Chapter 84: Chapter 84: Casting
Indeed, Johnny Depp had beco the epito of a Hollywood bad boy due to his unrestrained lifestyle after gaining fa from “A Nightmare on Elm Street,” attracting plenty of innocent young girls. Throughout the ’90s, he had been involved in at least four lawsuits. Although he enjoyed a good collaboration with Tim Burton, he remained in an awkward semi-famous state until his lucky break in “Pirates of the Caribbean,” which finally catapulted him to stardom and smoothly inducted him into the 20 million club.
Talking about it, things like getting into fistfights over won in bars are pretty common—celebrities are human too, and Adrian bore no ill-will towards Depp. But, choosing to live under the spotlight ans paying the price. Sure, bad boys are cool and admired by the youth, but without wider approval, you never really make it to the top. If you want to change that, it could take years—Drew Barrymore is one such example.
Adrian, having decided to support Dennis for a series of reasons, naturally did not wish for him to spend over a decade to learn what’s doable and what’s not, hence he took this opportunity to give him a light warning—it probably had sothing to do with being a calm and rational person himself.
“Yes, I understand,” Dennis genuinely nodded.
“Do you really understand?” Adrian raised an eyebrow.
“I get what you an, Ed. As a public figure, I need to be aware of my role. Especially now that I am just beginning to make my mark, I need to be more cautious,” said Dennis.
“Good, my judgnt was not wrong,” Adrian crossed his arms and smiled slightly.
Although Dennis had not finished speaking, Adrian knew that he had indeed grasped his point—those who have experienced the highs and lows of life truly understand the importance of opportunities.
“Let’s leave it at that for now, but keep your role a secret for the mont, and let Roger find a way to calm these comnts down,” Adrian said then.
While jealousy in a bar isn’t sothing too serious, he decided to remain cautious. Besides, with Roger’s capabilities, he should be able to sort out this kind of issue for Dennis; that’s what agents are for.
“I understand,” Dennis imdiately nodded, and Adrian followed with a sly smile: “Of course, I fully support you pursuing the woman you like. Don’t worry, just charm her.”
If Adrian had known Dennis’s target was Winona that day, he definitely would have taught him more than just a casual talk. It was too interesting; he had actually intervened in one of Hollywood’s most famous couples from the early ’90s. Originally, Adrian just wanted to see how far Dennis could go, but this turned out to be a pleasant surprise. It seed he had so potential; who knows how things would develop next.
After resolving this matter, Adrian shifted his focus to other things, such as publishing the novel version of “Tomb Raider.” He was working again with Ben Arnt, a second-rate writer with so flair for adventure and horror novels, so it was ideal for him to fill out the world Adrian had created; their previous collaboration had gone quite well.
Like with “Resident Evil,” the sales for the novel “Tomb Raider” probably wouldn’t be very high, but as it was one of the rare adventure novels featuring a female version of Indiana Jones, it might perform a bit better if handled properly. Here, Ben Arnt must be praised—although his novels weren’t anything special, he had done a very thorough job in his research, consulting nurous materials on Peru and the legend of Atlantis, and had well-incorporated these details into the novel.
If his writing could undergo further training, he could definitely be considered a nurturing prospect, Adrian thought after reviewing the revised “Tomb Raider” screenplay. Both “Resident Evil” and “Tomb Raider” were series, and though their sales weren’t exceptional, there was still so profit to be made. With this in mind, it made sense to continue extracting the remaining value. Adrian certainly didn’t have much ti, so it seed better to provide an outline himself and let Ben Arnt handle the writing. A few adjustnts to the profit-sharing contract would suffice, as he wasn’t too concerned about the slight loss in royalties.
However, “The Matrix” was a different case; it couldn’t be handled the sa way. Firstly, Ben Arnt wasn’t suited to write science fiction, and putting it in his hands could very well turn into an adventure or horror story draped in a sci-fi disguise. Secondly, this novel was tied to many future endeavors, and sharing copyrights with soone else would be foolish. Therefore, it was best for him to handle the revisions himself. After all, there were a few more years to go, and editing a few sentences a day should surely see to its completion, right?
Besides that, Adrian had been busy with various other matters before shifting his focus back to casting. This ti, the casting announcent was made through internal channels. The dia was not aware of the details, and given the current era, which was not yet dominated by the internet, along with Adrian’s deliberate choice to keep a low profile among outsiders, the news of casting for the new movie wasn’t known to those outside the circle.
Even so, nearly a thousand videotapes had been mailed to the company, and nurous agents of second and third-tier actors had made in-person recomndations. Even so near top-tier actresses had engaged through different channels, given Adrian’s well-established reputation in the industry. Frankly, if his previous three films hadn’t featured so few standout female roles, the current situation would have been even more overwhelming.
David Michod, responsible for casting, strictly followed the criteria Adrian had set, initially weeding out many through the videotapes, followed by further eliminations over the phone, and then organizing preliminary auditions. He recorded the segnts of the actresses and handed them over to Adrian, the director and producer, to make the final decision.
“How many are left? 40?” Adrian asked, pinching the bridge of his nose tiredly after watching the videotapes for a long ti.
After receiving confirmation, he paused the TV screen signaling everyone to take a break. After pouring himself a cup of coffee, Adrian shook his head and sighed. Of the initial hundred actors, he hadn’t gone through nearly half, but so far, only three had caught his eye, and they just barely t the requirents.
Would he really have to resort to Uma Thurman? Adrian shook his head again. He walked back to his desk and, with a frown, began flipping through the profiles of the actresses again. In Hollywood, no one was irreplaceable; he just hadn’t found the right one yet.
After flipping through the profiles several tis, Adrian shrugged and was about to continue watching the videotapes but turned around suddenly as sothing occurred to him. He picked up the last profile and flipped through it, a curious expression crossing his face.
“David, do you rember this woman?” Adrian raised the profile towards Michod.
“Um… yes, the Italian woman. Decent deanor, good figure, has done so modeling,” Michod said, glancing at the profile and nodding.
“Find her tape,” Adrian said imdiately, his eyes lingering on the na in the file for a long ti.
(Waiting on everyone’s guesses … ask for votes and favorites …)
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