King of Hollywood

Chapter 267: Chapter 265: Response and Trade-Offs

Chapter 267: Chapter 265: Response and Trade-Offs

“Although ‘Schindler’s List’ currently has the best situation, we can’t relax too much in our lobbying efforts, as there have been many instances in history where complacency led to last-minute defeats,” Adrian said in Laverne’s office.

These matters had always been personally discussed in his office, and he rarely called other related staff members, an initiative that maintained Laverne’s authority within the company. Facing the trust of his boss, Laverne naturally reciprocated, and the matters entrusted to him rarely failed.

“Alright, I’ll maintain close contact with all the relevant parties,” Laverne nodded and quickly jotted a note in his memo pad.

“As for the other aspects…” Adrian pondered for a few minutes, “Go all out on the public relations for Tom Hanks as Best Actor, and if necessary, we can give up on Holly Hunter for Best Actress!”

Laverne was slightly surprised, knowing that once Adrian made a decision it wouldn’t change, but out of duty, he reminded, “Relative to Tom, Holly’s support rate is a bit higher, Ed.”

“I know,” Adrian nodded, “but as you know, I’m preparing a new movie adapted from Winston’s political satire novel, and I’ve picked Tommy for the leading role. If nothing unexpected happens, there’s an 80% chance he’ll be next year’s Best Actor at the Oscars.”

When Adrian said this, how could Laverne not understand? Just two years ago, Adrian had spoken to him in the same manner, and last year’s Oscars had proven his ability to deliver on his promises, so Laverne had no hesitation or doubt: “I understand.”

Adrian took a long breath. Before this, Tom Hanks hadn’t given him a definite answer, but immediately after this year’s Oscar nominations were announced, Hanks phoned him, willing to take the role. Adrian was well aware that this wasn’t about Hanks himself but equally knew what role his agent had played during this period.

It was normal; agents served actors but first considered their own interests. The more the actors earned, the more the agents earned, so they preferred to persuade actors to take on roles with higher fees, and sometimes they would find ways to decline certain less attractive offers privately. A-list actors and long-established stars had a considerable degree of autonomy, but secondary and emerging actors were often exploited by their agents, which is why some said these guys were like vampires, but unlike traditional vampires, these ones still diligently carried out their responsibilities after feeding.

Adrian had encountered such treatment when he first invited Pacino to star in ‘Scent of a Woman.’ But now, with the title of Miracle Director, it was worth contemplating if such treatment was still appropriate. He could even imagine the agent persuading Hanks: “Look, he may have landed Al Pacino an Oscar statuette, but that doesn’t guarantee he can do the same for another person. It’s all about luck, and we can’t put our luck in one person’s hands. Yes, I know you promised him, but appearing in ‘Philadelphia Story’ is enough, plus you agreed to that at a party.”

When Adrian last discussed the script with Hanks, there were some opinions, and given the continuous persuasion from the agent, and since he had been busy with his affairs since entering 1994, he hadn’t had much contact with Hanks, hence the delay in getting a definitive response. Of course, once the nomination list was announced, the agent had nothing more to say, as just mentioned, A-list actors had substantial autonomy, and there have been cases where agents were fired for hiding certain role offers from their employers.

Although not pleased, Adrian didn’t plan to settle the account now; after all, Hanks had agreed, and at least he was a decent person. Besides, sometimes it might be more beneficial to dig through old accounts after some time.

“Of course, if possible, try to do some PR for Holly too. You’ll need to manage that balance yourself, Laverne,” Adrian reflected and then added.

“I’ll be careful,” Laverne nodded in understanding.

Although Adrian had noticed this point before and started guiding Spielberg to establish his own film company early on, Bossworth Film Company’s limelight was slightly excessive. Last year’s double Best Picture nominations were passable, but this year’s double Best Picture nominations, with one nearly a sure thing, was naturally not good news for other film companies.

Moreover, in just three short years, Bossworth Film Company, which had once been on a downward slope, reemerged as a second-tier film company in Hollywood with significant influence in independent film production. Although the number of films produced and distributed was not large, 70% were profitable, an achievement that no one would overlook. Even the Big Seven companies couldn’t guarantee that over 70% of their films would make money, let alone turn a large profit.

The top brass of the film industry was well aware of who pioneered such a situation for Bossworth Film Company, and with the meteoric rise of its parent company AC Media, who were currently negotiating an acquisition with TBS, even though Bossworth had good relations with Universal, Fox, and several other companies, when certain interests were at stake, the big companies might join hands to suppress it, just like what DreamWorks had faced in Adrian’s memory.

However, there wasn’t too much to worry about, as there are no eternal friends, only eternal interests. Moreover, AC Media had already entered Viacom’s board of directors by leveraging the opportunity to acquire Paramount and had also established good relations with Jewish organizations through ‘Schindler’s List,’ along with already having a significant network. As long as Claude played his cards well in alliance-building, any suppression could be minimized.

