Early life and career
Wang Jianlin was born on 24 October 1954, in Cangxi County, Guangyuan, Sichuan,[7][8] as the oldest of five sons.[9] His father Wang Yiquan was a peasant who fought for Mao Zedong's People's Liberation Army during the Long March (October 1934–October 1935).[9] Retired from the army just before the Korean War, his father, working for the forestry service, and mother Qin Jialin settled in a village in Jinchuan County, Sichuan, where their son would grow up.[9][10] His given name at birth was originally 建林 which can be translated as 'forest builder'.[11]
Wang became a soldier at age 15, lying about his age, and made his way up in the army ranks quickly, becoming a commander at age 27.[9][12] During his time in the army, he served in Chengdu, before being sent to the Shenyang Military Region in 1970.[7] After 17 years in the army, in 1986 Wang started working as the office administrator for the Xigang District in the city of Dalian.[13][14] In 1988, using a $80,000 loan,[15] he took over the small property developer Xigang Residential Development. In 1992, as the company went public as one of the first in a pilot program,[9] he was promoted to general manager and changed the name to Dalian Wanda.
His conglomerate company owns over 21.57 million square metres of commercial real estate across the Chinese mainland, consisting of 168 Wanda Shopping Plazas, 82 luxury hotels, 213 cinemas, 99 department stores, and 54 karaoke centers. The company has also became the world's largest theatre owner in 2012 when it acquired AMC Theatres. He bought out the American-based AMC Entertainment for US$2.6 billion. He listed it on the New York Stock Exchange in December. He flew in leading Hollywood celebrities Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Beckinsale, and John Travolta to help launch a US$8 billion mini-Hollywood in the coastal city of Qingdao in January 2014.
Wanda Group acquired the landmark Edificio España building in Madrid, Spain, in March 2014 from Grupo Santander for "about a third less than the €389 million that Banco Santander paid in 2005, at the height of Spain's construction boom".[16] Previously, Dalian Wanda had taken on billion-dollar hotel development projects in London and New York, as well as property projects in India.
In 2014, he acquired land at 9900 Wilshire Boulevard in Beverly Hills, California, US to build the American headquarters named "One Beverly Hills" of his entertainment company.[17]
In January 2015, it was reported that he was buying a 20 per cent stake in the Spanish football club Atlético Madrid for €45m.[18] He sold his stake to Quantum Pacific Group for an undisclosed fee in 2018.[19][20]
In 2016, Wang launched a direct competition with Disney by declaring that he wants to make sure Shanghai Disneyland Park doesn't make any money in China by launching over a dozen competing amusement parks.[21] In November 2016 Wang's Dalian Wanda Group announced plans to acquire Dick Clark Productions for about US$1 billion, giving it the broadcasting rights to the Golden Globe Awards, the Academy of Country Music Awards and the New Year countdown celebrations in New York.[22] Wanda already owns Legendary Entertainment, co-producer of films such as Jurassic World and U.S. cinema chain AMC Entertainment Holdings.[23]
The Economist has called Wang "a man of Napoleonic ambition", citing his military background in the PLA, where he rose from border guard to regimental commander. He enforces "iron discipline" in the workplace, where employees are fined when they violate the company's conservative dress code. Despite his age, he has a "trim figure".[24]
