Across America, Starting with the Boxing Champion

 Chapter 120 Role Interview

After the game, Link returned to New York and transferred the 4.2 million US dollars earned into his account. The prize for this game was 10 million.

According to the pre-match negotiation, he and Tyson split the money 7:3, with the winner taking the big prize, and then split the money with Dynasty Promotion 6:4, leaving only 4.2 million.

He contacted Franco again and bought this apartment in Yorkville for 3.2 million. The real estate crisis is still ongoing and New York housing prices have dropped a lot. Buying real estate at this time is also a reasonable investment.

 He gave the remaining money to Ms. Cathy Wood, the manager of Vanguard Asset Management Company, and took advantage of the stock market to buy some technology stocks such as Amazon, Apple, Google, Netflix, and YouTube before the stock market rose.

 When the stock market recovers next year, it will not be difficult to become a billionaire before 2010.

 “Link? Are you Mr. Link Baker?”

At the Rooftop music bar on Third Avenue in Manhattan, Link was reading a newspaper. A surprised voice came from beside him. Link raised his head. They were two young men and women in their early twenties, both of whom looked at him with excited eyes.

 “Hello!”

“Mr. Link Baker, I am your boxing fan, can you give me an autograph?”

The boy said holding a picture album.

Link nodded, signed autographs for the two of them, and took a photo with them before the two fans left happily.

 After he defeated Tyson, Dynasty Promotions did a lot of promotional work to spread the news around the world.

His reputation in the boxing world is louder now than when he became the world boxing champion, and there are more and more boxing fans. In addition to his videos on YouTube, he is often recognized by people when he goes shopping.

 “Hey, Link, it’s true.”

Hearing someone say hello behind him, Link turned around and saw the blond-haired Paul Walker walking down the aisle with a wine glass. The two of them worked together once last time on the set of "Fast and Furious 4" in Miami, and they don't usually have much contact. I didn't expect to meet you here.

 “Paul, are you coming to New York too?”

Link waved his hand and invited Paul to sit down.

Paul showed a cheerful smile and said: "Yes, I came to New York to promote a new movie. I saw in the newspaper that you defeated Tyson again. You are really awesome."

"Tyson is too old. If he were younger, I would not be his opponent." Link said with a shrug.

"Haha, you are so humble. Last time in a Miami bar, you said you didn't know how to race. After you hit the road, you left us far behind in less than ten miles. Your skills are no worse than those of professional racing drivers. When will we Run again?" Paul Walker patted him on the shoulder and laughed.

This guy is a racing fan and never talks about racing. Link smiled and said, "Okay, I'll find you next time I go to Los Angeles. If I lose, you can keep the racing car."

 “No problem! That’s it.”

Paul Walker bumped his fist.

After chatting for a few words, Paul Walker stood up and left. His new movie "Rip Memory" was just released recently. It is a thriller and suspense film. This guy is also an ambitious person. After the popularity of "Fast and Furious" , will also take on some niche movies and try to transform.

Sent Paul Walker away, Link continued to read the script on the table. After a while, a middle-aged man wearing a black woolen coat came to the booth. He was about forty years old, white, with brown curly hair. He looked very energetic.

This person is exactly the person Link made an appointment with today, Darren Aronofsky, the director of the movie "The Fighter".

Director Darren is also a New Yorker. His representative works include "Requiem for a Dream" and "The Fountainhead", as well as the recently released "The Wrestler" and the future "Black Swan".

"The Wrestler" is also a sports-themed movie. It tells the story of a popular professional wrestler in the 1980s from glory to failure. After the movie was released, it received a good response. At the Venice Film Festival in August, the other party won the The film won the Best Director Award.

It is also for this reason that Relativity Pictures, the producer of "The Fighter", found him to be the director of this film. He also sent someone to send the script in Link's hand.

"Mr. Link, I'm sorry, I'm late."

 “It’s okay, I just arrived too.”

Link stood up, shook hands, and invited the other party to sit down.

Director Darren sat down and stared at Link, "Link, although I know you are a world boxing champion, I am still a little surprised to see you in person. You don't look like a boxer."

"oh?"

Link called the waiter and ordered a cup of coffee for Director Darren.

Director Darren spread his hands and said: "Do you know Mickey Rourke? The male protagonist of "The Wrestler". He used to be an actor. He changed his career to a boxer at the age of 29. Because of his frequent facial injuries, his facial muscles became stiff. And your facial muscles are very flexible, and you also have an artistic temperament, which makes it hard to believe that you will be a world boxing champion.”

Link laughed, "This is because I have better skills and it is difficult for ordinary people to hit me in the face."

 Another reason is that after being injured, he recovers faster and more thoroughly than ordinary people, so after the injury, his muscles and appearance will not be affected.

Director Darren nodded, "I've watched your fights. At first, I just wanted to know your fighting style. After just watching two games, I became your boxing fan. Your boxing skills are so great. You can combine your speed with yours." , strength, and skills are perfectly combined, and every game is very exciting.”

