Stars not the lone success factor for films

A recent list of the top 100 Chinese mainland celebrities' pay for starring in a film or TV serial has left people open-mouthed, as their fees range from 5 million yuan ($750,000) to 80 million yuan for a film, and 50 million yuan to 100 million yuan for a TV serial. Which means even after paying the personal income tax, a celebrity can make a helluva lot of money, not counting his or her earnings from advertisements and other sources.

The public criticism about such high celebrity earnings had not made any difference to the trend, that is, until September when the administrative departments of the media and entertainment industries issued a regulation stipulating that actors' pay should not exceed 40 percent of the production cost of a movie or TV serial.

Before that, it was common to hear some producers complaining that the leading actors could take home more than 70 percent of a film's or TV serial's budget, while ruing the declining standard of their work.