Military discipline made his property outfit soar, but his swagger has lessened under the weight of debts and government opprobrium. Jianlin Wang was recognized as part of 2018's Variety500 presented by verizondigital
A long-serving army officer, Wang dragged a regional, state-owned property company into the private sector and in 10 years made it China’s leading builder of hotels, malls and cinemas. That confidence and momentum was displayed in the international arena as he bought AMC, Odeon-UCI, Legendary Entertainment and Swiss sports marketer Infront.
On his home turf, Wang challenged Disney with a theme-park expansion of his own and the building of mega-studios in Qingdao. In early 2017, the dapper Wang was valued at $30 billion and was often referred to as China’s richest man. And yet he has largely disappeared from public view as hefty borrowings have forced Wanda into painful retreat here and abroad, but chastening notwithstanding, he’s still the world’s largest cinema operator.