A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.

Although these laws pertained to robots, netizens engaged in fierce discussions based on them.

Major media outlets also jumped on the bandwagon, instantly pushing the topic of artificial intelligence onto the trending searches.

[Discussing the Struggle Between Illusion and Reality—Warner Bros. Dips Its Toes into Artificial Intelligence Cinema.]

[Warner Bros.' New Sci-Fi Film Explores the War Between Humans and AI.]

[Decoding Real Computer Hackers and Exploring the Hacker Community Around You and Me.]

[We Will Eventually Have a War with Artificial Intelligence in the Future; America Must Never Lose!]

[North American Experts Offer Suggestions: Artificial Intelligence Should Be Subject to Legal Restrictions and Not Allowed to Develop Unchecked.]

[...]

Warner Bros. Headquarters.

Over the past couple of days, Joseph looked at the trending topics online with immense excitement, grinning from ear to ear. He said to supervising producer Stoff:

"Hahaha... Brilliant, absolutely brilliant! We've finally made it to the Twitter trending list."

"Director Qin Feng has pushed the gimmick of artificial intelligence right into the spotlight. Wonderful!"

"At this rate, global box office earnings reaching 500 to 600 million shouldn't be much of a problem."

"This money was truly well spent!"

Stoff was also very happy. After all, he had been following the production team the entire time, and he had witnessed Qin Feng's performance firsthand. He held Qin Feng's working ability in high regard.

He reminded him:

"Manager Joseph, Director Qin is Chinese. When we handle the distribution, shouldn't we step up our promotional efforts in the Chinese market?"

"In recent years, box office revenues in China have started to surge, and the number of theaters is growing rapidly."

Joseph thought for a moment, tapping his plump fingers on the desk.

"You're completely right, Stoff. I'll discuss this with the distribution manager shortly. Starting with this film, we will step up promotional efforts for the Chinese film market."

"If any film fails to be released simultaneously in China, it would be an absolute loss—completely unforgivable."

...

Qin Feng browsed the internet to check the situation.

He was very satisfied with the recent online public opinion; this was precisely the effect he wanted.

He picked up the landline and dialed the phone number of Director of Photography Pope.

"Pope, it's Qin Feng."

"Ah, Director Qin, go ahead."

"Hurry up and edit a few behind-the-scenes clips, preferably the ones that don't involve spoilers. We'll release them online one by one over the next few days."

"Oh, and include the footage of Keanu and the others undergoing martial arts special training; those are even better."

"Got it."

...

The behind-the-scenes footage was edited very quickly.

Meanwhile, Qin Feng opened Twitter and saw that the number of likes on the trailer had already exceeded ten thousand.

Since that was the case, he decisively uploaded a behind-the-scenes clip.

The footage featured videos of Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss, and other actors undergoing special training in the early stages of filming.

In the video, they learned martial arts choreography and two-person sparring from Collin Chou, performing with impressive skill.

At the very end of the video, the actors were suspended on wire harnesses, performing various high-difficulty stunts with utmost dedication.

Once the behind-the-scenes footage was uploaded, the netizens lost their composure.

"The director really uploaded behind-the-scenes clips! Brothers, wake up, hurry up and repost!"

"Let me see, is this Keanu practicing kung fu? As expected, the director is Chinese, incorporating quite a few Eastern elements! I get it now!"

"I can only say Keanu looks drop-dead handsome, and the rest of the cast are fantastic. Everyone is so dedicated, and I really love such a hardworking cast. The director truly put his heart into this."

"Keanu is invincible! He truly deserves to be my idol! By the way, the other night when I went to Westwood in Los Angeles, I actually saw their team out for dinner. There were so many people. If anyone wants to see photos, please send me a private message."

"I'm envious, wait for me to add you."

"..."

Meanwhile, Warner's distribution team increased its promotional investment in the Chinese market, launching collaborations with three companies including Time Web.

Far away in China, major entertainment websites also posted promotional information such as trailers.

[Chinese Director Qin Feng Transitions to Hollywood to Direct Sci-Fi Action Blockbuster.]

[Sci-Fi Film The Matrix Directed by Qin Feng Takes Foreign Internet by Storm; Catch a Sneak Peek of the Trailer!]

[Hollywood's The Matrix Stems from a Chinese Director's Hands, Displaying Kung Fu Elements in the Trailer.]

[Chinese Director Qin Feng Achieves Hollywood Comeback and Rises from the Ashes!]

(End of this chapter)