Adrian instructed Laverne to collaborate with Claude this way, hoping that as long as they secure Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actor, they could let go of the other awards.

After all, “Philadelphia Story” only managed to get nominated for Best Original Score this time, as the theme song, produced by a record company under AC Media, was not as good as the original version. Even though it was a surprise to get the nomination for Best Original Score, it was almost in John Williams’s pocket. “The Piano Lesson” also lacked a nomination for Best Supporting Actress, which shows there is still a great deal of randomness in these things. Campion chose a New Zealander named Nancy Wall as the daughter of the female lead, and although her performance was decent, it wasn’t nomination-worthy.

Although giving up the lead actress role was somewhat regrettable, it wasn’t a big deal – it was still uncertain who would come out on top. Holly was also prepared to do her own lobbying. Moreover, it wouldn’t affect Adrian’s current reputation; after all, he had his name attached as a producer to three films. Everyone knows his role in “The Piano Lesson” was nominal, but it was a fact that he was the one who recommended Holly Hunter.

Furthermore, with Nissen and Hanks both nominated for Best Actor, and Fiennes for Best Supporting Actor, that would be enough to maintain the prestige of the ‘Miracle Director’—or, more precisely, his prestige within the industry.

After settling the Oscar strategy, Adrian handed everything over to Laverne, as usual, and then began preparing for a new movie. Last year he produced a film that was only being released this year, which was hardly fitting for a workaholic’s reputation. He’d been too relaxed for too long and it was time to exert some force. However, before that, he had to deal with some trouble—or rather interesting issues—that arose unexpectedly.

“Hello, Monica, I’m so pleased to see you again,” Julia greeted, holding out her hand to Monica with her chin slightly raised, displaying a touch of arrogance. She was wearing a black women’s jacket over a pair of shorts of the same color that reached halfway down her thighs, and high-heeled sandals on her feet, revealing her long, well-proportioned legs. Her brown, wavy hair draped over her shoulders added to her temperament.

“I’m also very happy to see you again, Julia,” Monica replied with a smile as she shook hands, without any other expression but tightening her grip on Adrian’s arm. She wore a purple, low-cut, spaghetti-strap dress that accentuated her exceptionally full bust even more, especially the deep cleavage between them which was very enticing.

Now, that cleavage was pressed against Adrian’s arm, and she even brushed against him a few times. Such a provocative gesture immediately caused Julia’s expression to shift slightly.

“You have a fabulous figure, Monica, I guess you must have put a lot of effort into maintaining it,” Julia said with a light laugh, eyes firmly on her. Monica, though maintaining a smile, did not mince her words in response: “Yes, after all, sometimes having a good figure is enough for a woman.”

The two women thus stood their ground without yielding, with sparks and lightning seemingly crackling between their locked gazes.

“Alright, ladies,” Adrian coughed lightly at this moment, “let’s put this debate aside for now. For any beautiful and sexy woman, both figure and temperament are indispensable—like both of you.”

Although he was obviously making a bland diplomatic statement, Monica echoed him, “Indeed—that’s right. Let’s go over there, Ed, I see Director Mandy and others.”

Simultaneously, she pressed her bust even tighter against him, sinking Adrian’s arm almost into her cleavage. She held the upper hand standing beside him, so Monica didn’t care about Julia’s challenge one bit.

Julia, however, was clearly not ready to give up, but seeing Monica phrase it that way, she couldn’t persist without looking bad. She just made a gesture of invitation with an unpleased look and then ignored Adrian as he passed by with an apologetic expression.

Adrian chuckled softly and didn’t take it too seriously. Today was Valentine’s Day and the premiere of “No Reservations,” Monica’s first film as a lead actress. Naturally, he was to attend with her, only he hadn’t expected Julia to show up as well.

But this was not the first time Monica and Julia had encountered each other this way. Previously at a certain party, the two women had met. Then, Adrian had brought Julia, and Monica was on her own, and just like today, sparks flew as soon as the two met, engaging in a verbal clash. That day, Julia had the upper hand, while today, Monica made a comeback. Where the balance tipped was needless to say.

“I’m sure the audience will be in for a big surprise—although what I saw was the incomplete preview version, I can make such a judgment,” Adrian said while discussing the soon-to-be-released film with Director Mandy Gale and others.

“Of course, of course. You know, Monica’s performance was truly fantastic,” Gale said with full confidence.

“Thank you.” Monica’s smile was very seductive, and although she was no longer clinging to Adrian’s arm as before, they still stood intimately close together, an appearance that made their relationship obvious without needing to guess.

“Don’t forget about Leman,” Adrian reminded her, pointing toward the male lead, Leman Atkinson, standing beside Gale.

