The fantasy action film “Legend,” starring Jackie Chan and with an investment of 360 million yuan (RMB, hereinafter), released in mainland China on July 10, experienced a massive box office flop. As of August 11, the film’s total box office revenue was only 79.9 million yuan, estimated to have incurred losses exceeding 300 million yuan. This also propelled Jackie Chan to surpass Andy Lau, who starred in “The Adventurers,” as the actor with the highest losses for the year.
Following its release on July 10, “Legend” grossed 71 million yuan at the box office after one week, with the total box office revenue reaching only 79.9 million yuan by August 11. According to Tencent News, the mainland-listed company “Bonafilm,” which is the main investor in the Sino-Hong Kong co-produced film directed by a Hong Kong director, poured in 50 million U.S. dollars (about 364 million yuan), leaving no room for recovery this time. “Legend” has become the “first box office disaster” of the summer season in mainland China.
Some netizens who watched the film commented that the reported cost of 360 million yuan for the movie was no exaggeration. Despite the poor quality of the film, they felt that the money was spent sincerely, as even without considering the actors’ salaries, the film’s production costs included expenses for maintaining 12,000 horses for shooting war scenes, which were exorbitant.
“Legend” tells the story of Jackie Chan’s character, a male lead in a tale of past and present lives. The film was shot using a combination of traditional real scenes and AI facial replacement techniques. Jackie Chan’s facial features as the ancient general Zhao Zhan were digitally altered to make him look 27 years old, which became one of the film’s major selling points.
Some viewers provided feedback that the “AI Jackie Chan” in the film initially appeared handsome but lacked blinking eyes and hardly showed any expressions. Additionally, the proportions of the “AI Jackie Chan” did not match Jackie Chan himself, meaning that while his facial features were used, the body belonged to someone else. There were rumors that the male star Zheng Ye Cheng, who portrayed the soldier Ye Cheng in the film, served as the body double for “AI Jackie Chan,” making him the true “hidden protagonist” in the whole movie.
From its preview screenings, “Legend” had been heavily scrutinized, and the film received negative reviews upon release. Coupled with the release of Shen Teng’s “The Claw Machine” on July 13, all these factors contributed to “Legend” becoming a box office disaster. According to the revenue-sharing agreement where the film takes 37% of the box office earnings, “Legend” is expected to suffer losses exceeding 300 million yuan.
The lackluster box office performance of “Legend,” as well as several other action films starring Jackie Chan, have left many mainland investors feeling frustrated. As a result, mainland investment has accelerated its retreat from Hong Kong films. According to reports by Hong Kong 01, the producer of the recent Hong Kong film “Kowloon Walled City Siege,” Chen Luo Chao, revealed that “some mainland movie companies will temporarily suspend investments and distributions of Hong Kong films.” Initially dismissed as alarmist, recent revelations by East Net indicated that two upcoming films, Jackie Chan’s directorial project “New Police Story 2” and the film “Infinite Mission” in which he co-stars with William Chan, were abruptly put on hold.
Nicknamed the “Crown Prince of Emperor Group” in Hong Kong, Jackie Chan is seen as inheriting the mantle of action movies from Jackie Chan and is considered representative of the “future of Hong Kong cinema.” When Chinese actress Zhao Wei faced a ban earlier, rumors circulated that foreign nationals in the Chinese entertainment industry could be the next targets. At that time, as a Canadian national, Jackie Chan appeared on Chinese state television, declaring his intention to renounce his Canadian citizenship and proclaiming, “I am simply a Chinese person,” sparking discussions among netizens that “Jackie Chan is really going all out to film in mainland China,” and “The Chinese government can turn its back on anyone at any time, even if he truly renounces his Canadian citizenship, there is no guarantee, which makes it not worthwhile.”