"Thanks!"

 Waiting for the waiter to deliver the coffee, Link took the initiative to change the topic to the script "The Fighter". After getting the script, he did a lot of work. First, he read performance books and learned several performance theories.

 The second is to find the contact information of Mickey Ward, the prototype of the protagonist of "Fighter", through the main event company, and ask about his personality and hobbies.

Even took the initiative to find director Woody Allen and ask him about acting.

Originally, he was very confident, but director Darren said that he didn't look like a boxer, which made him a little confused about what the other person was thinking.

“Link, after reading the script, what kind of person do you think Mickey Ward is?”

 Director Darren asked.

Link thought for a moment, "A person who is dull and dull, and has no independent ideas."

Mitch Ward's career has been controlled by his mother, who is an agent, and he has no plans of his own. Later, he met his girlfriend and was controlled by her again, breaking up with his mother's family.

In professional competitions, he has no personal ideas. He only listens to his brother's arrangements. He plays how his brother tells him to play. After his brother went to prison, he followed the coach's arrangements.

 His punches are tough, but his boxing IQ is low.

 When the male protagonist had to make a choice between his girlfriend, the coaching team, his mother, and his brother, he chose to escape.

In the end, his brother took the initiative to stand up and negotiate an agreement. In the end, his girlfriend and mother sat together, and he also defeated boxing champion Arturo Gatti in the boxing ring, a Hollywood-style ending.

“Link, you are smarter than Mickey in boxing. If you were to play him, how would you show his dullness and slowness?”

 Director Darren asked, crossing his fingers.

When Link read the script, he found that this character was a bit like Guo Jing, the hero of Guo. He was dull and soft-hearted, but he had a simple mind and no distracting thoughts. He was more focused during competitions and training. This is why Mickey Ward could become a boxing star. one of the reasons.

 It is not easy to play this role well.

He specifically approached director Woody Allen for advice, and the advice he gave was to have fewer facial expressions, speak less, speak slowly, don't move your eyes, and be quieter in both language and actions.

Link followed the instructions of Director Woody Allen, put on a dull expression, and slowed down his voice, "Director Darren, how do you feel?"

Director Darren stared at him. From a professional point of view, Link's performance was very rough and immature, much worse than a professional actor.

 The only bright spot is that the performance is spiritual, the appearance is outstanding, and it is recognizable.

 What he is thinking now is whether to give the role to Link for these reasons.

 In fact, it was his impulse to submit the script to Link's agency. When preparing for the movie "The Fighter", he planned to find a professional boxer to play the male protagonist, which would look more professional.

At that time, Link's game happened to be broadcast on TV. He felt that Link had a good image and was very suitable for this role, so he was given the script.

But after reading many reports about Link later, I discovered that Link and Mickey Ward were two types of boxers, one was slow, the other was shrewd, one was a late bloomer, and the other became famous at a young age. The more I read about them, the more I felt that they were very different. Not quite right.

Director Darren considered that Link was a world boxing champion and might not be interested in acting, so he did not withdraw the script.

 But two days ago, Link’s agent suddenly called and said that Link was interested in this role and wanted to have a chat with him.

Out of respect for Link, he came to the appointment and was prepared to politely reject Link in person. However, seeing that Link had some talent in acting, he hesitated a little. Should he collaborate with Link once?

"Link, let me ask you a question. You are a world boxing champion and you have done very well in boxing. I saw the New York Post's evaluation of you. Your potential is no worse than De La Hoya and Mayweather. You are already so successful, why would you want to become an actor?"

Director Darren asked curiously.

Link smiled softly, "There are many reasons, but two points are more important. First, I like acting and I have the desire to perform;

Secondly, I want to promote myself and the sport of boxing through movies. When he got the gold belt, Chairman Mendoza said that the gold belt is not only an honor, but also a responsibility. Every boxing champion The promotion of boxing should be regarded as an obligation to fulfill, so that more people can understand and learn boxing.

So when I saw the script of "The Fighter", I would not hesitate to follow it. I think playing this role is not only acting, but also a kind of boxing. "

Director Darren looked at him in surprise. He thought he would say that he loves acting and that being an actor is his dream, but he didn't expect that he would say that he would use this method to promote boxing. It seemed that he really wanted to be an actor, not an actor. Playing ticket nature.

Director Darren hesitated for a moment and decided not to reject Link in a hurry.

Link has a good image and is very popular. He is also a professional boxer and has some talent in acting. These are all advantages.

The only disadvantage is that his acting skills are immature, but this is not a big problem. For a professional director, talented actors are easier to work with than veteran actors.

“Link, this role is quite important. I can’t decide it by myself. I’m going to go back and discuss it with everyone. Maybe I’ll invite you to the production company for a second audition. I hope it won’t disturb you.”

 “No problem, I’ll wait for your call.”

Link said.

 (End of this chapter)