“Oh, right, right, right, Leman is also quite good,” Gale immediately laughed and patted Atkinson on the shoulder.

Adrian took the opportunity to lean into Monica’s ear and whispered, “I think I need to step away for a bit, Monica.”

“You want to go find her after just a few minutes?” Although Monica’s tone was displeased, her expression was somewhat teasing, “Don’t forget, you’ve made a promise to me, Ed.”

“I know, but it wouldn’t be nice not to check in on her, and last time I came over to comfort you, remember?” Adrian reminded her, while his hand that had been wantonly wandering over Monica’s upturned rear squeezed hard. They were standing against the wall and were close together, so there was no worry of being seen.

Although Monica slightly frowned, she then gave Adrian a flirtatious glance.

“Fine then, go ‘comfort’ her,” she emphasized heavily on the word “comfort.”

Adrian chuckled lightly, gave Monica’s shapely behind another squeeze, then found an excuse to leave.

At this moment, Julia was at the bar, sipping champagne glass after glass. Although she seemed calm on the surface, a closer observation would reveal her secretly gritting her teeth, obviously in a very bad mood.

“Hi, Julia, so happy to see you, remember me …” a man approached.

“Sorry, I don’t remember anything, and I’m not interested in chatting with you. If you want to chat up someone, please find someone else!” Julia curtly dropped the words without even a glance at the man, disregarding his embarrassed expression, picked up her glass, jumped off the bar stool, and walked away in no particular direction, clicking her heels.

After walking a good distance, Julia stopped and then covered her head with a low moan, which brought her a little clarity. After taking a deep breath, she turned to leave, but as she did, she ran into someone’s embrace, and a familiar voice rang out, “Ha, I think you must have had a lot of champagne.”

“Ed!” Although Julia called out the name with annoyance, a flicker of joy passed through her heart.

“What’s wrong? Am I mistaken?” Adrian feigned surprise, “Does champagne not contain alcohol?”

Julia rolled her eyes in annoyance, “Aren’t you supposed to be with your sexy lover?”

“Now? No need, I’m here to keep you company,” Adrian said with a smile, slipping his arm around her waist.

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“There are a lot of people here… Ed!” Julia’s words cut off as she widened her eyes and stared at him.

“Ah, the feel of your hips is quite nice too,” Adrian commented appreciatively.

“Is that so, how does it compare to your Monica?” What was intended to be a reproachful remark turned into something else at the tip of her tongue, and Julia could only cross her arms to maintain her stance.

“Well…” Adrian dragged out the words, then suddenly increased the strength and boldness of his hand, adding a few techniques and rhythm. Julia’s body immediately tensed up.

“Stop it, Ed!” She quickly glanced around, then said through gritted teeth, her cheeks flushing red, feeling both shy and oddly thrilled.

“Mm, each has its own merits,” Adrian stopped and said cheekily.

“You asshole.” Although she said this, there was not the slightest sense of blame in her heart.

“Sorry, Julia, I can’t stay too long, after all, this is Monica’s movie premiere,” Adrian suddenly put on an apologetic expression, “So can you go to Orange County with me the day after tomorrow? We can set up an umbrella on the beach, sip champagne while listening to the roar of the waves, talk about stuff we’re interested in, maybe even host a party, and invite some people over. Consider it compensation for not being able to spend today with you, okay?”

“There you go again, don’t think that this will… Ah!” Julia’s half-finished sentence turned into a low cry of surprise as Adrian’s hand pressed against her hips started moving again, this time pressing harder and varying the rhythm while further venturing inward. Julia was in shorts, which from a certain perspective, were even more convenient than a miniskirt.

“Stop it, Ed!” Julia’s face went red as she spoke through gritted teeth. However, she didn’t dare to move too much for fear of being seen and only clenched her hips tightly.

“I’ll stop as soon as you agree,” Adrian said with a chuckle.

“That’s blackmail!” Julia’s breathing quickened.

“No, no, no, dear, I’m just asking you,” Adrian raised his eyebrows, his fingers sliding a bit further down the crease of her thigh.

“Alright, alright, I agree! There, are you happy now?” Julia finally gave in.

“That’s wonderful, then it’s a deal,” Adrian laughed and leaned in to kiss the corner of her mouth, then quickly turned around and left.

“Asshole!” Julia backed up a few steps and leaned against the corner of the wall, her chest heaving rapidly. Although she swore softly and glared at Adrian’s retreating figure, her eyes remained dazed.

Watching her struggle was indeed an amusing thing. Adrian thought with a slight grin as he walked away. But you should give in to me sooner rather than later, Julia.

Just then, a crisp voice rang out next to his ear, “Mr. Adrian, may I request some personal guidance?”

Following that, a beautiful girl appeared before him. (To be continued. If you wish to know what happens next, please visit www.qidian.com. More chapters are available, support the author, support genuine reading!)